Ok...the last bit is true. But the rest is just rubbish; my prejudices about safari game drives - especially on a reserve - were founded mostly on the fact that most folks who go on these adventures have great photos of wildlife. I figured how else could so much prolific photography be had?
Folks, these game drives are three hours at a pop. Three hours in a modified Toyota Landcruiser with the motherf***ing guts of a T-Rex that can (and does) take on any kind of terrain that it meets (more than a T-rex can with those little arms). I mentioned a few posts ago that I was 'uncomfortable' when driving down the initial dirt road to our first set of accomodations? That was a breeze compared with the bumpity-bump of the game drive. I swear that Disney based the Indiana Jones ride on a game drive experience.
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| Leslie with side by side Landcruisers |
The Landcruiser has three rows of bench seats, setup riser style with the last row being both the highest and most uncomfortable due to the position over the rear axle. It also has a jumpseat on the bumper of the car, where the game tracker sits. I don't think he's (and I was told that all but two of the dozens of rangers/trackers are men) as experienced than the Ranger; I get the sense that it's the junior position, and one graduates to ranger as the next career step. The trackers I had didn't say much, and on an morning drive (which starts at 6am), Leslie caught our tracker nodding off. The Rangers, on the other hand, were ebullient, informative and extremely knowledgeable about Phinda's fauna and flora. I learned names such as Monkey Oranges trees, Sausage Trees and Buffalo Thorn trees (the latter being extremely important to Zulu culture - more on that on a future post). But these guys could do something even cooler, they could actually track animals. Sounds like something one would expect, but I thought these skills were left to movie characters; it was super cool watching them spot a leopard track, for example, stop the 4runner, and both tracker and ranger start walking around, looking for clues to the direction of the animal. Not only tracks were used, but in the case of elephants, dung and damage to the vegetation gave hints as to next steps to finding them.
The coolest example of this came when another ranger made a broadcast radio call (every 4runner has a 6 band Motorola two-way radio installed that is used extensively) that he had spotted a leopard in such and such a place. When our ranger got that call, he announced the change of course, and raced down another dirt track to our destination. When we arrived, we drove and drove, with both guys looking for that next clue. Tracks were found, and followed; more circles we went in, drawing ever closer. Then our ranger that day (Martin, a native Zimbabwian) discovered tracks made on top of the tire tracks made just a few moments earlier!
Just then, a herd of nyala started making a cacophony of what sounded like a spitting noises; Martin told us (as any explanation was needed, judging from the urgency expressed from these vocalizations) that this was the herd's reaction to a clear and present danger to them. The Leopard was near! We raced around in the 4runner, trying to get a glimpse of the Leopard stalking its prey (we had previously seen a cheetah run off and, unfortunately out of our sight, take down a nyala for her and her cubs); however, we failed to find the elusive beast. That said, the whole experience was a thrill and a success - ultimately it didn't matter that we didn't find the Leopard; we felt the thrill of the hunt and the fear of the prey and the reaction of the environment (birds flew off, etc.). It was nature at its most real - it was not a zoo environment; we had to work to see these animals
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| Tracker in his jumpseat; Ranger at the wheel |
Then there's the 70% of the time when we weren't actively viewing or tracking animals. I was forced to slow down and just chill. Soon enough, I was focused on the fresh air, on the ambient sounds of the wild (which could still be heard over the roar of the engine), on the changes in the ecosystems that transitioned seemingly over only a few hundred yards.
The wind in my hair.
The sun on my face.
I felt a part of something bigger; I felt as if mother Africa were embracing me with open arms, and it was wonderful.
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| A full 4Runner - Can you spot the tracker? They have to abandon their jumpseat and sit in the car in the vicinity of big cats (in this case, the cheetah and her cubs) |
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