Kenya 2023: Chapter 12 – Dark Encounters
The morning of June 20th we left by 5:45. We were well rested and eager to get out and return to the leopard tree in hopes of spotting (pun intended) our quarry. Most guests, Lenny indicated, are there for a leisurely stay. They would get up, have breakfast at the lodge, then have a morning game drive from about 8 or 9 to noon, head back to the lodge for lunch and an afternoon siesta, and then come back out around 4 for another game drive. For us, that kind of itinerary is odd. We can lounge in a pool anywhere. We can get a buffet breakfast and lunch anywhere. We were in one of the wildest places on the planet and we were there to photograph the amazing animals that inhabit it. The afternoons, although quieter, still produced some incredible interactions (like the lion kill we had seen the last time).
We drove into the dark and through a small canyon, approaching the tree from the north. As we got within a few hundred feet, the leopard raced down out of the tree, across the road, and into the long grass. We caught only the fleeting glimpse of it as it disappeared. Lenny turned off the truck and the three of us sat in absolute dead silence for the next twenty minutes, scanning every bush for any sign of the leopard.
Cape Buffalo
The dark night lifted into a gray, cloudy morning, a light breeze cool on our faces. Twinkling lights in the distance turned out to be hot air balloons firing up and lifting off. There was no one else around us. Lenny broke the silence and quietly asked if we wanted to go and we agreed that there were probably other things to see. We headed north and then northwest across the park. It was 6:30 now and there were more people starting to venture forth. We saw some ostriches (barta ya ngurumo!), topi, impala, gazelle, hyenas. Cape buffalo, and a bustard. At around 8:30 we rejoined the lion wedding from the day before. They were camped out, sleeping on the bank of one of the luggas. We shot for a few minutes and then parked up to the side to have breakfast and watch the other trucks come in.
Bustard
The breakfast boxes are great. For 200 shillings (about $1.25), you get the following: a cucumber/tomato sandwich, a breakfast meat (10 out of 10 recommend the chicken sausages), a hard-boiled egg, two kinds of breads, an apple or a passion fruit, yogurt, fruit juice, and a water. A great meal for a great price. And hard to beat the views you get with it.
