south africa: cradle of humankind: sterkfontein caves and maropeng; rhino and lion nature reserve

Toward the end of my trip I decided to spend a few days in Johannesburg. One of those days I used to go on a day trip to a couple places nearby. 

The first is area often called the Cradle of Mankind. As far as scientists have been able to tell, this is where humans (as we know them) first existed, and from where worldwide migration started. 

My driver picked me up, and we drove north (I think) from Joburg. Along the way he pointed out new developments, and where the city used to stop. It's putting it mildly to say that the city is growing quickly. 

We arrived at a place in the cradle called the Sterkfontein Caves. Inside this cave system (which has never been fully explored but is thought to be quite large,) is where the oldest human remains were found. Very very very old remains. 

I walked into the visitors center and bought my entrance tickets to both this place and the cradle of humankind museum. From there I went into the exhibition area, which is where people wait when their tour starts soon. 

The exhibition area describes the formation of the planet, early life, and the history of humanity as we know it. It also gives a basic description of how these caves were formed, and has a few fossils on display. Everything is done really well. It's interesting, and informational. I was almost disappointed when they called out to everyone to say that the tour would be starting, as I hadn't finished seeing/reading everything. 

To do this tour you have to wear a hard hat. At first I thought it was a bit silly, but after knocking my head a couple times during the tour, I was glad to have it. Your choices are orange or blue, I went with blue. 

Our guide took us to an entry of the cave area. It is gated, so you can't get in there without a group tour. She gave a quick spiel about how everything formed, and a quick overview of what we would be seeing. 

These caves were originally discovered (in modern times) by miners looking for limestone. Those miners are the reason the caves don't look as fantastic as they once did. They set off explosives which broke the stalactites, and put a lot of black/brown dust on the surfaces we could see, argh. If that hadn't happened, we would've seen a lot of white and crystal. Oh well. 

Our guide pointed out where long fossilized remains had been found of Mrs Pless, (though they think now that the remains are of a juvenile boy,) behind a locked gate. 

She also pointed out the hole through which they think he fell into the cave. There is no evidence in the cave of it having ever been used as a habitat, so archaeologists are fairly certain that his fall was an accident. Though death is never celebrated, archaeologists are glad it happened the way it did, so the remains were available for study. The remains are OLD, part of a group of hominids called Australopithecus. (I think. Scientific names and specific distinctions aren't easy for me.) The remains are at least two million years old. Like I said, they're OLD. These particular remains were found in 1947, and there have been excavations ever since. 

We got to see the top of a lake, the bottom and full extent of which have never been explored. Once divers were allowed, but at one point a diver ran out of air and got stuck (I think,) and died. 

After that, the people in charge decided it would have to remain unknown. I wonder if that will ever change. The lake was quite pretty, and we could see stalactites reaching down toward the water. 

We exited the caves, seeing a group of school kids coming out soon after us. As we exited, we passed two statues. Touching each of them in various places is considered good luck, or will bring your money or wisdom. Obviously, there was a lot of rubbing going on, by everyone in the group. 

I tipped the guide, and said thanks. She did a great job of speaking clearly and giving enough information without being boring. She also kept our group together, which is never easy, especially when not everyone speaks the same language. 

After the caves, Elvis drove me to our next stop, the Cradle of Humankind Museum in Maropeng. Very unique architecture, to say the least. Most of the museum (all of the exhibit area,) is underground, and the way visitors get there is to ride a man made river on a raft. The ride takes you through the formation of the galaxy, then the earth. The ride was fun, and even though I like learning, this made it even better. 

In the museum I got to see great exhibits on the history of man and various species. I saw exhibits on evolution. There were exhibits on the life of modern times, the effects of humans on the earth, and what the future might hold. 

It was a fantastic museum, and should be on everyone's must see list. 

Out back of the museum I was offered views over much of the surrounding countryside. It was incredible to stand there and know that I was where the birth of mankind started. 

After the museum Elvis took me to the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve. The name is a misnomer, as there are more animals in there than just rhinos and lions. I got to see zebras (they didn't immediately run away!) and kudus and antelopes and tigers and ostriches too. I even got to see a young giraffe, which didn't make much sense since there weren't any trees in the area for them to eat. 

I got to see two groups of lions, both of them laying around and dozing in the sun. One of the groups was white lions, the others were 'normal.' 

After this visit I realized I'd seen four of the big 5 animals of South Africa during this trip. Yay! 

We drove back to Johannesburg, getting partly stuck in the beginning of rush hour. Along the way we passed a couple informal settlements, which still exist all over the country, despite apartheid no longer being legal. 

Elvis is a fantastic tour guide.