Namibia - Kings of Etosha

King of Etosha

Take the road less travelled

Day of the Jackal

Kori Bustards

Springbok

Mopane Savannah

Zebra

Springbok

Wildebeest

Oryx

Impala

Watering Hole

Soporific cats

Life isn't easy

Pride of Place

Golden Syrup

The one's that got away

Wildebeest

Helmeted Guinea Fowl

Home

Etosha National Park in Northern Namibia is one of Africa's less well known wildlife sanctuaries.  Namibia has other attractions like the massive sand dunes at Sossusvlei, the exquisite landscapes of Damaraland but it was Etosha that convinced us that it is a near perfect destination. Namibia's empty horizons are without peer under African skies.  We visited Namibia in November 2006 on the recommendation of my brother and I have just rescued my photos from the hard drive of an old desktop computer.  As I edited them yesterday they conjured up images of a spectacular day and it seemed worth a retrospective posting.

We stayed a couple of nights at a lodge just south of the Andersson gate, the entrance to the Etosha National Park and entered the park at opening time.  The park covers 22,750km2 which is about a third the size of Scotland.  It is a vast flat area with a salt pan in the centre and an extensive network of dirt roads.  The 'Pan' is a massive parched golden-white semi arid savannah area that has endless horizons.

The morning drive was over a hundred miles and wildlife was limited until we were joined by some jackals when we stopped for a break.  It was the start of a drive past hundreds of springbok, zebras and various other antelope as well as ostriches and kori bustards.  We reached Halali, one of the camps which had a number of shops and cafes, and took a break for a drink and to get some advice on where we might see lions and elephants with all the innocence of children going to the zoo. No one could be certain or they were not letting on.

I decided to go off the main tracks and take the roads less travelled hoping that we would be able to find our way out.  I chose to head to an area which had more dense scrub and a couple of watering holes but they were lacking any wildlife.  We took another trail that had little sign of usage and it was a complete surprise when we curved into a remote tree covered glade and happened upon a pride of lions.  I parked our small Toyota saloon about 6 metres away from the lions and, after establishing that they were quite relaxed - there was evidence of a recent kill, I wound down the window and began to shoot photos with some trepidation. They seemed OK with our presence and we spent half an hour in a state of suspended ecstasy.  The digital SLR bought for the trip worked perfectly although I had to be reminded to wind up the window whilst changing lenses.

We eventually found our way out of the park, driving past zebras and more distant lions and it was over two hours of driving to get back to the lodge. In the evening we were the only guests to have come across lions despite most of the others travelling with guides in Land Rovers or Jeeps.  We ate wildebeest at supper that evening and realised that the lions had good taste as well as good manners. Etosha will be forever etched in our memories as a near perfect day.