Month: January 2019 Page 1 of 4

I wake this morning with mixed feelings. My safari is at an end but a new adventure is yet to begin. So far everything has exceeded my expectations and I do so hope that I am able to see the chimpanzees. But you never know, nature can be unpredictable and there are never any guarantees. I am flying to Mahale which is on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, some 3 hours flight from the Serengeti. It is reputedly the best place in the world to experience a really “Up Close and Personal” encounter with chimpanzees. Japanese researchers set up a research centre in Mahale in the 1960’s and initially offered the chimpanzees food to habituate them to humans. This practice ceased long ago but the result is a group of chimps that are comfortable around humans and if you can find them in an accessible part of the mountain forest then they will not be shy. However, I fully recognise that these are wild animals and can be dangerous so I do have butterflies in the pit of my stomach….

I radio for someone to collect me from my room – it is 06.30 and still the sun is not yet up.

I eat a light breakfast, Margot joins me for a coffee and to say farewell and then I am in the vehicle and Holle is driving me to Ndutu Airstrip, which is a 90 minute drive. As we leave camp I spot another cheetah and there are also many hyenas about this morning. It is a beautiful morning and by the time we reach Ndutu it is already getting hot.

I enter the terminal building and am asked for my flight ticket. I was not issued with one. I say I am flying to Mahale at 09.00 with Nomad. They say there is no Nomad flight, it is Excel Air. I say that as long as the flight is going to Mahale and I am on it I am not at all bothered. These light aircraft flights always seem to be haphazard and disorganised. I stroll around outside and am amused to see that the boundary between the buildings and dirt runway is assorted animal bones.

At 09.20 my plane arrives and I climb aboard. There are only two flights a week to Mahale. Just two other passengers join me on the flight so I am thinking we are the only ones that will be at Mahale for the next four nights. I hope we shall get on OK as they are young – probably early 30s and I am not sure how much we will have in common. Our pilot Stevie introduces himself and says we shall fly for about 90 minutes to Tabora for re-fuelling. I take my laptop out and spend the flight wisely by editing some more photos.

We land at Tabora for the 10 minute re-fuel. I am surprised to see that Tabora has tarmac on the runway and apron – most unusual for a regional airport. I make use of the washroom but wish I didn’t to need to. It’s the perch over a hole variety and they are not the best when you are wearing trousers. Anyway it is clean and needs must – its a long journey!

We climb aboard and one of the girls travelling with me asks the pilot if she can sit in the co-pilots seat. We take-off and head for Mahale. The views from the air are superb.

We land and have to enter our passport details and names in a book and then wait to climb aboard our boat for the hour’s trip south down Lake Tanganyika to Greystoke Mahale (our camp). While we wait for the boat we introduce ourselves and conversation is easy. My fellow travellers are Nina from LA and Cristin from New York. We are all excited and talk about the adventures we have encountered so far. We do not have a long wait and then walk the few yards from the grass landing strip to the shore. Our boat is a large wooden dhow with an outboard on the back. It is comfortable with big squashy cushions and large canopy. We are offered lunch and drinks, told to take off out shoes and we are on our way.

The lakeside is beautiful and the water crystal clear. Villages are scattered along the shoreline and crops are growing where the forest has been cleared. Once we are out on the water there is a wonderful breeze; I have to abandon my hat as it will definitely fly away. I put on sunscreen and then sit back with a beer and enjoy the passing scenery.

It is not long before we leave civilisation behind and enter the National Park. There are no more settlements. Instead pristine lush forests coat the mountain-sides. There are tiny coves with white sand beaches and granite boulders on headlands. The water is turquoise and this is surprisingly reminiscent of the BVIs. We pass red colobus monkeys leaping from tree to tree and noisy yellow baboons chase one another along the shoreline. I am getting pretty excited now!

Then we pass a headland and get our first glimpse of Greystoke Mahale.

As we approach the shore all the staff are waving enthusiastically. The boat is reversed onto the beach, we climb down the stern ladder and we have arrived! Julien takes me to my room and shows me around. It is surprisingly large but definitely like something Robinson Crusoe would have built. There are only six rooms here and they are deliberately built with local and reclaimed materials so that they blend in with the environment. Indeed it is extremely hard to see any of the rooms from the water or main camp area. Although everything looks rustic it is all very comfortable and I have to say the shower is particularly good. There is a thatched walkway behind the bedroom that leads to the bathroom and toilet. Outside is another walkway with a converted canoe which serves as a ladder to the upper deck which is a great place to chill out in the daytime. My room is completely open to the forest but the way I look at it is that although it is easy for creatures to get in to my room, it is equally easy for them to escape. Also very easy for me to escape if need be!!!

We meet for a briefing at 16.00 and sit and drink tea and eat rather delicious homemade cookies. It turns out that another couple are also staying at the camp and they flew in on a private plane a little later this afternoon. They introduce themselves as John and Helen. Julien says the chimpanzees are currently in a valley between the mountains and are not easy to get to so suggests we go for a swim. It is really hot so this seems like an excellent plan.

Ten minutes later we are back on the boat and heading out across the lake. Apparently, we have to swim in deep water to avoid the risk of being attacked by hippos or eaten by crocodiles. There is absolutely no wind and the lake is like a millpond. Not a ripple. Well, not until Nina, Cristin, John and I attempt a variety of entries from the side of the boat (Helen is chilling in her room). I do a splashy girlie jump. The water is wonderfully warm and not salty. I had forgotten we were in fresh water – the lake is so huge it looks just like the sea. We swim around for a bit and tread water while we chat at which point the crew throw inflated tyre tubes to us. This is more like it. We float around on the dead calm water looking at the pristine camp one way and the Congo in the distance on the far shores. From here on things just get better and better – sundowners are suggested and I am handed a G&T while sitting on my inflatable. Yet again I feel like I am in the BVIs and Chris must be close by.

Eventually we clamber back on board and head for the shore. The water has been heated for our showers and we are asked to be at the bar for sundowners and a briefing about the chimps at 19.00. I end up being 15 minutes late as there is a red-tailed monkey on my decking. He is drinking from my foot bath and dashing around the decking picking up flying ants. He is so cute and not at all phased by my presence. I stand and watch mesmerised. This place is amazing and unlike anywhere I have ever been before.

I head for the bar and am introduced to our guide Mwiga. He has been at the camp for over 20 years and knows the chimps intimately. He tells us how to act when we are close to them. The main thing is to not stare too long at the males and definitely not at the females with babies as they will see us as a threat to the baby. The other absolute no no is no flashes on cameras. The chimps think it is lightning and Mwiga says his went off by mistake once and he really did think he was going to die. We will all ensure the flashes are off on our cameras tomorrow.

We then eat dinner outside on the beach with a campfire lit behind us. The stars are so bright, the food is the best I have had so far on the trip; really exceptionally good. I think I shall sleep well tonight and indeed I do.

I have arranged a 06.00 wake up call. My morning game drive commences at 06.30 and we shall take a picnic breakfast. First of all, we shall see if we can find last night’s cheetahs. We have not travelled far when we spot a lone cheetah cub. It is sitting and calling for its mother. It is still quite dark so I cannot capture a very clear shot but the video is good and records the cub’s high pitched calls which are heart-rending.

We guess that hyenas must have come upon the kill in the night and the cheetahs would have fled in all directions. We drive away hoping that the cheetah family will soon be re-united. Luckily other guests report later that morning that they did indeed see the whole family back together.

We search some rocky outcrops for lions but have no luck. A giraffe casually observes us through a thicket.

Time passes swiftly and it is already 08.30 and breakfast time. Holle stops on a beautiful wooded slope. Impala graze in the background and pretty white and pink flowers adorn the ground.

I love bush breakfasts. I am always hungry after bouncing around in a jeep for a few hours. And everything tastes great. There are fried egg sandwiches with bacon and sausages, fresh fruit, pancakes and muffins. The coffee is particularly good. It is surprising that I always enjoy fresh coffee for breakfast when I am on holiday. In England I would only ever have tea. While Holle packs up I try and take some bird photos. There are lots of grey-breasted spurfowl in the undergrowth. They are shy but I succeed in the end.

Before we continue, I use the bush toilet (i.e stoop behind the vehicle). Oh to be a man on these occasions – it feels pretty exposed! You never quite know when a predator or another vehicle may appear.

After breakfast we come upon a lone adult cheetah. This is cheetah central!! It saunters through the bush, resting occasionally in different poses to provide quite excellent photo opportunities.

We then find a pride of 9 lions; 3 lionesses and 6 cubs. Initially they lie in the bushes doing what lions do best i.e. laze away the day. We observe them for quite a while as the cubs are pretty cute and are particularly delighted when they all start to move. The cubs are playful, chasing each other and nuzzling their mums and better still they are all out in the open. What a treat! I take lots of video as the inter-action is super.

We stay with the lions for over an hour and reluctantly move off but this is obviously big cat morning as we now hear a leopard has been seen. We set off to find it and eventually spot several vehicles parked on the edge of a gully. There is dense undergrowth on the far side and apparently the leopard is in there somewhere. This is going to be a waiting game. It is mid-day so cracking open a beer seems a good idea while I wait. Eventually after half an hour or so the leopard emerges. We follow it through the bush which involves traversing several gullies. The vegetation is dense and thick; the going bumpy. Trying to keep our eyes on the leopard is difficult but with the aid of numerous binocular stops we succeed and follow it to a tree, which it rapidly climbs and sprawls out on a branch to snooze the day away.

I arrive back for lunch at 13.00 – a sensible time. Great I think. I can have lunch and edit some photos. Best laid plans….by now I really should know better! I end up having lunch with Margot and we talk until it is time for the afternoon drive. Hey ho – I shall just have to write my blog in England. In any case the WiFi here is useless and I decide to stop trying to use it for anything other than a quick text message.

We hear the migration is now making its way to Kusini so this will be this afternoon’s challenge. There are myriads of birds here. It would be wonderful to stay for longer and focus on the birdlife. Huge flocks of collared doves takes flight as we pass by, spur fowl seem to be hiding under every bush. Lilac breasted rollers flash between the bushes with their beautiful turquoise blue wings. Everywhere there are birds in flight and I would love to have more time to photograph the numerous different species here.

We spot a group of lions lying by the side of a large pool of water. They look so hot, yet as they are lying in the burning mid-day heat, I think they must be obtaining relief from the damp earth that they are resting on.

We drive a few hundred yards and find 3 more lions. Sleepy as they are we are amused to see one of the males continually prodding the female on her bottom. He is obviously after a bit of afternoon romance but she is having none of it and does not bat an eyelid. I have totally lost track of the number of big cats I have seen on this trip. It is all the more astonishing because there seem to be vast tracts of land with very little plains game. There must be plenty to eat because, out of all the many cats I have seen, I have not seen any that are particularly thin or unhealthy. In fact most are fat cats!

We drive on across the scrubby heathland but still see no sign of the migration. Eventually we start to encounter zebra and hyenas and then wildebeest. The herds increase incrementally and then there are thousands of animals teeming before us.

The plains are punctuated by occasional waterholes and gullies. Zebra frolic in the pools accompanied by their noisy ‘Eeaw, Eeaw, Eeaw’ and mini wildebeest migrations take place as each gully is crossed.

The gullies may be small but many hyena use them as resting places so they are certainly not a safe place for animals to linger. On this occasion we see no predator action, but I have certainly seen thousands of animals today, both big and small. Numerous hyenas and jackals appear on our drive back.

As usual we are greeted by beaming staff clapping and singing. They are led by the totally charismatic camp manager – Richard who is always smiling and appears to run everywhere. We are late back so I decide to order my bucket shower for after dinner and I shall wash my hair then. I have a brief change and semi-freshen up and then head for the camp fire. Conversation flows and dinner is another fun, communal affair. We are told dessert is a bush surprise. The lights go out then all the staff start singing and dancing around the table. It turns out to be two peoples’ birthdays. Cake appears and dancing continues with everyone being grabbed and made to join in with the dancing and singing. Richard says “Caring is sharing” and the cakes are cut and distributed.

When I return to my room I shower and wash my hair and think “I shall treat myself and use my hairdryer”. My hair goes a bit wild with the humidity so, if I can use a dryer, tomorrow I might look a bit less like Monica in Friends when she goes to the Caribbean. If you have not seen this episode just take it from me – her hair is wild indeed! I dry about 10 strands of hair before I trip the fuse. Fortunately the lights work but no power. Everyone has now gone to bed and there is no way I am owning up to my sabotage tonight. Clearly the room power sockets are only designed for charging batteries and phones. I can now do neither, my phone and laptop batteries are flat and I am flying to Mahale tomorrow, which is a four hour trip. I swear and go to bed with wet hair – grrr! I always sleep on my back so I pull my hair tight behind me on the pillow and think I can perhaps straighten it out in the night. Miraculously it works and looks pretty OK when I get up in the morning!

Today I transfer from Dunia to Kimondo Kusini. Both lodges are run by Asilia and they have arranged a rendezvous point between the camps. We depart at 09.00 but not before Angel has asked me to write in the guest book. She opens a new page and tells me to “Write big and write lots”. I have experienced such incredible wildlife at Dunia and the staff, room, food and hosting have been excellent so it is extremely easy to wax lyrical. All the staff then sing me a farewell song and Angel asks me to read out my entry to them. I believe that this camp, which is staffed almost entirely by women, is a great success. When my husband Chris and I visited Botswana we stayed at a camp in the Linyanti called Duma Tau. It was a wonderful camp with a warm and welcoming ambience. It was run by Wilderness Safaris with mainly female staff. I understand Asilia saw this and thought that it would be a good idea to follow suit. I do hope that more such camps will be created in future to help empower African women, although I appreciate that it is a hard career choice for them as it means they are away from their families for long periods of time.

Following a 45 minute drive I see a vehicle parked on the road ahead. I am delighted to see that I now have an open vehicle. I find it difficult to game spot in the closed vehicles and taking photos can be uncomfortable. Of course open vehicles are colder and windier but I love it and feel so much more in touch with my surroundings. My bags are transferred to my new vehicle and I meet my guide called Holle. We set off for Kimondo which is a good 2-3 hour game drive away. The landscape initially is open savannah with occasional rocky outcrops. We spot a cheetah in the distance but it shortly disappears amongst the tall grass. Giraffes appear on the horizon and we enjoy watching their lolloping gait silhouetted against the skyline.

Eventually the plains give way to acacia scrub. This is tsetse fly territory and there are many of them. The vehicle is equipped with bug spray and an animal tail fly swat which are both required. Tsetses are nasty. The bite hurts and they have absolutely no hesitation in biting through your clothing. The best remedy is to drive fast and continually swoosh your fly swatter. Miraculously I avoid being bitten and am relieved when we finally drive out on to the plains.

There is a warm welcome as I arrive. The staff are smiling broadly, singing and clapping their hands. Kimono is a mobile camp which follows the migration moving between Kusini and the Serengeti Mara to the north. I am not sure what my tent will be like. I am thinking basic but it is very comfortable. There is a large king-size bed, ensuite with flushing toilet and bucket showers and a great view of the plains where herds of zebra are grazing.

A buffet lunch, fish goujons and assorted salads, has been prepared and tables are laid under a large shady tree. I enjoy a chilled glass of Chardonnay with a label saying “Serengeti The Migration”.

After lunch I sit in the shade and try updating my blog but the WiFi is not up to the task. Instead I edit photos until I recognise the lady to my left. It is Margot that I met at Rivertrees last week. We fall into easy conversation; comparing notes on our trip so far. It seems no sooner have I had lunch than it is time to set off on my next game drive.

There has been a report of two lions close by so we go looking for them. It does not take long before we spot two very full lions lazing under a bush. One of them has his mouth wide open and is actually snoring! It is highly unlikely that the lions are going to move for some time so we go looking for more active subjects.

We leave the lions and follow the road uphill to where the landscape changes into a broad expanse of green low-lying heathland. There is not much grass but instead short scrubby shrubs. The landscape is not dissimilar to British moorland. Birds abound here, spurfowl dart between the bushes, huge flocks of collared doves take flight as we drive across the plains. Apparently we do not need to stay on the roads here so the going is quite bumpy. There does not appear to be much game. There are occasional giraffe and some scattered impala and Grant’s gazelle. I spot a jackal which has caught a small bird which it hides in the bushes before re-emerging to look at us.

Jackals quite often follow larger predators so we survey the landscape with our binoculars. We are hopeful as Holle has heard that a cheetah was spotted (no pun intended) earlier this afternoon but despite our best efforts we cannot find it. The sun is beginning to set and I feel our chances of any further valuable sighting today is slim. Then suddenly there in the distance is a cheetah and she is definitely hunting. There are 3 cubs in tow sitting patiently in the scrub 50 yards behind her.

She suddenly bursts from cover and chases after an impala. They see her coming and elude her with indignant alarm calls. She nestles in the scrub and surveys the plains.

We watch and wait but believe nothing will now happen for a while as all the animals are on full alert. The sun is setting and we must return to camp. Then much to our surprise the cheetah starts stalking. Occasionally she runs swiftly, then she stops and sinks down into cover, the cubs trot along in her wake but have been well trained and remain a safe distance behind her, so as to not spook the prey. The chase is definitely on. Her head is fixed and she has sighted prey and continues to stealthily creep forward. I have my video set to record events and keep my eyes glued to the action. Then it is happening. She bursts from cover and sprints forward. I put my camera into video mode and make sure I am not zoomed in too much. I have her perfectly in my sights and am sure I can record the whole episode. There are several vehicles watching the action and annoyingly, as she nears her quarry the guides all slam their vehicles into gear and race across the plain in close pursuit behind her. Of course the upshot is that I saw everything that happened but stood no chance whatsoever of filming it, as I was tossed from side to side and had to hang on tight to avoid injury!

The cheetah has caught a large Grant’s gazelle. A very impressive sized prey for such a small cat. She is clearly experienced to have managed to raise 3 cubs to 8-9 months old. She has the gazelle by the throat and it dies swiftly with little struggle. The cubs immediately start to feed on the rump. Eating speedily is crucial. We can already hear hyenas calling. We sit and watch until it is almost dark then race back for drinks by the fire. What a phenomenal experience.

I have a member of staff allocated to me and he looks after all my needs (well maybe not quite all of them!). He meets me at the vehicle, walks me to my tent and prepares me a hot bucket shower. The shower is almost too hot but it is so great to wash away all today’s dust that I cope with turning it off and on to avoid first degree burns.

The camp is now fairly full. As a consequence dinner is a pretty noisy affair with some diverse conversations. I talk to an American couple who are lawyers and worked for the Obama administration. They are knowledgeable and forthcoming and provide a most interesting insight into the American political system.

Today we are heading back to Namiri Plains so it will be another full day’s outing with picnic lunch. The great thing about all day drives is that it is not quite such an early start. Despite that I awoke very early and could see torches being flashed in the bushes. I thought no more about it, wrote some of my blog and headed for breakfast at 07.00. Angel comes over to chat. Apparently she has had quite an eventful morning. She left her tent at 05.30 and caught the glint of eyes in her torchlight. She looked carefully and saw a fully grown male lion laying at the bottom of the steps into tent No.5. I am tent No. 3….. He seemed unperturbed by her presence but when she called for more staff he ambled away. There are a lot of predators here, walking alone after dark is a no go and there are no bush walks. I can totally see why!

We depart at 07.30 and see a leopard in the same tree as yesterday and stop to take photos. The light is perfect and I have more great shots.

We drive on and today the plains are empty. Where we saw so much yesterday there is just grass, grass and the occasional hartebeest. There is a bustard and we do eventually spot two small groups of lions and a small herd of elephant but nothing else.

John says “There is always hope”. I think perhaps I have been spoilt so far! Well we drive on and start to see lots of zebra and then wildebeest. Hoorah – we have found the migration! John says “Let’s have an early lunch and then see if we can find some action”. We park in a beautiful glade of yellow acacias with the lushest and greenest grass. Lunch is quiche and salad. It slips down very well with an ice-cold beer.

We set off again and before long we are out on the Namiri Plains surrounded by thousands and thousands of zebra and wildebeest. It is exposed here and cooler with a very strong wind blowing and dust swirling around.

We spot a group of vultures on the ground so drive over to see if there is perhaps a kill there. There is not but we then notice, a short distance away, a mother cheetah and her cub. They are in some shrubbery but we can see as we approach that they have made a kill. We are the only vehicle and settle down to watch how the scenario will play out. The vultures are waiting for the cheetahs to finish eating and minute by minute more appear. We sit for 2 hours – patience is the thing. 2 other vehicles join us briefly but we see no-one else. There is only 1 camp on Namiri Plains and John recommends that I stay here in the future as it is very much like being in a private reserve. I know there will be amazing action when the cheetahs finally finish their meal. They look absolutely bloated with large swollen stomachs yet still they keep on eating. There are now 4 different species of vulture and probably 70-80 birds in total. They inch nearer and nearer and every so often the cheetah cub chases them off.

Finally the cheetahs can eat no more. They back away from the kill and complete chaos ensues. Everything happens so fast. The vultures descend on the carcass but now hyenas are appearing in the distance and running towards us. It is amazing how fast they can run and now they chase the vultures out of the way and steal the carcass and fight amongst themselves for possession. So much is happening. I do not know where to point the camera. In the meantime the cheetahs are being harassed by the wildebeest who do not want them near their young. Having waited over 2 hours to see how events would play out, it is all over in less than 5 minutes. Astonishing!

It is now getting late and have come a long way so we have to drive back to camp very fast indeed. It is a very bumpy and uncomfortable journey but so worth it. As a grand finale all 9 lions are back in their favourite tree. We watch them briefly as it is now getting dark.

When I arrive for dinner more guests have arrived. There is a variety of nationalities but everyone is friendly and have interesting stories to relate. We chat around the campfire then sit at a large communal table. I am seated next to Peter and Branco from Berlin. Zay are so outrageous darling and such fun company. It turns into quite a boisterous meal and I am sad that I shall be leaving tomorrow. Dunia Camp has been a wonderful place to stay and I shall return.

Tea and cookies are brought to my room at 06.30. I gather my belongings and head off for breakfast before starting an all day game drive at 07.30.

This turns out to be a pretty successful day. The first thing we encounter is a beautiful snake on the road. It is black and green, slender and about 5′ long. John is not sure what it is as he has never seen one. I Google it when we get back to discover it is a boomslang which is one of the most venomous snakes in Africa and there I was leaning out of the vehicle to get a good close up shot!

We hear on the radio that there is a pride of 30 lions close by. We head off to find them and after 10 minutes see them lying in the grass close to the track. I count them but can only see 12 initially. I then start to see movements – the one lion under the bush turns out to be four and gradually we spot more and more. We count 24 but they are so well camouflaged and keep moving around. There are buffalo close by so we hope the lions may be feeling hungry but there are no signs of major activity so we move on.

We drive out of the acacia woodland on to the plains and shortly spot a cheetah sitting on a termite mound.

It is a good distance away so no great camera opportunity but as I try to take shots we hear that we drive by a leopard just 300 yards behind us. We drive back to see it and it is perfectly placed on a lower branch with the light in the right direction so I take some super close-ups.

We return to look at the cheetah which has moved but is still visible. We shortly realise why as 2 very large male lions are approaching. At the same time 2 jackals also appear.

So much activity. The lions walk right up to the vehicle and then amble down the road to the marshes. We follow them until they lay down to sleep. What an amazing start to the day. We see another leopard and then encounter a vast herd of buffalo. They kick up clouds of dust and there are loads of young calves which are a lovely chestnut brown as opposed to the dark grey of the adults.

We are driving to Namiri Plains which is a long way from camp. Much of the time there is little to see. The grass is so tall that animal spotting is hard.

We see some hartebeest and watch a group of ostrich and suddenly John says “Look. Over there. Do you see a cheetah and her cubs?” I strain my eyes and see a distant indistinct shape and some moving blobs next to it. Through the binoculars I can indeed see a cheetah and 3 cubs. Vehicles are not meant to leave the main tracks in the Serengeti but John waits for other vehicles to pass and says “Shall we get closer?”

We go off road and stop some 30 yards short of them. John turns off the engine and we watch. Incredibly they all walk towards us – closer and closer. I am filming the cubs when suddenly the mother jumps up on the bonnet. I turn quickly and start to aim my camera through the roof hatch to be confronted by the cheetah’s head 2 feet from mine. She crouches and looks as though she wants to jump through the roof space into the vehicle for shade. It all happens so fast that I am unable to take a clear picture.

John starts the engine and the cheetah jumps down onto the grass. However in the meantime the 3 cubs have sought shade underneath the vehicle! Again we start the engine and they dart out; all 4 cheetah stay close to the vehicle and then eventually start to stroll away. We sit and watch – totally spellbound. This was just the most magical experience.

We continue to the plains where thousands and thousands of zebra are grazing. Here there are large water holes and the zebra are cavorting and swimming in the pools and really seem to be enjoying themselves. It is after all a very hot day. I am quite envious – the water looks very appealing.

All too soon it is time to commence the long and bumpy drive back to camp, but we are still treated to some great encounters. There is a wart hog family with three piglets, banded mongooses playing by the roadside. They are so entertaining. They frolick around and a lookout stands on his hind legs, exactly like a meerkat would do.

We are halted as a troop of elephants cross the road ahead of us. There are several babies but one is absolutely tiny and can walk beneath her mother with ease.

We cross a stream where hippos wallow, vervet monkeys play in the bushes and baboons groom each other on the far shore. As we approach our camp a young bull elephant approaches us. We can see he is in musth by the tears running down his cheeks. He is not happy to see us and makes several mock charges. We start the engine and drive away rapidly. We have been out for over 9 hours but it does not seem long at all. What a truly exceptional day!

Tonight more guests have arrived so we have a much more lively and sociable evening than the previous night. I am greeted at the fire by two English ladies who say ” Hello – you must be Maggie. Angel has told us all about you.” Not sure whether this is a good or bad thing!??