Kenya
Tsavo National Park
Expedition No. 2
Our second expedition was a trip to both Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks. This expedition focused on wildlife ecology. It was on this trip that we first saw elephants. I actually can't remember too clearly which of these pictures were taken in Amboseli National Park. I think we spent more time and saw more at Tsavo than at Amboseli.
The picture at the left might have been taken at either park. I only remember that it was too damn early in the morning. The previous night, I was on cook crew. That meant that I was on clean-up crew, too, so I was up until at least 1 o'clock a.m. Then, a mere 3 hours later, at 4 a.m., we were all herded up a hilltop to see this sunrise.
Tsavo's Red Soil
The area in which Tsavo National Park was located had soil that was rust red. So, termite mounds were just as red. These mounds were at least waist-high.
Refreshing Stop at a Waterfall
We had been driving around for several hours and were hot and tired. We came across a unexpected sight—a waterfall. Nearly all the students jumped right in, despite some vague warning I heard about some illness-causing parasite.
Hippopatomi
The first time we had seen hippopotami was also in Tsavo National Park. Despite their docile appearance, they can be one of the most dangerous animals in Africa. Forget lions and hyenas. Hippopotami move to dry land during the night to forage. Feeling vulnerable and near-sighted, they are aggressive and will charge and mow down anything that even sniffs at them. Lions, at least, have the good sense to shy away from humans.
Fertile Land
Kenya isn't as dry and yellow as you might first think. It does rain! Our frequent need to push our rovers out of the mud is excellent evidence of this. Pictured on the right is a river we happened to cross in Tsavo National Park.
Men in Mud. Woot!
If I remember well enough, after we had seen the hippos, all of us were gathered together doing something, when it suddenly started thunder and pour. We scrambled to cover up the rover roofs and get under shelter. The male students took this opportunity to get dirty by wrestling in the mud. After the fun in the mud, I remember it clearly. Derek, one of the faculty, had come back to the rover I was in. He needed to clean himself off, and without modesty, happened to flash a few of the students in my rover. I was not at the proper angle to be among them.
Wilburforce!
Once the rainy season started, getting stuck in the mud was as normal as getting ticks on our socks. In this particular episode, two of our rovers were driving one behind the other when we came across a commercial tour bus. The rover ahead of mine hit some deep mud and got stuck. The cocky commercial van thought it could do better and zoomed right ahead into the mud. It promptly got stuck, too. We were nice enough to help them get pushed out.
Oh, I haven't explained the section title, have I? Well, in my rover, we watched all of this unfold. Emily and Jen thought that we should chant "Wilburforce" over and over to bring us good mud-skipping vibes. Don't ask me why. Hey, it worked.