Lucky Off-Track

This morning’s game drive was my fourth and halfway through our safari stay. Here, you can see Lucky keeping an eye out and Will driving on the road:



I managed to get a photo of the steenbok I mentioned yesterday. We also saw them later outside our lodge. They are so tiny!



We had to stop for this pair of warthogs crossing the road. They are taller than I imagined. Of course we yelped “pumba” and the Brazilian girls had to endure my singing as we sang the chorus of “hakuna matata” from the Lion King:





We also saw the same giraffe that we saw on our drive in from the airport. We were told it was surprising that this giraffe covered this much ground as they don’t move this fast or far. Good job buddy!



Then we did some off-roading. We’re only allowed for the Big Five animals plus African wild dog and cheetah. I’ve remarked it’s surprising that Lucky doesn’t wear a belt and just holds on with his left hand. But here, he’s holding with both and we all had to duck around the trees and branches as the terrain was bumpy and downhill:



But it was worth it to see this older male leopard. It was coolly walking along and as Will pointed out, it was very large with a huge jaw:



Will thinks he was working to mark his territory, so he’s urinating a little here and patting the ground so it seeps:



The spots are just so beautiful and it was fun to compare the two different males we’ve seen:



On all the game drives, Will is swatting away bugs while driving and shifting gears, so Amanda lent him her permethrin-treated scarf:



We managed to see a mama and baby rhino from afar down the river. We learned they would sleep and rest in the dry riverbed. The baby was also much smaller than the one we saw yesterday.

We also passed marula trees that clearly had been frisked by elephants for fruit and the bark. This all led to the excitement of coming up to a bachelor herd of two elephants who were eating calmly. Will noted by the older elephant’s demeanor that we could approach, so we spent some time with him while he munched:









We learned they live for 60 years or more and die when their teeth fall out and can no longer eat. He was calm, so we took some photos with him!



This photo is actually a “live” photo that animates and is so perfect, because Will swats a pestering bug at the end, which I know you cannot fully appreciate with the still capture:



Here he’s resting one leg on the other - kind of like a curtsy, but to give his leg a break:



I reminisced when Amanda, Rachel, and I went to the San Diego Zoo in September 2005. I had won free plane tickets and we vacationed over Labor Day weekend. We went at night and couldn’t see the elephants, so I had them pose how Koreans do for elephants - hope you enjoy this throwback photo:



We then saw a herd of zebras and watched a foal nurse from its mom:



We drove by this hippo - we’re definitely getting a lot of behind shots:



Up and down hills around riverbeds, we remarked how it felt like a rollercoaster - safaris are so much fun!



At the bottom of one riverbed, tracks were so pronounced, that we got out and Lucky explained to us the difference between cats, elephants, rhinos, turtles, and ducks.



Here, Will is putting his hand in a hippo track:



Pietra taking a look at a hyena track:



So many tracks to learn! Lucky explained there’s a tracker academy, but he started developing his skills as a young boy. They would let the goats and cattle out at his village in the morning and then go to school. After school, he would have to go find his herd and bring them back. Here are more tracks and our track-making truck:



On our way back, we saw an endangered male southern ground hornbill which was the size of a turkey. It breeds slowly, rearing one chick at a time and its habitats are getting destroyed. We knew it was male because its throat was red versus a female’s deep violet blue:



Here’s Will trying to find the second southern ground hornbill as they travel in pairs. But as we’re behind our lodge, he was scoping out breakfast too!



During our rest, a bushbuck antelope came up to our deck area. There are animals everywhere!



For our afternoon safari, we headed south and came across this family of warthogs. Apparently, the adults could be sisters who get pregnant together. Look at the little ones!



We then found this mama hippo with her babies, so we saw several heads popping up and down as they floated. Their skin is very sensitive to the sun, so they lay in water during the day and come out at night to eat grass and plants. The little ones can only hold their breath for a minute, while the adult can hold it for 5 to 6 minutes. We learned that hippos are the #1 killer of humans in all of Africa. They are aggressive when trying to return to the water after eating on land and people have gotten confronted while visiting the rivers for water or laundry.





We also saw one month old impalas:



And a large water monitor lizard. They apparently help control the crocodile population as they eat a lot of the nested eggs:



Like earlier today, we spent time with another male elephant and enjoyed watching him eat up close. We learned they are also left or right dominant, and we could see one tusk more used or worn than the other.





We stopped while Will showed us an old African Buffalo skull by the road:



Here’s a hyena family napping as they are active at night. They were laying near a termite den and you can see the two pups looking up!





The sky looked very cool this afternoon:



We then found three giraffes on one side of the road and another male on the other. We were able to approach the male who had been busy scratching himself and urinating for awhile:







Then we enjoyed our sundown snacks and I asked Lucky if I could get into the tracker seat where I took some cheesy photos:



Will sat in the seat too and found this preying mantis:



Here’s a closer view of a vulture on our way back to the lodge:



While enjoying our drinks, we could hear lions roar, so we hustled back in the truck and went looking. We were in the southern area and less visited, so Lucky had to cut down overhanging branches and we all did a lot of ducking. We also passed the Sabi Sabi private airstrip for those who take private planes to safari.

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to find lions and our spotlight went out and the backup was being problematic. Pietra was really hoping to see lions today and was crossing her fingers the entire time:



Dinner was held outside and was the first boma dinner I got to experience. It has been too wet or rainy the other nights. Boma is essentially an outside dinner and they served quite a bit of game including zebra and warthog. I blamed my stomach for not being adventurous as it was still uneasy and enjoyed a small beef fillet and hake grilled fish. The first time I really got to enjoy the meat at dinner since I’ve been here!

We chatted about future travel plans and how Will should go on nature trips overseas and consider traveling solo. We are getting along quite well and feeling lucky with our awesome tracker, Lucky and ranger, Will who have taken us off the beaten path for really awesome game viewing!