The 2021 Africa Journals, Ch. 10: In Which We Breakfast with Lions

 

Chapter Ten

In Which We Breakfast with Lions

"A lion chased me up a tree and I greatly enjoyed the view from the top."

--Confucius

    

     I once again tried to get my camera lens to retract.   It would not;  it was stuck fast.  I checked the little thermometer on my camera field bag.   It registered 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

I could still use it, but at 440 mm only.   I  had another Nikon camera with an 18 to 400mm zoom lens.   Both the camera and the lens were inferior to the other camera and lens, however, I was thankful I was still in the photo game and my trip wouldn't be ruined.   I simply wouldn't be able to get the best quality photos.

For now, I would use the second camera except when I was far enough away to use the first camera and its longer lens.  

As things turned out, it was the shorter lens that came in handy right away because we were so close to several lions that the long lens was too much.   This coalition of lions numbered six or seven but one was away with his new girlfriend.

These lions had full bellies, indicating that they had made a kill and dined well during the night.   All they wanted to do was sleep.

     When we first saw them they were lying in deep shade.   Some moved into the sun while we were there.

    We call these "flat cats."   See the trees on the far left of this photo?   That's where we drove for lunch.   Not too near, but not too far.   Lions will attack humans on foot but we were far enough away that we would have plenty of time to throw our coffee and muffins in the air and race to the safari truck.

Our picnic spot.

Breakfast with lions.

Eggs, granola, yoghurt, bread, butter, cookies, individual jars of fresh fruit, tea and coffee.

Baked egg, muffin, bread and butter, .  

    Back at the lions, one  had waded into the water for a drink.   We caught him splashing back to dry land.

    We left the sleeping lions and turned back towards camp.   However, no matter where you're going, elephants always have the right of way.   Always.

The photo above and the photo below illustrates what a loss I had when my 200-500mm lens locked up at 440mm.   Both of these photos were taken with my Tamron 18-400mm lens seven seconds apart with several intervening frames.  The top photo was at 80mm and the bottom photo at 116mm.   The ability to zoom in and out is so critical.

    Once the elephants passed, we stopped in a large area that was free of trees and waited for this helicopter.

        And this medical tech.

    Ah, dear.   Time for our Covid-19 PCR tests that would enable us to fly back to Kasane and then on to Johannesburg in South Africa. She took both mouth and nasal samples.  This was now my third PCR test on this trip and I would have one more before heading home.

Marg

ACK!   Want to know what this test cost--a tech delivered by helicopter and results promised by the next day??    $400 USD!

    That done, we meandered back to camp.

    The lady riding with us had a sharp eye for woodpeckers and I was able to get these shots of a Burchell's woodpecker.

    Back in camp, it was sanitize your hands, download photos onto external hard drives, and relax before lunch.   Marg was doing my downloading with her computer so I had time to do a dress rehearsal of packing my camera bag to see  if my now-elongated lens would fit in the bag.   

    It did, but horizontally rather than upright.    That did not leave any room for my smaller lens.    I would have to carry it in my "purse" which was also a camera bag.   But I didn't have to pack my big lens in my checked bag!

Lunch.   Couscous, Bibb lettuce, beets, bean salad, and chicken.

Next:  The final game drives in Selinda and back to Johannesburg.