It was a very cool morning and slow to get rolling as far as animal sightings were concerned. As we loaded into the land cruisers this morning, we encountered leopard tracks belonging to Ravenscourt (leopard seen on previous days) at the periphery of the camp. Apparently he had been cruising through last night as we slept. We drove for nearly 90 minutes before encountering a giraffe, which has always proven true to live up to its history of being a harbinger of things to come.
Ravenscourt's paw print
Today's sunrise
First giraffe sighting
We were hardly prepared for what came next- there was a young male leopard named Shangwe, son of Nyeleti (who also frequents Inyati camp)resting on the deck of a neighboring lodge overlooking the river. He had hoisted his impala kill into the tree just outside the lodge's dining room! Quite a surprise for the guests I'm certain..
Shangwe, beautifully backlit by the morning sun. He left the deck & headed down into a ravine by the river where we were able to capture a few more images of this beautiful leopard.
More giraffe sightings- & you know what that means:
something unexpected & wonderful is coming our way! Beautiful darker coat on this male giraffe.
We then came across 2 of the Othawa lionesses with their cubs on an embankment overlooking the river. One of the lionesses clearly had blood on her face & paws, indicating that a kill had been made, likely overnight.
Cub stretching in the sunshine
We then headed back to camp for brunch, to be followed by a bush walk with the rangers for those interested in another perspective on the nature surrounding us.
So incredible!
ReplyDelete