We spent the night in Durban after our three-day safari and again Tim was there the next morning to pick us up for two nights in the Drakensberg mountains at Didima Camp. En route, he told us the terrifying tale of his dog being bitten inside the mouth (!) by a Mozambique Spitting Cobra and his wife bludgeoning it to death with a hoe just the day before. Turns out he had spent most of the evening in the vet hospital but the dog was expected to make a full recovery thanks to the highly regenerative buccal mucosa. 

It was a hot day, and we enjoyed a nice lunch in the shade before taking a short afternoon hike to Doreen Falls. It was a pretty spot and my dad tried swimming. Be thankful I didn't take pictures of that pasty white figure in his ginch. There was a cave behind the waterfall which was unspeakably difficult to photograph.

Doreen Falls Portrait

Doreen Falls

Drakensberg Evening Glow

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As night fell, we took a walk up the hill to look at the stars. It was clear, with no moon, and the southern sky was bursting with stars. This was one of my favourite moments of the whole trip: looking towards the Southern Cross over the mountains while crickets chirped. It was bittersweet, because my thoughts turned to my wife and son at home, thousands of kilometers away.

It also struck me that I could stand here, in the middle of the mountains, on the edge of the long grass, alone at night, and be literally at no risk of being attacked by a cat. I imagine a couple hundred years ago, standing in my shoes would be a bit more perilous.

Under African Stars Southern Sky