Fraidy-cat: The Time I Was Afraid On Safari
My husband, Gord, and I travelled to South Africa in July and August, 2022. We visited Cape Town and Johannesburg and did other tours in the Mpumalanga province, with an amazing tour company called Vomba Tours and Safaris. But the main purpose of our trip was safari. The most frequent question I am asked about regarding safari is “were you ever afraid?” The answer is YES!! Just once. So let me tell you about that.
Three Rondavels, Graskop
It was during our first morning game drive at our safari lodge, Londolozi. We were lucky enough to be on our game drive without other guests and had the luxury of having our ranger, Kate, and our tracker, Equalizer (yes! His legal name!) all to ourselves.
Left to Right: Karen, Kate, Equalizer, Gord (my husband)
I will start with some backstory:
Before we left for Africa I thought often about what to expect on safari. I watched a lot of videos and read a lot of books, reviews and blogs. Not once did anyone mention what happens when you are on safari and need to go to the bathroom. So I sent a message to Londolozi and asked. I was given two choices. You can either go back to the lodge or you can go in the middle of the bush. It was a no brainer for me. I’m not wasting time driving back to the lodge!
When we arrived at Londolozi we were given a briefing on what to expect and what times we should be and where, how to have our laundry sent out, and most important, information about our safety. We were told we cannot leave our chalet alone when it is dark. We were provided an escort, which happened to be Equalizer’s younger brother, Blessing! We could call for Blessing to escort us in the morning, but it was bright enough for our safety that we always walked the 100 or so meters to the main lodge.
Main Lodge at Varty Camp, Londolozi
We met Kate with the other rangers and guests around 6:15am at the main lodge for our morning tea and coffee and rusk (think an African-style biscotti), and some other little morning snacks. After our quick cuppa and a little something in our bellies we met Equalizer in the parking lot. Equalizer was busy getting our vehicle ready with blankets and hot water bottles and drinks and snacks. We would actively listen to Kate’s plan for our game drive hanging on to every word envisioning the next few hours before us. Lions and leopards and cheetahs, oh my!!
With the backstory heightening your imagination, let me continue to unfold the story of that time I was afraid on safari!
We left camp early morning. We told Kate and Equalizer that we would leave what we see in their capable hands. After all we had just arrived and we wanted to see what we could at the pleasure of the bush. A good rule of thumb on safari is to trust your ranger and tracker.
After about an hour and a half of watching hippos play in the water and a large herd of elephants eating, we stopped for our morning break where Kate and Equalizer turned the front of our vehicle into a little buffet. My morning tea and a big bottle of water had gone through me and peeing in the bush was unavoidable. Kate took me to a location about 50 meters from the vehicle behind a large bush for privacy. As I was finishing up my business and pulling up my pants I heard a very loud and ominous growl. My instinct was to get to the safety of the vehicle as soon as I possibly could. While moving very quickly to the vehicle all without running and doing up my pants at the same time, I heard it again! It was a matter of seconds. I whispered as loud as I could “DID YOU HEAR THAT?!” In those 10 seconds, that felt like a lifetime, before I returned to the vehicle, I thought of Meryl Streep playing Karen Blixen in the movie Out of Africa. Blixen came face to face with a lion. Her lover, played by Robert Redford, says “I wouldn’t run. If you do, she’ll think you are something good to eat.”
Back at the vehicle Kate and Equalizer were calmly discussing what we heard. Was that a leopard? Or was it a lion? Kate and Equalizer agreed whatever it is, it’s close. WHO CARES! Let’s get back in the vehicle!! I was panic stricken! I know I was the slowest out of all four of us and my running days….what running days…I never ran! I would be a tasty and generous feast for a leopard or a lion! Kate kept reminding me that we were safe and there was nothing to worry about. Equalizer decided to do some tracking. He wanted to find whatever it was that growled. On our initial meeting Kate told us that sometimes Equalizer would leave us to do some tracking. As he was leaving I suggested he take the gun. He said that was for us! Panic stricken again, but this time for Equalizer’s safety. The ever calm Kate said this is what he is trained to do. He grew up in the African bush tracking and passed Londolozi’s stringent and highly regarded tracker academy. We finished up our snacks while watching a zebra and her foal and a wildebeest at a watering hole. It was enchanting!
Did Equalizer track the mysterious growler? We rendezvoused 45 minutes later without any update on what it was. But two days later we came across lions mating. Lions make this same growl after they finish mating. Lions mate every 20 minutes or so for 3-4 days! Talk about exhausting! Leopards also have a similar mating pattern and also make this growl. The assumption was made that it was likely this pair of mating lions that we heard two days prior.
For the rest of our time at Londolozi I was very nervous every time I had to bush pee. I asked many question on how they knew I would be safe. I wanted to ask for an armed person to be at my “pee side” just in case. But somehow I would rather be attacked by wildlife than sound so ridiculous! I asked Equalizer at ever sighting thereafter “What would happen if I got out of the vehicle.” He only ever replied “I won’t let you do that.”