| Nxai
Pan (southern Kalahari) offered wonderful views
of cheetah – a family of four adults stalked
the pan bed in search of springbok and their young.
They practiced their hunting skills of sharp twists
and turns while chasing a family of ostrich with
six young chicks. With the cool early morning air,
the cheetah was full of energy and seemed to enjoy
the chase more than actually nabbing their prey.
Savuti
proved to be the highlight again with the Setlare
pride of lion, pulling down young elephant one after
the other. As darkness approached, the pride would
lie up on the cool white sand around the waterhole.
The gentle old bull elephants of Savuti would occasionally
mock charge and trumpet, showering the lion with
sand. This was more a gesture of annoyance rather
than fear. However, as soon as the breeding herds
arrived – the lions fanned out in a carefully
planned strategy. The cows would rush them, leaving
gaps between themselves and their babies they were
trying so hard to protect. Inevitably, a baby would
be separated in the commotion and the herd was turned
away in the confusion and trumpeting – leaving
the pride of over 24 lions having it all their way.
The night air would be laden with the sounds of
death throes as Savuti once again claimed its ritualistic
way of life – a life of the strong and the
weak.
The
Tsodilo Hills (claimed as the Mountains of the Gods)
boast over 3500 images of herder art. of timeless
cultural heritage – so different in style
from the Bushman paintings one sees elsewhere in
Southern Africa. It is rich in archaeological finds,
rock shelters and over twenty specularite mines.
Pots, metal spearheads and stone tools have been
uncovered and the little museum boasts a fine display.
Rising from the flat Kalahari, Tsodilo is Botswana’s
highest peak and a sacred landmark that has attracted
people to live there for thousands of years. The
legend says that the hills were once a family of
a father, mother and children, hence their names
of Male, Female and Child. Even the old ex -wife
mountain hangs back in the distance, off the beaten
track.
We
made friends with one of the Tsodilo guides and
he took us to a a trail that is seldom used. It
takes one further along Mount Female to a valley
behind. We walked over fresh leopard tracks in an
old rainwater washed rivulet on our way to a haematite
mine. The walls are pock marked by Stone Age tools
used to extricate the haematite, which was then
pulverized and mixed with fat for a body balm, protecting
their skins from the harsh unforgiving sun.
We
visited the little Bushmen settlement where they
trade their necklaces and Bushmen artifacts of ancient
culture. The bead patterns are typical and the use
of local seeds in various shades and colour create
a beautiful necklace. We camped at one of the designated
sites and listened to the wind change course in
the night. It swirled relentlessly from one angle
to the other, forever whispering the secrets of
the hills. Suddenly the wind would calm to a deathly
silence, with not a single leaf in motion only to
begin again with a far rumble of an approaching
gust. The heat thermals of the day took a long time
to die in the cool of the night. Such is the magic
of Tsodilo.
Moremi
Game Reserve is the driest it’s been for years.
The hippo pools on the way to Dead Tree Island are
all dry and the hippo have retreated back to the
big Xaxanika Lagoon. A young female leopard, dainty
in her walk to the river’s edge, turned as
she scowled at the troop of Vervet monkeys that
gave away her secret trail. The beauty of her walking
away from us, between tall columns of green grass,
was breathtaking. She flicked her tail as she sniffed
the ground, ever aware of her surroundings and situation.
Dead Tree Island was dry – with only a few
lechwe grazing on the dew fed grass edges of the
dry riverbed. The Sausage trees, usually apple green
at the hint of spring, stood bare of leaf, desperately
waiting for the ground water table to rise. I never
cease to wonder at the ever changing cycles of Nature,
different with every year, and with much longer
memories than we have.
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Our
short-lived winter forespells early rains –
or at least that is what the grey beards are forecasting.
I look forward to the storm build-ups of October,
November and December – the months that most
people shy away from because of the heat. Little
do they know that some of the most beautiful sunsets,
landscapes, cloud formations, birthing of the Impala
babies and changes in vegetation take place. How
can we judge an area if one has not seen it in all
its glory of different seasons.? This for me is
one of the never-to-tire of the joys of a mobile
safaris. Listen and smell the air as creatures walk
by unperturbed in the quiet of the night and we
sit mesmerized by the dying embers of the camp fire.
Then collapse into bug proof tents, using the moonlight
to watch what walks past your window. . to experience
nature, as it really is – so totally different
from our every day way of life. Then you have lived.!!
With
love and best wishes,
Lloyd,
Grant and Daphne
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