Norman and Steff returned from our Botswana & Zimbabwe Ivory Route BZac15 and had the following to share.
Appreciate the small things and you will be rewarded with big things! I very much believe that this is the case when we are out in the bush. If clients are excited to see birds and flowers and take pictures of them, appreciating their beauty, I know that bigger things will be in store for them, like cats for example! Not that this is a guarantee but the mood tends to be way more relaxed when a group is happy with seeing just about anything rather than wanting us to hunt down a lion or find the elusive leopard. Which can be extremely hard especially in rainy season when the grass is very high and the bush so lush it doesn’t allow for a view deep inside.
On this tour I had two lovely ladies from Switzerland. To say we were a small group is an understatement. It felt more like we were a family. It was clear from the beginning as we got soaked by the magical Victoria Falls, that a good laugh about things we can’t change make for great memories and is the way to go. And so we got soaked some more on our full day game drive in Hwange and then a bit more at Matobos. But never was there a foul mood, instead we had a good laugh and just wrapped ourselves into the raincoats and felt sorry for our guides that were driving and sitting where the roof would leak! The rainy season can be a bit tricky for some, it definitely can dampen the mood especially on a game drive when animals decide to wait it out and hide away. Some of the roads also become much harder to drive on, or shall we say swim through? Luckily our local guides always knew the best way to get around and find the animals anyway!
Have you ever seen a baboon swimming? … neither have I. In fact I was under the impression that they would avoid water unless it is for drinking or they had to cross a stream and would do so reluctantly. Have you ever seen baboons dive into a swimming pool?? Now I thought this was not possible but I should know by now to never underestimate these clever primates. It was at Hwange Safari Lodge where we stopped for lunch with our eyes towards a watering hole when a troop of baboons appeared in the garden and gathered around the pool for a drink. Nothing too unusual I thought but then this young chap decided to go for it, head first he went in! I couldn’t believe my eyes so had to quickly get my phone to record this on video. Surely no one would believe me otherwise? We watched these baboons for at least 30 minutes toying around the pool but not all of them would go for a swim! It seemed only the younger ones were brave enough to face the water.
Like I said, those who appreciate the small things will be rewarded with big things. So on this tour that takes us through parts of Zimbabwe and Botswana and stops for a night in Namibia, we had baboons diving in a swimming pool, a lioness stalking waterbuck next to a picnic spot, elephants at our lodge, the rare and elusive Pel’s fishing owl and fish eagle flying in when called upon! Of course we had many many more sightings but these ones just stood out for being extremely special, rare or even firsts for me and my colleague!
Another highlight for me was the mokoro excursion and fishing trip at Nxamaseri. After breakfast we were taken out on the Nxamaseri channel with mekoro which are dugout canoes traditionally made out of wood although ours were made out of fiber glass to help preserve the trees that would otherwise be cut down. We had two guides that took us out through wide channels covered with water lilies. The sight was just too perfect to even be captured by a photograph. We found a reed frog resting in a petal and it was like a scene out of a fairytale. We were on the look out for the elusive and incredibly rare Pel’s fishing owl which is a resident in the area. I wanted to keep my expectations low but was just too excited on the prospect of maybe seeing this bird for the first time in my life. We checked island after island but she was nowhere to be found, not in the places she would usually roost during the day. Instead we saw a female sitatunga that was spooked by our voices and ran away, flying over the water. That was a first for me, too! This day was already great, it didn’t matter whether or not we would find the owl. After 3 hours of searching with no success, we stopped at the last island to check. Being a little bit superstitious, I decided to leave my camera on the mokoro because so many times I would see amazing things when I leave it behind. So off we went, silently walking through the bush of the island, trying not to make too much noise. Adam, our local guide walked slowly in front of me and then I saw him stare up and I knew he saw her. The moment he pointed upwards though, she decided to fly away. But flying during the day makes it easy for the predators to spot her and so she would only fly short distances, a few tree canopies away. So we found her again and my clients were able to take pictures. I was so in awe and looking through my binoculars at this amazing creature, not fully believing how fortunate I was to finally have seen it. I sat down on the ground grinning, still looking up until she flew away again. Nine, our second guide though wasn’t satisfied and asked me to come with him to grab my camera. After all I really wanted to see her. I wasn’t going to say ‘no’ and was so chuffed that he would do that for me. We quickly went to fetch my camera and relocated the owl. Finally I got to take the pictures that would prove that I saw her. I couldn’t be happier. Or so I thought …
It was time to ‘feed’ the fish eagle. I couldn’t quite grasp what that meant but Adam prepared us for what was going to happen. Basically we had to have our cameras handy. Set to high shutter speed and not too much zoom as it would go by fast. Next thing Adam was whistling a tune that sounded a little bit like that of a fish eagle, but not really. I though this was a set up and didn’t really get my hopes up. We looked around and nothing … Adam whistled again and there he was, flying in on top of a close by tree, facing the water. Adam cut a few pieces of papyrus sticks and stuffed the fish with it in order for it to float once thrown into the water. This will make it easier for the eagle to grab it and also we could focus the camera on the fish. He warned us that once he would throw the fish, that very second the eagle would take off, swoop down, do one loop and grab it. I wanted to laugh because how can one predict that the eagle will fly one loop? Seriously … It was exactly what happened. Including the loop! Unbelievable, I was speechless and more so, I was beyond excited as I managed to take pictures of the whole thing. Our clients and us guides were over the moon. The beauty of the area, the tranquil of the water and surroundings. Everything felt so pure and real. And then we had the most magical sunset behind those stormy clouds. The perfect way to end this boat trip and head to the lodge for another great dinner. What a day …
