Lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my!

As you have probably already determined, we've had difficulty getting on a computer. We never did get a router at the hunting camp, and these past three days in Kruger National Park, we've had no opportunities at all. So here I am trying to catch you up. First, the hunters each had one more kill: Gene, an Impala, and Duane, a Kudu. Gene is taking home four trophies, Duane three. After breaking his rifle, Duane's bad luck continued another day with a miss at an Impala and no luck sighting a Gemsbuck. However, after he decided to not pursue a Zebra (they never did see any on the hunting ranches) and instead put his $$ on a Kudu (sometimes called the African elk—see picture). He shot a nice one which certainly improved his mood! And we were even able to eat filets from his specific animal (the meats served in camp are from previous hunts, since they really prefer to cure it first).

We had a delightful stay at the hunting camp, and were very spoiled, especially since we were the only clients! The night before we left, 10 people arrived: a large family with four kids, parents, and grandparents, and another couple. Gone was the peace and quiet! Early Monday morning we left the hunting camp with our guide, an extremely personable, likeable, and knowledgeable guy. He drove us to and through Kruger Park, narrating on history, culture, plants and animals along the way. I don't think there was one bird or plant or animal that he didn't know about. Evidently, the travel and tour guides have to be educated and certified in South Africa, and he was incredible! Of course, he was also just a really great guy! The Park is over 7,500 square miles (40,000 acres?) of open range where the animals just roam about, so the gates are locked at the entrances and then also at each camp at 5:30 pm everyday. Of course, you're not allowed out of your vehicle until you reach a camp. We had beautiful sightings of all of the Big Five, except, unfortunately, the elusive leopard. The Big Five are elephant, rhinoceros, cape buffalo, lion and leopard—the five most dangerous animals to hunt. Elephants (different from the Indian elephants we see in circuses) wandered across the road in front of us several different times, as well as giraffe, zebra, and at one point, a very large herd of Cape Buffalo (300 or so) crossed the road, both in front of and behind our car! I felt a little nervous whenever a big bull turned to look at us. These road crossings were very lucky—most of the animals are sighted grazing, sleeping, whatever, in the distance. We did have three separate lion sightings, one on a night tour from one of the camps, where a huge lion was lying in the middle of the road! He stood up in front of our vehicle and simply sauntered off the road. His mane, markings, etc. were just gorgeous! We were able to see him with the spotlights—what a great sight! (but too dark to photograph). And the first night in camp, we heard a lion roaring—could not have been too far away! The two camps we stayed in (again, individual thatched-roof chalets with own baths) each overlooked a river, and we could watch for animals to come to drink in both the evenings and the mornings. Always impala, other buck, and sometimes buffalo, elephant, zebra were seen at the rivers. The animals are not fed or taken care of by the Park; the predators and other natural rules of selection maintain the balance. That is, except the elephants, which occasionally are reduced by destroying a small herd. Evidently, because of their memory, an entire group must be destroyed rather than selecting the old ones or whatever. Kruger animal reserve is incredible, and it is a must-do if you ever go to South Africa. Of course, to fully appreciate the Park, you must hire our guide to not only give you information along the way but to also help spot the animals which are in the bush.Today, Wednesday, we took a flight from near the Park to Cape Town, where we will spend our last three nights before returning home. So we have left the bush to head to the city...

Gun Gone!

Today Dee and I visited a neighborhood spa for our choice of treatments. The most attractive-sounding one was the age-defying facial (I need it everyday!!) to which we added pedis and manis. The kill of the day was Gene's gemsbuck. But the loss of the day was Duane's rifle. After looking at Gene's trophy gemsbuck, Duane got so frustrated that he threw his gun in the bush and broke it! Guess he's done hunting for the rest of the trip...truthfully, the stock on his gun had a hairline crack in it, but when he leaned it against the truck and it was run over, he really did have a gun in pieces! So now he'll have to borrow one in order to bag any more trophies. After all the time, paperwork and money getting that rifle here, it really is a sad, sad story!
Hunting here is not quite as I expected. It seems that most of the Province (and maybe several provinces) are divided into hunting farms which are surrounded by 8-foot tall fences. Of course the fences don't keep all the animals in--certainly not the cats, the warthogs and other small animals that can go between the rows of wire--but even the giraffe and kudo don't usually jump over. Each farm has its own animals and keeps track of the stock, buying and selling, breeding as needed. If the outfitter doesn't have the animals the hunter wants, they have arrangements with other farms to hunt their land (in return for fees for any animal shot, of course). Don't get me wrong, farms are huge, many with thousands and thousands of acres. However, driving down the main road, you pass gate after gate of different hunting farms. So this is almost a "hunting Disneyland." I might be naive, but I guess I expected a totally open range. Anyway, hunting seems to be the economic lifeblood here, at least in this part of South Africa. As one of our fellow airplane passengers said, "and S.Africans love Americans."

Warthogs!

Yesterday Dee and I visited the Mogalakwena Craft Center. Here women from the Pedi tribe embroider their history on pillows, cloths, etc. and make other crafts. It is also a retreat for artists to stay and study. We then had lunch at the main lodge which is for photographic safaris with luxurious chalets and main buildings on a river. Quite lovely! They have no guests now (winter) but we had a fabulous lunch on the upper deck overlooking the river. And while we did this the boys were searching for the ugliest warthogs they could find. Those creatures are very fast and quick to hide in the bush, but the men were quite thrilled with their find (and so was Dee, as she already has a spot in her house picked out for the head!). Oh--and we had impala for dinner which I must say was very, very good. And the local wine, bourbon and beer are all quite delicious. The days have been very comfortable but as soon as the sun sets, it gets very chilly. So we gather around the big fire pit, and the dogs fight over whose lap to sit on!

First Blood

Here we are--the hunting camp is very, very nice, and as the four (Gene and Dee Terland and Duane and me)of us are the only visitors, we are truly being spoiled. The men are on their second day of hunting today, and they have already drawn first blood. They each shot a steenbuck yesterday, and today they're looking for gemsbuck or impala or zebra (I know, I know, but what a gorgeous rug!). Dee and I have been sleeping in, getting to know the camp, and yesterday we were there for the kill. Tomorrow we'll probably go to a spa and/or local shopping. The scenery is just like the pictures of Africa that we've seen. The sunset from the safari truck was beautiful.
There are several dogs and one cat here at camp. Three of the dogs (Jack Russells and Terrier) are trained or being trained for hunting. The youngest is getting spoiled on our laps, however. Warthogs come right to camp to eat dog biscuits. There are also bunches of gray monkeys hanging from the trees, but they don't venture inside camp. We've seen Steenbuck, Impala, Kudu (WOW!), Warthogs, Gemsbuck, and COWS! No cats, yet, but they are baiting a leopard for the next hunter (maybe I should scare it away....). Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Sleepless to Africa

So there must be something about Harleys 'n Huntin'! Our flight out of Dulles to Johannesburg was full of hunters, and several around us also ride. Must be the redneck mentality--ha! 'Course I almost got lynched when I voiced my Democrat learnings! Our flight seemed endless. After 7 hours, we stopped in Dakar, Senegal to refuel. From Dakar to Jo-burg was another 8. I thought I was being so smart to "borrow" several ebooks to put on my mini computer, but I ran out of juice after 2 hours, so now I'm desperate for reading materials. Have to buy a couple of paperbacks somewhere!
It's probably Murphy's Law that worrying about something will surely cause it. So as I was the only one concerned about checking my bag, of course it was my bag that didn't show up in Jo-burg. After waiting for an eternity I headed for the baggage question desk. While waiting for my turn to give a local address I noticed a pile of bags nearby. I continued to stare at the pile until it dawned on me that my bag was in that pile. So I left the line and wandered over there. Sure enough, my bag was there--in the pile of unclaimed baggage!
We got through customs check, gun pick-up, and money exchange very quickly and loaded into a van for a LONG 4 hour drive up to camp. It is in Limpopo Province, between the towns of Baltimore (!!) and Tolwe, near the Botswana border. More about camp tomorrow....

P.S. Now I've come full circle!

Don't forget--I left my Harley in St.George. So Saturday, July 3, we rode down with another couple, Sherrie and Casey. We rode over the Nebo Loop which was gorgeous and co-0-0-ld! We warmed up fast when we hit St.George--100 degrees! Checked into our motel, picked up my bike, and met up with the other couple, Heidi and Travis. We all went to dinner and then to the performance of CATS! at Tuacahn, the most incredible outdoor theatre! The redrock background is absolutely fabulous, and the entire venue is exquisite! CATS! was very, very well done, and our friends want to go back in October to see THRILLER! On Sunday we took a leisurely ride up past Snow Canyon to the little volcanic community of Pine Valley. Pretty sights! Enjoyed some time at the pool and got up early to return home via ZION Park. Monday turned out to be another challenging ride for me. The road through ZION was torn up and graveled---lots of switchbacks all the way up the mountain with tourist traffic in both directions. What a mess! All I could do was gut it out and keep going! Finally hit good pavement at the famous mile-plus long tunnel. The extreme darkness scared me until I took off my sunglasses! OK--so now I've lots of experience on gravel--and climbing, turning in gravel at that! The trip from Zion to Panguitch was very good, and we stayed on Highway 89 until Nephi. I managed the interestate construction through Lindon well--I cursed the sun, however, cuz it almost blinded me at times. Never have I been so anxious to have the sun hide behind the mountain--it got pretty difficult to see the shifting lanes through that construction with the sun setting directly in my eyes! But, yes, I made it full circle without an accident and without even laying the bike down! Am I ready for more?? Yes, but with some parking lot practice. I need to work on U-turns, backing the monster up to park, and all other small area maneuvers. However, some 1200 miles later, I'm pretty proud of making it out of the parking lot!! Enjoy the pictures! And stay tuned for hunting in South Africa; we leave July 17.

My first ride is over!

It has been nine days on the motorcycle--and five of those I was driving my own! I'm still not sure how I got out of town. Duane tells me NOW he expected me to back out at the beginning, especially since I had not been on my bike in almost a week (I had lots of excuses not to practice!). Now I'm very excited to pick my bike up and try to ride everyday. I have to admit, I'm a bit scareeeeed to go with three other couples (the one gal drives her own, and she's my role model)--I'm most worried about driving into parking lots, gas stations, etc., where manuevering in tight places is still pretty difficult for me. Anyway, we drove from Durango, CO to home in a little under nine hours. Not too bad for about 450 miles. Stopped to eat lunch in Moab, UT. Took off our leathers there, put sunscreen on, but I forgot my legs. I was wearing shorts and burned my knees!! The kitty was sure happy to see us--he won't let us out of his sight now! Tommy watered my flowers and Duane's veggies faithfully, and we have a bunch of green tomatoes and one pepper! Continue our motorcycle antics next weekend, when we go to St.George to pick up mine. We got tickets at Tuacahn for Saturday night (performing CATS), will return on Monday. More later!

Let's do it again!

We got up early today, so we could enjoy the B & B breakfast and so we could mail home some shirt purchases and dirty clothes (bike space may be limited, but we like to buy shirts from areas we travel). Then we rode up to the mining town of Silverton, and on to the Million Dollar Highway with all the narrow and risky switchbacks. Gorgeous scenery! It began to rain and even hail on the Million Dollar Highway, so we stopped to put on our rain gear, and Duane kept everything under control. I'm not sure I could do all those tight curves--especially those without guard rails and sheer drop offs, and I know the rain would've scared me to death. We had intended to do the entire San Juan Loop, but once at the top, we ate lunch and determined that it would be faster to just do the Million Dollar Highway and all the sharp switchbacks one more time, rather than go down the mountain the long way. So we did it again, sans rain this time!! This country is very beautiful, and we've enjoyed the rides! Tomorrow we head for home via Moab. And so next weekend, over the fourth, we'll go back to St. George to pick up my bike. Have invited some friends, so I'll get experience riding with a few other bikers.

It's a Beautiful Day!

Wow! What a gorgeous day for riding! The weather was perfect! It was warm, but not hot, due to the overcast sky. The clouds threatened rain, but only succeeded in keeping us cooler than yesterday! Had poker cards to get punched at several stops along the way, and really enjoyed the beautiful scenery across northern Arizona. Also enjoyed the Navajo code-talkers exhibit in Kayenta, Az. Stopped at the sign for Four Corners, but it was closed for construction. Guess it's a lie, anyway, since the surveyers put the actual spot at some 20 miles away! Ha! Checked into a bed and breakfast in Durango (the Leland House--really great!) rather than stay at the rally location, a casino some 20 miles out. Spent some time on Main street Durango tonight doing the "pub crawl." Plan to get up early tomorrow in order to drive the 250 mile San Juan loop, also called the Million Dollar Highway. Supposed to be very incredible switchbacks up the mountain to the mining town of Silverton. Duane promises to abide by the speed limits on the curves. Enjoy!

Be careful what you wish for.

You know the old adage, Be careful what you wish for...? Yeah, well after an uncommonly cool and rainy, snowy spring, I was ready for hot, summer weather. So today, leaving St. George and riding to Page, Arizona, we encountered it. I bet it was 110 degrees in that southern area today. Talk about a group of hot and sweaty HOGS! You could almost see the steam rise off the engine and the pavement! It was beautiful, though. I had never been to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon--gorgeous views! Groups of riders left this morning at various times and took various routes. We rode with about a dozen other bikes, mostly from our chapter group. Gas stations were almost comical, with all the maneuvering of those machines as we met up with other groups. I know I couldn't have done it, but I'm observing--especially the women drivers--very closely. We're here at Wahweap tonight, and will travel to Durango, CO tomorrow. I can't believe that I'm at Lake Powell without getting on a boat or going waterskiing. And the temps are perfect for that!! It was a lovely day, and my stress level has gone down considerably! And I took bunches of pictures today. We're looking forward to a great ride tomorrow.

I CAN do this!

Besides my inability to sleep well and my upset stomach, today I got what better be the final straw in my stressed out body: an ugly cold sore on my lip! UGHHHHH! But we hit the roads of Las Vegas early, stopped at the "historic" sign on the strip (I had to manuever that median parking, then U-turn out of it----so maybe I winced at my wide turn, but I made it! Ha!). And then we got on I-15 and drove all the way to St. George. We stopped in Mesquite to rest my tired hands (why do my fingers get numb? Duane says it's my death grip!!), but I kept my speed up (well, maybe I slowed on the curves in that canyon...!). We had the kids at the Rally wash our bikes and then put mine in the show--got beat by a fancy, schmanzy new soft tail--was fun, anyway! The rally planners have done a good job putting together events and scenic routes (complete with choices through various national parks and the Grand Canyon). Tomorrow we go through Zion and the Grand Canyon on the way to Page, Arizona, where we'll stay at the base of Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Dam. I'll be able to take great pictures from the back of Duane's bike and certainly not have to worry about going over any cliffs!! (My bike is safe in a garage in St.George, and we'll pick it up on July 3.)

I think I can...

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. Carmen reminded me of The Little Engine That Could when I was having serious doubts about even going on this trip. After yesterday, though, I think I got this down! Yes, we hit more wind riding from Pioche to Las Vegas, but I was a little less stressed in it. And I wanted to avoid that whole interstate thing in Vegas, since we have to go all the way through Vegas with tourists exiting and entering the interstate all along the way, so we circled around to Overton to come in closer to Tiffany and Chris' house. Yeah, that was a mistake! Hit 20 miles of construction outside of Overton in the very hilly roads which included several miles of loose gravel and dirt! Are you kidding me?? I think Duane was afraid I'd stop and tell him to walk back and drive my bike, too! Ha! Well, it did stress me out--so much so, we forgot to stop and take any pictures along the way! So we'll take some in Vegas today and include them tomorrow. The kicker is we got on the interstate in Vegas anyway, and I didn't freak out. Although I told Duane later if he had stopped just before getting on (to coach me or whatever), I wouldn't have gone. As it was, our radios had quit (we need to get some back up batteries for these long days!) so I had no choice but to follow! So 600 miles later, I'm proud to say I made it to Las Vegas without an accident or tipping the bike over. Have to admit, I was crazy-nervous for the most part, but I arrived here feeling more in control--enough so to finally get a good night's sleep! We're spending today with Tiffany and Chris, then tomorrow we'll get on the interstate (yes, and go through Vegas!!) to go to St. George where the Utah-Colorado Rally starts. We're helping with registration (me) and parking (Duane) so have to be there by noon. I'll be parking my bike at a friend's vacation home (actually, she's my boss!) while we go to Colorado, and while I'm excited to be able to take pictures from the back of Duane's bike, I'm not nearly as anxious now to park my bike (yesterday morning, I was ready to leave it in Pioche, NV!!).

Out of the parking lot

They say things happen in threes. So after driving over 330 miles my first day out of the parking lot (literally!!), I am a believer. Duane's patience was probably tested, but he resigned himself to my (lack of) speed. However, my excuse is not just that I am a real beginner at this driving stuff, but as we drove down The Loneliest Highway from Delta, UT almost straight west to the Nevada border, we encountered extremely strong winds. Now remember, I'm new to the whole clutch, down shift, up shift, hand brake, foot brake, balance--you name it--thing. So I struggled to maintain my balance in the gusts of wind that were so strong that at one point the dirt and dust blowing across the road created a virtual fog that we couldn't see through. Yep, that was the first "happening," and unfortunately, it lasted all day!! Ok, so I survived. I didn't lay the bike down, but I was scareeeed to death!. My shoulders became sore from holding my arms stiffly. I was certainly physically exhausted, but I think my mental state was even more worn out by the end of the day! And the second happening? Well, a stupid bee ran into my neck and left his stinger in me! And as I was holding on for dear life in the winds, I couldn't even swat him away! All right, so all riders put up with a few bee stings. By this time you're wondering about number three. Those of you who know Duane well, know that he likes to push the limit on the gas capacity of his vehicles. I can't even count the number of times he's run out of gas! So of course it's his fault that I ran out of gas just 6 miles from our destination! Well, maybe we should've believed the signs that there were no services for over 100 miles...hmmm. So that's really why it's called The Loneliest Highway! I will pay more attention, especially considering I don't have a gas gauge! Luckily, Duane has a friend in Pioche, NV, where we stayed, and he rescued me with gas. So after a very long day, I survived my first ride. I guess the scenery was beautiful, but I could only keep my eyes on the road and traffic ahead!! We're staying here two nights, and then plan to go to Las Vegas to visit Tiffany and Chris. I'm real stressed about driving in that city, so I may convince Duane to let me park my bike, but we'll see. Have a couple of pictures for you to look at.

Getting ready...

Welcome to our summer 2010 blog! Duane and I are going to document our Harley rides and our African Hunting Safari, so join us for pictures and fun! Duane's Harley is a 2006 Road Glide, and mine is a 1989 Heritage Softtail. I'm a beginner so will not be taking my bike on all the rides, but I will ride on some. In fact, next week before we meet the group in St.George for the UTAH-COLORADO STATE HOG RALLY, we will ride both bikes to Pioche, Nevada, and on to Las Vegas. Then I plan to leave my bike in St.George, rather than ride with the large group, which is traveling to Page, Arizona and on to Durango, Colorado for the completion of the RALLY.