Lukimbi Safari Lodge 2026
Friday March 27 - Sunday March 29
We’re off to the land of the Big 5, the Little 5 and the Ugly 5. Our flight from Portland to Newark started out normally. We left at 10:54 PM on Friday March 27. Apparently, we got some pretty strong tailwinds because what was supposed to be a 5-hour flight only took a little more than 4 hours. Yeah!! Now we have a 16-hour layover in Newark! Our first stop was the United Polaris lounge. We’re flying business class, so this is one of the perks. I quickly arranged a shower, and as I was undressing, there was a knock on the door. Marshal had gotten a message that our checked bags were ready for pickup. What?
I quickly showered and we headed down to find out what happened. Our bags had been taken off the carousel and were being stored. We got no explanation from the nice United employee as to why our bags weren’t checked through to Johannesburg, so we gathered them up and headed upstairs to re-check them. As we tried to re-check them, we got a notice on the kiosk that we couldn’t check bags more than 12 hours in advance. Crap! In the midst of all of this, Elyse was feeling sick! She had taken some magnesium pills on an empty stomach! Blaine decided to just get a hotel room so we could rest and Elyse could recover. I had a free night through Hotels.com, so we proceeded to take the airport train to the hotel shuttle pickup spot. What a pain in the ass that train to the shuttle spot was! Next time, book at the Marriott!!!
Elyse and Blaine slept for a couple of hours, while Marshal watched a movie on his phone. We got an Uber back to the airport and Blaine proceeded to security while Elyse and Marshal headed to New York City to meet up with her friend Erin. Surprisingly, in the middle of the whole TSA mess, Blaine was through the security line in about 5 minutes! There was nobody in line, and I have the touchless ID, which made it even easier. Elyse and Marshal had the same experience when they came back after their journey to New York City.
Our flight in the Polaris business class was great. It was almost 15 hours, but a couple movies and a few hours’ sleep made the flight bearable.
We missed the 6:30 hotel shuttle when we landed in Johannesburg and had to wait until the 7:30. Evan, Jess, and the kids greeted us as we got off the shuttle at the hotel. They kids were so excited. After checking in, Evan, Elyse, Marshal and I had some food and drinks in the restaurant, and then off to bed.
Monday March 30
Our flight the next morning to Skukuza airport in the Kruger National Park went without incident, and we were soon off on our 2-hour van ride to Lukimbi Safari Lodge.
As soon as we left the airport, we had to cross a bridge with the river rushing over it. If we had come in January, that would have been impossible with all the rain they had that month. It was pretty exciting for the kids. The first animal we saw was an elephant, just off the side of the road. For us newbies, it was quite exciting. As we continued our drive we spotted a rhino, zebras and giraffes. Welcome to Africa!!!
Upon our arrival to the lodge, we were greeted by a number of staff members. Becky, who we would soon learn was the bartender, had a sweet tea for each of us. Charl (pronounced Sharl) asked each of us our name as he greeted us. Every time after that when we would encounter him, he remembered our names. Quite impressive, as he did that with all the other guests as well. We were given a brief presentation by Charl as to the safety rules, lodge schedule for safaris, breakfast, lunch and dinner. We were also given our own aluminum water bottles with our names on them. The lodge has no fences, so animals are able to access the property. The only exception is for elephants. There are wire fences to keep the elephants out. For this reason, we are told that we cannot walk to our rooms at night unless we have an escort. Talk about a wakeup call! Speaking of which, our first safari trip each morning begins with a 5:30 AM wake up call.
Our first safari drive was the afternoon that we arrived. The afternoon drives start at 4:00 o’clock and usually have us back to the lodge by 7:00. Jon Jon is our ranger and Michael is our tracker. They both have extensive experience in the bush, and over the next 5 days will amaze us with their knowledge and expertise. We quickly ran into a herd of African buffalo, which the following day would provide us with one of the most dramatic experiences of our trip. One of the prettiest birds we spied was the Settled Bill Stork. It is a beautiful black and white color, with a red bill. As we ventured off road, we spotted a pride of lions which were lounging in the sun. Jon Jon told us they had just feasted on their kill. Apparently, they get so full that they have a hard time breathing and need to rest and digest their meal. After we had stopped for a snack and drinks, just as it was getting dark, we were greeted by a huge bull elephant which walked right in front of our moving vehicle. Pretty amazing for our first drive!
Dinner at 8pm and off to bed after a long day!
Tuesday March 31
After our 5:30 wake up call, some coffee and biscuits, we climbed into our chariot to adventure with Jon Jon and Michael.
Our first sighting of the morning was a group of wild dogs. They were casually strolling down the road and seemed curious to find out what we were up to. We nicknamed one of them Tripod, as he only had 3 legs. A bit further down the road was a herd of Impala. What a beautiful animal, with their striped horns. They move so gracefully. The Impala are the most abundant species in Kruger. They are a food source for many of the carnivorous animals that inhabit the park.
Once again, we got off the trail when we spotted 3 lions, which were staring intently into the distance. They obviously had spotted their next meal. After about 20 minutes they lost interest and wandered into the bush.
Jon Jon got a call on his radio that a pride of lions was messing with the herd of buffalo that we had seen the previous day. Jon Jon put the pedal to the metal, and we arrived at the scene just in time to observe the drama unfolding. The lions were running at the herd trying to antagonize them. The buffalo would charge back. The lions would charge again, trying to get the buffalo to run. Eventually this worked and the buffalo started running. As they ran, a small baby was left a little behind. This was the lion’s strategy. They quickly went after the baby, but all at once the mother turned and charged the lions. They lions backed off. The lions attacked again, and this time, they were able to separate the baby and get their kill. We just witnessed something that is extremely rare. Many of the workers and rangers at the lodge told us they had never seen an actual kill live. Blaine met the owner of Lukimbi Safari Lodge, Louis, a couple of days later, and he said that was the first time he had witnessed such an event.
That night at dinner, we ate in the Boma. There were dancers, and music, along with a feast of barbecued meats and lots of side dishes. Marshal was enticed to get up and dance with KG, one of our waitresses.
Wednesday April 1
5:30 wake up call, biscuits and coffee, and off on the drive. We spotted the wild dogs again today, playing on the side of the road. There was an elephant with the dogs, casually grazing on grass and brush. As we continued our drive, we stopped to allow a herd of zebras to cross the road. Jon Jon asked us whether the zebras were black with white stripes, or white with black stripes. We all said white with black stripes, but we were wrong!!
More Impala, and then all of a sudden, a warthog wandered towards us. It’s amazing how many of the animals are not concerned with the vehicle. Jon Jon explained that they do not see us as a threat. Or at least most of the time as we will learn in a couple of days. Back at the resort, in the river below the lodge, the crocodile decided to make a showing. On the evening drive, right after dark, we came upon 3 male lions. One of them walked within 5 feet of our vehicle, looking right at us as he passed. Jon Jon pointed out that his testicles had been torn from the scrotum, probably either in a fight, or maybe having been snagged on some brush. Ouch!!
Thursday April 2
Before starting our drive this morning, while we were still on the Lukimbi concession, Evan got a chance to sit in the trackers seat on the front of the vehicle. Quite a different experience sitting up there. On our morning drive today, we spotted another Impala herd, more elephants, and some vultures waiting for a dinner. We spotted some Southern ground hornbill. They have a distinctive red throat, and black and red head.
We stopped down by the Crocodile River and walked to the river’s edge to view crocodile and hippos. I had not gone on this walk yesterday with everyone else. Apparently, the hippos were quite vocal and less welcoming the day before. Today they were pretty docile, barely visible in the water. They just looked like logs, although you could see the twirling ears! No croc sightings today. like the day before. Marshal was able to sit up front on the drive back. The first thing Jon Jon did when Marshal was up front was to run him into some bushes. (on purpose of course). The bromance lives!
When we got back to the lodge it was time for a swim in the main pool. As we were relaxing in the pool and the lodge, we looked across the field, and a herd of 11 elephants were casually making their towards us… There were 9 adults and 2 babies. It was surrealistic!
Thursday April 3
Blaine had told Jon Jon while we were sitting at the Crocodile River that he wanted to spread some of Jeri’s ashes along the river. This morning though we decided not to do it along the river, and Jon Jon said he had a place in mind, up on a bluff above the Mlambane river. As we were heading to that location we spotted a pack of wild dogs, who were feasting on the remains of a kill. A hyena had followed them and was attempting to join in the feast. It was funny watching the interaction, as the hyena would slowly creep toward the spot where the remains of the kill were, while watching the dog’s movement. Just as the hyena would get close to the spot, one of the dogs would rush at him, biting him on the butt. This happened a few times until the dogs lost interest. There was only a fragment of bone left, which the hyena gladly picked up.
Our next encounter was with a bull elephant in the middle of the road. I mentioned earlier that all the previous elephant encounters were very relaxed. This one was not. Jon Jon immediately recognized that this one was in Musth. (an elevated testosterone level which leads to aggressive behavior, characterized by discharging temporal glands). The elephant went off the road into the brush, and Jon Jon immediately put the vehicle into reverse and started backing up. As he came out of the brush, he started running at us. Jon Jon continued backing up until we came to another side road, and he proceeded to start driving forward onto that road. The elephant continued following us until we had put enough distance between us. That sure got our adrenaline up!!
We continued on and came across 2 jackals that were just relaxing in the middle of the road. They are beautiful little creatures. Finally, we arrived at the bluff overlooking the Mlambane river. Immediately we saw Tap Tap, a blind elephant across the riverbank, and off to the right there was a pride of lions, also across the riverbank, What a beautiful spot for Jeri. I wish I could speak without crying when I am spreading her ashes, but as hard as I try I can’t. She got to come on this trip with us, and she didn’t have to worry about bugs and spiders!
On our afternoon drive, Jon Jon spotted lots of vultures in the trees surrounding us. He said there was a fresh kill somewhere in the area. We headed off road into the brush. After about 5 minutes, we spotted a pride of lions. We sat and observed them and noticed one of the females had a cub with her. After about 15 minutes, they started moving toward a water source, so we followed them there. It was fun watching the little cub play along with seeing the lions just chilling by the water.
Saturday April 4th.
Check out day. Going to miss this place. On to Cape Town.
