12 February - 13 February

  February 12-13






  As I sit here the sound of thunder reverberates around me, echoing in the heavens. The final onslaught of summer rains hounds our heels on safari of late.
Just this morning we were sharing a moment with Xivambalana when the heavens above us burst, saturating us in minutes and sending Xivambalana leaping out of his high perch in a Marula and into the closest thicket.
It would seem, I am not the only one lacking a fondness in drenching rain. Don’t get me wrong, sitting indoors with a warm cup of hot chocolate while it storms outside is a wonderful thing, but it loses some of its romantic notions when your ride has no roof or windows to speak of...

    The morning started with exactly one of those moments. While most were enjoying freshly brewed coffee and tea, a sudden yelp on the deck drew our attention to the open area. Suddenly impala and wildebeest standing alongside the swimming pool let out sharp snorts...Alarm calls accompanied by intense observation directed our attention to the edge of the camp perimeter where Bahuti stood in plain sight, obviously perturbed by the excessive amount of onlookers foiling his plans for the hunt.
He too leaps off and slinked down to the drainage line close to the pan where we relocated him upon our departure.

After some time and a lot of dense bush, he settled down to escape the drizzle and we moved off.

  Yesterday evening the weather was far more amicable, providing us with beautiful lighting as the backdrop to a fantastic encounter with the wild dogs of Africa.

We found them resting up at old borehole, exactly where we had left them in the morning but, moments after our arrival the adults got up and started their ritual greetings. A way to reaffirm bonds with one another they chirrup like a flock of finches while allo-grooming and chasing one another around, tails swishing in excitement and sheer adoration for one another, a truly beautiful and heart-lifting sight.
Once everyone had their fill of affections the six adults ran down the road for a few kilometers passing the two windmills and then out on to Safari open area where they spotted a herd of impala.
We’d just finishing positioning ourselves when the pack exploded into action, sprinting across the plain and causing complete havoc with dogs and impala pursuing and pursued all around us.
The action left the clearing and headed northward we spent a good ten minutes relocating some of the pack.
As time went by we could hear the resonating humming-like contact calls of the various individuals as they used that phenomenal sense of hearing to re-gather. Once the pack was back together they once again shared a loving moment with one another, a joyous celebration reunited.
Some of the individuals had blood on their faces and pot-bellies. They obviously had better luck then some of the others but not to worry, dogs are extremely sharing; regurgitating meat for pups and hungry pack members upon request, making sure the entire family gets a share and maintains good health.
  While the six adults returned to where the three pups were left before the hunt we chose that moment to head home, exhilarated by the hunt.