It was overcast and raining lightly this morning which is never conducive for birding. H and I did a short walk before we packed up and headed for breakfast. We only added one bird to our trip list on the walk. I also didn’t want to walk too far or uphill because I definitely still have some virus/infection still lingering. At least today I felt better than previous days and I was able to do all the driving again.

Etosha (or at least Okaukeujo where we are staying … I think I must just refer to is as Ok in future and you can fill in the rest!) was about a 3 hour drive from the Waterberg. We stopped briefly at Otjiwarongo for fuel and to buy some tongs so I didn’t have to braai using a fork anymore. We entered Etosha at the Anderson Gate and arrived at Okaukeujo camp around 12:30pm. The camp seemed very quiet and it was no problem to get the key to our chalet. We are here for the next 4 nights.

It was 32 degrees and there was not a lot to see from the gate to the camp. We figured rather wait to later and then head out. We went out at about 4:15pm (and it was still 32 degrees) and headed east. All the roads are gravel roads in Etosha and the first 10 kms or so was dry and very barren. Some springbok scattered around but the only thing we stopped for was to do some birding. Incredibly a lot of birds around and calling so easily identifiable.

There definitely has been a lot of rain in Etosha recently. Many of the gravel roads are flooded in portions and require one wheel through a large puddle and another hopefully on firm ground. Some of them required a drive of faith and just hoped the water wasn’t too deep. Another time I would have preferred to have the Beast with us and not my Mercedes SUV.

On the road back toward camp we saw a white rhino – the first significant game sighting. Up until then we had only seen springbok, gemsbok, giraffe, one scrub hare and some red hartebees (and lots of birds obviously). Strange that the first of the big five we would see would be rhino.

We got back to the camp around 7pm and started a fire for our braai and then headed over the waterhole to see if there was anything interesting to be seen. Black faced impala were drinking at the water hole and a few birds but nothing else significant. Just when we finished our braai and were sitting down to eat, we heard a massive roar of a male lion. H and I looked at each other, took our plates inside and headed straight for waterhole. We weren’t disappointed. A male lion was in the process of coming down to waterhole to drink and roaring to make sure everyone knew about it. The waterhole is just a short walk from our chalet which is really convenient. A fantastic sighting watching him drink and then back off again into the night.

It is hot and we are tired and so we are about to head off to sleep.

Until tomorrow …

P & H

PS: It seems yesterday’s blog again didn’t email out to everyone but you can read it on templetravels.co.za