This week Mother Nature thought us the very important lesson of patience.
In the bush the animals and all things living go by their own time. They don’t plan their day according to a watch or a calendar or our game drives for that matter.

The first lesson was when we went looking for the illusive leopard. I passed one of the other rangers on drive and he told me about the leopard with her two cubs. They could hear the 3 leopards feeding on a kill in a small drainage line but could not see them as the vegetation around was just too thick. After convincing my tracker Las, we set off to the area to investigate. We got there and could hear them feeding. I asked the guests if they wanted to wait for a while. The cubs are at a playful age and there’s always a chance that they will come out. After sitting there for about 20 minutes we got a brief glimpse of one of the cubs. We maneuvered the vehicle around and found the two cubs playing in soft sand. It just proves that patience does pay off in the end. We spent a few minutes with them. The two youngsters were playing right in front of our car whilst the mum was feeding on something a few meters into the bush.

The other lesson came from the elephants this morning. By the time we got to the area where they found the elephants, they have moved deep into the bush. We could only hear them breaking the branches. Everyone was very keen on seeing the new babies so we decided to wait a while. Eventually they all came out on to the road and the little ones were playing and climbing all over one another. We were even lucky enough to see the newest addition to the family. A pink (albino) elephant, born a few days ago.

So I have learned my lesson for the week. Wonder what is next. Nature tends to surprise us and teach us new things in the most amazing ways.

Story by Marilize Minnaar, Kapama River Logde Ranger