The sun was halfway through its downward trajectory as we bounced along the dusty road that connected GwalaGwala (our camp) with Thornybush where the Big Five could be found – buffalo, rhino, elephant, leopard and lion. Richard, the Briton who was a fireman and wore a funny pigtail at the back of his bald head said that they made some good sightings the day before. I hoped it would be the same today as well.

Once we entered the camp, a long road that dipped up and down the undulating landscape stretched as far as the eye could see. Surrounding it was vegetation which, surprisingly, was made up of scraggly trees that weren’t so tall. Aside from a few big acacias, the rest looked more like overgrown bushes with thin trunks and branches. The undergrowth was mostly made up of dried grasses which were almost a meter tall.

Elephants cross the road to have their dinner

It is dry during winter that’s why most of the foliage was brown and thinner. It’s an advantage for game viewing, Tosha said, because it’s easier to spot animals. But at the same time, it was also a drawback because they don’t move about so much and the  watering holes are mostly empty. During summer, when temperatures soar, there is more rain – mostly brought about by thunderstorms. This brings out more greenery with thicker  foliage. I found it quite odd that it’s wetter in summer and dryer in winter until I realized that the southern hemisphere is the opposite of the tropics as far as climate is concerned.

Smaller dirt tracks branched off from the main road and they formed an interconnected network of routes in and out of the 55,000-hectare park. We veered off into one of these with our tracker intently concentrating on the road which was littered with animal droppings and numerous footprints. Contrary to what one may think, wild animals use the road because they are easier to walk on and faster to get to their destination. The droppings are their way of marking their territory as they roamed around the bush looking for food.

Wide open space filled with coarse grass is the perfect place for these hungry buffaloes

It was quite difficult to see what was beyond the tree line but the ranger had 20/20 vision. He stopped the jeep, pointed west about a hundred meters away and said: check that out. It took a couple of seconds for me to figure out what they were while my companions raised their binoculars like generals surveying a battlefield. I stared harder and then saw a brown shape silhouetted by the rays of the afternoon sun. Then another stood out and another until I saw a whole herd of maybe twenty impalas foraging on the forest floor. They had long pointed horns that bent backward and the back of their rumps as well as their lower legs had black marks.

Something must have spooked them for the whole herd stopped eating then raised their heads. Their pointed ears stood up and they must have picked up an unusual sound for they bolted in a split second, creating a cracking noise amidst the dried branches. This was followed by a whooshing sound as numerous birds took flight from the treetops, skimming their way above the dense, green canopy. All this action took place in a span of a few seconds and I had no time whatsoever to fire the Nikon which I was holding after having set it with a fast shutter to freeze anything that moved. As it turned out, it was my hand that froze! Anticipation’s the key, I reminded myself, if I had to go home with decent shots.

Lurching and rolling along the dirt tracks in the jungle

A lion or a cheetah was probably prowling around, Tosha explained as a way of describing what happened. It made my heart bit a little faster as I peered harder into the trees, expecting either a golden mane or a spotted face with sharp teeth to appear in an instant. None of that sort happened and after a couple more minutes waiting in dead silence, we drove off.

Spotting game needs a lot of patience, good timing and a bit of luck. Plus, of course, it greatly helps if you have a tracker who knows his business. Lawrence seemed to know very well how to go about it because after a couple of hand signals to the ranger who zigzagged across a series of tracks, we stopped. Loud crackling sounds punctured the stillness and it seemed as though somebody was snapping the tree branches the way a karate expert would break a bunch of chopsticks. Soon, a long trunk emerged from among the quivering trees followed by a pair of ivory tusks and huge flapping ears. A herd of elephants was having dinner! There were over a dozen of them – old and young alike – busily stripping the tree trunks of its branches, bark and all. None of them bothered to throw a glance at us although we were parked just a couple of meters away.

Black rhinos putting on an unforgettable show on the road

You’ve seen elephants feeding in a zoo but this was different. Here, you could appreciate how much food they consume in the wild because they fed themselves as if there was no tomorrow. About 200 kgs. in one feeding frenzy, the ranger said. He wasn’t kidding for the swathe of devastation to the trees and shrubs looked like as if a mini tornado had passed through. The tall grass lay in disarray as though two great armies had fought a battle around the place – minus the blood and gore.

It was quite mesmerizing to watch them interacting with each other. The adults protected  their young by surrounding them as well as giving them small branches to feed on since their trunks weren’t long enough yet to reach the leaves. A lot of grunting could be heard as their wrinkled trunks worked on overdrive splitting the bark before folding and lowering them into their gaping mouths with the efficiency of a crane delivering steel girders to a building’s unfinished floor. We spent half an hour absorbed in this spectacle.

Then it was off to the lower escarpment that had a wide clearing. At first I thought they were huge boulders but when we got closer, I realized they were buffaloes. Now this was a sight to behold – about 200 of them were gorging themselves with the tall, coarse grass that abounded in the place. They very much resembled the carabaos back home but there the similarity ended. These were wild creatures who are sometimes hot-tempered and can charge unexpectedly that is why they are considered one of Africa’s most dangerous species. Their enormous horns protruded menacingly like the prongs of a pitchfork.

Tosha said that they were the archenemies of the lions and usually fought each other like crazy. Buffaloes kill lion cubs whenever they find them helplessly alone (maybe the mother went hunting for prey) then urinate or defecate on them as if to warn or brag to the parents that “you don’t mess with us!” We followed this group for sometime before heading back to the main track as the sun started to sink below the horizon and darkness drew near.

The beauty of an African sunset can be glimpsed thru these trees laid bare by winter

Up ahead in the distance, five black rhinos were playing right in the middle of the road. We stopped to watch about 25 meters short of where they were. Two of them were head-butting each other like WWF contenders while the rest  were busy checking out the dried-up bed of a small watering hole. This went on for a while then as a farewell performance, they all linked up single-file, nose-to-butt, right in front of us. One of them relieved himself with a neat pile of dung while another urinated before they broke up and headed for the trees. This left us all dumbfounded then we cracked up with laughter. Only in Africa!

And so ended a memorable first day in the bush.