We'd left the waters of the Okavango Delta and made our way to Chobe River National Park where we'd be spending the last of our Botswana days and nights.
We began with another incredibly early morning rise (it was still pitch black when we awoke) and prepared for our last game drive. Chobe is renowned for its massive population of elephants but we were setting our sights higher with the dedication and hopes of spotting the elusive leopard. If we were lucky then we would have spotted all of Africa's Big 5 (lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino, and leopard). As the sun began to rise we could make out the outline of our awaiting carriage. We were traveling in style, an open-aired pickup truck which meant that we'd also be very, very cold while driving. Mandy prepared herself by crawling into her sleeping bag and riding in the upright position cocoon style. I was very envious of her warmth and comfort. I also found irony in the bench-seating arrangement: naive, unprotected passengers sitting in an open-aired truckbed while the game/wildlife experts shouted information at us through a window opening as they sat in the cabin, safely encased by metal and glass (and also with a gun)...HA! As we rambled through the park we again saw elephants, zebra, and 'antelope' (springboks, kudu, oryx, etc). And sadly I began to realize how blase I was towards seeing the same animals over and over again. I was discomforted at this realization. I knew that in a few days these daily sightings would come to an end and I needed, I wanted to fell more euphoric, more exhilarated. It was just as I'd had my "eureka moment" that we pulled up to a unique sighting. Scattered throughout the river were crocs and hippos and amongst them was a mommy and her baby hippo. Unfortunately the mother had perished (from what no one knows) leaving behind the young hippo to fend for itself. As the baby nudged it's mother, perhaps for milk or a loving nudge in return, all she would do is spin in circles at the waters surface (due to decomposition, her body was filled with gas & floating). Surrounding the two of them, both on the shore and in the water, were the crocs idly waiting for their next meal. To my relief our guide informed us that the crocs main feeding would be on the mother's carcass once it was 'tender' enough, giving me the hope that the young calf would survive with the aid of the adult hippos nearby.
It was time to move on and so we left the banks of the river and drove in search of our leopard. These animals are known as tree loungers, so we continued to search every branch that whizzed overhead with the anticipation of spotting a big cat. It just so happened that as we looked up, we noticed a large number of vultures flying in circles above. Being from Florida and a lover of the outdoors, I recognized this as a sign that something in the vacinity was dead. Sure enough the next thing we came across were the remnants of an antelope-esque animal and the bones and leftover bits were being devoured by vultures. The guide told us that it was the scraps from a lion kill and just as he'd finished shouting this out to us, from his protective window, we came upon a litter of lion cubs with their mom ...and aunties...and possibly older brothers and sisters (WHEW, we almost have the whole extended family).
As she laid in the cool shade, full from her recent meal, the young cubs were clumsily climbing nearby treelimbs and stumbling over their too-big-for-them paws. We sat in silence, watching them in action, amazed that our presence caused no fear or stress and thank goodness since we were in an open truck! We had about 20 feet between predator and potential prey, I couldn't believe how close we were to them. I could even take photos without having to use the zoom and was thankful that they'd just had a nice, hearty meal!
Eventually we left the scene and continued to search for our leopard. As time passed so did our hopes of spotting one. We even had a tease as a fellow truck passed and informed us that they caught a quick glimmer of one in the trees. Our game drive came to an end and though our morning drive brought us close to many animals, both big and small, we never had the fortune of completing our Big 5 sighting. However we can't be too disappointed now, can we? As we saw amazing sights, things you'd only expect to see on the Discovery Channel. Plus, tonight we'll be enjoying the scenic boat cruise down the Chobe River and perhaps our luck will change.
