He stayed at the Leadwood Lodge.  The package deal included transportation from Johannesberg to the lodge and back, a private room and bath, all meals, and two game drives a day.  The game drives were from 6-9 in the morning and 4-7 in the evening.  The lodge provided a jeep (seats up to 8 people) with a guide and tracker to travel through the surrounding bush country.  The advantage of a private reserve is that the jeep can travel anywhere; it doesn't have to stay on the main road as in the National Park.

I was amazed at the pictures he took on the game drives and from around the lodge, which the animals frequently visited.  He used a Canon S3 IS camera with a 12x zoom lens. He also carried a Canon S2 as a backup.  He easily obtained images of Africa's Big 5: Leopard, Lion, Elephant, Rhino, and Buffalo.  Other animals captured with the camera included, the Chacma Baboon, Impala, Kudu, Bushbuck, Wildebeest, Zebra, Giraffe, Warthog, Crocodile and about a dozen birds, which I couldn't identify, although I did eventually find the names of some of them including the Yellow-billed Hornbill, Egyptian Goose, Blacksmith Lapwing, Martial Eagle, Water Thickknee, Brown-headed Kingfisher, Hadeda Ibis, and Crested Francolin.

I visited Bayshore Park on Saturday morning, arriving around 7:30 am (mid-tide) and Tuesday evening around 6:15 pm (low tide).  I was hoping to see some early migrating shorebirds that have been reported elsewhere along the Florida coasts.  But no such luck.  The only birds seen were Brown Pelicans, Laughing Gulls, and Royal Terns resting on the old pier posts.  I also several of the larger wading birds including Snowy Egrets (6), Great Egret (1), Little Blue Heron (1), and Yellow-crowned Night Herons (2).

After spending about a half-hour to an hour at Bayshore Park, I went over to the Port Charlotte Beach Complex.  On Saturday morning the beach shoreline was devoid of birds, except for one Laughing Gull.  On Tuesday evening, I saw a few Laughing Gulls, a Little Blue Heron, and three Willets.  Again, the beach was practically devoid of birds.

I joined about a dozen other birders for the monthly tour of STA-5.  STA-5 is short for Stormwater Treatment Area 5, which is part of the South Florida Water Management District.  This site is located approximately 20 miles south of Clewiston at the end of Blumberg Road.  STA-5 is normally closed to the public; however, they have an agreement with the Henry-Glades Audubon Society to conduct monthly tours, consisting of walking and driving around the levee of STA-5.  Thanks to Margaret England for leading Saturday's tour.  A schedule of the upcoming tours can be found on the Henry-Glades Audubon web site. 

This was my first visit to the area.  We drove around the levee, about a 4-mile loop, stopping at various points to scope the area.    All of the usual wading birds (Egrets, Ibises and Herons) were seen.  Other birds seen included Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Fulvous Whistling Ducks, Ring-necked Duck, Mottled Ducks, Pied-billed Grebes, Osprey, Cooper’s Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Purple Swamphens, Purple Gallinules, Limpkin, one lone Solitary Sandpiper, Belted Kingfisher, Loggerhead Shrike, and Common Yellowthroat.  Altogether, about 45 different species were observed.

A lot of dragonflies and butterflies were seen during the trip around the levee.  Dragonflies included the Eastern Pondhawk, Eastern Amberwing, Halloween Pennant, Four-spotted Pennant, Scarlet Skimmer, and Black Saddlebags.  Butterflies seen included the Tropical Checkered-Skipper, Clouded Skipper, Black Swallowtail, Queen, Monarch, Viceroy, and Cloudless Sulphur.