Breaking Free from Lockdown. A Gecko Road Trip. Day 19 Letaba

Friday 13 August 2021

Last night the wind got up and our little caravans got quite a shaking. It was still blowing and the skies were dark with cloud when we woke up this morning. Our plan had been to go to Phalaborwa on Monday but because of the inclement weather, the Earl and I decided to go today instead. Cathy and Alec stayed, did a morning drive but reported that nothing much was seen.

It is just over an hour’s drive to the Phalaborwa Gate and you reach the town straight away. We saw very little on our way there. It seemed as if the animals were hunkering down to shelter from the wind.

But why were we visiting a town in the middle of Limpopo? Well, 42 days previously we’d had our first Pfizer inoculation and we were now due for a second jab. How fortunate that Letaba was close to a town that had a Clicks Pharmacy. I phoned ahead to check that they had vaccines and they assured me that I did not need to make an appointment. Luck, once again, was on our side. We arrived at 9:40 and found two people ahead of us. Within forty-five minutes we had waited our turn, filled in the necessary forms and been jabbed. When we emerged from the nurse’s office there was a queue of more than 10 people!

We popped into the Spur for breakfast and then drove back through the park. If ever you’re in Phalaborwa and need a meal this Spur is lovely – good service, well prepared food and clean rest rooms.

On our drive back we saw a few more animals than coming up but it was still very quiet.

A giraffe road block

A Zebra Crossing

Were they in cahoots?

Lovely creatures

At least we got a decent bird – Little Egret

It was windy and cold for the rest of the day. The Earl had a nap while I did the laundry and then we went for a brief drive at 4 o’clock not having much luck. Cathy and Alec had gone out at 3 and reported having seen very little too.

Always entertaining – so like us aren’t they

Elephants never disappoint

They didn’t block the road today!

We returned to camp at about quarter to six and went straight to the restaurant to see if we could get a table. No way did we feel like cooking outdoors. Sitting outside this evening would not be pleasant. The restaurant was pretty full. All the softie campers were escaping cooking in the cold. I managed to get a table for four indoors. I rang Cathy and Alec to tell them to come when they were ready – we would hold the table. Because of being short staffed and more than usually busy the service was a bit slow but the meal was lovely. Alec, Cathy and I had rump steak and the Earl had ribs, all served with really good chips. We also ordered a Greek salad for the table.

The End

Apologies for not posting last night – NO INTERNET!