So it’s been quite a while since I posted on here. A lot has
happened, here in Africa and back in the U.S. I have to say I felt the need to
disconnect from all of the shitty things that have occurred. I still can’t come
to terms with the fact that Reuben is gone, but life keeps moving and I know
that he would want all of us to be throwing ourselves into the present like he
was so good at doing.
So that’s what I’ve tried to do. I think it’s working.
Something new happens here every day, so I’ll just skip
forward to the most recent adventure. Last week, we left the KBC camp, which
was starting to feel like a second home, and drove north to Lake Nakuru National
Park. If you’ve never heard of this place, I highly suggest copying and pasting
that into google images.
Warning: mind will be boggled.
The area is out of the rain shadow of Kilimanjaro, so it is
much more lush than the place I have been for over 6 weeks. It was incredible
to see the lush, green life that comes with steady rains. As we climbed up to
the edge of the rift valley, we could see massive rainstorms moving through the
valley as the sun beat down on us.
The entire transformation from red dust to tall green trees
and full undergrowth was a lesson about life. Watching the rain fall thorugh
the day with sun dancing through the droplets and refracting in a million
directions inspired a thought. Water is this world’s greatest gift. It can instantly
breathe life into any area, and just as easily take it away when the rains
don’t come on time or weather patterns change. The cycle from sky to earth to
springs and lakes and back up into the sky is incredible. It’s what makes this
rock different from all the other spinning rocks hurtling through space. It
gives us the gift of life, and we need to respect it as such.
Once we got to the actual park, the expediton only got
better. Within an hour of being there, a few of us were sitting on top of the land
cruisers watching two lions stalking a herd of impala in the open grassland directly
outside the fenced enclosure we were staying at. Then, without warning, a herd
of African Cape Buffalo (who are the most single-minded, angry beasts you can
find in Kenya) got pissed at the proximity of the lions and decided to flush
one of them out. When I say herd, I should clarify that I mean over 150 of
these 2 ton animals, and they all have giant curled horns that could demolish a
lion in seconds. As we sprinted full tilt around a tree that was obstructing
our view, all we could do was shout what we thought was happening. It was being
chased! The buffalo were gaining on it! Then, as I came around the other side
of the tree, I saw the lion leap up, stretching its front paws upwards almost
10 feet and dig its claws into the bark of a lone acacia tree. In the same
motion it pulled its hind legs up and was into the crook of the acacia about 15
feet up and out of reach of the buffalo. For those that don’t know much about lions,
they don’t climb trees. Period. Unless they have to.
We kept watching for over an hour as the buffalo angrily
grouped around the tree, even trying to headbutt it from time to time. They
aren’t the smartest animals, so they would periodically forget why they were so
angry and start to leave until one of them remembered the lion up in the tree
and they’d all come rushing back. Finally, as dusk was transforming into the
pure blackness of night, the buffalo gave up and the lion was able to come down
and slink off. An unforgettable experience to say the least, and we had only
been in the park for 3 hours!
I could write a similar length story about each of the days
we were there, but I won’t make this post that long. Over 5 days of 8 hour safari drives, we saw both white and
black rhinos (who can only be described as BOSS), spotted and stripped hyenas,
impala, gazelles, zebra, thousands of birds that had gathered to catch the
explosion of fish in the lake, waterbucks, buffalo, elands, warthogs, baboon,
Colobus monkeys, even more lions, so many giant rothschild giraffes and to cap
it off, my safari group managed to spot the most elusive animal in the park: A
leopard! My professors reaction to this was hilarious. The normally calm,
majestic man couldn’t hold back his excitement. “Why did you not call me
immediately?!”
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| These elephants are from our first visit to Amboseli National Park. They are two subadult females that are play fighting, but one actually got a gash on its face from the tusks. Credit goes to Maggie Stryker for getting this awesome action shot. |
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| The lion is from Lake Nakuru. I’m not sure when the kill was made, but nearly every day we would see the same pride of lions sitting near the zebra and either snacking or just lazing around. Credit goes to Mellisa Keller for sniping this picture. |
