NAMIBIA: I Spotted Something...

Feel like I just got bilked out of $10 bucks! That red circle is just part of the tree and the only thing I saw weird is a big ass bunny up in the tree! That's 10 minutes of my life I aint gonna get back. Thanks for nuttin.
 
I do see the anomaly both in form and color waaaay up in that tree. Not much detail though.
Enjoying the story however. Legend or fact I wouldn't know!!
 
Below is a screen shot of the last series of text messages exchanged between me and PB before my plane DFW. I think I spot permission to expand my adventure. What do y'all see?
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Looks like a second plane trip to me, with elephant, rhino and leopard on the second trip. Delete that last email, obviously she was drunk texting it.
 
I am thinking that there are 4 flights listed and three animals. Which gives me a cushion trip in the future.:D
 
Two flights are return flight icons.
 
Thread has gone off the rails...
 
Thread has gone off the rails...

Blackie Sherrod was a long time sports writer in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area. He had a Sunday column entitled "Scatter Shooting" It was not about the shotgun sports, though, those activities could be included. The column covered a wide range of topics in a single Sunday that would eventually tie together to make a point. I and this thread are no where near what Blackie could do but it is in his genres.:D
 
Below is a screen shot of the last series of text messages exchanged between me and PB before my plane DFW. I think I spot permission to expand my adventure. What do y'all see?
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I definitely see "that was...... a permission email" with some static in the middle. It probably says "definitely" in the static
 
Blackie Sherrod was a long time sports writer in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area. He had a Sunday column entitled "Scatter Shooting" It was not about the shotgun sports, though, those activities could be included. The column covered a wide range of topics in a single Sunday that would eventually tie together to make a point. I and this thread are no where near what Blackie could do but it is in his genres.:D

I'm sure it'll all line up. Just gotta have patience
 
I think your account has been hacked by those Wampus Cats that dream like a woman.:whistle:
Haha meant to say scream
 
I spotted this in Namibia...


Travel


To paraphrase Mark Twain, travel is death to racism and bigotry.


From DFW to Frankfurt, Germany, to Johannesburg to Windhoek I am part of the following classification Homo sapiens sub: airlineus travelus. Whether you are wearing a burka or a mini-skirt we are all united in getting to our gate on time, working through security, and enduring jet lag. We airlineus travelus work together through a common language of roped off barriers, hieroglyphic signs, and hand signals of overworked airport personnel. We stand in line patiently. We can give the look to the members of our species that try to step around the barriers. We are a herd species. Pleasantly meandering through our travels like a herd of buffalo.


Until….


Your checked bag and rifle case do not show up at the Windhoek airport. I was one of three passengers that did not receive their bags. The first individual in line at the luggage office was a lady from Germany. She was frustrated like we all were. She was desperately trying to make herself known in English. I am not sure what was said by whom the frustrated baggage handler or the frustrated traveler. Once again, I experienced evidence that if you really want to be mad and yell at a person German is the language to use.


The luggage official handed the lady a form and said, “Fill this out.” Then he turned to me. I could see he was boiling inside. I gave him my best smile and said “We are a team and I need you to go make a big play” He looked at me and I watched him have to control a smile. Hopefully, 10:30 tomorrow morning I will have my luggage.


Now I walked out of baggage claim and headed to the AVIS Car Rental and picked up my Toyota FortRunner. Yes, I spelled it right. I then spotted this trophy pic.


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I have already needed to put it in 4wheel drive. There was a ditch I did not see when I stopped to take this picture.


Iftin, is the man. I arrived at Hosea Kutako airport the next morning to hopefully pick up luggage. I had left the number of Kowas as my point of contact. The next flight from J’berg was due in at 10:25am. It was 10:15 and the arrival board said that the flight had already landed. I was going to give Iftin 30 minutes to find my bags and call me. At 10:45am my PH Jacques Strauss walked up to me and said Iftin had called and that my bag and rifle case were waiting for me in his office. Small airports where everyone knows everyone has some advantages. Jacques walked us up to security talked with them and then we went into the secured area to pick up my bags. I walked to Iftin’s office where he had a line of customers from the recent flight. He looked up, saw me, broke into a wide smile and called me to the front of the line. He gave me my bag and said the rifle case was at the police office on the other side of baggage claim. I smiled and said thank you very much and told him and everyone in the room he had done a good job. I hope it helped with everyone’s attitude in the office. Jacques and I went over and finished claiming the rifles. Jacques headed back to Kowas and I was off on my own self-drive adventure to Erindi Wildlife Reserve.
 
I see something in the picture but would not swear to what it is! It could be one of those Chupracopras fir all I know. If it's a leopard then she or he would have me for dinner.
 
I spotted this in Namibia…



Erindi:






The following is a quote from Horst Klemm’s book An African Journal.


“The world without humans is a wonderfully well-ordered place, free from the interference of the self-conscious mind seeking to recreate the system. There is no chaos, no anarchy in the wild – just profusion and variety. Each beast submits to the remorseless truth. In the wild, there is no time outside the immediate moment, no ego to analyze – life is lived with grace and beauty, whilst death is met with dumb divinity.”


As I read that statement, and by the way this book is about Klemm and his wife’s 20 years of full time travel through Africa, I disagreed with the statement. In fact, since this is a public forum that is the best public words I could use to describe how I disagree with it. Now, his travels through Africa give him insight that I may not have and I would not have publicly disagreed with him had it not been for what I saw this evening.


Erindi is a resort wildlife reserve. My room overlooking the waterhole is top notch. Even I spotted that. From my deck, when I first walked out there were two bull elephants across from me as well as some large crocodiles sunning themselves on the opposite bank. Now on my side of the pond there is very strong electrical fence discreetly hidden from view. This kind of looks like the set up for Jurassic Park.




After getting unpacked I collapsed into a chair. I did not realize that driving 150km including through downtown Windhoek in a right-hand drive vehicle would be so stressful. I drive a Toyota Tacoma at home. I noticed that most everything was in the same spot on my Fortrunner except the windshield wiper controls. Every time I went to signal a turn my windshield wipers came on. I had the cleanest windshield in Namibia. When I had recovered from the driving adventure I wondered down to the wildlife viewing deck about 30 minutes before sunset. It was there that I saw chaos in wildlife. I saw anarchy and egos.


I had just stepped onto the deck when a herd of blue wildebeest came jogging up to the waterhole. Movement to my right brought into view a pack of wild dogs. Yes, they really do look like they belong to a 3-year-old boy that has unlimited access to paint. These dogs came running at the wildebeest circled them, charged them, and I thought was going separate one and make a kill. That was not the case. It looked like they just were trying to irritate the wildebeest. They were doing a good job. Then as the dogs engaged in charges and retreats which kept the wildebeest counter attacking and retreating three of the dogs started fighting each other. Dust was flying, dogs were yipping, wildebeest were snorting and pawing the ground. It was all chaos.


Later, after sunset fifteen elephants came to the water hole. They snuffled and gurgled the water. The babies could drink after the adults had chased off the croc’s. When all had their fill, they lazed around the pool. A mother elephants laid down and rolled in the mud and several of the little ones came a pushed against her. The teenagers went to the other end of the pool and had shoving matches. Then the wildebeest came back. I don’t think they had gotten to drink yet. As they came within 25 yards of the mother rolling in the mud, she came out of the mud on a sprint at the wildebeest and chased them off. No ego there, she just did not want any low life wildebeest drinking at her waterhole.


It was an hour later as I was eating supper at the restaurant. It is a very good restaurant by the way. I watched those same wildebeest that had been chased off by the court jesters of wild dogs and then by the lordly elephants finally got a drink. That is anarchy.


The game drives are well done and there are some very interesting animals you can spot.

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I spotted this in Namibia…


Warthogs:

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The quintessential African animal. Hunting them may be the best way to start a safari. This is only the second time I have had a first morning hunt in Africa. Both times though as I climb into the truck I get the same tightness in my body that I would get lining up for the opening kickoff of the football game. (uh American Football) As we climbed off the truck for the first stalk I was having to focus on my breathing. Then the sticks went up and just like when the ball left the tee my body would release and the trigger broke and the warthog was down. The thrill of yes, I can do this is overwhelming. I have put people to work and now we will eat. I am not just a spectator but now I am part of the environment. Now a few more today and we can start hanging bait.
 

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I spotted this in Namibia…

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If the warthog is the quintessential African animal, the blue wildebeest is the consummate energy converter. They range across the grasslands in great multitudes taking the sun’s energy that is stored in the grass and converting it into their bodies and then releasing some of the earth’s nutrients back into the earth as dung. However, if you are to access the massive amount of energy stored in a wildebeest you must hunt them.


It was late. The day was almost done. It is that time when the warmth of the winter desert sun gives up and the chill begins to pervade. You start seeking your jacket as you ride on the back of the truck back to camp. The long shadows of the acacia tree stretch across the pale yellow sea of grass. The wind is still and it is a good end to the day.


Then you drive past one of innumerable camel thorn bushes and a lane is visible for 100 yards and there are the blue wildebeest. The day is not over. We leave the truck and it drives on. The wildebeest have not seen our departure. We are crouched behind the bush and through its stems and leaves we can see the herd. There are cows and calves and they are moving from right to left. It is a good size herd. Not the size of the great migration on the Serengeti but there are easily 50 animals crossing to our front. The cows and calves cross first and then the bulls follow. The oldest bull is the last.


Each time I hunt this way I am reminded of the footage I have seen of lions crouched waiting patiently for the right moment. I am aware that even with my rifle, just like the lion, success is not guaranteed. In fact, this day has been an accumulation of stalks that have been spoiled by zebras, steenbok, and Guinea fowl. This time the sticks go up. I rise and place the rifle in the notch. The old bull turns and quarters to me. He has sensed danger but the wind is in our favor and the low light conceals us. I do not like a quartering too shots. However, he is sixty yard, the hold is solid, and the trigger breaks. I can see him hunch and jump through my scope. These animals have been selected over centuries by lions, leopards, hyenas, and man. The genetics that remain only produce tough animals. This bull has taken 300 grain .375 A frame bullet and is running with the herd. The land is open here and we can watch him run. At the very edge of our vision he slows and turns from the herd. We walk. We walk very fast. At 100 yards the sticks go up again the rifle roars and he is off running again but only a short distance. He stands, staggers, and then falls.


The suns energy moves on. Not all of it will be used but that is the rhythm of life as it is supposed to be. It is a great end of the day.
 

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Very nice animal, and those photos are fantastic! Great report, thanks.
 
Keep it coming! Great stuff so far
 
I spotted this in Namibia

Kudu

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I am not a fan of Earnest Hemmingway. It’s probably because I was introduced to Hemmingway by a high school English teacher. I sail into shoaling waters now without a chart. English teachers that read this it is not all your fault. You are required to teach a curriculum that has specified authors and content. For example, The Odyssey though beautiful in its dactylic hexameter was really meant to be told around a campfire on a bright starry night.

Now that I am closer to 40 years out of high school than 30 years, I have tried to revisit authors from those days but in another context. Shakespeare’s Henry the V is much more to my liking. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies works far better than just Pride and Prejudice. Hemingway’s For Home the Bell Tolls destroyed me in my youth. So, after my first safari to Africa I decided to give him another chance. I read The Green Hills of Africa. I appreciate his early comments about Mark Twain being the only great writer to come from America. However, the grumpy hunter that he describes as himself is not reminiscent of my safari at all. Then Hemmingway and I connected for a few pages he describes hunting kudus and I was there with him and he was with me.


Tragelaphus strepsiceros: The Greater Kudu


The first time I saw one in the wild my breath caught in my throat. It was the briefest of glimpses as my PH motioned for me to get down. It would be a constant conflict between get down, be still, be quiet to I want to see them. I must admit that the only time I saw a kudu first I was very slow in pointing it out to my PH. I like watching them. Now I do like to see them on the grill as well.


I describe a kudo to my friends as being similar in size to the North American Elk but that description really does not do it justice. It’s like saying the starting forward on the Spanish National Soccer Team is like a starting running back in the American National Football League. Yes, both are tremendous athletes but there are significant differences.


Hunting kudu in Namibia and especially at Kowas has its ups and downs both literally and figuratively. Climb this mountain and spot. Nothing, descend the mountain and go to the next mountain. Namibian mountains are more like hills for those of us that spend time in the Rocky Mountains. However, if you spend time in the Appalachians you may find your Namibian travels familiar. Regardless, Namibian mountains are full of little red, round, rolly rocks. If you are from Texas you are going to step on everyone. At the end of the day not only will your legs be sore but so will all your core muscles which have been desperately trying to keep you upright. Let your tracker carry your rifle.

Then there is the up to hunting kudu.
 

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