First visitor of the season

After many days of hard work the notorious underground elephant hide was back in action, and oh boy did the elephants waste no time getting their trunks straight back into the delicious clear water of its waterhole. 

As we sat quietly for the first time in the hide discussing the long journey we had been through to get to this very point, a herd 30 strong slowly started appearing from every angle that the eye could see. At first we had no idea where to point our cameras as we were in complete sensory overload mode, but slowly as the adrenaline calmed and we lifted our jaws back off the floor the camera shutters started clicking away. 

The herds excitement showed as the elephants ran towards the waterhole, as if their favourite theme park had just reopened. The elephants stood in line to have a drink out of the water outlet and then moved on to begin showering themselves and then ended off the sequence with a good old roll around in the dust and mud. After some time The Big Boss arrived and the party was over, the herd swiftly dispersed back into the thicket and the Cape Tutle Dove’s and Dark Capped Bul Bul’s returned to their positions along the edges of the waterhole. So consumed by the experience we hadn’t noted that 20 minutes had pasted by in a flash (or should I say splash) and all that remained where mud puddles and a very full memory card.

You know you have had a good morning at the Underground Hide when you spend the next 20 minutes of your day wiping mud off your lenses and camera bodies with a great big smile on your face.

For more on Mashatu and the Hides please click here...