We parked underneath the zebra carcass high in the tree, and we waited. It was 6:30am and we got up at 5 to be in place here, hoping to see the male leopard who’d stashed the zebra up the tree. Imagine a cat carrying a small horse into a tree – yes, leopards are amazing. This leopard is shy. After 30 minutes or so, I see him approaching in the long grass. He comes into full view and stops, eyeing us even though we are not in his way. Still, he backs off and lays down and it is unlikely he will rise again, so on we go. Welcome to morning in Kruger National Park.

Kruger is the crown jewel of South Africa’s parks, taking up nearly a quarter of the county of Mpumalanga, with the Oliphants River splitting the park into two zones. North are the Mopane trees, south are Marula trees, more or less. As mentioned previously, this is our third visit; it takes many days to see a park this big and we are barely scratching the surface. This final visit is a long-awaited homecoming of sorts for me – we are staying at both Satara Camp and Orpen Camp. Orpen and Satara have permanent waterholes and at those waterholes are webcams broadcasting 24/7; whatever happens here, people are watching all over the world. I was one of those “webcammers” for years; to be here in person is truly a privilege.

Orpen is a very small camp, only 15 units, and fully fenced for what it’s worth. Animals that want in can get in somehow and this hyena in the cover photo wanted inside. It did not end well. We were just sitting down to eat lunch when the hyena ran past our deck, quickly followed by the camp ranger carrying a rifle and a sidearm. The ranger fired a warning shot and the hyena raced up to the deck next to us. Needless to say we stepped inside and shut the door – hyenas are not to be trifled with. Once the creature had crossed the line, aggressively running into the camp laundry and scattering the staff, the ranger had no choice but to end the conflict. The resident honey badger is slightly less trouble, only coming into camp kitchens at night to raid the garbage, but still not a creature to mess with. And as anyone who has seen the YouTube video knows, honey badger don’t care.