The heart of any safari is the game drives. Two times a day, you load up in a open-topped truck to go spot the animals. The early drive is often before breakfast, and the late one is mid-afternoon. Even though there are a lot of tour companies competing for your business, all the drivers cooperate. They talk to each other of the radios, or stop when passing other trucks, and pass information about the location of the animals. It greatly increases your odds of seeing something spectacular.
One thing we saw often were dust devils. They look like mini-tornadoes, although the physics that produce dust devils and tornadoes are completely different. In the morning we would see few, if any, but in the afternoon as the heat of the day wore on, we would see many. I once counted 10 in view at once spread over the plains at varying distances. You could actually see the path they carved on the ground.
Safaris are of course about the animals, and there is something exhilarating about seeing groups of large animals in the wild. Even if they are doing nothing but walking. But one of my goals on this trip was to see some real action: the great migration - thousands of wildebeests moving in herds across the plains and the rivers.
The highlight of the trip was a hot air balloon ride. We had to get up several hours before dawn, and then drive for an hour to get to the launch site. We were assigned to one of several balloons, and briefed by our pilot. As the sun rose, we launched.
Riding in a balloon is a very different than other modes of transportation. Because you are being moved by the wind, you cannot feel the air moving. So there is no breeze to give you a feeling of motion. Neither is there much acceleration, so there are no g-forces telling you that you are speeding up. You are merely floating, being moved along by the air. As you travel, the balloon is gently drifting. Sometimes you are facing in the direction of travel, sometimes not.
Even though it did not feel like we were moving very fast, it looked like we were. The wind was fairly strong that day, so the landscape was rushing past us. Our altitude varied from as low as 20 feet to as high as 200. When we were low, it looked like we were zooming. In reality, we were probably going about 25 mph.
Animals on the ground would run from the sight of the balloon, or the sound of our propane burner. As we came rambling through, the sight of the animals running was like watching a nature show of TV, It was an experience that calls out for video!
Landing a balloon in high wind can be a bumpy ride, and ours was quite exciting. Once we touched down, we were dragged along, and bounced back in the air a couple times before coming to a stop on our side. It was like a roller coaster. Very fun.
When you launch, the ground crew knows which way the wind is blowing, and goes out ahead to meet you. When we landed, we were met by champagne (a ballooning tradition) and a breakfast set up on the plains of Africa. This is not something any of us will soon forget.
Finally, before I leave the subject of the safari and start blogging about other travels, I must say a few words about our traveling companions for this trip. When Carole and I came to Africa, I knew we would do a safari. I thought there was a chance that my sister and her husband would come. But as we started planning, our group grew, and sometimes in completely unexpected ways. We ended up with a diverse set of people - cousins, in-laws, boyfriends - some I knew, some I didn't. Most had never been to Africa.
This trip was way out of the comfort zone for many. But for me, that is what travel is all about. Seeing the world as it really is - big and diverse, sometimes messy and uncomfortable, but always interesting and photogenic.
So Cathy, David, Craig, Nan, Anne, Sean and Barbara - Carole and I say thank you for such a great trip.
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