BootsnAll Travel Blogs

so, once Charlie had left – in good health!- I was left in command (!) of Koro camp – fools!

beginningwith 10 students, the numbers dropped as the ‘season’ drew to a close, though there was still ots of time for a lot of funa dn some close encounters with ellies!:

one day whilst walking around Stickinyau (sp?) we wandered down towards a spring and found a leopard which had just come up FROM the spring! ..the leopard ran from us so we followed as quick as we could, sadly although we KNOW we were close, we never saw it again

We also found a Kudu Bull carcass, which we tied to the back of teh Landie and drageed up to the Rockies, hoping to lure a predator onto it…sadly there wasno sign over the next few days as the carcass got flattened by maggots.

We also tried to have a sleepout on Halloween: the idea was o stay near the Baobabs nr. Boundary koppie. W set camp and built a fire, started cooking and were generally in great spirits as we watched an electric storm in the distance. Then a Parabutha scorpion appeared and then just as I was about to sit on my rol mat and eat, another 2 appeared! … after all thehubbub and a nice meal we realised that the storm was almost on us! …we packed camp quick as a flash and started to rive off as the first pitterpatter of rain hit us. I volunteered to sit on the tracker seat and as we returned to camp the rain hit us BIG style!!!….. we got lashed by wind and rain as the trees lost branches and leaves and dust and debris flew EVERYWHERE!!!… it was mayhem, but a lorra fun!!

over the next few days we had regular bouts of storms, which drencehed some of the tents and drenched us! ……quite a change and the first time Ive seen the rains here!

Eventually, Toby, Frenchie and Maria left and the camp was quiet.

Stuart and I set to the maintenance of the Landie (new driveshafts, oil,  etc.) and the Hilux (new driveshafts and seals) then we did some general maintenance -pretty busy time for us, whilst Christoph and Katy were busy sorting the camp too.

Annelein left for the familys farm in the middle of the works and eventually me and Stuart followed her down

a couple of days later and I was back at the airport saying goodbyes again 8(

…hopefuly it wont be long till I see them all again  8)

We were sitting around the boma at Koro camp one afternoon, the day before Charlie and the Trackers were leaving, when Kate (the camp ‘maid’, I guess) ran i, saying there was a snake outside. we ran out to see a Mozambique Spitting Cobra lying inthe grass, with most of a frog sticking out of its mouth.

We watched for a few moments – while I made sure everyone knew about its ability to spit venom, but knowing that with the frog blocking its mouth we were safe…for the moment. charlie then appeared and decided that we should catch/kill it as it was in the camp area. She donned a pair of sunglasses to protect her eyes from any spitting and then using a long stick started to try and catch the snake. At this point I got on the radio to let stuart know we had a snake (he was in the bush on his way back to the house) whilst on the radio, Charlie shouted for me, so I ran back over to her, by which time christoph (Kates hubby) had joinedher and the two of them were in the process of killing the snake. HOWEVER, the snake had spit at Charlie at the same time that she had shoutedfor me – resulting in Charlie getting some of the venom in her mouth!!!! A quick radio to Stuart and Charlie started washing her mouth out whilst climbing in to the Landie the snake carcass was put in and I drove ‘patient’ and the snake up to the house, where Staurt met us, we swapped into the Cruiser and raced for the border. At the border (we always use medical facilities in south Africa) we shot thru the Botswana side without passports – explaing it was a medical emergency and then again thru the RSA side – this time showing them the snake carcass to get them to open the gate quickly.

We managed to get a puncture on the dirt road to Alldays and almost had the car slide off the hi-lift jack!, but eventually reached Alldays where we found we had another puncture! all the time we keeping charlie talking to make sure she was OK – she looked worried and pale, but otherwise seemed not to bad (I think she was complaining her lips were numb not otherwise, OK) we swapped into another car and drove another 50km before meeting up with the ambulance that had been called for us about an hour before!. charlie was loaded onto a stretcher and she and Stuart sped off to hospital, leaving me to get back to Alldays in another vehicle.

that night I had a restless evening in a lodge at Alldays – where the barmaid watched me walking around my cabin nekkid whilst looking for summat to wear before I opened the door (I hadnt realised the door had a big glass panel in it!!!) …she had a message from annelien for me and a bag of clothes and toiletries from the lady who had dropped me off at the lodge (her family own the local store)

anyhoo, next morning I got the punctures fixed and then drove all the way back to Koro to pick up the students leaving and then drove all the way back to the border, where I met up with Stuart and Charlie!!!! she was fine!..the venom had no effect on her and they just kept her in overnight for observation PHEW!!!

well, we're travelling again flew from Ncl to Heathrow to Joburg, SA (loooong flight) and then car up to 'Alldays) a small town in Northern South Africa, then another car to Botswana. we're just inside the Botswana border in a conservation project ... [Continue reading this entry]