I am starting a new thread following the discussion on parking at sightings in Kruger.

What is clear from most of the parks rules are that "driving off-road" is not allowed. This means that at a sighting you must park and remain "on the road".

The Entry Permit, which constitutes your "Conditions of Entry" to Kruger, specifies 2 conditions guiding where and how you should park (on the road).

Condition 2, "Game sighting - Congestion" 

".... the lane opposite (further away) from the side of the game or object/s being viewed, may not be blocked....."

Thus a clear understanding that all vehicles will be "on the road" and on the same side of the road.

Condition 3. "Game sighting - General"

"For game viewing, please park on the side of the road where a sighting is located."

A photo of the permit will be posted.

On the Sanparks Forum was a thread relating to Kruger Rules.

On there I asked for the confirmation of the rule. Confirmation was provided with a photo which no longer exists

https://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=3042268#p3042268

here is a photo from another source:

Richard, thank you for the clarification of the rules. However, there is a slight point of debate, "driving off road" is not the same as " parking on the shoulder". Condition 3 makes it quite clear, only if "side of the road" means the shoulder of the road, next to the game..

Driving off road to me, is like the tourist green trokkie that went into the veld, after a lion. This incident was photographed and reported last week. 

Wessel, there are many "Wall of Shame" photos in Nossob of people parked on the shoulder of the road.

We are asked not to park/drive there as it can harm the "nature"....

The "side of the road" does not mean shoulder it means left hand side or right hand side .... leaving a lane open.

For further clarity, if the sighting is on your left, you park on the left, the oncoming driver from the front, must then park in front of you on his right, thus leaving the lane furtherest from the sighting open. Inversely if the oncoming driver has already stopped with a sighting on his left, you must park in front of him on your right. 

In all instances "on the road".

If you parked "on the shoulder" both lanes would be open.

I was taken to task by a Traffic Cop in KNP because I dared to drive off road with my left wheels to pass a group that had basically blocked the road to look for something.  He warned me that I was possibly destroying small stuff that may be living in the grass that I was flattening and that I could be fined for this transgression.  The fact that I was trying to get past idiots blocking the road made no impression.   Yes, you may not drive off the road way - stay within the road boundary and altho there are no yellow lines, stick to the actual road.

I worked in the Kruger Nasional Park for many years from 1991 to 1997.  And the rule then was you do not drive off the actual road,  you stay on the road whether it is a tar road or a gravel road. 

Do not think that it has change over the years. We as the Army working there were allowed to enter certain closed roads not permitted to the general public.

Theo, jou inset hierbo van gisteraand, het net weer bewys----gesonde logika, intelligensie en beredenering het geen kans teen sommige verkeersuniforms nie.😆 

RichardJ het geskryf:

The "side of the road" does not mean shoulder it means left hand side or right hand side .... leaving a lane open.

For further clarity, if the sighting is on your left, you park on the left, the oncoming driver from the front, must then park in front of you on his right, thus leaving the lane furtherest from the sighting open. Inversely if the oncoming driver has already stopped with a sighting on his left, you must park in front of him on your right. 

In all instances "on the road".

If you parked "on the shoulder" both lanes would be open.

 

 

I think you are interpreting the rule incorrectly.  The first rule on a public road- and Kruger's roads are public roads- is that you drive on the left side of the road.  It does not make the exception that if you see something on the right side, this rule is temporary suspended.  It means that if there is something to see on the right side, you should make a U-turn and then park.

Grompie het geskryf:

Theo, jou inset hierbo van gisteraand, het net weer bewys----gesonde logika, intelligensie en beredenering het geen kans teen sommige verkeersuniforms nie.😆 

Vyandige houdings teenoor verkeersbeamptes was nog altyd vir my onverstaanbaar.  Ons verklaar almal dat ons wil hê oortreders van verkeersreëls, (veral minibus taxis), moet vasgevat word behalwe as dit EK is.  Die mense is nie die vyand nie, hulle is mense wat ons probeer veilig hou.  Ek weet daar gaan vinnig beweer word die mense is korrup en vra omkoopgeld.  Ek sê hulle VRA dit nie- motoriste BIED DIT AAN!!  Ek is al gestop vir dinge soos 'n agterlig aan die karavaan wat nie gewerk is nie.  Ek was vriendelik en het beloof om dit reg te maak en die verkeersman was netso vriendelik.  Hy het toe gevra of ek vir hom 'n koeldrank het.  Ek het gesê ek het ongelukkig nie, dit sou vir my voel ek het hom beloon vir sy toegeeflikheid.  Ek is ook al 'n paar keer gestop en beboet vir dinge soos 'n lisensie wat ek vergeet het om te hernu.  Ek het die kaartjies aanvaar en ons is vriendelik uitmekaar.  'n Familielid het aan my gesê hy het 'n verkeersman in die dorp 'n bedrag aangebied- wat aanvaar is- om hom nie te beboet nie, omdat hy 'n stopstraat geïgnoreer het.  Hy was baie uitgesproke teen verkeersmense en het hulle as korrup beskou.  Wees nou self eerder eerlik: wie is die korrupte?  As jy oortree het, vat jou pak soos 'n man, moenie omkoop nie.  Die mense is maar mense en val ongelukkig vir versoekings.

It has become a plauge where in general the people at sightings want to get the best picture/photo (kiekie) of all and the one they have just taken is/may not be the best of the thousands they have taken. Bugger the rules. The game drives (OSV) want to please their paying guests for more tips and other reasons. Bugger the rules.

Driving slightly off the road (where does the side of the road end anyway?) to pass them is not harming anything (totaly my opinion). Those thingies will crawl or walk onto to the road anyway. I hope you have never driven over a frog or centipeed or cricket or lizard or ant?

The congestion and unruliness at sightings in the south of the KNP pushes me north.

The photograpers are now proliphic and they are worse than the OSV's. Net nog n' naby/beste kiekie!!!

"But I got up at 4 this morning to get the best spot for my picture at this Leopard kill....I am not moving". 300 photographs later. Photographers!!

Speeding is another unruliness in the KNP. People working in the park (staff and Rangers) are allowed to drive at 65Km/h. I thought the 50Km/h speed limit was to protect the animals from being hit? And they don't drive 65Km/h. I have have been with them in their vehicle when they are on duty. "But I am not game viewing". Huh?

There are unfortunately no qualified law enforcement people left in the park to operate speed traps. (one person at Phalaborwa gate).

Fred, volgens die Sanparke bladsy in Richard se inset hierbo, is sy interpretasie korrek. Dit is hoe Sanparke dit gedoen wil hê binne hulle parke, hoewel dit met normale publieke padregulasies verskil.

Tweedens, ek het nie 'n vyandige houding teenoor manne in uniform nie. As jy mooi lees, sal jy sien ek het die woord "sommige" gebruik. .

The road rules (all rules) in the park are different to the rules outside the park for the safety of the animals, the visitors and the environment. Some people won't or can't understand that. Some don't even read the rules. Mostly the foreighners.

Like..... don't get out of your vehicle and don't feed the animals. They will stand in front of the sighn and feed the animals. You sighn their or/and possibly your death warrant.

Another rule that some visitors openly confess to...looks like they are proud of it....is not to pick up wood in the park. Firstly you do not know what type of wood it is...most trees/plants are poisonous..secondly you are messing up the environment and thirdly you are endangering yourself.

If you are caught you will be fined and expelled for life!

Die reel van parkeer aan die kant van sighting lyk makliker op papier as in werklikheid. Elke sighting verskil. Die meeste van die keer los mense n opening oop waar karre wat nie wil kyk nie deurvte laat. As iemand heeltemaal blok is dit party keer vinnige foto wat hul in verbygaan neem. Sulke roadblocks is maar deel van wildtuin. 

Die verkeersmanne is sover ek weet, nie in diens van die wildtuin nie.  As dit die geval is, gaan hulle die "Ry aan die linkerkant" beslis interpreteer soos dit  in die res van die land geld.  Onthou as die bestuurder oortrek na die regterkant van die pad, RY hy in die verkeerde baan. Lees gerus weer die paragraaf, dit sê beslis nie jy kan aan die regterkant parkeer nie!

Grompie het geskryf:

Fred, volgens die Sanparke bladsy in Richard se inset hierbo, is sy interpretasie korrek. Dit is hoe Sanparke dit gedoen wil hê binne hulle parke, hoewel dit met normale publieke padregulasies verskil.

Tweedens, ek het nie 'n vyandige houding teenoor manne in uniform nie. As jy mooi lees, sal jy sien ek het die woord "sommige" gebruik. .

Wessel, ek bedoel ook "Net Sommige" bestuurders is korrup. Ek dink ons moet eerder almal as nie-korrup beskou- ons en die verkeersbeamptes- tot ons/hulle die teendeel toon.  En as verkeersbeamptes reageer op ons aanbod van 'n omkoopgeskenk om nie 'n kaartjie uit te reik nie- wat blykbaar gewoonlik gebeur- wie is dan die mees korrupte? Dis maar netsoos met renosterhorings.  Wie is die grootste boef, die persoon wat die dier doodmaak of die wat die mark skep vir die horings?

Ons het eenmaal gesien hoe so 'n jaagvraat in 'n privaatvoertuig 'n ent voor ons 'n fisant doodgery- hy/sy het deur die lug getrek met 'n wolk van vere.  Toe ons verbykom, het die maatjie langs die dooie voël gestaan en vir ons heel verwese gelyk.  Dit was nie lekker om te sien nie.

Wat kan help is dat hul tyd koppel aan sighting. Party mense skiet wortel by n sighting. Staan voor die sighting en kyk nie eers nie....as jy verby ry kyk hulle vir jou?

Op die einde is dit soos kampeer. Seker nie baie van ons lees elke oord se reels nie, maar weet wat van jou verwag word en mede besoekers in ag te neem en respekteer

My ondervinding suid van Satara is as dit n'luiperd of leeu of wilde honde sighting is is die pad heeltemaal geblok. As ek my woonwa (die 747) agter het vat dit ten minste 10 minute of langer om deur te kom. Dan as die sighting ook in die pad le kan dit baia langer vat.