Let us just come out and say it... on safari, everyone wants to see a lion. Many operators advertise that you are guaranteed to see the Big 5: a hunting term describing those that pose the most dangerous risk. Of the five, only two are predators, lions and leopards, and of these lions are much easier to encounter in the wild. They are territorial, often form large prides, and will sleep most of the day. Guides will share with each other the pride's whereabout, making it easy to drive right up to a lounging group. Only at dusk, will most lions begin to hunt, which is thrilling to watch.
Our safari organizers understood the importance of being able to deliver on a lion sighting, and planned a game drive the first evening. As the sun set, we headed towards the area where another safari group had sighted a group of about 6 lions lying in the middle of the dirt track. The group of 3 males and 3 females didn't even seem to register our presence. In order to get closer, our guide backed up into the bush and came around behind the group just as they started to make a move. They crossed right in front of our vehicle and continued single file down the path. We followed slowly behind. The lions seemed more intent on what might be out in the bush, than the fact that a jeep full of people was only a few yards behind them. Night fell and we used head lights and a spot light to continue our viewing. To our surprise, and fear, two more lions came up silently behind the vehicle, brushing up against the sides of the jeep and scaring us half to death. I felt as if I could have reached out and petted the passing animals without experiencing any harm.
We left them to their night hunt and turned around to return to the lodge. Another lion came toward us, clearly visible in the jeep's headlights. The male gave us a quick glance before calmly walking past in order to rejoin the pride, wasting no time at all on trying to confront or intimidate us. Such is the understanding between man and beast in these parts. I was told that they are totally at ease with the vehicles, whereas if we were to step out and venture among the lions, they would certainly attack in order to defend their territory and their family.
All this happened on our very first day on safari. You might think that there was not much else to see, that everything else might pale in comparison to viewing lions on the move in the wild. We pondered this as we sat down to eat a meal prepared over an open fire in the bush. By the light of the fire we noticed eyes watching us. And some powerful flashlights picked out two hyenas who were interesting in our barbecue. Yes, there was certainly a lot more out there in the bush to see, and we were encouraged to get up at 5:30 am the next morning to walk out on foot into these animals' territory.
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