No Elephants on the Bridge!

After 4 or so hours of sleep, we were the first truck out this morning at about 6:15. We saw nyala, kudu and of course the ever present impala just outside the gates. There were two beautiful woodpeckers on a nearby tree.

The first truck unlocks the gate to the property and gates at either end of a bridge. The bridge was built as a way to get into the bush when the river is too high. We asked why there are gates at either end of the bridge. Well of course.......to keep the elephants off of it! The bridge will hold a maximum of 9 tons. An elephant parade could cause some big damage in a hurry!

As the first truck out, Ryan was relying on animal tracks to lead us to animals. His abilities paid off when we came across a pride of lions lounging in an open area. There were 7 females and 1 young male. They are part of a pride called the Styx Pride. There was evidence they had eaten recently as their stomachs were full. They were breathing heavily which we were told increases their metabolism to digest their food. They watched us for a bit and then one by one put their heads down. As another truck approached, most of them popped up again to check out the new arrivals. What a great start to the morning!

The excitement continued. On our way to a possible leopard sighting we came upon a 'dazzle' of zebras. There were 6 of them in an open area. Zebra are gassy, bloated animals (yes, add your own adjectives here) and their bottoms are always bloated. One zebra to another 'does my butt look big in these stripes?' The zebras are gorgeous animals and we stayed for quite awhile admiring them. Moving on we found more impala and a large herd of Cape Buffalo. We parked within the herd to watch them for awhile before heading back to breakfast.

We had company in the form of 3 monkeys on our patio yesterday. One brave enough to come up to the sliding door and look inside! The other two hung out on the railing behind him. We also watched 5 elephants on the property line. They started at the main house & gradually worked their way down toward our room. There was also a giraffe who made his way down the property line. We (somehow) did not see him! How do you see a monkey and miss a giraffe?

The afternoon was a bit cooler with threats of rain when we started out for our drive. We were joined by two Americans who had arrived a few hours earlier. A Bateleur eagle was one of the first spotting's by our guide. Almost immediately, mongoose ran across the path.

And then we found the elephants! We found ourselves almost surrounded by elephants. There were all ages and sizes of elephants - babies who were estimated to be a few months old, some young ones and older much larger ones. One of the younger ones was trying to keep up with his mom so he could nurse. Every so often he would get a drink. When he brought his trunk down you would see where it was wet from the milk. For about a half hour we sat and observed, followed them as they moved and were just mesmerized by their movements. Elephants all around us - amazing!

Reluctantly we left the elephants and almost immediately ran across 3 giraffes. They were very skittish but we were able to see them trotting off. Monkeys in the trees were the next spotting and then 2 more giraffes. These were very calm giraffes who looked over at us inquisitively and then went on eating. They (like a lot of animals we have seen) had birds all over their bodies....up and down their manes, sometimes hanging on to their stomachs and in their ears. The birds are beneficial (and sometimes annoying) as they eat parasites on the animals. Sometimes you just see them shake their heads and a small bird comes out of their ear! As we watched the giraffes we also saw warthogs and kudu wandering around.

Next we found 2 male lions who were sound asleep. They seemed absolutely oblivious to our presence. We have been told that they are incredibly astute and absolutely aware of our presence. If there was a an abnormal movement or sound they would be on alert. These two just slept. One of them on his back like a big house cat!

Our 'sundowners' were against a cloudy, darkening sky. We were joined by Sally, Caroline and Donald for drinks. At Ryan's suggestion I took him up on hot chocolate with Amarula. It was an excellent idea and will be appearing at winter dinners when we return home! As we were having our drinks, there were lions roaring in the background. Again, those males calling the females asking when their dinner would be ready! At our guides suggestion, we did not stay long. There were lions nearby!

On our way to view the lions, Ryan spotted a bright (almost neon) chameleon hanging on to a tree. He stopped and took him off the tree to show us, even offering for us to hold him. Hmmm...I think NOT!

Off to see the lions. This was a fairly large pride of lions - males, females and cubs all lounging. When we arrived a lioness was sleeping on top of a large rock. Some of them started moving around although eventually they all seemed to settle down to sleep while we watched.

At about the time we would normally be making our way back for dinner there was another sighting. Lions were stalking impala nearby. We made our way to the area. It's hard to describe the feeling of being in the bush when it is so dark outside. Last night it was very dark with a cloud cover and no stars. It was also very quiet and still. We passed the group of impala and saw the lions moving. We saw two males and a female. There were a couple of trucks in the area. The rangers kept their lights out and were very still and quiet. They want to let nature take its course and not interfere. To my right as we came across the open area was a male lion. Maybe 3-5 feet away from the truck. When they are sleeping they look fairly small and thin. This one was puffed up because he was up and moving..... stalking. He looked HUGE! We were told later that the impala got away. We did not get to see the ending. Let's just say the only rude animals we've encountered are American humans. In this case, one of the passengers in our truck was tired and wanted to go back. Not that I wanted to see a killing but c'mon when do you ever have this opportunity. Anyway, back to camp we went.

Dinner was with our new friends Sally and Caroline and rangers Donald and Ryan. It was a fun evening followed by another late evening as we made our way to the bar to chat.

Every time I think I have seen 'the most amazing thing' there is something else around the corner. This place is truly magical and one of the most unique experiences of my life.

Monday will hopefully not have any interrupted drives. We ditched the rude couple after our drive.