The thing about being a parent is that you can only pass on so much knowledge to your offspring. Sooner or later, they’re going to have to face the world and learn from their mistakes.
The leopard female we were watching from the Idube Game Reserve vehicle seemed to have that ages-old look of resignation you see often on the faces of mothers as she watched her two cubs trying what was clearly their first stalking of prey.
They saw, and tried to stalk, a spotted genet perched high in the branches of an acacia tree. It was an unequal contest: the gangly, unco-ordinated cubs were easily seen by the other, smaller feline predator, which made good its escape. If leopards could roll their eyes heavenwards in resignation, then that is perhaps what Mommy did.
That wasn’t enough, however, to deter the cubs, and they fixed their attention on a nearby nyala bull, which easily outranked them in size. Clearly irritated by the whippersnappers’ impertinence, the nyala barked its defiance for a while. Then, perhaps as it became aware of the mother (an altogether more serious opponent), the buck did what prey animals do best when faced with predators of any size… it ran.
The theatre of the African bush entertained us enormously during our stay at Idube, which is in the Sabi Sands conservancy. iDube means zebra in Zulu and although we didn’t see any during our visit, my wife and I were entertained on our game drives.
During dinner on our first night, owner Louis Marais had confided to me that Idube “had it all” and I thought it was an idle boast. How wrong I was proved during our stay.
On our first evening game drive we saw two civets. During a morning drive we came across a young leopard trying to catch a Natal francolin, unsuccessfully. My favourite raptor, a bateleur, appeared in the sky above a pack of wild dogs we were watching and I was hard-pressed to know which to capture on film first.
Even though the veld was dry and in need of rain after a recent fire, the bird life and raptors seemed to enjoy hunting in these open spaces. Unlike most lodges that serve only brunch and dinner, Idube serves a late lunch just before guests depart on the afternoon game drive. But fear not, as there is a well-equipped gym to help keep extra kilos at bay.
The accommodation was more than we were expecting, with a comfortable bed, a small seating area and a desk. The bathrooms have recently been upgraded and even though there is a bath and shower indoors there is also a private outdoor shower.
Our chalet also had a small veranda where we spent some time watching arrow-marked babblers and tree squirrels as they scurried around nearby.
The food is plentiful and tasty. At breakfast we were served a delicious impala and eland stew; dinner was served in the open boma, and lunch is served next to an open-plan outdoor lounge that has access via a swing bridge to a hide that fronts a waterhole next to the camp.
As the camp is unfenced, guests are walked to and from their accommodation at night. Much safer for both guests and animals, as we certainly believed that neither species wanted to encounter the other.
Our game drives were entertaining and informative and our tracker was able to emulate “David Attenborough” and found us an elusive pack of wild dogs.
It was on this game drive that we ended up in a large herd of buffalo meandering along looking for grazing among the burnt foliage.
Our final evening game drive got us up close and personal with two lions doing what lions do best… sleeping. However, upon hearing a lioness calling close by, they sat up and started vocalising. Never having been that close to a calling lion before it was intimidating: our vehicle vibrated to the resonance of their calls – something we were glad to experience from the safety of a vehicle.
After calling for about a minute the lions had enough and as one fell onto their backs and went to sleep… again.
As the sun went down we stopped for drinks at a waterhole which contained a large pod of hippo as well as a lone Nile crocodile.
As if all this excitement was not enough we became part of a breeding herd of elephant for a short time and rounded off the drive by spotting a white-tailed mongoose.
During the return trip to the lodge the tracker’s spotlight found a scorpion in the middle of the road. Unhappy with this interruption of its evening hunt, the scorpion danced around like a miniature Rocky Balboa, ready to take on our vehicle. Our ranger felt that this mismatch would be unfair and we left the creature to continue on its way.
But our exciting evening was still not over. On returning to our chalet we watched enthralled as a gecko stalked a praying mantis only to fail in his kill at the final moment.
The next morning’s game drive produced the leopards with L plates, and ended with coffee next to a dam which was home to a lone bull hippo that did not take too kindly to its territory being “invaded” by one of the young guests on our vehicle. With a loud bellow it was hippo 1, guest nil… and we packed up and left for camp and breakfast
It was the same guest who had been “caught short” on an earlier drive and had to heed the call of nature while the herd of buffalo went by. A short while later he had to “go” again and this time he had to speed things up as there was a leopard walking towards him. I certainly would like to be a fly on the wall when he gets back to school in the US and tries to convince his school mates that these two incidents actually took place.
The whole experience was enhanced by our ranger Andries, who got me into the best position for my pictures and Titus, our tracker, who found us the wild dogs.
l Contact details: Telephone: 011 431 1120, email: [email protected], or visit www.idube.com. - Saturday Star