Our ranger told us that mother komodos will eat their own babies. So for the first three years of their lives, komodos live in trees for their own safety. Not only from their mothers but also from any other komodo. It is currently mating season, so it is hard to find the dragons. They don't eat at this time, so they are not out looking for food and just remain hidden in the bush. On Komodo island we were lucky enough to see four komodo dragons. Two were young and quite small and ran away very fast. The other two were huge. About two and a half metres long and very muscley. I thought we would be quite a distance away from them because they have a toxic bite. Once bitten, it can take a human up to two years to die from a komodo bite. Mum & I stood about 4 metres away from the largest dragon. Our ranger/guide took my camera and took photos of us with the dragon in the shot (photos coming soon...)
GEtting on and off our boat at the pier was quite difficult. I was so proud of mum with her dodgy hip, clambering & climbing & being yanked up by the arms from helpful boathands. She actually had a fall walking on some rocky ground and i was just so glad that it wasn't right in front of a komodo!
We motored to Lasa Island for a swim. We reached there just before the sun slid behind the tallest mountain. We were so hot and sweaty after our exercise and dragon chasing that we swam at dusk in water near Komodo Village where there are komodos (who swim) and crocodiles just in case the dragons weren't bad enough. I can't believe I did it. I was terrified at the time but so ridiculously hot. As mum & i swam from the boat towards the beach, I saw two large splashes in the water to our left. I must've turned white with fear. Croc? Komodo? There was no point saying anything to mum. She was ahead of me and would make it to shore before I did. But hell, crocs and komodos go on land as well. Aaaaaaah. What to do? Two of the crew from our boat were already on land, so, keep swimming! When we reached the beach, mum & i had a two minute stroll, looked at the sun as it slid behind the mountain and then i said "Right. Let's swim back". I hadn't told her what i'd seen. And so, right on dusk, we got back in the water and swam to the boat. Back safely on the boat, I chose to tell mum what i'd seen.
