Day 8 - Hakuna matata

Nature wakes me early this morning. At 3 am, I was awakened by the barking of the jackals. A little later a leopard cried out. From then no more sleep. At 5:30 am, the camp boys bring the water for a little wash. I wash myself outside the tent facing the rising sun. These are moments you will never forget.

At six sharp, we  begin with the first game drive of the day. We want to leave early to avoid missing the big cats. We have just left the camp site or a cheetah enjoys the first sunbeams lying on a piece of wood. She stretches  before she embarks on a morning walk. Just beautiful. This scenario you just can not imagine.

Slightly further, two jackals are playing on the waterfront. Another one is running towards us on the road. Then we get stuck in a traffic jam again. The pride of lions we saw yesterday are back on the move. Just stretching their legs before they enjoy their well-deserved nap. A lion sleeps up to 20 hours a day. McDonalds is now closed. Hopefully  their belly is full. Some of these young lions block the road lying down and do not want to get up. The traffic gets really stuck. It really starts to look pretty much like the traffic jam on the E313.

Now traffic is a big word. It is only our jeep that is blocked. This is not the Kruger Park in South Africa. This is not the Masai Mara in Kenya or the Serengeti in Tanzania. This is not a very touristic area. We drive in this national park pretty much alone. Finally  their mum encourages them to keep moving.  It's a pride of young lions learning the tricks of the trade under the wing of their mother. After all, sooner or later,  mama will cut them loose and they have to stand on their own feet.

In the open field, the zebras and impalas enjoy their breakfast. They walk relax, so no hunters on the horizon. We drive a little further to a picnic area for our breakfast. Tea or coffee with muffins and cereal is served. From here we make with half the group  a walking safari. The aim is mainly to learn something about tracks and the use of certain plants. The walk takes about 2 hours to complete. Our rangers load their guns. After all, we are walking on the territory of  wild animals. Rangers follow a five-year program which embraces all:  knowing the animals, their behavior, search for tracks, knowing about plants and last but not least, the killing of animals in case of self-defense. To get their license, rangers must have killed at least 5 animals. After all, you do not want a ranger who knows only the theory of killing them. In Zimbabwe, the principle still applies that human life is worth more than that of an animal. In case of emergency, one may shoot an animal that threatens one’s life. The walk is on flat terrain, but we step through the high grass, over knocked down and  fallen logs and stumps. We walk among trees and over small shrubs. Between the dense vegetation everything  sticks on us. Flies are buzzing around our heads. A monotonous concert that drive you mad. The sun burns relentlessly on our skin. This is a unique adventure. We walk in a straight line at arm's length from each other in a chain that is not to be broken. The animals see us as a whole, and they do not see any danger in us. If two impalas notice us, they jump away. The only one that are not keeping their appointment are  the elephants. We would liked to have done an elephant  approach on foot. Fortunately, there is plan B. Not to waste more hours walking in search of elephants, we climb in  the jeep. We drive around to look for elephants and once we see them, we get to approach them on foot. 150m down the road, it is bingo, at exactly the place where we started two hours earlier our walk.

The elephant has just taken a mud bath. He goes into the woods. Our rangers first check on the direction of the wind, so we walk into the wind so the elephant can not smell us. We also make sure that we stay out of the elephant’s vision. Elephants have poor vision. He does not know that we are there and just continues his rituals. If the mud has dried on his skin, he rubs himself against the trees. This way, the dried mud and bugs sitting on his skin all fall off. We hear the grinding sound as we approach the elephant at about 15 m. Incredible to see him so closely. Another unique moment.

We walk back to the jeep looking for more elephants. We find them 100 m further. There are three elephants in a water hole taking a drink and refreshing themselves. To our surprise, there is also a cheetah drinking.

It is after all thirsty weather. Suddenly  a fourth elephant emerges who chases away the cheetah. The cheetah hides rapidly in the tall grass. It is not normal to see action of  cheetahs at noon. This one apparently has flexible hours or thinks outside the box. Two elephants fight it out. Having observed this scene, we drive back to camp for lunch. Lunch is a wrap with a salad and a fresh fruit salad for dessert. The shower bag is filled again. After the exhausting hike it feels like heaven. Then we take a break before we start our afternoon activity.

Of course we drink a cup of tea with some biscuits first. Then it is  back in the jeep for another safari.

We quickly locate a herd of elephants. Again, there are a couple of little ones walking in between the adult elephants. It is fantastic to see the tactics they use  in protecting the children. Three big elephants surround the little one continuously. Other adults try to intimidate the enemy.

We can not get enough of our approaching of elephants on foot, so  we are approaching two elephants eating their afternoon snack. We stop for a sundowner while the  day turns into night.

We drive back to the camp and are being escorted by lions and elephants roaring at each other in the dark. Our last night in the camp is headed by an African dinner accompanied by a traditional porridge. This is a kind of maize porridge that is eaten with a tomato sauce. In addition, a sausage and beef is served.

To finish the day, I take a shower in the moonlight. These were days never to be forgotten.