Singita

From London we flew 2.5 hours to Madrid where we had a fantastic 6 hour layover. From there it was a 10+ hour overnight flight into Johannesburg South Africa. Clearing customs in Johannesburg can try even the most patient traveler. Odds are 2 out of three immigration officials are "in training." Look for the fast moving line(s) and get in it.

There is one flight a day from Jo burg to the Lebombo Airport. Ok, Lebombo doesn't have an airport but there is a nice level dirt strip. Federal Air flies there most days at 11:30am. The folks at Singita arranged our air. We arrived too late for the daily flight so we had to rent a plane. The flight, in an old twin Beechcraft, took just over an hour and a half.

Once at the Lebombo airstrip we were met by a Singita employee to drove us to the reserve. It was a pleasant 45 minute trip.

There were no surprises upon arrival. Singita is a first class operation that attracts the finest employees the safari industry has to offer. The reserve looks just like their website only better.

Crocodile Africa
Elephant Africa Singita
Giraffe South Africa Lion Singita African Elefant

Singita is a private reserve that is next to Krueger. The animals travel freely between the two.

The photos on this page were all taken by me (Rick Culleton) on our first day, Wednesday 3/29/06. There is no shortage of wildlife and none of it seemed too shy.

Baboon South Africa
Buzzard Singit Reserve These buzzards seemed ominous day or night.

The game drives in the open top Range Rovers were the highlight of every day. 		Buzzard Safari Africa
Africa Crocodile Safari Singita Spoted hyena The spotted Hyena was one of the first animals we came across. These guys have no real predators.
Although tablets such as Malarone are strongly recommended due to the high incidence of Malaria, the insects were not a bother to us. Hippos Africa Safari Insects Africa
Kudo Africa Safari Singita Lion Africa South

This Lion rushed our Rover from out of nowhere. I was so startled I missed her all together with the first photo.

If you want to see lions this is the place to be!

Zebra Safari South Africa To the right is the lodge we stayed at. From this very point we also took the picture of the crocodile above. Singita Lebombo
There were Lions at every turn. These guys were just walking down the road. The two in the foreground are the alpha males for the territory. Lions Everywhere Lion_safari_African
King of the Jungle Giraffe Africa Giraffes can be the easiest of all the animals to spot. We even saw one while taking a walk.
Impala Nursing It is surprising how unafraid of humans most of these animals are. Sometimes they seem as curious about us as we are them. Lions Night South Africa

 

Bush Walk Singita
The gun is only for peace of mind. I am told it has never been needed.
Tom and I took a 2 hour bush walk. We saw much more wildlife from the Rovers than we did on foot. We did need the exercise after eating all of Singita's great food for 2 days.

There are 2 game drives every day. The first is at 5:30am and the second is at 4:30pm. They last about 3 hours. There was always plenty of room. They are very comfortable.
South Africa Safari
Grasshopper South Africa

To the left is a very colorful grasshopper we saw a few times.

To the right is the lounge overlooking the river at Singita.

Singita African Safari
Cocktail Lounge Singita

(Left) This is the cocktail lounge at Singita. You'll find most everyone there after an evening game drive.

 

(Right) This is Tom and a giraffe. Tom is the one closer to the camera.

African Safari Tom Giraffe
If Singita is in your budget I highly recommend the place. Other than a reasonably priced massage and a couple souvenirs, I didn't spend a dollar while I was there. Even the drinks at the bar were included! They did my laundry too.