People started meandering towards my area as it approached time for afternoon tea. By about 3:45, after I had gathered my stuff and had a quick drink, Ben, Jack, the family and I were off for our second afternoon safari.
After seeing the lions...barely, Ben was set on finding the last of the big five- the elephant. There are between 16 and 17 thousand elephants in Kruger National Park however we were struggling to even find tracks. After about a half hour Jack found fresh ones and we were hot on the trail. It felt as if we were on a hunt except we had cameras instead of weapons. Things were not looking good as the tracks seemed to be heading towards another private reserve that we were not allowed to enter and the weather had turned from bad to worse. After being cloudy and drizzling on and off the past two days, we saw some legitimate storm clouds headed our way. We were an hour and half into the game drive and we had only seen some rhino grazing and another Nyala.
Almost as soon as Jack confirmed that the elephant that we were tracking had moved to another reserve a different elephant, a massive bull, appeared on the horizon in the other direction. As we approached it Ben told us that it was in “must.” It was pumped full of extra testosterone and was looking for a female. He had a swagger about him, moving his head and shoulders in a way that made him look even more impressive. As he was “strutting his stuff,” it began to pore. The rain jackets that they gave us weren’t very water proof and after about 10 minutes or so we were all cold and wet. The nine year old reminded us of this fact continuously. Up until that point, she had been annoying but tolerable but she started to irritate me when she would not stop complaining and her parents weren’t doing much about it.
Despite the rain, the elephant continued doing its thing and it was incredible to watch. Suddenly the rain stopped, the clouds parted, and the sun came out just as it was setting. There were about three rainbows. The sunset was a beautiful orange and was shining right at the elephant with a rainbow behind him. It was one of the most beautiful things I had every seen. I’m not being cheesy, I’m serious. It was really unbelievable (aside from the nine year old who wouldn’t shut up).
As it became dark, the elephant moved on and while we still had about 45 minutes left on the drive, the 9 year old, though annoying, was telling the truth and we all wanted to go back home and have a hot shower. The night drive back to the lodge was pretty uneventful, just a few scrub hares and some chameleons.
After a nice hot shower, it was dinner time. It was buffet style yet again and I went with the chicken curry, the ostrich steak, and some vegetables. Dinner was much less awkward as the family and I were able to sit with Ben and talk about the day. After dinner, the family went back to their rooms to sleep at the request of the nine year old but I was able to sit with Ben and have a drink. We mainly discussed endangered species and the complexities and different dynamics involved in the black market poaching industry. I found the conversation fascinating but I could tell Ben had had it many times. After I let Ben go, my plan was to go out to the viewing area (there is a spot light) and continue the blog post. I was only able to say out about 10 minutes though as my exhaustion suddenly hit me and insects started harassing me.
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