travelswithalice
October 06, 2005
Am I “safaried-out”?
As we find our giraffes and monkeys and elephants and antelope, I begin to wonder if I had already seen enough game to last me for a while. A lady we met on our first day in Mala Mala had claimed to be “safaried-out” and now I wonder whether I am too.
Evening falls as we watch a pride of male lions lying on the riverbed. I wonder if they're ones we’ve seen before. Greg says they are.
Sometime later, we stop in the dark to collect a new couple, Chris and Dee from another camp vehicle that had brought them to join the group. They had arrived late and missed the afternoon drive.
There’s a terrific trumpeting beside me.
We resume our drive along the riverbed. Johnson's powerful night-light methodically sweeps the area we are crossing. Soon his now familiar whistle signals a sighting; his light shines on a leopard. It’s a nervous young male that obviously doesn’t want us around. We follow him gingerly, from a distance.
Suddenly, there’s a terrific trumpeting beside me. I nearly jump out of my skin and scoot over to Stuart’s side as an equally surprised elephant rears and backs up, one enormous foot in the air. It’s two, maybe three meters from me.
I think it was about to cross the path we were on and we cut it off.
Lions file past our vehicle.
The glare of the combined spotlights of four vehicles doesn’t seem to bother them. They start to move; in single file, they walk past our vehicle. Stuart goes, “Three, four… the big one must be right behind us… maybe I’m wrong. There it is! It’s coming toward us!”
Although lions coming at you and walking at arm’s length beside you may seem unsettling, particularly in the dark of night, it is a total non-event for the lions who are really just passing by. I am told the animals only see the vehicles as single units, never mind what’s in it.
The lions had spotted two rhinos and are following them listlessly, keeping their distance. It’s surprising that they would do this as they don’t usually bother with rhinos. They lose interest after a while when they discover a warthog burrow. They dig feverishly for the warthogs for a long time but without success.
Back at camp, dinner is served on the terrace where we usually have breakfast. It’s a nice change and a good way to break the ice with a wonderful new group.
The stars put on a good show.
Safari fever is back. There is no such thing as being “safaried-out.”
Labels: safari, South Africa.
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