A second Day in Etosha
Trip Start
Jul 12, 2006
1
4
18
Trip End
Jul 30, 2006
Etosha,
Namibia
Saturday, July 15, 2006
We were first in line at Andersson's Gate and waited for the entrance to be opened to let us back into the park. The sunrise was as beautiful as ever, a bright fiery globe in the sky warming the cool morning. First stop was Nebrowni but on the road we stopped to watch three hyenas obviously having the same idea. Hyenas are incredible looking creatures with a loping style of movement caused by the fact that their front legs are longer than their back. These were Spotted Hyenas and although they resemble a wild dog are more closely related to mongooses
Baby Elephant at Moringa
.At the waterhole a large grey bull elephant was already drinking along with a couple of groups of nervous impala. The hyenas arrived soon after us and one appeared to be interested in a meal but his two mates were clearly only thirsty. We watched as they came down to the waterhole to drink. The bull elephant hardly acknowledged them and kept on drinking but the impalas became increasingly alarmed. Then almost as quickly as they had arrived they walked off with their distinctive gait and disappeared out of view.
Our next stop was Homob and we followed a herd of zebra also making their way there in single file. One bore a large angry gash across its side, possibly from a lion attack from which it had made a lucky escape. We also spotted a very young foal still suckling its mother. At the waterhole there were even more zebra - all Burchell's Zebra, their distinctive call a mixture of barking and whinnying. On our way down to the waterhole we spotted a large skeleton - so large it could only be that of an elephant.
Next we travelled to a trio of waterholes - Sueda, Salvadora and Charitsaub. There had been lion sightings down at Salvadora and we had yet to see any big cats
Baby Elephants at Moringa
. All three were disappointing, but as we turned into the next waterhole Rietfontein, we couldn't believe our luck. A large lioness was taking a drink, much to the annoyance of thirsty zebra and impala. However, it appeared she was in no mood for food and settled under the shade of a large log to lie down and sleep, oblivious to the panic around her.Next stop was Halali Rest Camp where we would be spending the night. It is the newest in the park and located halfway between Okaukuejo and Namutoni. The name Halali is of German origin and derived from the bugle call made to announce the end of a hunt. The best part of the camp was the Moringa waterhole that can be viewed from inside the camp itself. To get there you need to walk up small path shaded by mopane trees, up to a small dolomite hill where there is seating to watch the waterhole below. It is a very pretty setting and we were incredibly lucky to see a large group of elephants there. When we arrived there was a group of about seven elephants, but the large female continually put the tip of her trunk flat to the ground as though she was listening for something. Sure enough a few minutes later another troupe arrived of about thirteen elephants of all sizes and ages. The young bulls were all in musthe and were incredibly aggressive to each other. Frequent small skirmishes broke out accompanied by tremendous roaring as they battled for position within the group
Elephant at Moringa Waterhole
. The view of the elephants was incredible as you appeared to be so very close to them, it was almost surreal. It turned out to be one of the highlights of the holiday.After watching the elephants for a couple of hours we decided to have a look at some other local waterholes. At one there was a large group of giraffes that took our interest and we watched them as the sun began to set. There had been leopard sightings in the area but we realised we would have to be incredibly lucky to see this shy big cat. The Rhino Drive was also a little disappointing not coming up to its name as we saw nothing at all and certainly no rhino. We decided to return to the Moringa waterhole at Halali to find a few elephants still there, followed by a group of Hartebeasts and a pair of Impala.
We had dinner in the camp restaurant that appeared to have only one bottle of white wine and took longer to pay the cheque than eat the meal. Although the food was good, in the form of a carvery and I was to taste my first oryx steak - lovely!
The Moringa waterhole has floodlights so we decided to make our way back down there to see what animals might visit at night. In the darkness the place appeared even more surreal with the lights throwing an eery orange glow over the water. The first visitor was a black rhino, the first we had seen on the holiday, closely followed by a single bull elephant. Then came three hyenas, perhaps the same ones we had seen earlier in the day and a couple of black-backed jackals. However the highlight was the entrance of about twenty-three elephants, stage left including about seven babies. It was incredible!!
