Safari!!!

I said goodbye to Cape Town very, very early in the morning and headed to Jo’burg with the family. It was a 2 hour flight to Johannesburg and then we had a driver drive us the 6 hours east to our safari lodge. Within 10 minutes of being there we saw elephants, monkeys and impala. That was really just the beginning.
Katelyn and I shared a chalet. I was surprised at how luxurious everything was. Our room was gorgeous and huge, as well as our parents’ chalet. Katelyn and I had to be escorted to the lodge because it was further from the main lodge than it legally could be in that area. Wild animals could come and go as they pleased around the lodge and they really did! We could see tons of animals on the front yard by the watering hole every day. There was an electric wire at night around the lodge to keep the elephants out because they are the animal that does the most damage.
We were woken up every morning at 5:30AM and our first ride started at 6AM. We were given blankets and a warm water bottle to warm us up every morning. The weather was really perfect while we were there, but chilly in the mornings. The morning drive lasted 3 hours with a 15 minute break in the middle for coffee, hot chocolate, tea and rusks. We would get back to our lodge around 9 to a warm towel to wash off with. Breakfast was at 9:30 and there was always lots of fruit, cheese, yogurt and then your choice of eggs and meat. We then usually had a safari on foot around 10:45 or so. This was led by 2 rangers holding guns. The walk lasted about an hour and was supposed to be in order to notice the little things about the bush. It usually involved looking at trees, dung, footprints and listening to sounds of the wild. After the walk, we normally had a couple hours of free time. Katelyn spent most of the time at the infinity pool, but because my malaria pills made me blister in the sun, I would usually nap and read. Lunch was at 2 and had the same basic things as breakfast plus an entrée. Our night ride started at 4 and went to 7, but it actually normally went longer because we were lucky to have so much excitement during our stay. Halfway through the ride we would stop in the bush for a cocktail and some snacks. After this stop, we would have to use the spotlight and could only view the nocturnal animals because it was dark then. We would come back to a cocktail and a warm towel at the lodge again. Dinner was soon after we returned from the night ride. Dinner was served in the boma. This was an area surrounded by the trunks of trees with an opening in the front. We ate by the light from the campfire and the lanterns that surrounded us. Everything had special touches and was a constant reminder that we really were in the jungle.
Our guide was Peter, who we all really liked and he had a love and passion for the bush that was contagious. He knew so much and could answer every question we had. We were very lucky to have him. We had a spotter , Thomas, who sat on a chair outside the front of the vehicle and listened and looked around for happenings. He was absolutely amazing at spotting things. He could spot a leopard in a thick bush from 100 meters away or even a chameleon in a tree at night from 50 meters away. We had outdoor showers and my mom was sure that Thomas could see her through the walls with his X-Ray vision. Since we were in a private lodge in Sabi Sands we were able to go anywhere we wanted even if it wasn’t on a road. Sabi Sands has unfenced borders with Kruger National Park. We were in an open vehicle the whole time. It was amazing how close we could get to the animals. If I didn’t want my limbs I could have easily reached out to pet a lion or any other animal I wanted for that matter. Most of the animals view the vehicle as just a moving bush. It is important not to break the shape of the vehicle by standing or moving suddenly because that’s when the animals become alarmed. For the most part, the animals would look at us, but never with alarm, it was more like they were posing for pictures. They are so used to the vehicles because as long as they are from the area, most of the animals are around the vehicles from when they were born on. There were a few specific animals who became aggressive around the vehicles, so we kept our distance from them at night.
Within the first 24 hours we had already seen the Big 5, which are the 5 animals that are the hardest to hunt on foot. With the Big 5, you have just as good of a chance of being killed than killing them, even with a weapon. The Big 5 consists of lion, leopard, rhino, elephant and buffalo. We saw more animals than I would have ever thought. We saw 3 different groups of lions, which meant 14 lions total, 2 of which ended up dying in front of our eyes. We saw leopards including Whitecloth, Safari, a male leopard whose name meant “Grouchy” and a young female leopard whose name meant “Heart,” both in different African languages and another female leopard who had recently had cubs. We also saw a cheetah, bamboo (even on our porch!), monkeys, jackals, lots and lots of impala, chameleons, wildebeests, zebras, white rhinos, kudu, dwarf antelopes, warthogs, waterbucks, spotted eagle owls, vultures, lots of beautiful, colorful birds, nyala, hares, rabbits, hippos, a black mamba snake, hyenas, blue hooded guinea fowl, giraffes, African wild cat, and a honey badger. We really saw the circle of life with animals killing and eating each other for survival every day.
Peter, our guide, said that after we were done with our safari, he was retiring because he would never be able to give a better tour to a group of people ever again. Not only did we see the Big 5 three times over, among tons of other animals, but we pretty much had the story of Lion King unfold in front of our eyes.
The first night that we were there we saw the Styx pride of lions. They consisted of 5 female lions, but there should have been another female adolescent and male adolescent there. While we were observing the lions, Peter explained to us the details of the various prides in the area. He told us that there were a number of female prides in the area, but they were all “serviced” by the dominant coalition of males in the area called the Mapogo’s. The Mapoga’s consisted of Kinky Tale, who was the dominant one and his brother, Mr. T. Peter explained that a young group of males had been spotted in the area for the first time a month ago. He didn’t know where they came from and hadn’t seen them since. The young coalition consisted of 5 males who were about 4 years old. He said that he hoped that the young coalition did not challenge the older coalition because either way it could mean that a lot of lions could die. For lions, it is territory than die. They will die fighting for their territory and there is no alternative. If the young lions won the territory, that would mean that all of the cubs who were born to the last coalition would be killed by the new coalition. They would especially try and kill all of the male lions. When the Mapoga’s took over 50 lions were killed and the prides were just getting their numbers back up. If the coalition succeeded then they would have to start all over again.
We ended up seeing the young coalition of lions at the very end of our night ride on the 2nd night. They were about 100 meters from our lodge. One of them was missing which meant that I was afraid that he was lurking behind us and was going to attack or something. It was very exciting seeing our first coalition of male lions! The scary part was that they were obviously not as comfortable with the vehicles as all of the other animals we had encountered. They kept their eyes on us the whole time, moved around a lot. Peter could tell that they were uneasy, so didn’t get as close to them as we normally did with animals. We were still only about 10 feet away though. We definitely needed the escort back to our chalet that night because they were so close!
The next morning, we had our normal great ride. As we were heading back to the lodge, Peter started driving really fast and it was apparent that something was up. We arrived about 100 meters away from our lodge to see the very end of a fight between Kinky Tale, Mr. T and the lion that was missing from the young coalition the night before. The young lion was mortally wounded and Mr. T and Kinky Tale were sitting a few feet away from him making sure that he didn’t try and escape. They roared at each other a lot and had another quick fight, but for the most part they were just sitting there watching him die. It was so sad watching the young male try and stand up because they had broken his hind legs and back. The first thing that animals do when they attack each other is go for the genitals. This meant that his entire backside was just covered in blood and whenever he stood up, urine would seep out. You could tell that the young lion was in lots of pain, but it took him over 24 hours to die. Vultures were circling above the whole time. We stayed around and watched for awhile, not sure if there would be another fight. We finally left when it was apparent that Kinky Tale and Mr. T were just lounging and falling asleep.
That night, we went back to the site to see that Kinky Tale and Mr. T were still there. We were thinking that they would be roaring all night long because of their victory, but you could tell that they were very much on guard and were not making any sound. We then noticed that they had been badly hurt as well and were trying to lay low until their wounds healed. The young lion had done a number on them, but we knew in a few days they would be fine.
As we headed back to our lodge, we ran into the young coalition of male lions on the road leading to our lodge. It was amazing to see how much more confident these animals were than the night before. It was scary to see how close they were willing to come to the vehicle. They started scent marking the area which is the ultimate insult to the dominant coalition of lions in the territory. They were roaring a little bit and it was evident that they were looking for a fight. It was funny to see how much younger these lions looked than Kinky Tale and Mr. T because their manes were a lighter color and bushier. They also didn’t have all of the battle wounds that Kinky Tale and Mr. T did. Since they are still on the young side, even though they were scent marking, they still goofing around and playfully wrestling with each other.
After watching them for awhile, we heading back to the lodge since we were already an hour late for dinner. While we were eating dinner, we started hearing many loud roars in the background. The 2 guides ran out of the boma to see what was up. Peter came into the boma and said, “If you want to see the coolest thing you will ever see in your life, get in the car!” Everyone sprinted out of the boma, leaving dinners behind and hustled onto the vehicles. We took off and immediately caught up with Kinky Tale chasing the young coalition across the clearing in front of our lodge. We had just see Kinky Tale 40 minutes earlier, laying injured, but right then it was like absolutely nothing was wrong with him. 2 of the younger lions stopped and laid in the road waiting for Kinky Tale. Kinky Tale attacked the lions, but the other 2 came to help and immediately Kinky Tale was flipped on his back and a lion took each limb. They severed his spine, yet Kinky Tale fought back to the whole time. He was growling, roaring and pushing them off. Mr. T came to help, but the young coalition chased him off, roaring into the distance. (We think what happened was that the young coalition attacked Mr.T, so Kinky Tale went after the young coalition, as Mr. T trotted behind injured). We were 5 meters away from a fight between 5 huge lions. It was just an amazing sight so see, yet completely terrifying at the same time. We heard bones being crushed, we could smell his stomach being ripped apart and we could see the lions just covered in blood. It was so sad seeing such a powerful animal being torn apart, he roared through everything, even as they ate his organs. Normally, lions don’t eat each other, but Peter said it was probably because they were frustrated. They literally ate him alive. They roared after he was dead and then onto the night.
We went back the next morning and all that was left was some hair from his mane, a few internal organs and one paw that a hyena was eating. The day before he had been absolute King of the Jungle, and there he was scrapes for a hyena and 3 jackals. Peter said he had never seen anything like it before in his life and he said most rangers will go their entire lives without ever seeing anything close to that. The first day I just thought it was awesome seeing 5 female lions and the scale just kept going up. Mr. T went south and has now joined up with his brothers who he and Kinky Tale had split from years earlier. They now form a coalition of 4 and it seems that they are looking for the young coalition. Only time will tell who will win the territory when the 2 coalitions meet…
The safari was such a perfect ending to my whole study abroad experience in South Africa. I really don’t think I could have had a better experience abroad and I have no regrets about it. I loved being exposed to the African culture and I learned so much. I liked that it pushed me harder than a lot of other places would have and what a challenge it really was. I loved being able to play on sports teams and that was something I never expected to happen. I loved being able to volunteer at the hospital and in the township. Being in a place of such poverty as Africa, you really had to give back. After everything, I especially realize how lucky I am and how fortunate I am to live in the place that I do. I can’t imagine what it would be like actually living the lives that most people in South Africa do. Africa, especially South Africa will always have a very special place in my heart. Something that was important to me was that I could get involved in health while I was there and understand more of their health problems. I will definitely go into the health field with a new perspective. One of the things that really made the experience for me was my house. It was amazing to me that 20 people could get along as well as we did. There really wasn’t drama and everyone added something different to the group. I know I will always miss them and I really hope they will be friends for life because we shared something so unique and special. I am already booked to see 4 of them in St. Paul in a couple of weeks!
I can say for sure that I will be back in Cape Town sometime in my life, even if I have to save until I’m 70 years old. Thanks for letting me share my wonderful experiences with you!
Cheers!
Megan