Lions…The Good, The Bad, And The Scary

I assumed when we began Safari planning, we would see an abundance of animals. Of course, if you have seen my Preparing for Safari post, you’ll know I didn’t do an adequate job of preparing. Generally, I carry a guide book filled with potentially present animals. I’m a lifelong learner, and I really love to record the date I’ve seen an animal as well as read up on it. This year, I didn’t buy a guidebook; a purchase I regretted not making. Thankfully, Drumbeat Safaris (the Safari outfit our travel company used) provided a small booklet…but only for birds found in Botswana.

The animals I predicted I would see included: elephants, zebras, giraffes, and lions. I imagined there would be typical Lion King animals as well…warthogs, hyenas, wildebeests, and hornbills. As we entered the wildlife area, even before driving through the gates of the Moremi Game Reserve, we saw impalas, giraffes, and zebras. We were definitely in awe and started taking photo after photo, but our guide Scotty kept us grounded. He let us know those animals were plentiful within the wildlife area, and we should continue driving with the hope of seeing something “big”.

We continued…more giraffes, birds (an ostrich, lilac breasted rollers, eagles, hornbills), elephants, and finally the highly anticipated lions. To be honest, it was a sighting I expected. However, Scotty shared there have been many groups who have had it as a goal to see lions, and they never did. Even more common was seeing lions once on a trip. We were definitely out of the norm; we saw them over multiple days.

FIRST LION SIGHTING

On our first day of traveling into the reserve, we found three lions–two females and one male. These lions had already spent their evening hunting. As Scotty explained, once the sun would rise, the lions would look for a shaded area to rest. Because we started our travels after 9:00am, the lions we saw looked like typical zoo lions–laying down without any pretense of providing a show. The difference was these lions had no barrier to keep them from us.

There were several rules we had to follow. First, we needed to stay in the vehicle. While the lions looked docile, if they felt threatened or excited for a potential meal, we would see their incredible speed and strength directed at us. Secondly, if we wanted to move from one side of the vehicle to the other, we needed to stay low, so the lions couldn’t see our legs. Somehow, seeing this would potentially “separate” us from the vehicle, and the lions might take a shot at a quick meal. Finally, we needed to stay quiet. We were allowed to whisper, but any loud chatter would either drive the lions away or bring them close.

We definitely needed Scotty with us as none of us would have seen them; they camouflaged so well. Mark, Jenny’s husband, was the best animal spotter after Scotty, but we could not come close to Scotty’s skill. Scotty pointed them out, but it took quite some time for me to see the male lion. It took him lifting his head to adjust his position for me to see him. My first impression was amazement. It was hard to believe we were so close to such large, dangerous animals. As we settled in, I was able to see how relaxed they felt, and I too began to relax.

The vehicles are loud, yet the animals don’t even notice them. If Scotty knows we will be somewhere for some time, he would shut off the engine. Even when he started the vehicle again, the animals didn’t flinch or look our way. It seemed that as much as lions are a part of the scenery, Safari vehicles also have a place within this habitat.

After our first sighting, Scotty took us elsewhere for lunch. Obviously, it wasn’t safe to eat near the lions. We returned, and I saw how amazing guides are to each other. Another vehicle found us sitting and wanted to know what we were viewing. Once they knew, Scotty moved out of the way, so those guests could get a great view of the lions too. Time and again, this is how the guides worked. They would make sure their group had good views then they would make way for all the other groups who happened to come along.

SECOND LION SIGHTING

After our first night at camp, Jenny and I took off with Scotty for adventure. Mark was not feeling well enough to go, so he stayed behind. We drove for quite some time. As we began each day, I always started to doubt. Would we drive for hours and not see anything? Then, time and again, we would hit the jackpot. On our first early morning drive, we came upon more lions–likely a dozen or more. I couldn’t believe it! I would have driven right past them due to their incredible camouflaging skills.

Scotty stopped on the road, and the lions were on every side of our vehicle. Of course, they were resting, but it didn’t take long for them to start prowling. My, were they astounding! Because there were so many, it took time for them to all motivate themselves to move. We watched them go. Then we followed. As we backed up to turn in the direction they were heading, we almost backed into a male lion. The lion reluctantly stood up and started to follow the pride. After he left, I asked Scotty if he had seen that lion. Laughing, Scotty said, “To be honest, no.”

Watching the lions wasn’t the only thrill. The sounds we heard added to the experience. Birds from everywhere were blasting out warning calls. They wanted to alert all the animals that lions were in the area. As we drove in pursuit, I looked left and saw a field of impala. They were all frozen in place. None of them was eating as they were all looking our way to see what threat might be near. There was great anticipation that the lions would prepare themselves to take down an animal. Much as I’m not a fan of violence, I wanted to see how the pride worked together. Lucky for the impala, I didn’t get to see any form of a hunt. They were saved for the day.

THIRD LION SIGHTING

Our third lion sighting was a little too close to home…literally. As we were eating breakfast on our third morning, Scotty and Annelies (owner of Drumbeat Safaris and our cook) mentioned that lions were heard during the night and were likely near camp. I was sure the lions had hung out by my tent, but Scotty assured me it was likely the hippos. Either way, it was quite frightening.

As we were leaving the campsite after breakfast, we went out by the lake. We circled around the trees, and there, walking toward us was a male lion. Scotty stopped the vehicle and told us to be very still. As the lion approached our vehicle, I tried to remain still, but I found myself leaning slightly inward. This lion was close–not only to our vehicle but also to our campsite.

After it passed us, Scotty immediately got on the radio to warn our campsite of the nearness of the lion. Then, we followed it. We turned around and headed back to the lake. Unfortunately, the lion kept going toward the other side of the lake. We were unable to follow it, so we moved on and came to our…

FOURTH LION SIGHTING

This time we witnessed three male lions laying in the road. The first two were fully sleeping, but the third (as seen in the blog’s main photo) was still awake. We had an amazing opportunity to get the best lion shots here. It was also here that many myths were debunked. For example, male lions do hunt. While I learned as a child that the lionesses were the hunters, that “fact” is not wholly true. Also, more than one male lion was spotted in many of these prides. Yes, many male lions are kicked out of the pride (due to spreading out the gene pool), but we saw multiple full maned lions in the same pride. For our fourth sighting, all three of these males were together. They hunted together and formed their own grouping until they could move into their own pride.

Eventually, our third lion decided to end his photo shoot, and he laid his head down and slept.

FIFTH LION SIGHTING

If you are awaiting the scary part of my lion tale, this is it. July 20 was a traveling day. We were heading from Khwai to Savuti, and the ride was going to be long. Annelies stocked our Safari vehicle with many beverages as we would be out from 6:00am until likely 6:30 that evening. Scotty always told us to let him know if we needed to go to the bathroom. On this particular day, as we were passing into Chobe National Forest, we were even more lucky–we could use the facilities inside a building.

We stopped, so Scotty could pay the fee. He let us know the bathroom was available. It turns out, only the men’s restroom was available, so Jenny and I waited for the coast to be clear and we headed into the men’s restroom. As we were there, another group arrived with plenty of women needing the restroom.

This group was traveling the direction we had just departed. Their faces let us know they had seen something spectacular, and we were headed that way. They witnessed lions feasting on another animal. The group had just missed the kill, but they were able to watch the animals share in a meal together. Then, they saw another group of lions–thirteen strong. One of the ladies told us we should talk to their guide, so of course, I told Scotty. He visited for a bit with the guide, and then we were off.

It took us a while to find it, but we saw the leftovers from the meal the first group of lions had consumed. Seeing as there was not much left, and no lions in sight, we went on search of the other pride. We found them! They were amazing. All of them were laying under one tree, and they were pretty close to the road. As we were watching them intently, Jenny turned around and saw Mark was not in his seat. “Where’s Mark?” she asked.

In that moment, Scotty looked back and saw Mark–OUTSIDE of the vehicle. Mark was using the bathroom. First, I heard the sound of the urine hitting the ground. Then I saw the lions jerking up their heads to see what that was. Next, I heard Scotty screaming, “Mark, Mark–get in the car.” Thankfully, the lions decided they did not want to be a part of Mark’s close encounter, and half of them took off in the other direction. Somehow in the midst of all our travels, NOT getting out of the vehicle when there were lions nearby slipped out of Mark’s mind. He hadn’t gone to the bathroom at our restroom stop (girls in the bathroom), and his bladder needed release. He stated that he thought it was fine because he was on the other side of the vehicle.

As you might imagine Scotty was upset. Part of his reaction was anger and the other part fear. He went to the one other vehicle there and apologized profusely to the driver and the passengers. These were people we had spent time with while surrounded by other animals, and they were very kind. Scotty was concerned because there are repercussions for companies and guides that allow guests outside of the vehicles while on an active Safari, but he was also fearful for what could have happened.

Rather than stay to see if the lions would return, Scotty took off. After about ten minutes of driving, he stopped and turned to Mark. He let him know if that ever happened again, Scotty would take us to the border immediately and end our tour.

You can probably imagine how lunch went. Scotty was not eating. Mark stayed in the vehicle. Jenny and I ate, and I tried to bring peace to the group. The rest of the journey went quickly, and we entered the new campsite much earlier than planned. Scotty talked with Annelies, and I also spoke with them. Annelies knew she would have to report the event to the tourism board, and Scotty would have to let our travel company know.

Thankfully, the day ended, we slept, and when we awoke things were a bit better. Mark decided to stay at the campsite instead of taking the morning Safari, and Scotty and Annelies decided to let it go. Enough had been said the night before, and we all knew then that we were not allowed to exit a vehicle while on Safari without our guide’s permission.

SIXTH LION SIGHTING

I must admit, I was worried that seeing more lions would bring back bad memories. However, we were there to see wildlife, and lions were a part of that. On the morning Jenny and I took off with Scotty, we stopped where a large group of vehicles were. Nestled in the woods were two young cubs, alone. Scotty told us female lions would probably not win “Mom of the Year” awards as these cubs were left while the adults were out hunting. There never was a great photo shot of these lions, but it was fun to see a playful side to the unaccompanied minors.

SIXTH/SEVENTH LION SIGHTINGS

The last time we saw lions was on the same trip we saw the cubs (well we saw the same pride at a distance the next day too). Scotty, Jenny, and I were driving far from the typical path when we happened upon two vehicles. As we approached, we saw a plentiful supply of lions. There were six babies, two lionesses, a juvenile male lion, and an adult male lion. Scotty explained that the lionesses often go into heat at the same time and are pregnant together. This serves several purposes. The main purpose is that the babies can feed off of either mother, and if a mother is lost, there is still a supply of milk for the babies. The other reason is so the babies can all be similar in size. It would make it really tough for the little ones if there were larger, stronger lions in the pride.

During this experience, I was startled by the male lion’s roar and impressed with the family dynamic. The roar was deafening. Apparently, a baby cub was a little too playful and the male lion was letting it know to get away. While this was occurring, the other babies were jockeying for position around the mothers. If one wasn’t able to feed on one mom, it would just climb over her and get to the other mom.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I am so thankful for the opportunity to have seen lions in so many modes of their lives. We saw them sleep, play, feed their young, stalk and just be. Lions are definitely frightening when they want to be and awe-inspiring at every moment. How amazing to have experienced these small moments with them!