Nights in Hwange

We have just set up camp at Nata Lodge for a couple of nights recovery after an amazing 2 nights in the Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe, followed by one night at the wonderful Elephant Sands with our host Roan (our tour guide too) and his fiance Inga.

No fences on our campsite on Hwange, and surrounded by elephants coming down to the water hole close by, antelope, baboons (very naughty), wart hogs, zebra. Elephants chased away the baboons by trumpeting. In a very ordered way the elephants went down to the water hole, one family herd waiting in line for the herd in the water hole to move on, slowly, although sometimes they almost ran to the water hole, elephants are the second fastest animal in Africa - first is the cheetah (which we might see in the next few days). Last night we stayed at Elephant Sands, where the elephants walk around the camp site and we had drinks watching an elephant drink about 10m away - just remarkable.

The last night in Hwange we were having dinner, and our guide Roan, was telling us some tall tales about the size on the lions in the park, and he said don't go to the loo  with your torch on as you don't want to see the size of the lion that attacks you (ha ha), then he stopped and said - that's a kill (we thought he was joking). But we all heard the lions roaring and another animal cry out, as it was about 6 lions who attacked probably a buffalo or maybe a zebra (our chef Kabo thought the latter). We heard the lions growling and dragging the prey off during the night - all about 50 m from our campsite (Lions are not interested in us), but there was a barrier between us. No sign of it in the morning, so they dragged it off somewhere to eat.

Photos cannot be loaded as interent too slow again, and I can't get photos off my camera to this computer, so will put photos up when I get home.

We are off to the pans tomorrow, more zebra, and not sure what else, probably lots of birds.

Ellen