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Andy Smith travelled on our 'Botswana's Desert & Delta (Mammals)' holiday and submitted this entry to our writing competition.
Bull Elephant and Wild Dogs (Andy Smith)
Watching hunting Wild Dogs in Botswana
It had been one hell of a day’s wildlife viewing in the Okavango. Naturetrek’s Desert and Delta tour had surpassed all expectations, thanks to our excellent guide, Disho Gabatsholwe. My thoughts were that it can never get better than this, but there was one last DAM in the script!
My wife had never been to Africa, let alone on safari, so Saturday November 8th 2014 would live long in the memory banks. The day had started for me very early, 1 am to be precise, when my slumbers were interrupted by a Spotted Hyena at the tent flap. This is experiencing Africa in the raw, were my thoughts, as sleep consumed me and I drifted off to the roars of not so distant Lions!
The morning had found us moving camps, and relocating to the Moremi Game reserve. It had not been long before we were observing a group of four female Lions with three cubs, dozing under a bush. This encounter was soon followed by a Leopard, walking in full view to a Termite mound, where it also slumped down to rest, yawning on cue for that shot of some impressive canines.
In the late afternoon we found a Cheetah with an Impala kill: the gruesome scene evidence of earlier savagery. As we drove to our new camp site, dusk was falling, but we still managed to add a scurrying Honey Badger to our day’s tally.
What a fantastic day. It was hard to comprehend that we had seen: Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Hyena and Honey Badger all on the same day. An impressive mammal list and a real privilege.
To reach our camp we had to cross the Khwai River via the aptly named Third Bridge. Now I have crossed the Severn and the Forth bridges, but never a Third bridge! This crossing is an event in itself. The structure is made of logs that, worryingly, moved as our Land cruiser edged its way across. However, it is an ideal construction for the situation. A more solid bridge would no doubt be undermined and washed away during the wet season. This ford allows water to pass both under and over, protecting the bridge and still providing a safe passage. Very clever.
As the headlights picked out the far side of the ford a large bull Elephant could be seen, tusks glinting in the moonlight. He also seemed intent on crossing. This was interesting. Would he move aside for us? Just then a movement close to our vehicle caught my eye. As I looked to the side, four Hunting Dogs appeared from the darkness. This had been my dream - to see this much-maligned and declining species. The famous ‘Painted Dogs’ were not 5 metres away! Confidently they went ahead and we followed. Disho was now playing a beam of light on the encounter that was unfurling in front of us. The four dogs approached the Elephant, barking and growling, but keeping together. Surprisingly the Elephant moved to the side, raising its head aggressively. The dogs picked their way past and scampered off to the other side. We followed, closely passing the Elephant that was soon lost to the darkness. We followed the Hunting Dogs as they moved to an open area where Impala were nervously standing. One of the dogs began to run, like a well-trained sheep dog, arcing round. As if by telepathy the others started to hunt. The Impala sensed the threat and were off. The chase had begun and within seconds all was lost to the shadows of the African night. We drove on elated and stopped at our camp, just 200 metres from where this final act of the day had been played out.
As we sat around the camp fire recollecting the day’s events I am not ashamed to admit that I was close to tears. What had been an incredible day for wildlife sightings had ended with what we christened a Sensational DAM. In fact perhaps our finest DAM ever. So what is a DAM? Well, it is one of those God moments. To put it simply a David Attenborough Moment, normally only experienced via the TV screen and enjoyed in the comfort of the lounge. This had been in the raw, and would never be forgotten.
Read more about our 'Botswana's Desert & Delta (Mammals)' holiday.