Two words: baby rhinoceros. A couple of friends shared the news of a two week old white rhino running around the Goche Ganas Nature Reserve, so naturally I had to see him for myself. (I wonder sometimes if game drives will ever get old living in Namibia, but right now that'd be a big fat nope.) We arrived to the reserve with enough time to drink a beer before piling into the truck. I packed nothing but my camera and a container of blueberries, much to the guide's horror. He was unimpressed when he realized we didn't pack warmer clothes for the kids, as we'd be making our return to HQ after dark. For children who are accustomed to running around barefoot here, I found his comment peculiar, but reassured him my kids could manage.
We drove hardly 2 minutes before seeing animals all over the place. They were awesome enough that Mark had to admonish Deets, Margo, and myself to keep quiet. Steenbok, kudu, wildebeest, hartebeest, and giraffes all stared us down, before bolting as we passed by with our cameras plastered to our faces. They were impossible to miss. Seeing the first batch of rhinos was a bit trickier because they were situated across the hill. I figured we'd take the long route around, but Mateus shifted into low gear and proceeded directly across the valley, driving over shrubs and jolting over rocks. We crossed the dried, steep river bed and BOOM! Four adult white rhinos eating grass, barely casting glances our way. My only distraction was Deets who kept trying to sneak off the vehicle to get a closer shot with my camera phone. An incredulous eyebrow raise from me promptly fixed that faux pas.
Our drive continued, full of wild jackal, oryx, and the tiniest deer species I'd seen yet: steenbok. Had I not already known about the baby rhino, I could have died happy. The air was thick with pending rain, greenery, and a brilliant sun pasted across the sky. We passed warthogs, rabbits, ostriches, and the weirdest squirrels with long, skinny bristle brush tails. Eventually, we made our way to the second batch of rhinos: a pregnant mom with her 2-year old baby giving themselves healthy scratches against telephone pole support wires.
Sun was setting faster and faster so I had internal moments of anxiety that I wouldn't get to see the baby. But as all grand finales go, Mateus saved the best and cutest for last. The little guy was loaded up with thick, saggy skin that promised how big he would get (5,000 pounds). His feet were too big for his body, tripping him up as he shyly ran after his mom. They are never far from each other, and will stay a an adorable duo until he's three. So. Cute.
Finally our game drive ended with a "sundowners" (what southern Africans call happy hour) during a wickedly magical sunset. And ants. Side note: professional journalistic investigation revealed that wearing flip flops are not the best choice of footwear on game drives, even with minimal walking involved. Never mind the thousands of thorns that went through my cheap sandals. I'm talking about the tiny angry ants that defended their homes to the ninth degree when I had an emergency bush break and ended up peeing on them. I drank my gin and tonic, dancing with ants literally in my pants. I'd like to say I learned my lesson, but who can really predict the future when it comes to this kind of common sense?
We drove hardly 2 minutes before seeing animals all over the place. They were awesome enough that Mark had to admonish Deets, Margo, and myself to keep quiet. Steenbok, kudu, wildebeest, hartebeest, and giraffes all stared us down, before bolting as we passed by with our cameras plastered to our faces. They were impossible to miss. Seeing the first batch of rhinos was a bit trickier because they were situated across the hill. I figured we'd take the long route around, but Mateus shifted into low gear and proceeded directly across the valley, driving over shrubs and jolting over rocks. We crossed the dried, steep river bed and BOOM! Four adult white rhinos eating grass, barely casting glances our way. My only distraction was Deets who kept trying to sneak off the vehicle to get a closer shot with my camera phone. An incredulous eyebrow raise from me promptly fixed that faux pas.
Our drive continued, full of wild jackal, oryx, and the tiniest deer species I'd seen yet: steenbok. Had I not already known about the baby rhino, I could have died happy. The air was thick with pending rain, greenery, and a brilliant sun pasted across the sky. We passed warthogs, rabbits, ostriches, and the weirdest squirrels with long, skinny bristle brush tails. Eventually, we made our way to the second batch of rhinos: a pregnant mom with her 2-year old baby giving themselves healthy scratches against telephone pole support wires.
Sun was setting faster and faster so I had internal moments of anxiety that I wouldn't get to see the baby. But as all grand finales go, Mateus saved the best and cutest for last. The little guy was loaded up with thick, saggy skin that promised how big he would get (5,000 pounds). His feet were too big for his body, tripping him up as he shyly ran after his mom. They are never far from each other, and will stay a an adorable duo until he's three. So. Cute.
Finally our game drive ended with a "sundowners" (what southern Africans call happy hour) during a wickedly magical sunset. And ants. Side note: professional journalistic investigation revealed that wearing flip flops are not the best choice of footwear on game drives, even with minimal walking involved. Never mind the thousands of thorns that went through my cheap sandals. I'm talking about the tiny angry ants that defended their homes to the ninth degree when I had an emergency bush break and ended up peeing on them. I drank my gin and tonic, dancing with ants literally in my pants. I'd like to say I learned my lesson, but who can really predict the future when it comes to this kind of common sense?
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| Lady Kudu! |
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| Oryx |
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| Baby Jeorge! |
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| Jeorge and Jolly |
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| Springbok Credit: Mark |
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| Inspecting thorns and ant carcasses against the dusky light. Amazing photo credit: Mark |
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| Untouched, unfiltered. |
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