Bushveld sunset

Scenes like this abound in books and pictures about Africa for the tourist market. Typical, apart from the scattered clouds that are so often not there when the sun sets red in the west.

As darkness settles on the land, beauty and danger exist side by side. The antelope replaces the predators that attack by day like the cheetah from its vigilance with those that are lurking patiently like the leopard, soon to approach under cover of darkness.

The scene is winter, making the clouds in the bushveld even more unusual. The trees are bare and the grass dry. Imagine a last francolin call close by, breaking the quiet suddenly before darkness really sets in.