7:00 am came early Wednesday morning as we prepared for safari! Richard and Twaha were our own personal travel guides. After about three hours on the road, we stopped at a rhino park to trek with the rhinos. Fortunately it was nap time for the rhinos so we didn't have to run or climb any trees while they chased us. Lunch stop at Masindi where we enjoyed a buffet of rice, spaghetti, veggies, and chicken before driving another two hours to the game park.
Rain threatened to parade on our night time game drive but disappeared as we rode the ferry across the Nile River. Excitement rose as the top popped off the van and off we went! Our first catch was a water buck followed swiftly by several towers of giraffes (tower = grouping of giraffes). The animals continued to appear as we continued on our journey: oribi, hartebeasts, warthogs, elephants and one group got to see hyenas! All too soon it was time to head back to the ranch, Red Chilli, for some dinner and a good night's rest before the morning drive.
If we thought 7:00 am was early, Thursday morning was a special treat as we met to grab our breakfast and leave for the ferry at 6:20 am! But our tiredness was worth it as the sun rose across the Savannah, drenching the green and brown scenery in reds, oranges, and yellows. All of us were hopeful to see a lion so we kept a sharp eye as we drove along next to oribi, hartebeasts, and warthogs enjoying their breakfasts. Giraffes and a few elephants made an appearance, we even saw more hyenas, but still no lion. Until... we found a lion and lioness resting just off the side of the road! We usually have to go off trail a bit to find lions so this was a treat for them to meet us along our path. Richard's van was the second to stop, followed quickly by Twaha. Soon we were surrounded by other safari vans and there was quite a traffic jam, but the lions didn't seem to mind. They were very photogenic and even yawned a few times, which makes for a great picture! While watching the lions we also learned that it is mating season... I'll leave it at that.
Later, we saw two different herds of elephants; one of the herds was rolling around on the road in the dirt making themselves red. There were even some very cute baby elephants! One of the best experiences is getting to sit on top of the safari van with the wind whipping around you and the scenery continually changing. Some of our group would disagree as the bumps have you holding on for dear life, but most everyone at least tried it. We concluded our drive and raced by to the ferry to make it back for lunch.
After some grub and a little respite, we headed back out to the ferry to cross for our boat ride and hike to Murchinson Falls. As we glided up the Nile, we saw hippos, birds, monkeys, and even some crocodiles sunbathing on the shore. Finally, we made it to the beautiful white sweeping Falls. The boat dropped us off to begin our hike. Our guide described three parts to the hike: 1) under the forest where it's cool and descending; 2) no coverage, humid and ascending; 3) descending while the mist from the falls sprays us in welcome. This describes it perfectly! The first trek was nice, cool, easy, then - BAM! - you're heading up stairs and hills in humidity you never thought possible while you drip with sweat until finally you come to Falls where the glorious spray hits you and makes it all worthwhile. There are several beautiful views on the hike up but nothing like standing right over the gorge as water tries to push through the Nile! We tried to capture it with pictures, but nothing can quite capture this beauty God made (so come see it yourself). :)
The climb back down was much easier as Richard and Twaha drove us back to Red Chilli. Michaela, Alex, Emily, and Liz had to switch bandas (rooms) for Thursday night and no longer had a bathroom/shower in their banda. To avoid running into warthogs and hippos in the dark, they snuck in showers at the bathhouse before dinner. The group gathered for dinner that included fish and chips, lentils, or chili con carne with rice. Those that chose the chili were treated to an extremely, and unexpectedly, spicy dinner, which Janice affectionately renamed as five alarm chili. After dinner we had a close encounter with a hippo at camp! It continued to munch around some of our bandas late into the night.
We enjoyed a relaxing breakfast the next morning, full of eggs, pancakes, fruit, and more, and hit the road for Kampala. For those familiar with tsetse flies, we only had one or two make it in our vans the whole trip! After about six hours on the road, with a few pit stops, we made it back to our home away from home. A delicious hamburger dinner was followed by a time of sharing. While we have had many of the same experiences the past two weeks, we have each been impacted differently and have 13 different stories to share.
Today we are finishing up our shopping and packing before heading to the airport. We may be leaving Uganda, but this country and its people will remain with us. And we're looking forward to bringing a little bit of Africa back home to share. :)
See you soon friends and family!
Mzungu Bloggers
No comments:
Post a Comment