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Day
4, Vumbura - Today, we were out at 6:30am sharp. Finding giraffe was on our schedule and we weren't disappointed. Kevin, our site illustrator and Julie Hanna, Jack's daughter, and I had a vehicle and two guides to ourselves today as the crew was filming elsewhere. We basically said, "let's find some giraffe!" Perhaps no other animal is such a beautiful and unusual symbol of Africa. |
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The first piece of advice we were given upon arrival was to always stay in the vehicle. The animals don't see you as many people in a car - but as one big, smelly, roving metal thing. As long as you are in a familiar camp vehicle, the animals do not feel threatened. That piece of advice holds true for the tents as well - as long as you are in your tent, you're fine. Even the lions walk on by - as they did, during our afternoon break! |
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The land in Botswana is divided into parcels called concessions that are leased to tour operators. Botswana has taken the high-end approach which limits the amount of people in any given area. Only on a few occasions did we see anyone other than the people in our group. This isolation made being among the animals in their natural habitat all the more thrilling. We clearly were in a very special place. |
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The difference in the giraffe's gallop (at right) as compared to their walk is striking. Giraffes are herbivores and eat leaves that are out of reach of other animals. One particular tree has developed a sophisticated system of defense, producing a bitter substance. When eating begins, not only does the taste of the leaf change as the substance is released but other trees downwind are warned of danger. As a result, giraffe always eat moving upwind! |
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Mokoros are slender dugout canoes paddled along by a guide with a long stick. Vumbura Camp offered skilled Mokoro Paddlers as a diversion and we were eager to explore the watery channels. Believe it or not, the papyrus-lined channels are cleared out and maintained by hippos! A sort of hippo highway. |
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While on our mokoro outing we were fortunate enough to see a Sitatunga - an elusive water antelope who is gone faster than you can find your camera. It wasn't until our journey back that we heard the unmistakable sounds of a hippo whom we avoided - but ended up in the path we had just taken. A bit frightening. |
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