- Magic is a Real Thing
- Kakuli, The White Buffalo
- A
Midnight Maestro
- This Land of Dreams
- The Big Picture
This Land of Dreams
 Having
seen his regal posture during the day and now to hear his mighty
signature echo around my soul, my earlier queries of legend and folklore
are answered and this beast will remain for the rest of my days a
product of magic. Believing myself to now be awake for the entire night
I settled comfortably onto my bed and allowed the feeling of complete
solitude embrace me. I was safe, comfortable and for the first time ever
free of any of the stress I normally invite into my life.
Africa is a drug, and I was already addicted.
Needless to say sleep crept up on me, and the next thing I remember is
Phil knocking on my door and once again waking me up into this land of
Dreams.
Breakfast was a fairly hurried affair as Phil’’s interpretation of last
nights noises was the possibility of a kill and that he felt fairly
certain the pride we viewed the day before where responsible for.
Needless to say I was rearing to go.
 Phil
led us to the valley where we had viewed the pride the day before and
after picking up the tracks he led us on our own hunt. I thoroughly
enjoyed tracking the lion and Phil talked us through all aspects of
tracking and took time to make sure we where involved and aware of each
clue left for us.
This whole hunt was very stimulating as the constant safety measures
taken by Phil and James the armed Wildlife Scout couldn't help but
remind one that this was no longer a television documentary and that our
quarry was not necessarily the cuddly cub from Disney’s Lion King.
 Luangwa
Valley is known within safari circles as the pioneer of the walking
safari and watching our guides at work really brought home how important
it is to have the necessary experience to undertake such an adventure.
With little or no idea as to the actual whereabouts of the kill, or even
at this stage if there even was one, every step was carefully monitored
and planned. Phil went to great pains to skirt any long grass or
thickets, making sure that even if we walked far from the tracks we
where following, we where always in the open and had clear views all
around us until he would lead us back to the original spoor.
Stopping regularly and listening, watching the horizon and skies,
scrutinizing distant shade and even keeping an eye on other game to
judge its behavior combined with the telltale path before us eventually
paid off and after about an hour and a half of tracking Phil lowered his
binoculars and pointed out a distant clue.
Two solitary vultures hung patiently on the thermals and closer
inspection of the trees produced the silhouette of more of these ugly
necessary birds perched ungracefully in the branches.
There was still no sign of lion but Phil quickly pointed out that most
initial hungers would have been satiated during the night and probably
the great cats would be lying nearby the carcass in the shade,
contentedly digesting until round two.
With two days at Kuyenda under my belt, I was well and truly converted
to the ways of the African experience.
The thought of leaving Kuyenda and the 48hrs of fantastic safaris and
excellent company reminded me of the adolescent pang I experienced some
years ago when I first left home……except this time the feeling of
entering the great unknown was far more literal.
[continued...The Big Picture] |
