09/06/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Cloudy
Min temp: 09°C
Max temp: 12°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Ladysmith to take trailer tyre to get fixed, went to Diesel Electric to get
the tractors starter motor fixed. Took Bibs to Gail to get logos on, but she was
not available at the moment.
12:00 Got home and sent reports through, I still can’t get my mail to go through to the
U.K. Will have to sort that out quickly.
13:00 Went up the mountain to look for Giraffes, saw 12 just as I left the farm house.
13:30 Just as I reached the foot of the mountain I saw a Grey Duiker male
14:00 Got to the top of the mountain and scanned the area below with my binoculars, only saw 2 Kudu cows, it was very cloudy and cold and most of the animals were deep inside the bushes hiding from the chilly wind.
15:00 Got down and found a dead Brown Hooded Kingfisher on the veranda of the farm
house, must have flown into the window. Took some photos of the bird to get a
closer view of the colours of the feathers.
15:30 Went over the stocking density files of the farm to see what we can do to bring in
more animals and what we need to bring in. Me and the Game Guards are going
to spend most of the week counting all the animals we have, to see what we
need to bring in.
16:30 Home
10/06/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 13°C
Max temp: 21°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Left to the mountains side to count Impalas
09:30 Found the first group halfway up, there was 5
10:30 I turned around at the foot of the mountain and went to the pond at the foot of the
mountain, on the way I counted 37 Impala
11:30 I went up to the lodge to check for Impala there, did not see any, only 12 Giraffe
12:30 Went home to go over the stocking number on UmPhafa for Impala, if I worked it
I worked it out correctly we can stock up to 333 Impala, but I think we have
Enough for the moment
14:00 Went to the main gate and that surrounding area, counted 6 Zebra and saw a
Sacred Ibis but no Impala
15:00 Got to the ryefield area and counted 11 Waterbuck and 95 Impala, searched around the area but did not find any more
16:30 I counted 137 Impala, but that’s just the animals I could see from the road and I
estimate that their numbers are well above 150
11/06/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 14°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Ladysmith with Mike to get the AFTW Vehicle’s s tyre fixed and to
take the bibs to Gail to get the logos on
12:30 Went up to Mark Newton’s place to get some shale to fix the roads up that side.
We got the TLB driver up there and showed him where he can dig and get shale
14:30 Got back and changed the tyre on the vehicle
15:00 Went to the back at the N3 side, to look for the Red Hartebeests, they were
nowhere to be found, I drove around through the back valley near the lodge
and still could not see them.
15:50 Just as I went over the hill at the lodge I saw the Hartebeest with one horn
15:55 And not 200m down the road 3 more ran over the road, we are still looking for the
others
16:30 Home
12/06/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 13°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Left to go up to mountain to see if I could find the Hartebeests
09:00 Saw a group of Impala just at the foot of the mountain
09:55 On top of mount sully I took a look through my binoculars on the valley bellow, I
spotted 11 Giraffes and 4 Mountain Reedbuck
10:40 As I made my way down the mountain, because I could not see the Hartebeests
there, I saw one male Grey Duiker
11:30 I decided to go to the ryefield, because that is where I saw some of the
Hartebeests often through the week, I saw 7 Waterbuck making there way to
the ryefield
11:40 I decided to stay there for a while and see if the Hartebeests show up.
At the ryefield I saw 20 Blue Cranes, 97 Impala and 3 Blesbok
11:55 10 Waterbuck showed up 25 min after first group arrived there, there were now
17 on the field, 6 calves and 11 Adults, 1 of which was the bull. 2 of the calves are male and have already got about 4 inch horns
12:00 9 Blue Cranes showed up and landed with the group of 20
12:05 The first Warthogs came to the field, there was 5
12:10 Another group of 5 Warthogs made there appearance
12:15 And then another group of 3 Warthogs showed up
12:30 No animals were going on or off the field anymore and I decided to go and check
my e-mails and contact the First Aid Course people
13:00 Home, checked e-mails and sent message for the First Aid
13:30 Went to the main gate to check the cochineal I put on the prickly pears all along
the main road
14:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain
14:45 At the pond I only saw 1 Kudu cow
15:00 I looked through the binoculars to the fence running down the mountain to the
main gate, I thought I saw a Hartebeest and went to investigate
15:30 When I went up all along the fence I could not find any Hartebeests I only saw
a Kudu Bull
15:35 I saw 2 Zebras at the foot of the mountain along the fence
15:55 Driving around looking for the Hartebeests in that area I saw another 3 Zebras
16:30 Could not find any Hartebeests there so I head back Home
13/06/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 14°C
Max temp: 20°C
06:45 Fetched staff at farm market
07:30 Report
08:30 Drove to top of mount sully to look for the Blesbok
09:30 Saw 4 Blesbok on top of the mountain, could not see the rest
10:00 Went own the other side of the mountain, saw 2 Kudu cows just as I made my
way down
10:30 On the other side I checked on the cochineal I put on some of the prickly pears,
they are starting to spread nicely over the plants
11:00 Saw 4 Mountain Reedbuck on the hill on the N3 side of the mountain
11:30 Saw 3 Red Hartebeests on the hill near the lodge
12:00 Went home to check e-mails
12:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain
13:00 There was nothing there
13:15 Saw 1 Warthog male on the road to the pond on my way back
13:45 Went to the ryefield, saw a group of 84 Impala, 3 Waterbuck and 3 Blesbok
14:30 Went to check the fence at main gate, all looks good all the way to the river
15:30 On the way back to the farm house I saw 10 Giraffes and 6 Zebras
16:00 Home
Monday, 23 June 2008
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
26th - 30th May 2008
26/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 09°C
Max temp: 20°C
Rainfal: ½ mm
07:30 Report
08:30 Me and Michael went to the rye grass field to fix a pipe on the centre pivot
09:45 Helped Michael with his report
10:45 Went to spend some time with the Wildebeests on Vertrek
11:30 Got to Vertrek and started to search for the animals, could not find them there
12:30 Got back home and worked on the fact file and e-mails
13:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, did not see anything, sat there for
a while to see if any animals come to drink, nothing
14:30 Went to the back valley near the lodge, drove all the way to the N3, only saw
2 Kudu cows. At the N3 I drove back al along the fence to look for faults on the
fence, found one along the tugela river about 500m from the power box. Fixed it.
16:30 Home
27/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 13°C
Max temp: 22°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Ladysmith to Waltons to get envelopes and staples and to get post
12:00 Went to the fence to check if there is any faults on the line, non faults
13:30 Home trying to sort out the internet and e-mails, e-mails don’t want to go through
15:00 Worked on the fact files and sorted photo’s out to put on a cd.
16:30 Helped Mandla with his report to the Zoo
16:30 Home
28/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 22°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Got quotes for first aid courses in Pietermaritzburg
10:00 Went to Ladysmith to see if I can get a place to put the logo’s on the bibs, found
nothing so far
12:00 Took Dee to the bus station at Tugela Toll Plaza
13:15 Waited for the bus for 2 hours, it was late, she left 15:15 to Bloemfontein
16:15 Arrived home, went over the game guard reports with the game guards
16:30 Finished
29/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:00 Went to the ryefield, watched and photographed 3 young Impala rams play fighting. Also saw a big male with something under his eye, not sure what it
is, but it looks like a piece of horn or piece of skin he injured during a fight.
09:00 Left to go look for the Wildebeests
09:30 Got to Vertrek and started looking for them, I’ve looked all over, could not find them, only saw 4 warthogs
11:30 Got home after failing to find Wildebeest, tried to send my e-mails through
12:45 Went in to Ladysmith to get a splicing kit for the river pump and went to the bank to sort out my online banking
15:20 Got home and went to check on the road that they are fixing going up the mountain, it looks very good
16:30 Home
30/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Took the Game Viewer to Colenso to get petrol
09:30 Drove around the mountain to the N3 side
09:45 On the way to the mountain, saw 6 Zebras and a group of Impalas
10:30 Halfway up the mountain saw 2 Kudu cows
11:00 Reached the top of the mountain
12:00 At the back valley going down on the other side of the mountain I only saw
3 Kudus, could not find the Blesbok on top of the mountain
12:10 I drove all along the fence to check for faults, did not find any
13:00 Got home and did my e-mails and sort out photo’s I took going around the
mountain
14:00 The staff had a barbeque, so I helped them get started and organized
15:30 After their barbeque I took them home
16:30 Home
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 09°C
Max temp: 20°C
Rainfal: ½ mm
07:30 Report
08:30 Me and Michael went to the rye grass field to fix a pipe on the centre pivot
09:45 Helped Michael with his report
10:45 Went to spend some time with the Wildebeests on Vertrek
11:30 Got to Vertrek and started to search for the animals, could not find them there
12:30 Got back home and worked on the fact file and e-mails
13:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, did not see anything, sat there for
a while to see if any animals come to drink, nothing
14:30 Went to the back valley near the lodge, drove all the way to the N3, only saw
2 Kudu cows. At the N3 I drove back al along the fence to look for faults on the
fence, found one along the tugela river about 500m from the power box. Fixed it.
16:30 Home
27/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 13°C
Max temp: 22°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Ladysmith to Waltons to get envelopes and staples and to get post
12:00 Went to the fence to check if there is any faults on the line, non faults
13:30 Home trying to sort out the internet and e-mails, e-mails don’t want to go through
15:00 Worked on the fact files and sorted photo’s out to put on a cd.
16:30 Helped Mandla with his report to the Zoo
16:30 Home
28/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 22°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Got quotes for first aid courses in Pietermaritzburg
10:00 Went to Ladysmith to see if I can get a place to put the logo’s on the bibs, found
nothing so far
12:00 Took Dee to the bus station at Tugela Toll Plaza
13:15 Waited for the bus for 2 hours, it was late, she left 15:15 to Bloemfontein
16:15 Arrived home, went over the game guard reports with the game guards
16:30 Finished
29/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:00 Went to the ryefield, watched and photographed 3 young Impala rams play fighting. Also saw a big male with something under his eye, not sure what it
is, but it looks like a piece of horn or piece of skin he injured during a fight.
09:00 Left to go look for the Wildebeests
09:30 Got to Vertrek and started looking for them, I’ve looked all over, could not find them, only saw 4 warthogs
11:30 Got home after failing to find Wildebeest, tried to send my e-mails through
12:45 Went in to Ladysmith to get a splicing kit for the river pump and went to the bank to sort out my online banking
15:20 Got home and went to check on the road that they are fixing going up the mountain, it looks very good
16:30 Home
30/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Took the Game Viewer to Colenso to get petrol
09:30 Drove around the mountain to the N3 side
09:45 On the way to the mountain, saw 6 Zebras and a group of Impalas
10:30 Halfway up the mountain saw 2 Kudu cows
11:00 Reached the top of the mountain
12:00 At the back valley going down on the other side of the mountain I only saw
3 Kudus, could not find the Blesbok on top of the mountain
12:10 I drove all along the fence to check for faults, did not find any
13:00 Got home and did my e-mails and sort out photo’s I took going around the
mountain
14:00 The staff had a barbeque, so I helped them get started and organized
15:30 After their barbeque I took them home
16:30 Home
19th - 23rd May 2008
19/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Helped Michael with his report
09:30 Went up to the lodge to get everything cleaned and sorted up there, took the
rubbish away and helped clean the house till 13:30
14:00 Saw all 12 Giraffes up near the lodge with 9 Zebras
14:30 On the way back from the giraffes I saw 2 Blesbok on the road to the lodge
14:40 Got down to the ryegrass field and I counted 67 Impalas, 7 Warthogs and 1
Blesbok
15:00 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, on the way I saw 1 Impala ram
15:20 At the pond there was another Impala ram drinking water, and the bones of
Speedy the giraffe were nearby, I asked the game guards to collect them and put them there
15:45 Went to the lodge to pick up Dumisan one of the staff that helped me clean up
the lodge, on the way I saw 3 Red Hartebeest on the hill
15:55 Saw Michael and Vukani on the road heading to the farm house, I told them
about the Hartebeest and they said they saw them
16:10 Picked up Dumisan and on the way back we saw 3 Zebras with a group of 24
Impalas.
16:30 Home
20/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
09:10 Saw 6 Giraffes on the road that goes to the top of Mount Sully
09:25 Saw 3 Zebras not far from the giraffes
09:45 Got home and loaded the cement for the school
10:20 Dropped cement at school
11:00 Got home and did my e-mails
12:30 Went up the mountain to look for the blesbok
13:00 Did not see them up there
13:10 Found Michael and Vukani, we went to Vertrek farm to look for the
Blue Wildebeest
13:50 Arrived at Geluk and started to look for the animals
14:30 We spotted one Blue Wildebeest on a hill, we could only see him through the
binoculars, he was very far away. We did not find any other animals so we
decided to head back
15:30 We got back to Gevonden and started to test the electric fence all along the
Tugela river all the way to the N3.
16:30 Home
21/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:00 Went to Vertrek with Michael and Vukani to look for the Blue Wildebeest
09:00 We found 8 animals; 1 male, 4 females and 3 calves. We stayed with them for a
while observing them. They seem to get use to the vehicle; got a few photos, but
it’s still a bit far, will go every day to get them use to us
10:00 Got back home and went to Ladysmith to get a few things
11:45 Worked on the animal fact file and sorted out photos
12:30 Went to look for the giraffes, found them on the road leading to Mount Sully, saw
12 animals
13:45 Got back home and updated the virus program on the computers, took me
2 hours to get it downloaded, in that time I went over the game guards report
cards
15:45 Went down to the rye grass field, saw a group of Impala bachelors
16:15 On my way home I saw 11 Zebras and the Hartebeest with one horn
16:30 Took the staff back to the Farm Market
17:20 Home.
22/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 21°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Vertrek to look for the Blue Wildebeests
09:30 Found them in the valley with a herd of cows. I get closer to them everyday
and today I got within 50m of them, they are getting pretty much used to the
vehicle now. I stayed with them until 12:30
13:30 Went to the rye grass field, I saw ± 70 Impala and one of the ewes had a
1 to 2 day old lamb with her. I also saw 17 Warthogs and 3 Blesbok
14:00 Got home and did some office work and e-mails
15:00 I went back to the ryefield to take a photo of the lamb, when I got there the
Waterbuck was there, 7 of them, 4 adult females and 3 juveniles, 2 of the young
ones is males.
15:45 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, on the way I saw 1 Giraffe
16:00 At the pond was nothing except a Grey Heron so I turned back
16:30 Home.
22/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 15°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, saw 3 Kudus on the way
11:30 Went to Ladysmith to get Dee a bus ticket to Bloemfontein
14:00 Arrived at the house and went to the Rye grass field to see if that baby Impala is
still there; he is and is looking good.
14:10 There also was 75 Impalas, 3 Blesbok and 8 Waterbuck.
14:55 At the 2 ponds near the house I saw a big kudu Bull and he looked magnificent
15:00 As he ran off I noticed the Giraffes behind him, all 12 was there
15:30 Went down to the power box for the electric fence to check on everything, all is
good
16:00 Went to check on the dam near the lodge, its looking good, got water in
16:30 Home
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 11°C
Max temp: 25°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Helped Michael with his report
09:30 Went up to the lodge to get everything cleaned and sorted up there, took the
rubbish away and helped clean the house till 13:30
14:00 Saw all 12 Giraffes up near the lodge with 9 Zebras
14:30 On the way back from the giraffes I saw 2 Blesbok on the road to the lodge
14:40 Got down to the ryegrass field and I counted 67 Impalas, 7 Warthogs and 1
Blesbok
15:00 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, on the way I saw 1 Impala ram
15:20 At the pond there was another Impala ram drinking water, and the bones of
Speedy the giraffe were nearby, I asked the game guards to collect them and put them there
15:45 Went to the lodge to pick up Dumisan one of the staff that helped me clean up
the lodge, on the way I saw 3 Red Hartebeest on the hill
15:55 Saw Michael and Vukani on the road heading to the farm house, I told them
about the Hartebeest and they said they saw them
16:10 Picked up Dumisan and on the way back we saw 3 Zebras with a group of 24
Impalas.
16:30 Home
20/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
09:10 Saw 6 Giraffes on the road that goes to the top of Mount Sully
09:25 Saw 3 Zebras not far from the giraffes
09:45 Got home and loaded the cement for the school
10:20 Dropped cement at school
11:00 Got home and did my e-mails
12:30 Went up the mountain to look for the blesbok
13:00 Did not see them up there
13:10 Found Michael and Vukani, we went to Vertrek farm to look for the
Blue Wildebeest
13:50 Arrived at Geluk and started to look for the animals
14:30 We spotted one Blue Wildebeest on a hill, we could only see him through the
binoculars, he was very far away. We did not find any other animals so we
decided to head back
15:30 We got back to Gevonden and started to test the electric fence all along the
Tugela river all the way to the N3.
16:30 Home
21/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:00 Went to Vertrek with Michael and Vukani to look for the Blue Wildebeest
09:00 We found 8 animals; 1 male, 4 females and 3 calves. We stayed with them for a
while observing them. They seem to get use to the vehicle; got a few photos, but
it’s still a bit far, will go every day to get them use to us
10:00 Got back home and went to Ladysmith to get a few things
11:45 Worked on the animal fact file and sorted out photos
12:30 Went to look for the giraffes, found them on the road leading to Mount Sully, saw
12 animals
13:45 Got back home and updated the virus program on the computers, took me
2 hours to get it downloaded, in that time I went over the game guards report
cards
15:45 Went down to the rye grass field, saw a group of Impala bachelors
16:15 On my way home I saw 11 Zebras and the Hartebeest with one horn
16:30 Took the staff back to the Farm Market
17:20 Home.
22/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 10°C
Max temp: 21°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to Vertrek to look for the Blue Wildebeests
09:30 Found them in the valley with a herd of cows. I get closer to them everyday
and today I got within 50m of them, they are getting pretty much used to the
vehicle now. I stayed with them until 12:30
13:30 Went to the rye grass field, I saw ± 70 Impala and one of the ewes had a
1 to 2 day old lamb with her. I also saw 17 Warthogs and 3 Blesbok
14:00 Got home and did some office work and e-mails
15:00 I went back to the ryefield to take a photo of the lamb, when I got there the
Waterbuck was there, 7 of them, 4 adult females and 3 juveniles, 2 of the young
ones is males.
15:45 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, on the way I saw 1 Giraffe
16:00 At the pond was nothing except a Grey Heron so I turned back
16:30 Home.
22/05/2008
Time Area and details of animal Weather: Sunny
Min temp: 15°C
Max temp: 20°C
07:30 Report
08:30 Went to the pond at the foot of the mountain, saw 3 Kudus on the way
11:30 Went to Ladysmith to get Dee a bus ticket to Bloemfontein
14:00 Arrived at the house and went to the Rye grass field to see if that baby Impala is
still there; he is and is looking good.
14:10 There also was 75 Impalas, 3 Blesbok and 8 Waterbuck.
14:55 At the 2 ponds near the house I saw a big kudu Bull and he looked magnificent
15:00 As he ran off I noticed the Giraffes behind him, all 12 was there
15:30 Went down to the power box for the electric fence to check on everything, all is
good
16:00 Went to check on the dam near the lodge, its looking good, got water in
16:30 Home
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