I woke up early to a clear blue sky, so went for a walk down to the river again. After about 10 paces, I spotted a snake – my worst fear – but it was only pencil thin and quickly slid away into the bush. Made me pick my steps very carefully.
Packed up to leave Hitgeheim – with sadness because it really is a superb place, beautifully situated in the middle of nowhere with charming staff and delicious food. We promise to be back. Then just as we’re talking to Archie and Ronel, the fish eagles start circling overhead – I’d been hoping for a sighting, so they made it just in time – very graceful soaring on the thermals and hardly moving their wings.
Of to Daniell Cheetah Breeding Sanctuary near Kirkwood. John’s not so keen to cuddle cheetahs, but I’ll use his turn!
It’s a blistering hot day with no breeze but that was no deterrent to this unique opportunity.
Cheetahs are eminently tameable and there has never been any reports of them attacking humans. However, once they have mated, their natural instincts kick in, so they are less able to be stroked and can then be naturalised and sold onto Game Parks.
So Ola, a 2 year old female was lying dozing in the shade and was very happy for us to stroke her. Although she is related to the cat family, cheetahs are unusual in that they have non-retractable claws and like a dog, they aren’t sharp – only the dewlap claw is sharp in order to tear apart their prey.
They are the fastest of creatures, accelerating 0 – 70 Kph in 3 seconds. They run up to 120kph, but only for 4 seconds. They then need 5 hours for their breathing and heart rate to slow back to normal. Unfortunately, during this time, they can’t eat, and because they don’t have sharp claws, they can’t climb trees (like leopards) to hide their booty, so any prey they catch might well be nicked from under their very nose by another scavenger while they lay asleep.
Then into the lion’s den – well into the cubs’ den – where 2 two-month old and 1 four-month cubs are waiting to greet us. I held one of the 2 month olds, but he fidgeted – he’d had enough as I was second in line to hold him, so reluctantly let him down. We couldn’t hold the older one, as already he’s getting strong and his huge paws could unwittingly inflict a nasty blow, but he was more than happy to let us stroke him and tickle his tummy – just like any housecat. At 5 months old, this close human contact is stopped so the training program can begin to ensure they cope in the wild – mostly they are sold onto Game Reserves. Apparently there’s never been a problem with these lions surviving successfully in that environment after this early tame start. The warder has close contact with the cubs from the beginning, with them even sleeping on his bed!!
A mature lion will fetch about £20K whereas younger lions and females fetch about £1K. Cheetahs are more expensive to raise because their environment needs to be carefully monitored and quite sterile because they’re prone to renal failure.
We’re now at the furthest point of our travels – over 500 miles from Cape Town as the crow flies – we’ve clocked up about 1,000 miles with detours and windy roads.
We stocked up with a picnic in Spar in Uitgehade – always fun shopping in exotic places (S. Africa I mean, not Spar!).
Now we turn around the head back via different towns. Firstly Knysna where there is a huge lagoon – although strictly speaking it’s a huge estuary as there is no sandbank at its meeting with the sea where river and sea water mingle.
We arrive at our B & B in nearby Brenton on Sea – J & C Beach House – in the middle of a (upmarket) housing estate, set high on the hillside with amazing views of the crashing waves. Christine the housekeeper shows around as Jayne and Cameron Boccaleone (our hosts) are out. We try not to giggle as she shows us round our room which is decorated profusely with shells – as ornaments or printed on curtains, towels etc. – really a bit twee! It’s listed as the honeymoon suite! It has verandahs on 3 sides, but all viewable from the road or the garden, and it doesn’t seem very soundproofed, so I’m not so sure about the honeymooners’ privacy!
We’re about 30 minutes from Knysna centre so we’d already taken the precaution of booking a table at a lodge restaurant at Belvedere nearby rather than trek backwards and forwards after a long day’s drive.
Uniquely and refreshingly so, this is the first establishment where the entire staff appear to be black – front of house included. They were exceptionally cheerful and welcoming and we enjoyed a tasty meal of scallops/baked brie, kudu/beef steak and again we tested the crème brulee. A trifle warm and not much crispy caramel topping, but tasty.