A Fruitless Search
We woke almost, it seemed, before collapsing into sleep. This was to be our tenth day immersed in the Wild. We had spotted so much wildlife, there seemed little left to see. We had already witnessed a dozen crossings, surely a world-beating achievement. We had seen more leopards than you could shake a stick at.
Although shaking a stick at a leopard is not highly recommended.
And we had captured sunrise photos galore.
So let's add some more...
This morning's rising sun was special. Special out of a group of special dawns. The first rays picked out our first and our foremost wildlife on this trip. Silhouettes of ubiquitous wildebeest, the ever-present gnu.
Then the sun was eclipsed behind a moving mountain.
Then rested a moment in its ascent behind a convenient fig tree.
Magical.
Our goal today was to see those animals that had so far escaped our prodigious luck. The rhino and the caracal. For this we were to travel some distance into areas where no man dares to tread. We sought out the help of the local rangers whose job was to keep a close eye on the very few rhinos left and to make sure that some poverty stricken locals weren't conned into killing these giants for their tightly packed nasal hair.
Ian was close friends with some of the rangers, who were more than happy to help us out. They advised us where to go (areas that most guests never see) and promised to contact us if they sighted any of these timid giants that day.
On our way to the rangers camp we dropped in on a local pride.
They were not going to provide us with any entertainment so we quickly moved on. After all, we wanted rhino. We wanted caracal. We were to be disappointed.
As we searched the local ravines we spotted no rhinos, no caracal, but a Martial Eagle spotted us...
...and followed us for a while.
After avoiding the usual road blocks, we headed towards the Mara.
We had actually, it seems, just missed a crossing. We were told that all the wildebeest had already successfully passed across, leaving behind a few obstinate zebra.
We were not so sure. After studying the behaviour of the local hippos, we thought something was off.
Then a head appeared in the river next to us.
"Strange" we thought. What's a wildebeest doing taking a morning bath in such a dangerous place? He had a kind of pleading look in his eyes.
Then he moved. Quickly. He started to whoosh around in circles with unbelievable speed.
This was like something out of 'Jaws'.
And then we saw why. He was not propelling himself, he was held in the jaws of a monster.
He was once more turned around. And we could see his back. At least, the bits of his back that were still there.
This powerful monster was in full control. The wildebeest stood no chance. Best get it over with quick.
The gnu gave up.
The croc was left there in apparent bliss, with a grin as wide as an elephants backside.
We moved on from this disturbing encounter and stopped a little further away and alongside a sand-river to take our lunch. Eating next to a slurping corpse is not generally good for the appetite. I prefer my meat not to slurp.
We continued all day with our search. We had seen few cheetahs in our quest so far, but here was a lone individual.
He appeared healthy, but on closer inspection it was clear he had problems with his paw. One damaged claw and one claw ripped out. Not a kind injury to an animal that relies on being fleet of foot.
He clearly objected to my clinical examination of him, so he walked off in a huff, showing us is rear end for further study. No world-beating willy there...
We had spent much of the day on a fruitless search for rhinos. Even the rangers had not seen hide nor hair of them for several days. It's amazing how something so big can be so difficult to spot. One reason for this is, of course, that there are so bloody few of them, and those that are left live in fear of the gun.
The sun was heading down, and trying to break through some unexpected clouds. There was heavy rain over there in Kenya.
We did find a large pride of lions in our search for rhinos. They had a fresh kill of the stripy variety and were making a meal of it.
Others were playing...
...or fighting. It's difficult to tell the difference.
Another sneaked of with a prime cut.
While the head butcher was hard at work...
...other members of the family were happy to roll...
...and tumble...
...and chase each other endlessly.
We finally had to give up our search for the rhino and caracal. We had spent much of our last day in the Wild on this fruitless search.
On our return journey from the outer reaches, we went into a rocky area and tried to spot the odd leopard in its favourite phallic rocky domain.
But this day was a day with little luck.
Just before dark we spotted another cheetah who had recently succeeded in his shopping trip.
The sun was now trying to set through the clouds of burning bushes...
...which had left vast areas blackened.
As we approached Lamai for the last time...
...we could see the blackened ground that bore witness to the fires that had tried to engulf us just two nights before. Plus a few thousand wildebeest.
Our last night in Africa.
Next (and last!) Chapter 'Out of Africa'
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