No More: Day 8 of our Awesome African Adventure.

 We have just been three days away from any signal, and now, for the next hour to two, a weak signal. 

Lots to catch up on.

We were woken early from a deep sleep to stumble to our hopefully repaired truck.

Hopefully...

This time we took a different direction, one even more full of tsetses. 

Turning a corner I saw what I thought was smoke. A cloud? No, it was dust. The dust spewed out by a lorry on a dirt track. This was no normal road. This was a highway. 

5 years ago we were told of government plans to build a dam upstream from the campsite. Although this caused some concern, we had no idea of what was to come. 

5 years later, this:

This photo was taken from the Cessna as we were coming in to land. This dam is not just big, it is bloody enormous! When finished, it will supply enough electricity for ALL of Tanzania and allow significant export to three other countries.

This is a sobering experience for me. The dam not only has disrupted a large swath of the national park, there are overhead cables going in all directions. 

This is deep and darkest Africa no more. 

---

We continued our drive in a mental slump. Why would we ever come here again? The future is being destroyed for our grandchildren.

On the brighter side of life, this is clean energy. It could be pivotal for the future of East Africa. But it might spoil my safari...

We headed to the west and north of lake Tagalala

We decided to come here to search for the Painted Wolf. So let's get on with it.

We searched and we searched. Nadda. Then, suddenly, something ran through the undergrowth in front of us. A dog! I grabbed my camera but it was gone (the dog, not the camera). “Did you see that” I cried, “ A dog!” 

"No" said Annick, "it was a leopard". 

"Let’s vote on it." 

I lost. 

Well maybe it was a leopard chasing a dog. 

Whatever it was, we could find no further trace of it. 

A disappointing day. No dogs. 

We found hyenas...

...swamps (this is the one we nearly ran into yesterday).

I even found the urge to paint a Monet...

But no dogs...

We returned to our lodge with no great photos. 

No dogs.

Next episode here