Dan's Adventure

Since Etosha Nature Reserve is in its dry season, the best place to spot animals is at watering holes as animals congregate to drink. The campsite we were staying at in Etosha provided access to a floodlit watering hole at the edge of its grounds, so after dinner on the two nights we spent there we all headed down to watch the animals. On the first night a whole herd of elephants appeared, walking into view from the far side and walking right around to the side of the watering hole we were sitting at. The elephants chose this side because its where the inlet for fresh water is. A number of watering holes in Etosha, including the one at the campsite, are artificial because the natural ones are all dried up during dry season.

Roars of a lion in the distance kept the elephants and the sole giraffe on their toes as they carefully approached the watering hole. On the same night we also saw a herd of zebra, lots of jackal, which were also running around the campsite, and two black rhino. The following evening was even more fruitful with three of the big five there at the same time; three elephants, six black rhino, and a lion. It was very interesting to see how the different species interacted both with their own kind and others. Elephants would greet each other to show respect and would confront the rhinos as they approached. Black rhinos tend to be solitary animals so whenever another approached there would be a bit of a standoff.

On our game drives through Etosha we visited numerous watering holes, each one bustling with life. One in particular had several hundred animals at it including zebra, elephants and springbok. Out of all the game drives I have been on in Africa, the ones at Etosha have without a doubt been my favourites. This is due to both the quality of the game viewing and the quality of our guide. On previous drives our guides had been next to useless, telling us minimal information unless questioned, but at Etosha, our Acacia Africa tour leader, Jacques, took on the role of guide and excelled. His enthusiasm and love for what he was talking about really shone through as he bombarded us with information about everything we saw and heard.