Pilgrim's Rest & Kruger National Park

Pat's mom, Randy, was in town visiting, so we all took a long weekend trip to Pilgrim's Rest in South Africa. Pilgrim's Rest is an old gold mining town about 4.5 hours drive from Jo-Burg.


We stayed at Crystal Springs Mountain Lodge. Our bedroom...
the girl's bedroom...

living room and back patio with braai....


The first full day we were there we did a self drive through Kruger National Park...

The girls spotted an elephant - Isabel's favorite!
zebra...

We found some endangered wild dogs, they are normally VERY hard to find! yea!
Baboons...Lillie loves the baby!
Hippo...
Giraffe...



...and a cape buffalo's butt...he would not turn around for me!
stopping for lunch...
The next morning we drove into Graskop to go to Harries Pancakes!

This is what Pat ordered!
This is what Randy and I ordered....yes, we were a tad bit healthier!
Then off to the town of Pilgrim's Rest to learn how to pan for gold... first we had to buy tickets...
...and wait...Africa Time you know...
Tents that the golf miners slept in. I'd sleep in that too for gold!

We couldn't leave without doing a Donkey Cart Ride!!


The girls got to pet and feed the donkeys.

Nuts anyone? I swear between Pat and Randy they bought 50 bags of nuts...we still have bags sitting at our house. At least they were supporting the locals.

Back to Crystal Springs to play on the playground and play some putt putt!

...and that was our trip in a nut shell!

On our drive home we spotted the site that Pat has to go to some times for work. It's the power plant they have been working on out here.
"Construction has begun on the Kusile power station, the second coal-fired power station being built by South African state company Eskom as part of its multi-billion rand expansion, with completion scheduled for 2017.

The new base-load power station, which will consist of six generating units generating a total of approximately 4 800 megawatts, is situated close to the existing Kendal power station near the town of Witbank in Mpumalanga province.

The first generating unit is scheduled for completion by 2013, followed by the completion on an additional unit after every eight months."

http://www.southafrica.info/business/economy/infrastructure/kusile-110808.htm

The Extreme 19th Hole...again

I'm going to try and play catch up...so let me begin with the Extreme 19th Hole. One of Pat's friends, Mark, came into town along with Pat's mom for an SA visit at the end of March. Mark and Pat went with some of Pat's work friends to do the Extreme 19th hole...again. He went last time in Sept. 2010!
They left early early on a Friday morning and drove to the Limpopo Province in South Africa. They stayed at the Legend Golf and Safari Resort at the Wildside Safari Camp. Here is their room!
Friday morning they palyed golf at the Signature Course which was designed by eighteen of the world’s top golfers. Then off to the camp on the Entabeni Game Reserve for a game drive!
They did see lions, but nothing else major. Here are a few quick animal pics...




The guys had dinner at the camp and then off to bed...only to wake up early the next morning for another game drive, breakfast and then off the the main event - THE EXTREME 19TH HOLE!
They will tee off from the top of that mountain which is only accessible by helicopter. Don't lose your marbles, b/c this is no ordinary chopper ride! The pilot does stunts and takes you on the ride of your life.

"The Extreme 19th is the highest (400 metres or 1,300 feet) and longest (361 metres or 395 yards) par three golf hole in the world."
Looks like they are going to crash....see what I mean??!!! Pat said it was really scary, but awesome.



Once you hit the top each person tees off for the par 3 hole.
"Accessible only by helicopter, with the tee set 400m up on the majestic Hanglip Mountain and played to a green the shape of Africa some 400m below, the Extreme 19th has captured the imagination like no other hole. Padraig Harrington famously became the first person to make a Par 3 "

Pat double bogied the hole for 5 - not bad, but this was his second time to play the "once in a life time" hole.
Mark can't see! Too sunny!
Their group! I think each person paid around $250 to play the hole. The more people in your group the cheaper it becomes. I think it's over $500 for a single player!
This guy was watching them play! After you tee off the helicopter takes you back down to the green where you finish the hole....being guys, I didn't get too many pictures out of them. For more pics, see my post from Sept. 2010 on the Extreme 19t Hole.

Can you see Pat's ball on the green?


While the guys were away, the girls will "play!" Randy (Pat's mom) and I got fish pedicures. These tiny fish eat the dead skin off your feet!


We also took the girls to the Irene Village Market for some shopping and camel rides!






Credits: http://www.legendgolfsafari.com/extreme-19th