We first saw a large herd of Zebras, which Charles said have the best eyesight of all the mammals. Their skin is black and white all the way through - so that if you skin one, you will see the stripes on both sides. Nick was skeptical of this. We saw some male kudu walking. They are quite large and cause trouble on roads at night. We saw a completely black zebra in a herd of striped ones, an anomaly found only in Etosha. We saw a huge tawny eagle and a yellow billed hornbill.
We then spotted a large male Lion walking towards us heading for a waterhole. Charles said he had recently eaten a big meal. We watched him cross our path then followed him to the waterhole. All the wildebeest and other animals at the waterhole backed off and watched from a respectful distance. The lion walked around the water, testing it for the cleanest area to drink from. He took a few sips and laid down to digest. It was very fascinating, although we weren’t as close to him as we had been to other lions.
We saw a group of spotted hyenas crossing the road. Charles said they also had recently eaten. There were tons of zebra and wildebeest, sometimes grazing together. Charles said the zebra eat the top of a certain type of grass, and the wildebeest eat the bottom. In the zebra herds there is one dominant male and loads of females. Sometimes another male can come and kidnap some females and start a new herd.
We joined a few safari trucks and saw two cheetahs under tree. At first it was hard to see without binoculars, but we moved to another vantage point, and I could see clearly. It was my first ever cheetah sighting. Charles said they were probably brothers. We then saw some Banded mongoose. They look cute till you look at their faces. Next we came upon some Greater kudu; they are bigger but shy.
We turned into a water hole and there were several Hyena and jackals feeding on giraffe leg. It was intense watching them tear pieces off. A few vultures stood by patiently waiting. The rest of the giraffe was behind some tall reeds in the water, thankfully obscured from our view. But we could smell the pungent scent of the kill. A couple hyenas were tugging and tearing at the giraffe in the water. Mostly they slipped on the mud. The jackals tried to get a taste of the leg but the much bigger hyenas mostly nipped at them and kept them at bay. We watched this fascinating scene for a long time before moving on so another truck could take our prime viewing position.
We next saw a pair of Damara dyk dyk - the mini antelope. At another waterhole we saw male kudu, impala and zebra. I got some good photos of the animals and their reflections in the water. We made a pit stop and bought a map and some trinkets. Back on the road we came to a small waterhole where a Female kudu and young giraffe were drinking. I find it interesting to watch the giraffes spread their front legs and lower their heads to drink. We returned to the waterhole where the lion had been resting and found a herd of over 50 zebra drinking. We saw a few giraffe on one side of the road, and then looked on the other side, and there was a large breeding herd (females and babies) of elephants walking in a line. We followed them for awhile, then parked and walked to a waterhole with a viewing stand. Soon the elephants appeared, splashing and spouting in the water. A big old matriarch brought up the rear, observing everything. It was a great ending to a wonderful game drive.
We had lunch and Selma the waitress told us that lions had come to the camp waterhole right after we left. Back in our room, Nick rested while I watched wildlife out the back window. A large elephant frolicked in the waterhole and then walked past our room, spraying himself with sand from the termite mounds. A big group of of mongoose scurried under a tree. Before long it was time to go for our sundowner drive. This would take place within the reserve with a guide from the Fort. We were picked up on time in the golf cart and met Liberty the guide. He seemed to be a few years older than Charles and was excited to show us “Nature”. Nick, Esther and I were the only guests in his open air safari truck. We headed out and for the first hour, we only saw birds: a beautiful green Swallowtail bee eater; a Gray go away bird; a Cape glossy starling; a Gray heron; some Battolier, a bird of prey; a pair of Corey Bustards who mate for life. Liberty kept talking about the many lions, leopards and rhinos they had, and we stared into the bush until our eyes crossed, but we never saw anything. At least the road was smooth, although he began driving faster and faster to the various waterholes, which was windy and sandy. Liberty periodically checked with his colleagues on the radio, and none of them were having any luck finding animals. Finally we turned a corner and saw three Warthogs digging for roots. They use an interesting technique where they go down on their “elbows” to dig. Or maybe I was just desperate that I found this interesting. The sunset was proving beautiful so we decided to stop for our gin and tonics and wines. He set up the table and snacks, started explaining the gin options to Nick, when suddenly the radio crackled “There are lions at the waterhole at the Fort.” We packed up the food and table forthwith and rushed back to the lodge. There were 2 lionesses and a male lion lying down near the water. It was hard to see them without binoculars. I did get a photo of a lioness and her reflection but overall it was a bust for me. They stayed there all through dinner (delicious ravioli for me) but never made any moves or sounds. Not sure what the program was.
We went back to our rooms, packed and I slept fitfully. When we got to breakfast at 6 am, the lions were gone. We ate quickly; I bought a bracelet from the shop ($28); and we boarded our van for the 7-hour drive to the airport. We traveled mainly paved roads with alternating commercial (cement plants) and natural scenery, and the only drama was when I discovered that Nick forgot my water bottle. We made a couple pit stops where use of the bathroom cost 2 Namibian dollars, and one was in a large village consisting of a sea of tin shacks that seemed no bigger than the van in which we were riding. At one gas station, there was an ATM machine in the back of a van, with a man with a rifle guarding it. Forty minutes from Windhoek we turned onto a divided highway that Charles said was only 2 weeks old. It was heavenly. Liberty had described the roads in Etosha as offering an African massage, where every part of you from the top of your head to the tip of your toe is shaken. We wound through the busy streets of Windhoek and then turned onto the highway to the airport. Other than a couple of road closures near the airport, we made it in plenty of time for our flight to Johannesburg and then Chicago. We were able to wait in the comfortable Wilderness Safari lounge (free WiFi) until it was time to check in for our flight.
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