Peaceful Pilanesburg

Published Oct 8, 2008

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You know it's not always the Big Five that makes your trip to the Pilanesberg great, it's that feeling of the bush, the quiet of the veld and the tranquillity of the sounds of the birds twittering away outside your bedroom window. Now this is what I call a break from city life.

My brother-in-law, Kevin Ireland, has a timeshare accommodation at Bakgatla and he asked us to join him for the weekend. We have a caravan and booked into the park next to the chalets. The stands were large and shaded, with clean ablutions and a huge swimming pool, plus a little shop for those things you always forget. The company? Like-minded people who have come to enjoy nature at its best.

The joy is that this idyllic spot is under three hours' drive from Joburg towards Sun City on very good roads. And - a big plus - it's well worth stopping at some of the roadside stalls and shops along the way.

Early to bed and early to rise, is the call of the day and, as the morning breaks, the diesel bakkies are starting up to line up at the gates as the park opens. It reminds me of a scene from Apocalypse Now, where Robert Duval stands on the beach and inhales the smoke from the bombs.

Instead, I find myself standing and murmuring to my wife Avril: "I just love the smell of diesel in the morning." She giggles and holds her breath. Not moving too rapidly, because you don't in the bush, we pack a picnic basket and meet up with Kevin and his family just as the sun is rising.

Kevin is one of those frighteningly organised people who pack everything you need to spend the whole day driving around in the park, from a portable gas braai to ice for your cold-drink . I discovered this wonderful quality about him on a previous trip. In the park are terrific fenced-in areas complete with braai stands, toilets plus tables and chairs with great shade trees acting as natural umbrellas.

The only problem are the cheeky but very cute vervet monkeys. Unfortunately, people have been feeding them which means they can be a nuisance and often, daringly, steal from the tables. If there are kids around, they could give a serious bite. The moral of the story - don't feed wild animals.

We were fortunate because driving on a small sand road, we rounded a bend and came across a long-haired brown hyena carrying a carcass. By the time we'd stopped and found our cameras, it had already disappeared into the bush.

Just our luck we thought, nobody is going to believe us. Then, not even 100 metres from that spot, we glimpsed another brown hyena trudging through the veld. This one obliged with a photo opportunity and we clicked away. What a start to the day.

One of the highlights for me is that my brother-in-law is so knowledgeable about wildlife and the Pilanesberg, it's like driving around with your own private ranger.

It wasn't only the large things we saw for he showed us dung beetles doing their ball-rolling thing and a clutch of turtles sunbathing on almost submerged rocks in one of the many dams.

He's also an avid bird spotter and by sheer osmosis we became apprentice twitchers too.

We were so excited about the the small happenings that we'd totally forgotten about bigger things until suddenly we found ourselves in the middle of a herd of 30 or so elephants. Quietly, we just sat and watched them munching their way through the trees and grass all around us, rumbling away to each other.

So close were we that we could count the hair on their bellies.

But there is always the cretinous human halfwit. Some idiot in a hired kombi came right through the herd and upset a young female and her calf.

He was lucky to get through before she went into a full-on charge. For such a large animal, it was surprising how fast and how vicious her charge was. So taken were we with this, that we forgot to take the spoiler's registration number to report him to the office.

At one of the view points, Kevin spotted an orange fungus growing on some bark and took some remarkable pictures.

It's at times like this that I think how fortunate and privileged we are to have such a wild and wonderful spot such a short way from home. It's accessible and reasonable and, even if you don't stay over, a visit to the Pilanesberg is a great way to spend a day.

Bakgatla Resort is nestled at the foot of the Garamoga Hills with Colonial style chalets and luxury safari tents. Situated only 37km from Sun City, Bakgatla is set in a serene, peaceful bush environment.

If you go...

- Caravan site Mid-week R180 and weekends R230 peak times R270

- Bed & Breakfast

- Chalet 4 sleeper, Mid-week R1 750 and weekends R1 930 (peak times R2 000).

- Chalet 2 sleeper, Mid week R1 140 and weekends R1 310 peak times (R1 370).

- Prices quoted are per chalet sharing per night. Children under 12 yr - free accommodation sharing with two adults. Pay only R100 per child for breakfast & Dinner. Children below four - no charge with two adults.

- Tel: (014) 555 1000 Fax: (014) 555 7555

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