Rain Check

adventure map full of potential

A week later and our world is drying up fast. The waterfalls around the house finally ceased to flow yesterday. The mud is still saturated and slippery, but the plant life is flourishing and the early sunlight glows through a festival of green.

flooded road to Machampane

Sadly we had to call a rain check on our planned adventure to a remote bush camp in mozambique but in the Kruger Park, repairs are in progress at camps, and roads.  Rivers and streams are babbling brooks innocently sparkling in the sunlight as if they would never ever dream of that outrageous behaviour they showed us all last week. The only telling signs are the vegetation detritis hanging high in the branches of bushes on either bank.

bushbuck in Letaba camp

At Letaba camp it is business as usual and the border post to Mozambique is open again.  We drove through to Massingir with our friends from NYC - as a compromise and to make up for our mudshyness. Looking at the pools and wetlands on either side of the road confirmed our decision.

women with fish on their heads walking the Massingir Dam wall

The Massingir Dam was full of the brown water that flowed through SA in the past week.  As we arrived all the sluice gates were open. We drove around the small township and finally came to rest at a hotel type place with a view of the Dam. The warm aroma of bat guano seems to emanate from every place with a ceiling here but the ambiance was friendly and there were some ice cold beers.  

Massingir Dam swollen with floodwaters

tiny fishing rowboat center right, between island and shore

We had booked into some self contained chalets at the Park Entry gates - charming log cabins with thatch roofs and gauze windows.  The midday was sweltering hot . We decided to investigate the back roads a bit, and visit the other camp site and lodge.  The back road had been little used by anything other than cattle and firewood sleighs since the rains. Some villages had ploughed their new lands over the tracks, and another had sited their football pitch right across what was once the road. So its not suprising really that we missed the turn to the camp site.

the notch on the tusk suggests this elephant uses his right hand tusk for most of the work

Our evening drive  became rather longer than planned but we did see one bull elephant and some lovely woodland scenery. The sun was setting and we had forgotten to pack the cool box, so all aboard became a little quiet and focussed until we found the main road back to camp. There was a moment of tension when I thought I had lost the keys, but soon all were smiling again and the night sky was clear and spangled with those glorious stars.

beauty in the eye of the beholder

Rumour has it there is another tropical storm or cyclone off the east coast but so far we are looking at clear blue skies.

Letaba Camp view