Hwange NP

View out the window on the drive.

Ready for our game drive. Dwayne from Ottawa beside me.

A lion cub peaking out of the bush.

A steenbuck.

A real African waterhole.

Lions! A pride of 16.

Monday, October 16^th.

We had a late start this morning. We were supposed to leave by 9:30, but we were all up and ready by 8:30, so we left. The two missing people apparently cancelled, and now we have 17 instead of 22, so there is more room on the truck. I sat in a seat by myself and listened to music. We drove for a couple of hours through the bushveld that was sprinkled with baobab trees, to the town of Hwange where we bought supplies for our lunch and snacks for our afternoon safari. This town is a mining town where they have a large coal mining operation and a three reactor nuclear power plant.

Then we drove for another couple of hours to our new camp, the Ivory Lodge. This camp has a water hole on site and a viewing platform. We set up our camp and then had lunch. After that I went to the platform and watched a few kudo, baboons and a waterhog as they hung around the pool in the heat.

At 2:30 we were picked up by two open vehicle 4x4's and set off on a five hour safari. The first hour was a slow drive to the park entrance and then after a toilet stop we drove in. We drove for a couple of hours and saw a giraffe, a few impala, a couple of steenbuck (small antelopes), birds and two young lions peeking out of a bush hiding spot. Our driver Peter Mosquito said we would go further and then come back when it was getting cooler, about 6:00 and see them again (yeah right I thought).

En route Peter talked about the way plants protect themselves from herbivores by sending toxins to their leaves when they are being eaten and through the air to warn other plants. I was amazed because that is right out of the book The Secret Lives of Trees which I read before I left home.

We saw a small herd of zebra but no elephants which the park is famous for. Then we drove to another viewing platform by a large water hole. There were hundreds of elephants there! Plus a herd of zebra and one giraffe. We sat and watched and photographed as dozens of elephants literally ran out of the forest to get to the water. Others were playing in the water and socializing. The zebra tried to come for a drink but one of the elephants would bellow and chase them away. The giraffe was very timid and approached the water a few times to drink but wasn't quite comfortable. Finally after a few attempts it got down and drank.

I asked Peter when we were going back to see the lions and he said when we're ready. So we got back in the 4x4 and retraced our route. Sure enough we got back just as the pride of 16 lions was moving out of their shelter where they hid from the afternoon heat. We watched as they walked parallel to the road. Then Peter repositioned the vehicle ahead of them and we watched as they walked right past us about three metres away! A few of them would look up at us but keep going. Apparently as long as we are quiet and don't move they only really see the truck. I don't understand why they don't smell us. But several times they would look up and stare. It was very unnerving, especially if it was on your side of the truck. Anyway, the pride went by but not the three littlest cubs. The mother came back past us and stood calling to them. After a minute you could hear them calling back and they came running out of the bush! I caught the whole thing on video. It is amazing, and another David Attenborough moment.

Then we watched and followed as they walked right down the middle of the road. It was really incredible and a totally awesome experience.

Then we began the drive back to camp. The sun had just set and it was getting darker as we drove. Peter pulled out a bright headlight and he shown that from side to side. We saw a female kuku, a zebra and a herd of elephants in the dark. Then when he turned on the dirt road he handed me the headlight and I swung it back and forth. At one point a large insect, attracted by the light hit me right in the eye. People thought it was a bat! I think Peter was trying to find us a leopard, sadly without success.

When we arrived at camp we had another steak dinner and a beer before a bit of relaxing and then bed in a tent by a water hole that animals visit all day and night and not protected by a fence or anything.