The wake up calls came about 5:30am, before the sun was even breaking the horizon of the wide plains to our east. We gathered at the dining tent for a warm breakfast on a chilly and damp morning.

Coffee was ready and appreciated

We joked that Donnie’s adamant statements about how “it never rains here this time of year” are surely what brought the rain shower the night before during the Dry Season. Johnny and Nigel (our Professional Hunters) explained how it might change where the animals would be given the change in water supply over night.  But our hearts and heads were filled with excitement at the prospect of what we might see.

After coffee and other forms of caffeine, the girls were ready!

Team Worley and the Replacements were off by 6:30am in one direction and the Draeger Safari in the other. I had no idea what the day would bring, I just wanted to be invisible and do as I was told – after all, Big Game Boys Monty and Jim were serious and committed to the hunt, so Amy and I would have to Ooh and Aww in silence (ok, that didn’t last long.)

We had been less than 2 minutes from Camp when Johnny and the trackers spotted our first thrill – two Cape Buffalo. They were bigger than I could have imagined in my mind and now I understood their name. Their horns covered their heads like capes and scrolled out from their heads into sharp and fierce points. They huffed and off they ran much quicker than their size would suggest. Amy and I simultaneously whispered “Wowwwwww” for the first of one zillion times that day.

Next up – Topi. I will quickly run out of adjectives to describe all of the animals we came upon, but the Topi has the most marvelous hide. At their shoulders, they stand taller than their back end, so they seem to always have their chest out, large and proud. When they run, they change direction like a cutting horse, the front end goes down and they spin around on a dime.

You may not have an appreciation for the conservation of the species that hunts like this can provide. Even growing up hunting in Texas, I was searching for answers in how all this could justifiably work for the betterment of all, and I not only gained knowledge about how the ecosystem works for the prosperity of the land and the animals because of efforts like this, but a huge amount of respect for those that have the passion and commitment to ensure the survival of both. In Tanzania, the rules and regulations are designed very specifically around the sex and age of an animal that may be hunted. I saw ethics, morality and compassion play out in the hearts and minds of all involved, from the trackers, to the game wardens (who were with us at all times), to the Professional Hunters (who were our guides, and our protection and who judged the appropriateness of the animal to be hunted), to the camp staff, to our own hunters. Each one respects God’s creations, the Laws of Nature and concept of hunting over and above taking of animals.  It was calming to see this all in harmony.

We saw the Laws of Mother Nature at work on that very first hunt. Jim got an older Topi and moments after, the next male had already taken charge of his herd. We watched as he pranced and snorted, our eyes wide as we watched it play out. Here he is.

Ready to take over

Who knew by 8:30am we would be back at camp already? It had been a busy morning. But after a quick snack (Johnny’s tummy was already rumbling, something we would start to anticipate each day), we were back in the Land Cruiser to our next stalk.

We decided to track those Cape Buffalo close to the camp. So out of the truck we climbed. I think for most professional hunts, you’d probably feel a little loud with 4 guys walking around – imagine our clown car – 1 Professional Hunter, 2 trackers, 1 game warden, 2 hunters, 2 wide-eyed girls, and 1 guy that Johnny just liked to have around. Johnny wasn’t messing around though – he always made Amy and I “Salad Up” – which meant we wore camo that looked like a bowl of salad all day, every day. Amy went by “Guacamole” Salad, and I went by “Taco” Salad. You can see we took everything seriously.

Since it had rained the night before, things were a little wet, but I think it made the tracking easier and we found our Buffalo. We stalked as quietly as a gaggle of 9 people could do and got pretty close. They led us into the swamp and we followed them a good way. Sloshing quietly – no one told Amy and I to bring rubber boots……At one point, we were staring at them face to face, when the game warden pointed out an onlooker to Amy and I. A couple of Hyenas wanting to see what all the fuss was about. (I think these were the guys hanging around my tent the night before.)

Eventually, the Cape wandered off further into the swamp and we called it. We sloshed back to the Land Cruiser and off we went again. And talk about Noah’s Ark – I think we saw a million animals just that first morning:

Northern Carmine Bee Eaters  – simply the most spectacular birds I have ever seen;

Northern Carmine Bee Eater

Fish Eagle – alot like our Bald Eagle, Brown Snake Eagle – humongous nests! Tawny Eagle; Lizard Buzzard; Coppery Tailed Coucal; Guinea Fowl; Black Bellied Bustard; Zebra; Giraffe; Oribi; Warthogs; Gray Duiker; and Roan Antelope just to name a few and I think that was all before lunch.

We drove all the way to Vundu Fly Camp where we had lunch and a siesta – as long as the animals were sleeping, we thought we would too.

Looking fabulous in my “Salad” at the Malagarasi River

We learned alot about efforts to stop poaching on the leases we were on – more about that later – but importantly – we learned that it’s not just the poaching of animals that are a problem, but even that of trees like this one – the African Mahogany is endangered because poachers can make a years salary by selling just one tree. This is a rare old one and we had a lot of fun gathering it’s “magic beans” – anything to bring good mojo.

giant African Mahogany

On the way back to camp after a very long and adventurous day, Monty got his Warthog. It was my first experience with this creature up close and I was amazed at how prehistoric he looked. Nothing seemed quite right, as if from another planet. Bumps in places you wouldn’t expect, strange hair like an old man as his mane. And strangely enough, over the next several days, these scary looking and extremely aggressive animals would find their way into my heart and make my tummy shake with laughter every time I saw them run.

Team Worley and the Replacements

The sun set as we were making our way back to camp to join the Draeger Safari and compare stories over a campfire and great food. Wow – what a day…..