On Safari 2

Hello again.  Further Safari pics.  Would it surprise you to know that male warthogs don't always get along?  Well, as this picture shows, they don't.  We were quite close to the action but well protected in our Land Cruiser.  There were many times that we were quite grateful for it.  It took us through rough terrain, saved us much walking, and protected us from some circumstances that had the potential to be unhealthful.  But when these two went at it they didn't get too serious about it and soon pulled apart without drawing any blood.  Our guide told us that they eat their young and so the mama warthogs have to find safe places for the little ones.  He also said that even the mamas will eat the young if food gets to be in too short of a supply.  Wonderful parents warthogs, huh.

This elephant is getting a tasty bite to eat.  They are wasteful eaters, though.  We saw many trees pushed down, broken off at the roots and dying that were the result of elephants going after the leaves they desired.  The haze in the picture is smoke from the fires set to burn off scrub.

We had breakfast next to this lovely, calm little pond several times.  Anyone for a morning swim?  You can even swim over to that nice log in the center of the picture.  Of course, if you look a little closer, you will see the eyes protruding from the water on the right side of the "log."  This is a Nile Crocodile and he was very well concealed, which is why he gets enough to eat.  The photo was taken from about 20 yards, which is probably the closest I ever want to get to one in the wild.

This elephant kept coming around the lodge where we were staying.  In the immediate foreground is a rock wall.  That wall encircled an artificial waterfall used to beautify the entrance, which lay just off the right side of the picture.  This elephant would come in at night and drink from the waterfall, sometimes coming back to do so early in the morning.  We stood out there one night and listened to him break off foliage - branches I think - about fifty yards from us, and then chow down on them.  Each night when we finished dinner, a member of the staff was sent to accompany us back to our tent/cabin (It was kind of a cross between both.) with a lantern.  That was a nice way to see that we didn't stumble in the dark.  But I suspected there was more to it than that.  The staff knew how to keep us safe from wildlife that might wander onto the lodge grounds (which happens) and always carried walkie-talkies, reporting in when we arrived at our accommodations.

We have had some beautiful sunsets in West Africa.  The smoke and Sahara dust make this possible.  Here is an example of the sun setting behind the bush foliage in Mole National Park.

We do enjoy nature here.

Elder Emfield