Untitled Document

In French:

Rolf and me have decided we had enough to do Game reserves by car, not enough tiring, so, on Friday, around lunch time, we left, on our way for a unique experience: a trail in Umfolozi, in the wilderness area. This trail is very exclusive because of the 30 000 hectares of bush in the rough, human didn`t interfere at all since they discover this area, so the bush here is like it was when the first deutch immigrants, arrive in Cape Town. No electric wires, no roads, nothing built, only bush and wild animals ...

The trail takes 4 nights and 3 days of walking. Friday afternoon, after a quite drive, 3 hours later we were in Mpila camp, main camp in Umfolozi. We had two hours ahead before getting to the start point of the trail: the camp of Umtinzini. So we drive around the reserve, during 2 hours, we saw 3 black rhinos (the most agressive and rare one), a few antelopes and buffalos. At 05 pm, we get to Umtinzini, very nice camp, close by the river. We are not the first, a spanish couple is already there: Daniel and Esperanza. The other members of the trail arrived later: an english couple, and an american couple, 8 people in total with Rolf the German and me the Frenchie, it`s like a world tour.

Only missing the ranger: Dennis, young ranger just out from school: 25 years old, and all his teeth. During the briefing he is quite tough with us, He warns us: no electricity, no water, only the one from the river, for the shower: a bucket tied around a tree, in the middle of the bush, and the toilets: a shovel, some toilet paper, and a box of matches. Very primitive principle, there is a little path leaving from the camp, going through the bush, if the shovel against the tree wherre the path start, the toilets are available, so get the shovel, find your place on the path, dig a hole, do your stuff, burn the toilet paper, because of the hyenas who can disintegrate everything, so you avoid the paper to fly all over the place, and finally you fill up your hole. The others look at Dennis like he was a martian, for Rolf and me, that just sounds perfect !! During the briefing an Elephant was drinking on the other side of the river, what was cheering up the troops.

After the biefing, we had a nice dinner around the fire, with or future mates, It was like a world cup with all these different nationalities. Rolf and me start to tell very bad stories of animals attack to our tourists, just to put some pressure, stories of angry lions eating tourists, or buffalos charging. After hearing the hyenas shouting, everybody went quickly to bed, exept the british who played cards with Rolf and me. At 10 pm, only Rolf and me were sitting around the fire with our beers.

The next morning, we wake up with the sun rise: at 06 am, the ranger is already ready, I can see that this guy is dangerous, cool ! He advised us to leave our watch and cellphone in our cars, they give us a bag to put all our stuff. The bags will travel on the back of the donkeys, and will wait for us at the primitive camp. After a big breakfast, we left for 3 days of walk in the bush, 20 cases per day, under a hard sun, with snakes, mosquitos, and plenty of other very friendly animals, cool ! what are we waiting for? let`s go !

First step: crossing the river, I know now why the ranger is wearing sandals and a short. So, everybody follow Dennis`s fashion: short and bare foot. Are there any crocs in that river Dennis ? answer: "sometimes". Women and children first, please. The water was quite cold, good to wake you up, not easy to warm up. I knew I should have start a diet ! damned .

The walk: very nice, even if you don`t see a lot, only the pleasure to walk in silence in the bush, in line, always looking behind the bushes, just in case something would wait to jump on you, that`s great. We first cross a forest, to meet the river in its curve, a little bit further. First stop to get some rest, on the top of a hill, with a nice view on the river. Everybody sitting on a big rock, in front of you: the bush as far as you can see.A few buffalos were resting on the sand of the river, and further, a black rhino appear to drink, during the hot time of the day. Now, let`s go walking...

The stops were frequent and long, because of the heat, you get tired very quickly. That was nice to stop under the shadow of a tree, eat something, drink a little bit, and observe the bush living around you, very peaceful. On the way we met a white rhino, very curious, he follow us during 500 meters, he looked very surprised to meet stange animals looking a little bit like baboons, standing up, with a backpack. And then, a few buffalos, who were sleeping on the shadow of the accacias.

The ranger was very interesting to listen to, he knows a lots of interesting stuff about the bush, trees, plants, animals, ... I was asking him questions all the time, may be he was getting a little bit piss off with me. So to charge me, he make me catch a turtle in the mud, after catching it, this bitch, piss on me, and that`s stink badly ...

In the afternoon, new stop, Rolf and start playing "bok droll spur", means in afrikans: split impala`s shit, the goal is to split as far as you can, in the mean time try not to choose a shit too fresh ...

In the evening, we finaly get to the camp, after crossing the river again. The camp was like dennis describe it to us: very primitive but confortable, with tents, matelas and blankets for the night. My legs are a little bit tired, but it`s not too bad, I thought we will walk more. Every evening, we get to the camp two hours before night, to have time to get a shower, and get ready before the night, because after: no light, just the darkness, you can`t go further than 5 meters from the camp.

Bad news: one of my beers exploded on the way, as it was on the donkey bag (I didn`t get a lots of clothes, only what I had one me, so I used my bag for beers ...), but the good news: this beer was on rolf`s bag, who didn`t take a lots of clothes as well. I only have two beers now, what a shame, so I went to drink one of them by the river close to the camp, looking at the sunbelt on the bush, that the time of the day I prefer. Just before it get dark, I went for a shower, you have to warm some water from the river in a big pan before. What a pleasure to take a shower in the middle of the bush, strange feeling to be naked in the bush, with just a bucket over your head, full of hot water after a day spend under the sun and in the dust. that was my best shoer ever !!

The kitchen of the camp, the cooker is the twin brother of our black ranger: Richard.

Evening around the fire: Top ! under the stars, listening to the sounds of the bush, watching the fire burning, all that, lying on a confortable matela, after a good meal, that`s life !! The fact to don`t have any watch change your life, you eat when you are angry, sleep when you are tired, and that`s it. In the evening, Rolf and me were always the last to go to bed, I suppose that the young couples were more busy than us, once in their tent ... So we were having some nice long evenings, near by the fire, until late for us !! at least 10 pm !!! aproximatively, because without any time reference, you don`t really realise, you just know that the sun is going down around 6.30 pm.

Next morning, same story, wake up with the sun, breakfast, hot coffee, prepare your staff for the day, cross the river, and let`s go for one day of walk. This day (Sunday already) was particularly hot, so for lunch, we stop by the river, and had a swim with Rolf, plus some fights, tackles, jumps and some other stupid games. The idea of having a swim in the middle of nowhere is terrific.

In the afternoon, walk along the river, we met two white rhinos bathing, in a mud pool, we stayed around one hour just watching them, they didn`t notice our presence.

In the evening, come back to the camp, cross the river, after a while, you don`t think anymore about the crocs in the river. And then, the routine: shower, sunbelt by the river, fire, ...this night, we had the hyenas walking around the camp, we heard their characteritic shout, I can`t describe it by writing, sorry about that. Once evrybody sleeping, we heard some strange noises around us with rolf, something walking around, but we were too lazy to move, just enough energy to add some wood in the fire, just to be sure that animals will stay away from us, they will not end up our last night in the bush, like that, bastardos !!!

Next day, everybody pack his staff on the donkeys, and bye bye nice little tiny camp by the river, lost in the bush (i know it sounds like nuts, but I don`t care, that my story ok ?). On the way back, Dennis choos a new way he never take before. To explain, the way for dennis is, if we find a path (like hippo or elephant or rhino path) going in the good direction lets take it ! and we will see later.

So, his new way was very good, we saw more animals than the other days, first, a black rhino, in the thick forest, who was going to drink, but the wind turn, he smell us, and run away, pretty fast for such a big animal, I don`t to picture him going full speed in our direction hollyshit ! he disepeared in two seconds. later, we saw a white rhino sleeping in a waterhole, same story, he smelled us, and take off like a missile, unbelivable how fats he can stand up and run away, just for a strange smell, even if we were smelling quite bad after these 3 days in the bush.

After the rhinos, that was the pumbas (ref to the lion`s king, walt disney, Ok, I don`t have a fantastic culture in cinema), very funny these animals, they were very curious, they stayed a long time in front of us, checking us, I don`t know why because they are much more ugly than humans (most of the time), each time we were moving towards them, they were running a few meters away, with their tail in the air (the one we don`t get), and stop to watch us again.

later on, we met mister the elephant, who was waiting for us in a dry sandy river. We saw hime just going out from the thick bush, only a few meters away from us, and MISTER elephant is suceptible, we had to walk backwards, and stop further to watch him. He diged a hole in the sand with his front foot, one meter deep, and use his trunk to get the water. He finaly left when he saw us, to go in the protected thick bush. He diged many of these holes, eveywhere in the river. As we were following his holes, we saw a hyena sleeping under a rock, she watch us for a while, and run away. Further, 2 old male buffalos were sleeping. Good morning, many animals, even a Huge monitor (kind of Lezard) in our way.

stop for lunch, by the river (this river always present is the black Umfolozi river), we cross it just in the place were Dennis find some crocodiles tracks, cool. To get a place in the shadow, we had to get wet as it was quite deep, so Rolf and me had a swim with our clothes on. We get to the main camp in the afternoon, watch the baboons for a while, they where playing on the rocks, other side of the river: jumping in the trees, chasing each others, ... Dennis told us that they are not so far from human, if you compare them to Rolf and me.

The come back to the camp was depressing, the main camp looks definitly not the same, too modern, "me, caveman, me, want bush !" that was our mind state, Rolf and me, after the last 3 days. Last fire, and last sunbelt (not the worst one ! ...), a last fright for Rolf as he discovered a scorpion in one of the fire woods. Everybody went to sleep, so Rolf and me made a huge fire, the biggest we could do, it was so hot, we couldn`t stay closer than 5 meters from it. we went sleeping, in the morning, the fire was still burning, that was not a fire for sissies !! we get back in the car, on our way to durban, with our mind full of stories. We went straight to work, that was quite a shock !

From left to right: Richard, Corrina et Nick (the britishs),

Heather (american, her husbandi Peter is taking the picture with Rolf),

and Dennis the ranger, me, and Esperanza and Daniel (the spanish).