One of the most terrifying experiences you can imagine is waking up to the sound of an elephant footsteps right outside your tent. This was my wake up call on my first Botswana safari expedition.
During the fall month of April, my close friend Michelle and I made our usual annual getaway. We were like two girls looking for a little adventure, camping in the heart of the Botswana desert. We were staying in bush camps in the Moremi Wildlife Reserve in the Okavango Delta. A place full of promise of adventure, but I don’t think the elephants wreaking havoc on our camp was something any of us expected.
big thugs
It was a cool and windy morning. The signs that winter was coming were becoming clear. Michelle woke me up. Alarmed, we sat in our safari tent listening to the sound of something approaching. It wasn’t long before we realized it was a small group of elephants approaching our camp. The small group turned out to be two young bulls traveling together in search of an easy meal.
We lowered the shutter on our window as smoothly and openly as we dared, because it is a common fact that young bulls, like these two, can display quite aggressive behavior. We sat there for what seemed like forever watching them sniff and poke and poke around the camp. I can tell you that luck was on our side that morning, because they never showed any real interest in our stores. Good thing our safari tents are also situated on raised teak platforms, which also provides a kind of sense of security. I breathed a sigh of relief as the two continued on their merry way.
Moremi Wildlife Reserve
As soon as our two uninvited guests had left, they all poured out of their tents, adrenaline pumping; the atmosphere was filled with emotion. During our hearty breakfast, our guides informed us that the occurrence was not unusual. After all, we were on his territory now. This was just the beginning of five days filled with the wildlife of Africa in what is undoubtedly nature at its most beautiful.
The reserve is located in the northeast corner of the Okavango Delta and has an impressive and varied landscape. I cannot recall on any of my previous safaris seeing this amount of wildlife in such a short time. As usual, there were the big five: elephant, rhino, buffalo, leopard and hippos. But we also had the privilege of seeing the unique sitatunga antelope.
I play to drive a little
We had game drives every morning and afternoon in the back of an open Land Rover 4×4. On one of our night drives we struck gold! A pride of lions was hunting and their victim was a feisty zebra. Although most people see this as horrible and cruel, the fact is that it is still amazing to see nature in action. It took two lionesses to pin the zebra to the ground for what seemed like seconds. The power that lions possess is exhilarating. With panache they won the most difficult battle. I felt sadness for the zebra, but this is the circle of life, although it is so cruel.
I think I will never get tired of being so up close and personal with the wildlife of Africa. I’ve been privileged to have gone on a couple of safaris, but with this being my first safari in Botswana, I really couldn’t understand why I hadn’t been there before.
going back to camp
After our safari, we return to the camp. The guides built a fire and Michelle and I soon joined the rest of the tourists around the fire. The discussions involved the day’s sightseeing and mainly lion hunting tactics. I think it would take some of the tourists a long time to get over the initial shock of seeing something like this, as most of them found the experience just horrible. The one thing everyone could agree on was how beautiful Botswana was and specifically the Moremi Wildlife Reserve.
After dinner and a relaxing drink, everyone headed to their tents with our armed guards, for what would be our last night of our safari. I think this trip was more than Michelle and I could have hoped for and it definitely raised our expectations for our next wildlife adventure.
