MIDNIGHT RAIN

I woke up around 1 am to the sound of driving rain.  Peering out onto our deck, I could see giant splashes bouncing off the deck with the occasional roll of distant thunder.  I went back to sleep not very optimistic that our third safari drive would go off on schedule.

My alarm went off at 4:30 am and I was surprised that the rain had stopped and the skies were relatively clear.  I checked my weather radar app and saw that the storms had cleared and there was no more rain expected for several hours.  Our morning game ride would be a go!

Our escort arrived at 5:15 am and our group assembled in the lodge around 5:25, enough time for a roll and some coffee before we met Peace, our guide, and Sichivolo, our tracker.

The ground was wet so we might be restricted on how far we could travel off the road.

GAME DRIVE #3

Within 15 minutes we came across a herd of ten elephants about 100 yards off the road.

We were just settling in and expecting to drive off the road to get closer when Peace abruptly turned around and headed off in another direction.  Back on the main road, Peace said there were some lions ahead and we saw another Thanda Land Rover parked in the middle of the road about 1/2 mile away.

As we closed in on the other Land Rover, we pulled around and off to one side.  Ten lions, including 2 adult females and 8 cubs of various ages were lying all over the road, not more than 20 yards away.  We sat silently and observed as the lions got up and walked to the other side of the vehicles.  We repositioned slightly to get a better view and were excited to see the young lions start to play and wrestle with one another.

Off in the distance, about 100 yards away, a large male with a full mane, stood up, looked around and then lay down behind a bush.  He did this a few times in the time we were observing.  About 1/2 mile away, in the other direction we noticed a lone Wildebeest, that was frozen still, observing the lions.  Peace told us that the Wildebeest would not move as to draw attention, but would be ready to sprint for the tall grass if the lions started to move in his direction.

After about thirty minutes, we drove off, leaving the lions behind.  We learned later that the lodge staff, who live nearby, drove by earlier in their shuttle bus and had a rare chance to see some lions up close on their way to work.

For the next thirty minutes, we came across a half dozen large elephants and tracked them as they stomped thru the brush and pulled down and munched on large branches from nearby trees.  The elephants ignored us even though we were within 10 yards at times.  The tracker always retreated to the Land Rover interior whenever we were close to elephants or lions.

We stopped for our mid-morning snack break for about twenty minutes before continuing.

After thirty minutes of uneventful exploring, we came across another tower of giraffes and watched them for a few minutes before moving on.  At this point, our Big Five checklist consisted of the lion, rhino, and elephant.  We still needed to see a water buffalo and leopard.

A few minutes after we left the giraffes, we came across a solitary male water buffalo close to the road and we stopped and watched for five minutes.

Today’s game drive, which looked like it may have been rained out earlier, turned out to be the best one so far, as we were able to observe the pride of lions for thirty minutes.  The skies were still clear as we headed back to the lodge for breakfast.

LOUNGING AT THE LODGE

Throughout the day as we had lunch and lounged in our suites, it rained for a bit, then stopped, then rained a little harder, and stopped again.  As our final afternoon drive started, the rain was steady but light – and we put on our waterproof ponchos before heading out.

GAME DRIVE #4 – RAIN

The rain intensity increased as we continued making it difficult to use cameras without getting them wet.

Even using a plastic bag or other camera covers worked some but not very well.  This is where having binoculars pays off as they are almost always water resistant and you can use them in the rain without concerns.  As we continued, the rain came down harder and harder and we decided to abandon the drive after 45 minutes.  On the way back we came across a large herd of cape buffalo along the road.

As we approached the lodge, we turned off and parked inside the lodge’s attached garage.  This allowed us to get out of the vehicles and gather our belongings out of the rain.

We headed back to our villas using umbrellas and relaxed until it was time for dinner.

Dinner starts at 7:30 pm but we relaxed in the bar area for about 15 minutes enjoying some wine before we moved into the restaurant where we enjoyed another wonderful meal.

After dinner, we headed back to our cabins to pack and get ready for our final game drive in the morning.