Our friendly bartender Elton took us on the path to the elephant area where we waited for a few minutes. We heard some rustling in the trees and three big animals appeared with our guide for the walk. He carried what looked like a walking stick but it had a large barb and another straight shunt at 90 degrees. This was used to coax the elephants when they didn't want to obey.
The elephants as they came out of the brush.
He started by telling us about the elephants, two were brother and sister and the baby was their cousin. The siblings' mother was killed recently by a farmer because she broke through his fence and was destroying his crops. It's a sad reality that humans are encroaching on their territory and yet we see them as intruders. From the farmer's perspective, if the animal destroys his crops, he has nothing to feed his family.
The lumbering giants seemed excited to meet new people and came up to us, sniffing with their trunks and putting them around us as if to say hello. They knew the route we were going to take and pointed themselves in that direction. The trainer told us two speak English and the other Afrikaans, which we weren't sure if he was serious or not until his commands were in both languages.
The elephants taking a water break.
We started the walk along the edge of the dam as the elephants would playfully nudge us and want to hold our hands with their trunks. We started around the far side of the water and I started getting a bit nervous because this is one spot where the hippos get in and out of the water. Hippos have killed more humans than all other animals in Africa because they are aggressive, especially if you are between them and water. I mentioned my concern and the guide said the hippos would leave us alone as long as we had the elephants with us. Not sure if that was comforting or not.
As close as we got to the hippos.
We started walking through mud and I didn't know what to expect so I wore clothes that I wanted to wear all day so I had to watch where I was stepping. We came to an area where some rhinos had spent some time, most likely a sleeping area for them. There was about a 12 radius of dung. Seems they stamp it around and roll in it to mark it as their territory. Eventually we were walking through so much animal dung of all varieties that it was easier to step in it than not. Rhinos, hippos, springboek, elephant. I realized I would just have to roll up my pants and wash my shoes when we got back.
The walk was enjoyable. We stopped about half way through and feed the gentle giants a bucket of fruit the guide had brought with him. We either held it in our hand and they would grab it with their trunks and pop it into their mouths, or we would open our mouths and they would mimic the gesture and we would toss it in the gaping abyss.
On the walk back Forbes was walking behind one of them and the guide told him to grab his tail which he did. Just then the same elephant passed gas with such force that Forbes hair tossled in the wind. Fortunately I was upwind so I didn't experience the bouquet, but Forbes was practically dry heaving. We were laughing so hard we almost fell over. And to hear Forbes tell the story, you'd think he almost met his maker. As we got closer, another one, or maybe the same one was gassy, passed gas again and this time I caught a slight whift. Even that was enough to make me almost gag. I can only imagine what Forbes got. He swore for the rest of the day that he could still smell it. I told him he needed to trim his nose hairs because it got caught in there.
As I mentioned, Elton was with us on our walk since lodge rules require two staff members be present. This was his first time but he was eager to learn it. I am inspired by him. He was working until 11pm the night before and back to work by 7am. He drives the staff vehicle back to town every day which is a half hour drive and back. So he got very little sleep but it is a normal day for him. He is also the camp medic. He has been cerified as an EMT and is working so hard so he can go back to school and get his degree in nursing. He never complained about the work and always had a wise crack for us. He showed us a picture of his wife and child and it was a beautiful family. I cannot imagine how tough he must have to work being what's referred to as a "coloured" guy in a society that still has white people controlling most of the wealth and retains a bias still leftover from Aparteid. Yet he never complained and always had a smile on his face.
We checked out of the lodge and headed to the Cango caves. It is a network of caves discovered in the 1800s. The first chamber after a wall into the mountain is a huge area with a ceiling that must have been at least one hundred feet high. A small stage had been built in the front and our guide told us the symphony used to play concerts until the vandalism became too much and they stopped doing them.
The first room of the cave. I was standing in the middle of the room.
We then drove to an ostich farm ourside Oudtshoorn where they offer rides on the big creatures. I declined the tour because I had a weird feeling about riding a bird. I just couldn't see any benefit to the animal by riding it. At least with the elephants it was a training process for them and they really seemed to enjoy the interaction. And the fee helped maintain them and the conservation program whereas the ostrich farm fee was just for the farmer. Sounds strange but it all works out in my head. Johann swears Forbes was the best rider in the group. They must have told him to hold on to it as if it were a 5 pound note.
On the road again to Knysna (pronounced NIZE-na), a cute costal town on the way to Port Elizabeth. We found a sort of apartment complex for tourists and being the low season, we got it for only 150 Rand per person per night. 7 Rand = $1. It's very cute and overlooks the harbor. We went to the waterfront and hit a few bars before dinner. We went to a place called Spurs which is a chain restaurant. Everything is deeped fried. I think even the diet coke is extra fattening just to maintain consistency. I got the chicken schnitzel and it came out with a layer of cheese on it followed by mushroom gravy. I ate maybe 1/3 of it before I was sweating salted butter. I took most of it as a doggie bag in case we wanted it tomorrow. Unlikely but I hate wasting food. The other two had a pig's worth of ribs each and I would have had my hand knawed to the bone should I have dared come close to their kill. It was worse than watching hyenas take down a water buffalo.
The scenery from the window of the car on the drive to Knysna.
The view from our apartment.
We took a cab back to the apartment and dropped Johann off at the local watering hole for his nightly hunt. He came home an hour later minus prey.
Lights out.
