We were gameless today. Without a vehicle, we couldn’t go see any animals. We were prisoners of our own campsite. Just frittered away the day reading books on mammal identification, learning more than I ever wanted to know about scat & spoor. Gabriel spent most of his day alternately pacing and cussing. A young white couple from South Africa drove by to check on us. They thought it odd that we were just sitting around a camp without a car. They were very sympathetic and since they were leaving the park, they offered us their leftover food supplies. I was too hungry to be embarrassed. We accepted without shame or guilt. Cans of tuna, pasta, more potatoes. But we still didn’t have any meat. A pack of Dwarf Mongoose showed up and kept us company. Other small mammals and game birds came through our camp. They began to look appetizing. Guinea Fowl, Francolins, Springhares, Impala, Baboons, Vervet Monkeys. We chased the Frankies but they are quicker than they look. Gabriel was taking our hunting a bit more serious than myself.
Later at night, we made a fire and had dinner. Then we pulled up our chairs overlooking a dry river bed where game often gathers.
“What’s on TV tonite, G?” I asked.
“Black-Backed Jackal is on primetime followed by Brown Hyena on late night.”
“Pass me the remote, I’d prefer to watch Ellies In Heat”.
The ultimate reality TV.
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