That day, after seeing the monkeys at breakfast, we were immersed in African critterness. Animals only seen on TV or in the zoos were now right outside my car window (or not too far from the boat on a tour we took). Now, before you start thinking there are critters wandering all about in ZA, most of these were seen in national parks. Sort of like if us Americans wanted to see a bear or an elk, we’d wander to Yellowstone national park. Still, that did not diminish the awe and excitement felt in the least.
First that day was the hippo and croc boat tour where one of the first we saw were a mama hippo and her little one. Okay, I use that adjective “little” in a slightly skewed context. That sucker was big even though he was just a toddler.
Mom and baby
Further down the way on the tour, we ran into a whole flock… herd?… pod… ummm… flock… pack… whatever…
Just hanging out...
And, yep, that’s a crocodile just lazing in the background. They know not to mess with each other.
On the boat, they passed around a hippo tusk. Hippos have four of these tucked in their heads, just to give a perspective on their size.
No, I've no clue who the lady is holding the thing...
After the boat tour, we wandered into a nearby national park on our way to swim in the Indian Ocean. This park was where I first got REALLY close to critters. These female Kudu were just hanging out not 5 feet off the roadway.
The ladies...
And a mister Kudu–
Kudos to this Kudu
Saw some other critters, but didn’t get good pictures of them. Ended up snorkeling at a beach where I got my first chance to swim in my third ocean (Pacific and Atlantic being the first two) – –
Nope, not my sand castle
Ended up this day taking a side tour of the park before heading back to the lodgings. Found a smaller pond with some hippos in it, just at sunset… I’m liking this.
The money shot...
A hell of a first day…
[happy sigh]
The Wilds of Ohio 