Africa: Days 12-14

Sorry there's been a slight pause in our Africa journeys. My residency started up on Monday, and I've been working 10 hour days. Needless to say, the blog got put on pause. So, here we go...

Day 12: Wednesday, August 18th

I don't think this morning was too cold, or maybe I'm just getting used to it. We had our bags out ready to be loaded on the trailer while we went out on a morning game drive. We went to where they had recently discovered a wild dog den, but they were all gone. Either they got scared by all the people who came to see them constantly, or a hyena attacked them...depending on whose story you choose to believe. The guides are getting frustrated because the animals are getting harder to find. As the water keeps changing, the animals move and the roads become blocked. It truly comes down to timing and luck.

And as luck would have it, we caught wind of a lion sighting with a kill - a zebra. Problem was that they were very far away, but we decided it was worth it anyway. By the time we got there, the lions had pulled their kill under the bushes to hide it from scavengers. There was only 1 female lion out in the open, but she was lying down on her side and was difficult to see in the tall grass. We tried to see the lions under the bush, but could only see the bellies of 2 and that was after sitting there and staring for a while. Makes you wonder how many lions we have driven past and not even known it!




Because we went so out of the way, we got a late start on our drive to the next camp - Xakanaka. The road today was nowhere near as bumpy as yesterday. We had lunch near the water again. This time our guests were hippos. They kept popping their heads up and blowing bubbles. No going to the bathroom here though...there was a black mamba living in it! Yikes!




We finally made it to Xakanaka camp, but another group had beaten us there. Here in Botswana, it doesn't seem to matter if you've paid for it, the rule of 1st come, 1st served still applies. So we searched for a place to set up our camp near-by. The crew would level out the ground and cut down the grass while we went out on a game drive.

The area here is very wooded and has lots of tall trees. We got very close to a group of zebras, which I'm hoping will make for some awesome pictures.





We are seeing fewer elephants now, but they're definitely still around.





As we were driving back to camp, the bugs started to come out. There are definitely more bugs here than any of the other places we've been. We were covered by the time we got back! We had dinner to the sounds of hippos, hyenas, and 2 leopards mating. It sounded more like they were being tortured! And by the sounds of it, they were very close to camp!




Day 13: Thursday, August 19th

Another morning of waking up early in search of animals. One of these mornings I would love to sleep in, but I doubt it's going to happen this trip. It didn't seem too cold this morning, but I still bundle up in layers because the wind is freezing once we start driving.

As in the days past, we were really hoping to see some lions or cheetahs. Well, the stars must have been aligned, because we turned the corner and round tons of cars all grouped together. We knew it had to be something good, boy was it ever! We had stumbled upon 9 lions and their fresh kill - a cape buffalo. It was very clear what the pecking order was, because until the alpha male was finished, the other lions couldn't come within 5 feet of the kill before he would roar and swat them away. He was definitely going whole-hog, and was up to his shoulders inside the buffalo. He would come back out for air after a few minutes, panting with meat sweats, and then go back in for more.





Some of the younger females got bored and started playing with each other - very entertaining to watch.


After about 30 minutes, we headed out toward the channels to go on a mokoro ride. A mokoro is a traditional dug-out wooden canoe where you are pushed by a poler. It's like Africa's version of a gondola. We zig-zagged through the tall grass and reeds, learned about the local plants, and I even tried a water fig (it tasted very planty), and once the water opened up, we saw tiny little frogs and the resident hippo. He wasn't too fond of us, and tried to scare us off. We decided to give him some space, and headed back. It was very relaxing and a neat tradition to experience.





After a quick lunch, we started back for camp, with a game drive en route. There were tons of birds, antelope and zebra.




And the lions were all still there, now passed out in a food coma. The vultures were starting to crowd, but the alpha male made sure to let them know that they were not yet finished. It would be theirs soon though, because lions won't eat the meat once it starts to spoil. The hyenas and jackals would be there that night to fight with the vultures.




While we had been out, the crew moved our entire camp over the campsite we should have been in last night - they were one hard-working crew! It was our last night camping, and we celebrated with a yummy dessert - caramel bake!

Day 14: Friday, August 20th

This morning was bittersweet, as it was our last morning in camp. We took group shots with the crew and waited as everything got packed up.


We were to do a game drive as we headed out, but we didn't see too many animals, so we actually made very good time. We had a new first - baby giraffes! They were so awkwardly cute! They kept trying to drink water from the watering hole like the adults, which is awkward looking when they do it too, but their necks weren't long enough, so they kept falling onto their knees. Poor things!



We stopped and had lunch at a campsite run by a bushman tribe. There were people there preparing grass thatching for roofing, and there were also women selling woven baskets. I bought another one, this one with many different colors in it. We took more group pictures, then kept driving to Maun.



We finally returned to paved roads, which means high speeds in an open-air vehicle without seatbelts. Kind of scary! We checked into the Island Safari Lodge, and after a nice shower and some hand-washing of my laundry, it was off to the airport. We went on a scenic flight over the Okovango Delta. The flight took place in a tiny 5-passenger plane. One of the Spaniards, Adrian (our newly adopted brother) joined us. The views were amazing, but between the heat and the quick tilting from side to side, I nearly lost it. An experience I will never forget, but not one that I care to repeat anytime soon.






We re-grouped back at the lodge, then had a delicious dinner at Audi Camp, where we'll stay when we return to Maun next week. It was our last night with the safari crew and 2 Peace Corps volunteers Shannon and Steve. It felt so good to be back in a bed again. There are different animals one the outside of each of the rooms here. Ours naturally were elephants - it was meant to be!


There are lots of monkeys roaming around the grounds, so you can't leave the windows or doors open, or they'll sneak into your room and steal your stuff. They were pretty cute, but I'd probably change my mind if they got into the room. Tori and I definitely slept soundly tonight, which is good because another early morning awaits us!

Africa: Days 9-11

Day 9: Sunday, August 15th

Today we started our safari. We are traveling with 2 other Peace Corps volunteers, Shannon and Steve, and a group of 6 from Spain. The Spaniards don't actually know each other - they booked through the same travel agent who specializes in African travel. 2 more Spaniards will be joining us tomorrow.



We started by driving through Chobe National Park along the Chobe River. We saw hippos, baboons, kudu, impala, warthogs, impala, crocodiles, elephants, and a new one...giraffes! There were several females with younger males. The males have darker spots than females, but both get darker with age. The males also have black "horns" on their heads, while females have blonder, fluffier "horns". Oh, and their gestational period is 18 months, without a breeding season per say. No thanks.






We saw a large family of elephants sleeping in the shade. The larger ones cannot lay down because their heart will stop because they weigh too much. Instead, they will stand in the shade of a tree for up to 4 hours.





Everywhere you look there are dead trees because there are so many elephants here. Lucky (our guide) said that outside the park you are allowed to hunt them because the populations are so large - something I was not happy to hear. Even though the trees are dead, other animals can live in them, such as squirrels, mongooses and birds.

The road we drove on is very soft sand. We are in an open-air land cruiser, so we are pretty dusty and wind-blown. We picked up our baskets up at the park gate, so we'll have to smuggle them back in. :) We stopped on the side of the road to have lunch, along with tons of flies.


We eventually made it to Savuti, and drove around a little before we headed to our campsite. We got word of a leopard sighting, so we quickly headed toward the spot. He was very hard to see at first because in the middle of the day, the cats all sleep inside the bushes out of the sun. After a while, he finally came out of hiding, but he was still far away.



While we were sitting there, we happened to look behind us, and a large bull elephant was walking right behind our vehicle. He was so quiet, no one ever heard him. This area is known for the largest population of bull elephants.



We finally made it to our campsite and our tents were all set up for us. Tori and I are sharing a tent. You can see through the top and see all the stars - very pretty! It got very cold at night, so we got all bundled up in our beds. There were birds chirping as if it were morning, which got annoying after a while. In the middle of the night we were woken up by a low rumbling sound - elephants drinking out of the river behind our tents! (The guides also heard lions, but no one else did.)

Day 10: Monday, August 16th

We woke up early this morning to go on a game drive. It was freezing cold! My mom's little thermometer said it was 35º! Yikes! We had to go out while it was still cold to have better odds of seeing cats. And lo and behold a leopard crossed the road right in front of us. But he got scared and ran off before we could get a picture. We said he was late for a lunch date. And of course there were more elephant herds and babies! And impala...everywhere. We decided that they are Botswana's equivalent of rabbits.





We had a coffee and snack break in the middle of an opening. There was a jackal off in the distance watching our every move! It was around this time that I finally started peeling off some layers and didn't need a blanket covering me in the land cruiser.



We started heading back to camp and saw a steenbok (the smallest antelope in Botswana) and wildebeest, or as they call them here...wild beest.



Back at camp we had a yummy brunch and then had some downtime. We all had our first experience with a camp shower, which is basically a bucket hanging from a tree with a shower nozzle on the bottom it. They also went to the Savuti airport, more like a slightly paved area with steps they roll up to the plane, to pick up the other 2 Spaniards.

At around 3:30 we headed out on another game drive. We stopped at a rocky hillside where we climbed up to see some rock paintings. We also saw some elephant bones. Elephants usually die when they're older because they have worn down their teeth and can no longer chew their food, and eventually die of starvation.





No new animal sightings, except for maybe some antelope - there are too many different types for me to keep track!





Just as the sun was setting we found another leopard. This time in a tree with his kill - a kori bustard (a giant bird that looks like a roadrunner). I'm not sure if my pictures turned out because the light was very low.



Another filling dinner with amazing dessert - chocolate bake! Hopefully it won't be as cold tonight!

Day 11: Tuesday, August 17th

This morning was not as cold as yesterday, but it was definitely still chilly! There were some visitors in camp during the night...there were leopard and hyena footprints! Glad they didn't try to get into anything!



We had to pack up camp after breakfast because we are on the move! We are headed to Khwai, which is still in Chobe National Park. It took about 5 hours on a very bumpy road. I'm talking Indian Jones style, flying off your seat and landing back down hard...over and over and over again. We ended up breaking off both shock mounts on the trailer and a cross-beam on the vehicle became un-welded. And the extra gas cans we had in the back started leaking because the lids blew off.


We stopped by the river to have lunch and we had company - 2 elephants bathing in the water. One even went all the way under so all you could see was his trunk sticking up out of the water. Then they started "dusting" themselves to help keep cool. Very neat to be so close and watch this.





We kept driving for a few hours after lunch until we got closer to Khwai. We thought it was funny when we crossed the bridge in Khwai and were reminded of the movie. We all started whistling in honor of it. We had to keep taking different roads because the water was too deep for the jeep to go through. There were many places where even a week ago there was no water, and now it is too deep to drive. Fortunately, because of one of our detours we got to check off another animal on our list...zebras! I was very happy because I was starting to wonder if we'd ever see any. Still no lions or cheetahs though!



We eventually ran out of options and had to go through deep water. We had to take all the bags out of the trailer in order to keep them dry. We made it across safely (and dry), and had one more obstacle before getting to camp - a log bridge. We had to walk across it because if there was too much weight, the logs will crack.




We finally made it to camp, which was set up next to water. (This ended up being my favorite campsite of the trip.) After a quick bathroom break, we went out on an evening game drive in search of lions. No such luck, but we watched a beautiful sunset and listened to the frogs. They sound like high-pitched metal chirps, instead of the normal frog sounds we're used to.




We headed back to camp, avoiding the resident baboons, and after another filling dinner, quickly fell asleep resting up for another long day.