Traumatised

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During siesta today Glen took me out for a spot of illegal fishing (Illegal as it is a national park so all animals are technically protected and also he shouldn’t really take guests out, in case they’re get eaten by crocs or drowned by hippos, but I’m a special case - it’s obviously clear that I’m an old hat at all this bush stuff!). It’s land fishing, so we each had a rod of line with bait (steak) attached that we spun then released - I was aiming for the croc in the middle of the river, but watched at it plopped ungracefully a few feet away. Had a great time though - I was essentially feeding the fish my bait rather than catching them, but Glen caught one fish that we released back as it was too young.

Night drive
We were treated to a special sundowner today - probably for this UK couple, reward for their continued loyalty and the fact they were spending about 6 days in each of the four Norman Carr bushcamps. So great to be included in the treat too. A special sundowner is a step above the normal - more alcohol and food, seats in front of a lagoon with little lamps around to enhance the atmosphere. Great stuff.

Our second night in a row to see a leopard. Incredibly lucky but it’s too far away and moving fast to capture anything on film. While watching we hear a deep throated call, our guide Aubry has heard this before - a buffalo has been trapped in mud and is in some distress.

When we reach the stranded buffalo, we all gasp; there it is surrounded by hyenas and being eaten alive! Poignantly it’s a young calf, its legs are sunk deep into the mud, and its hind quarters are seeping blood. The calf calls, distress and pain clear to everyone, but we watch as the hyenas, three of them, slowly kill the buffalo strip by strip. It’s awful to watch, 30-40 minutes we sit tense, wincing at every pained mew, asking ‘when will it die’ as it seemed incredible that it lived when the hyenas appeared to be pulling out intestines, the mud surrounding getting soggier with blood.

And in the mist of this gruesome spectacle, the leopard came and went, drawn to the buffalo calf’s calls but knowing it’s chances of getting close were minimal with the hyenas already there. And there were buffalo, we could here them long before they appeared; I thought it was the vibrations of another vehicle, but instead it was herds and herds of buffalo. Imagine, in the foreground one of its own, a calf, slowing dying, while in the background the buffalo, like a macabre procession, thundered through. When the calf was finally dead, the hyenas’ heads delving deep into the carcass, noses bloody and ugly, we left.

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