Skip to main content

Leopard in a Tree

 

I broke a rule in The Kruger to get a shot of this leopard resting in the middle of a tree fully populated with leaves. And, I kind of didn’t care because, well, it was a leopard, one of the most elusive, stealth, and stunning animals I have been lucky enough to see only a few times during my seven years of trolling around southern Africa. Many cars were parked at the site, inhabitants gawking upwards directly outside the Lower Sabie entrance, so I knew something special was in the tree. Except, I couldn’t see it, and I wanted to it, so I stared and scanned in between the leaves and the branches until I recognized the spotted tail hanging to one side. Gold!


One problem! Many roads in The Kruger are no-trespass roads - poacher patrol roads, ranger roads, admin roads, washed-out roads, all roads where civilian vehicles are not welcome. The best angle for the photo was down one of those roads so, I lost control of my manners, calculated where and how I needed to get there, and drove in for the photo.


I only needed to edge in a little way to position my car to see this beauty hidden from the main road where everyone else was straining their eyes to get a glimpse. Once in position, I negotiated a U-turn, stopping midway for 30-seconds to capture this image before continuing on, pretending I had not done anything wrong. However, when I looked away from the tree, in front of me was a game vehicle with a ranger in it, giving me a stern look with arms crossed in an X at his chest. Oops! 


I might have shouted, “Oh, right, sorry, I had to make a u-turn.” So, not only did I break the rule, I lied. And, I am pretty confident he didn’t believe me. At all. Damn tourists!!!


Others tried to follow my lead, saw the ranger, and backed off. He was there to stay. But I got the shot. Okay, at the expense of my integrity, but hey, it was a leopard! 



#leopardlove #elusiveleopardinatree #breakingtherules #thekruger #oopssorryaboutthat #igottheshot #writing #personalessay #lastdaysinsouthafrica

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Tragedy of Human Despair

  The Tragedy of Human Despair in South Africa I came across this scene while running errands. The person, a man, I think, sat on the dirty, tar road at a robot, straddling the center and right turn lanes on a busy street. The light had turned red, so I was forced to face the human tragedy of poverty, hunger, and hopelessness.  It’s not like I hadn’t seen people on the streets begging for food, clothes, jobs, or anything to sustain them for another day, but this was different.  He rested in a fetal position, head bowed and covered by a white t-shirt juxtaposed against black clothing. And what about the books? I couldn’t see their titles; maybe one was a bible.   He was as still as a statue and as quiet as the dark before the dawn. He did not flinch or moan, nor did he have pleading hands reaching out for a tidbit of salvation.  The human was simply there, a tableau worthy of a production by the Ontological-Hysterical theatre company in New York City’s lower...
Post a Comment
Read more

Esther Mahlangu - Ndebele Artist

  This beautiful woman is 92-years-old and lives in a small Ndebele village in Mpumalanga. Esther Mahlangu is an Outsider Artist, self-taught from the age of nine, who has achieved great success with her bold, colorful art reflecting traditional Ndebele culture. It’s not clear, but it seems she never went to school and can only write her name on her artwork. However, she has two honorary doctorates for her contributions to the art world. Her success was serendipitous. In 1986, researchers from France were roaming around looking for traditional art forms. One road led them to the artist’s village, where they became enthralled by Mahlangu’s uniquely painted houses. Right time, right road!  They invited her to create murals for an international contemporary art exhibition at the Magiciens de la Terre in France. Her obscurity was soon over and she quickly became a phenomenon in the Pan-African art world. Her resume is awe-inspiring. Look her up, here’s one link - https://www.sahi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Baby Hyena Up For Adoption

  Dateline: The Kruger -  Baby Hyena in Need of Adoption Last year, while traveling the roads in The Kruger National Park, his little jasiri, darling in Swahili, loitered on the side of the road every day my friends and I roamed the park in search of animals. At first, we thought, holy cow, look, it’s a baby spotted hyena - an extremely rare sighting. And she (it may have been a he, but it’s was hard to tell, so, she it is) is not fleeing from us in fear. So we took photos and oohed and aahed at our luck. Until we thought about it? Why was this little female hanging by the side of the road all by itself? In the middle of the day? Where was her mom, her clan? Hyenas run in large groups; we were confused. Why was this baby all alone? Sadness overwhelmed us when we realized that she was on her own without knowing how to fend for herself.   We passed her several times; she was always there, in the same spot. Once, when we slowed down, we were shocked because she approach...
Post a Comment
Read more