EmotionsofAfrica

The video shows two tourists, fast asleep next to the pool at a safari lodge, little knowing that a herd of elephants silently pulled in for a drink. It was mid-morning when we returned back to camp after a long early morning safari out in the bush. It meant some downtime for everyone, and I decided it was a good idea to go and chill by the pool of the safari lodge. When I arrived at the pool, I was totally blown away by what I saw and couldn’t believe my own two eyes. I decided to get my camera and started rolling. On the loungers was two of our fellow safari goers, already fast asleep next to the pool. Right in front of them were a small herd of large elephant bulls, busy drinking from the pool, not bothered by the presence of the sleeping tourists. They must have been very tired after the long morning safari and looked totally passed out and did not even flinch. There they were, fast asleep and not having the slightest clue that Africa’s largest land mammals pulled in for a drink right next to them. Due to the holiday makers being totally motionless, the elephants must have ignored them and casually carried on enjoying their drink from the pool. I am sure if the safari tourists were awake, it would have been a very difficult task to lie so still while these massive creatures were drinking water from the pool a mere few meters away from them.

The video shows a baby elephant slowly moving through thick mud before wiping out, taking a nose or trunk dive straight down into the mud. Watching any baby elephant going about their business in the African wild is mostly an amusing sight. While still a little clumsy, like any child in their first few years, baby elephants have to navigate through all the challenges that living in the wild can bring. While on safari we watched a herd of elephants crossing through a muddy river. While the adults of course found it easy to march through the thick mud, it was a little more challenging for the younger elephants. The baby elephant in the video was treading slowly, one foot at a time. The mother elephant even stopped and looked back to see if her baby was doing all right. Just as the baby elephant looked like getting to the end of the mud, it slipped and smack, face and trunk first, straight down into the mud. Another adult female elephant came past to lend a little support to the clumsy baby elephant, lying face down in the mud. Slowly but surely the baby elephant managed to get back onto its feet and finally got out of the thick mud, making its way straight to its mother. While it was funny at the moment to watch the clumsiness of the baby elephant, we couldn’t help to feel a little sorry for it at the same time. All was well in the end, knowing we witnessed one of the many challenges a baby elephant would have to face while growing up in the wild.