South Africa – Ukhozi Lodge, May 5th and 6th

We took a very early flight on Friday from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth, also known as Gquberha- see map.

We met our group at noon at Port Elizabeth Airport. After a two hour drive we arrived at Kariega Reserve and our lodging for the next two nights – the Ukhozi Lodge. During our drive to Kariega we were able to catch up with our dear friends, the Hoffman’s, who were entirely responsible for convincing Elizabeth to go on this once in a lifetime trip.

When we arrived, we checked in to our cabins, which were beautiful. They also sit on a bluff overlooking a small valley that is absolutely stunning. Rolf, Ronda, Elizabeth and I immediately took out our binoculars and saw zebras, giraffes, wildebeests, and all sorts of boks (Dutch for deer) roaming below. Little did we know that we would driving and tailgating in the valley later in the afternoon and cycling down into it the next day.

After meeting the rest of our group (approximately 16 people) in the lodge, we departed for our first Safari Drive. And it was a treat. Right away we saw warthogs, impalas, bushboks, blessboks, and springboks, which are also what members of the National South African Rugby team are called. Google Springboks and all that comes up are links to the South African Rugby Team, which may be considered the best in the world.

The highlight of our first Safari Drive was seeing some Rhinos They are rare and are becoming even more rare due to poaching. Unfortunately the Vietnamese and Chinese will pay exorbitant prices for powder made from rhino horns. As a result the rhino population has fallen precipitously so that 85% of the world rhino population is now in South Africa. More on that later.

During the Drive, we stopped and had a marvelous tailgate. After our drive, we picked up our biking jerseys, followed by a Kariega history talk and dinner at 7:30 p.m.

The next morning we rose early for a light breakfast in the Lodge followed by Bike Selection and fitting. We then departed for our first bike ride through the park. Our mountain bikes were awesome and I was able to make it down a very scary descent with no problem. However, I knew I would have to climb back up that descent on the way back!

This first ride was a loop ride from Lodge and back with two support vehicles. Lizzy decided to skip the cycling and rode with some other guests in the back support vehicle. The rest of the day included a full breakfast at the Lodge, time to relax, a viewing of ‘Voice of Cycling’ Documentary about Phil Liggett and his wife Trish, our hosts on this trip, a Light buffet lunch, a late afternoon safari drive, a stop in the Bush for a presentation by a reserve ecologist, and finally dinner at Lodge. The highlight of the second safari drive were elephants. But again, I will let the photos tell some of the story.