Nov. 25, 2010
Jackie Wu shares the adventures of the men’s and women’s tennis teams from thier three-day safari in Kings Camp. The teams got to see leopards, giraffes, buffalo and white lions while riding through the safari in open jeeps.
I write to you still in complete awe of what we were privileged enough to see on our two safari rides today. We started off the day with an early wake up call at 5:30a and convened in the upper deck for tea, coffee, and biscuits. Per usual, we split up into 3 jeeps and embarked on our morning safari drive. Cynet, my jeep’s driver and tour guide, jokingly told us, “No leopard, no breakfast.” Two thoughts immediately run through my head: Would we even be lucky enough to spot those creatures that just blend in so darn well with the environment? And if we don’t, he must be joking about the no breakfast consequence. Our chances for finding said leopards looked pretty slim after driving around for two hours and not having seen more than the abundant herds of impala. (Fun fact of the day: the nickname for these creatures is McDonald because of the M that is on their behinds.) However, although it was a very exciting sighting when we first arrived here at Kings Camp, we had become immune to the excitement because these impalas are quite abundant. All of a sudden, Cynet started to drive the jeep at speeds much faster than normal, towards the direction of a rhino that had been spotted and radioed in by the other tour guides. Unfortunately, before we arrived, we were told that it had moved across some barrier and was not in sight anymore.
What started looking like a bust was, in fact, on the opposite end of the spectrum. After bracing ourselves through multiple lumps and bumps, we found ourselves about 10 feet away from two leopards, a mother and a child. As we sat there admiring their beauty and grace, we realized that they were actually hunting down an unsuspecting impala a little ways ahead. Slowly and quietly, we followed them as they approached their target. At one point, the leopard was just a foot away from the front of one of the jeeps. If it weren’t for safety reasons, I’m sure Aleke would have definitely tried to pet it. We inched our way closer to the leopards but still gave them enough space to hunt. Cynet explained that if we were to get too close, we would scare off the impala and then prevent the leopards from a kill. However, the kill was still unsuccessful. What was quite interesting to learn was that the kill was unsuccessful because the baby leopard started attacking the impala from too far of a distance, giving the prey an ample amount of time to escape.
The successful morning was followed by yet another incredible meal. We helped ourselves to a glorified continental breakfast while ordering from the menu. Some returned to their rooms to take a power nap, while others relaxed and did work in the lounge. What seemed to be 5 minutes was actually a couple of hours. Once again, we found ourselves sitting at the dining tables drooling over everything on the menu. (If you ever have the opportunity to vacation at Kings Camp, I highly suggest the Thai beef salad with egg noodles.) We spent the rest of our free time wandering through the gift shop, finding handcrafted bowls and masks, a variety of safari stuffed animals, and necklaces made from hippo bone.
The afternoon safari was perhaps just as interesting as the morning’s. Right away, we were taken to see two warthogs that were finding things to eat along the road. What we also found a little ways off from the road was a group of 3 cheetahs. Though we trespassed just slightly in order to get closer to them, it was definitely worth it. The difference between cheetahs and lions are rather subtle but noticeable to those who know exactly what they are looking for. The cheetah has a smaller head and thinner body, with two black marks on their faces that look like tear marks. In fact, those black marks help during the day because there is not as much reflection coming from the sun with those marks.
From there, we saw several giraffes, impalas, and buffalo on our way to the white lion spotting. When we got there, we saw National Geographic’s jeep (they’re filming a documentary on these white lions because they are the only two wild lions remaining in the world) parked by the side. Cynet did some off-roading so we ducked in order to avoid getting whipped by the branches. We stay there for a while, just watching the lions rest, while snapping picture after picture. At one point, one of the mothers rolled onto its back, completely stretched out all four limbs, and just continued to sleep on its back. If I ever had a safari accident, it would be because I went to go attempt to hug a lion. They’re that cute.
The most impressive thing that I’ve seen so far, in my opinion, has got to be the kill executed by African dogs. Something came across the radio, and after hearing the message, Cynet told us all to hold on and started to accelerate. We were not sure what we were chasing because the tour guides have code words for the animals (as to not get the guests excited), but we knew it had to be something special since Cynet seemed to be on a mission to get us there as quickly as he could. From a distance, we saw something moving in the bushes, and he told us that they were African wild dogs, which is a very rare sighting. We continued to follow them, until they started to run. Another jeep had joined us by then, and together, we started driving after them, plowing down little branches with the Land Rovers. We managed to make a quick turn and gained some ground on the dogs, and soon afterwards, we pulled up on them fighting over the freshly killed impala and ripping it into shreds. It was gone in a matter of seconds.
After witnessing such an incredible sight, we drove to an open part of land and got out of the jeeps to eat some snacks and have a couple of drinks that the tour guides provided. Each jeep filled in the other jeeps on what they saw that afternoon, and more pictures were taken. As we were piling back into the jeeps, we spotted a hyena running across the field. (Which makes you wonder, what great timing we have, to be climbing back into the jeeps as it ran towards the very spot where we were all just standing around.) The drive back to the lodges was a short one, and after we changed, dinner was served outdoors. There was a fire going on in the middle, and three tables set up around it. We were served tomato soup to start off with and then proceeded on to the buffet. The chefs had prepared lamb, fish, ostrich, a variety of vegetables, stir fry, and salad. That’s right, ostrich! It was absolutely delicious, and even some of the more wary ones on our team said it was good. It was nice to sit down at dinner and have some quality time with one another without the distraction of electronics, like we would have back home.
We were asked what our most favorite part of the trip so far was and what was the most unexpected thing. It’s no surprise that a popular answer was the African wild dog kill. Some talked about the overwhelming pride of the people of Soweto. For me, the actual safari scene is what came as the most unexpected to me. Perhaps The Lion King had painted this mental image for me as to what a safari would look like, but I did not expect as much green and bushes as there turned out to be. We wrapped up dinner and all sat around the fireplace, some chatting, some trying to recognize the constellations in the sky. Although today is our last night at Kings Camp, we’re all still looking forward to the last morning safari ride tomorrow before heading off to Capetown.
This entire outdoor wildlife experience has truly been something that many people only dream of living. What Lori said at dinner perfectly captured the essence of it all: “Here, we’ve got it all. We’re being spoiled with their service and food, while still being humbled by seeing those animals out in their natural habitat, out in the wild. What more could you ask for?”
