Once again we woke up thinking it was raining and it was a baboon in the palm.
Eight graceful giraffes passed by early in the morning. They generally can be seen with zebras grazing about. If you look closely in the photos you can see that the top of a zebra is as tall as the under belly of a giraffe.
Our day started with a river crossing. After the last hippo “stare down” this one went off without a hitch. We cross and on the shoreline stop to change our shoes. Usually the bank is an incline, and after a scramble, we are up on the plain. Upon cresting there was a hippo off to our right side several yards away. Immediately Iain and the men lined up and were at the ready with guns drawn. We were told to run. ‘Stay together and RUN”. The hippo had turned and looked like it might charge.
By the grace of God he changed his mind. Hippos are mean and fast. Iain said “They tend to get discombobulated and either run away or charge.”
Another thrilling event. I think I have said “Holy shit” about 10,000 times on this walk!
In all the years that Iain has led these safaris they have only had one serious incident where a hippo charged and knocked over a ranger and then picked up a woman client and flung her. They weren’t unable to shoot it with the woman in its jaws. It was in 1987, In the middle of nowhere and no way to communicate. It took them five hours from the time of the incident to the moment she got to a hospital. She survived with a long recovery period.
With this crisis averted we began to walk again….
Approximately half an hour later Stephen spotted a female elephant in the saltbrush several yards away. A few days in the bush and he’s a tracker! Lajori did his soft whistle to let Iain know. Normally we can pass undetected. This elephant stepped out of the brush and made her presence known. She knew we were there.
Once again Iain shouted “RUN and keep running.” Lajori directed us with a rapid wave.
Iain fired a warning shot into the air. The elephant hesitated and then started to charge. Toiko then fired another warning shot. All the while Washii is making a repetitive rhythmic sound from the bottom of his throat – as if he was trying to calm the elephant.
She finally decided to turn.
Heart racing…. What now? Lions???
It was quite a morning – 10 mammal sightings and two heart racers in 1.5 hours.
The rest of the walk was uneventful.
The game drive was a lion experience. We first came upon two laying on their sides, out like a light, without a care in the world. Our Rovers drove right up to them and one barely opened his lazy eyes and closing them promptly as if he couldn’t be bothered. The lion beside him didn’t even budge. Moments later a maneless male came out of the saltbush – moseyed along and then fell to his sleepy side. Then another large maned lion came out of the bush. He majestically sat for a brief moment, looked around and then curled up next to his brothers side.
Kim and I decided to check out the kitchen at the campsite. Kikuyu, camp chef for 40+ years makes meals that one would think came out of a gourmet kitchen. It’s hard to believe that they are made with such basic necessities. The Dutch oven reminds me of an old metal ammunition box and bakes the bread and rolls to perfection. Kikuyu uses a shovel to raise the box’s lid. Here are some camp life photos.
Elephant tracks right in-front of our tent!
Yikes and cool in same sentence. I guess that says it all❤️
I think those lion nightmares are going to come back…accompanied by charging hippos and elephants! Your hearts are definitely stronger than mine! I will press on to the next report!