Walking with lions

At 7 am we set out on our 3-hour game drive with our guide. The reserve is divided into several fenced enclosures to keep certain species and herds apart. For example, the Burchell’s zebras are kept separate from the once endangered Cape Mountain zebras, to prevent interbreeding. The lions, which all seem to be rescued or hand-raised, also have their own enclosure in which they are fed. Fortunately, all the fenced areas are large and allow the animals to roam freely.

During the morning, we saw a wonderful variety of wildlife, including impala (red and the rarer black), bontebok, lion (an impressive male called Chris and two females), elephant (a forty year old bull, with a younger male and a small calf; apparently the matriarch had died from a stroke recently), five giraffe, five rhinos, a big herd of kudu, zebras (Burchell’s and Mountain), blue wildebeest and some waterbuck.

A few new things I learned were that the white line under lions’ eyes is to help reflect light into their eyes at night, thus enhancing their nocturnal vision, while the opposite is true for waterbuck, which have a white line above their eyes to reflect light away, especially from the water surface. I didn’t know how to differentiate a Burchell’s from a Cape Mountain zebra (the former has white socks and the latter has the remnants of a dewlap, like Kudus). Also, I never watched a giraffe chew the cud, swallow it and 5 seconds later regurgitate a new cud. Because of their long necks, the whole process is more visible than with other ruminants.

After the drive and checking out, we went on a 45 minute ‘walk with lions’. Our pair were both lionesses and one was a white lion. The lions actually walked ahead, flanked by their four handlers, while we followed a safe distance behind, with our guide. One of the handlers occasionally throws some meat, to keep them incentivised. Although it was a special experience to walk with these big, beautiful cats, it felt at the same time a little contrived and unnatural, as if the lions were being made to perform for us.

After leaving Zorgfontein/Botlierskop, we headed up the Garden Route, stopping for lunch at Cocomo restaurant in the Wildernis, where we also took a dip in the nearby ocean. Next we stopped at Knysna Heads to take [name] to the viewpoint, before driving on to our chalet at Storms River Mouth. Dinner was a simple affair of eggs on toast and soon we were drifting to sleep to the lullaby of waves crashing against the rocky shore.

This morning, we walked a short loop in the forest and then to the suspension bridge and across and to the top of the opposite hill, before having an extremely brief swim – literally diving in and clambering out – in the Storms River Mouth and the bay near the restaurant. In both cases, the water was achingly cold, far more like the Atlantic than the Indian ocean. Both [name] and I lost our glasses, apparently by diving in with them on, although neither of us remembers doing so. This afternoon, we plan to do the 3 km coastal rocky walk past the cave and to the waterfall, where we will once again brave the freezing waters.

Last night, we watched the sunset over the ocean, to a symphony of crashing waves. Later, after an Amarula coffee at the restaurant, we gazed in awe at the Milky Way overhead, so clear against the inky black sky. In the morning, we rose early (6.30 am) for a walk, before making our way to the Elephant Sanctuary just outside Plettenberg Bay.

Here, we had the surreal experience of walking with three elephants, each with their trunk in our hands. It is always such a privilege to be close to these gentle giants. The weight and strength of their trunks was incredible to feel, as first Thandi, and then Amarula used their prehensile trunk tips to hold the four fingers of my right hand during the walk. I must admit that I prefer seeing the elephants wild rather than tame and trained, but these hand-reared orphans seemed well treated.

Further along the N2, we stopped at the Coral Tree for coffee and pancakes, and then at Buffelsbaai (Buffalo Bay) for a swim, some excellent body surfing and lunch. Tonight, we will be back at Mountain View Swellendam, before heading into Cape Town for our final day, which will include taking the ferry to Robben Island and the cableway up to the top of Table Mountain.