Etosha

Friday 13th April – Etosha National Park

As we broke camp early the indications were that we were headed for another fine and hot day ahead. After another brief stop at the Himba Village we drove back to Outjo on our way to Etosha. As we were enjoying a coffee at a very nice bakery, I met a guy who had been travelling for most of his life. Originally from Germany he had spent 20 years moving all over the world before finally settling in Namibia in 1994. I was curious as to what he did for a living that would enable such a wandering lifestyle. He replied that, although he had left Germany many years ago, he still received a full German pension. He went to explain that it was plenty to give him a very good lifestyle in Namibia. Judging by the huge hot breakfast that was sitting in front of him it certainly appeared that he was not suffering. Germany must have a very generous pension scheme indeed.

We returned to the bus and travelled the remaining 120 km to Okakuejo. This settlement marks the entrance to the 26,000 square kilometre Etosha National Park, regarded as one of the finest national parks in Africa.

Just before entering Etosha, we stopped a Cheetah Park to see some cheetahs at first hand. The cheetahs were held in a large paddock surrounded by a very secure and high fence. The African keeper brought along a bucket of fresh meat and called out with a loud “Come Cheetah Come”. At first nothing happened so he tried his call a few more times until three large cheetahs emerged from the grass and came up to the fence. This gave us all an opportunity to feed them the meat (on the end of a long stick so that we didn’t lose our fingers in the process). I was surprised to hear them make a loud mewing noise, not unlike that of a domestic cat.

We happened to arrive at our camp site at peak hour, along with several other safari groups. In spite of this the camping ground was in excellent condition and the water in the shower was HOT (with a capital H).

Not long after entering the park we saw our first elephant and numerous zebras.
All on board the bus grabbed their cameras and started a clicking frenzy. In is hard to believe that within 24 hours a similar encounter would be met with a satiated indifference.

A large proportion of the park is occupied by a flat salt pan known as the “Etosha Pan”. As we approached it in the fading light it looked like a huge inland sea, however as we got closer we discovered that the water was a mirage and that the pan was completely dry. We did observe numerous animals enjoying the cool of the late afternoon. Groups of giraffes and springboks were scattered as far as we could see. With their rapidly lengthening shadows I could not help but think that the scene looked like something from the dawn of time. I wondered how many millions of times this scene had been re enacted.

After sunset we walked to a nearby waterhole on the edge of our campsite. This was securely fenced off to protect onlookers from whatever came along to drink on the other side. It did not take long for a huge bull elephant and 5 rhinos to emerge from the darkness to enjoy a long time of drinking and splashing about in the water. I was glad that I had smothered myself in insect repellent and I hoped that the malaria carrying mosquitoes would keep their distance from me.

Not long after going to bed that night the entire campsite was rocked by a series of loud roars, indicating that the lions were wandering quite close nearby. Heard under these circumstances it really did sound like an important statement from the King of the Jungle. Still later the same night I was woken by the piercing screeches of wandering jackals and, even later, by a car alarm. I did not mind the jackals, but I could have killed the owner of the car.Leggi altro