Day 9, Chitabe -
Halfway through our Botswanian adventure, the group was eager to find cheetah in the wild - especially after having visited De Wilt. Chitabe was it.

These two were resting peacefully in the shade of a tree - paying no mind to us - when they suddenly got up and bolted away. We quickly started the car to search out where they had gone in such a hurry.

We nearly gave up after about ten minutes of driving through the bush, when we learned the answer: a third cheetah had killed an impala and had called to the others to eat.

Again, we have opted to post these somewhat graphic pictures on a separate page.

I suppose the events of the day left me wondering what's worse: a fallen impala or a starving cheetah? Fortunately for me, nature decides.

Finding leopards was much more difficult. In fact, we weren't certain we would see any at all. Leopards tend to stay well hidden in brush and trees. They even take their kills up into the trees.

Adding to the difficulty in finding a leopard is the fact that they are mostly nocturnal.