On our way back to camp one evening we came across a huge old bull elephant. The old bulls are often found wandering on their own. Once they reach adolescence they move out of the breeding herds and form bachelor herds. However these are quite loosely structured they will stick together, move off and as this one is on their own. The older bulls tend to form a sort of mentorship with the younger ones and as their senses fade will use the younger bulls to navigate and pick up on signs of danger. Anyway, we stopped to take some pictures with the sunset as a beautiful backdrop Having left some orange peels on the dash of the truck this big old bull seemed to pick up the scent and moved closer and yet still closer to the vehicle making it’s way to my side of the car where the orange peels were, directly in front of me. It is hard to tell in this picture but he was close. I could have reached out and touched his trunk when he lifted it up to sniff almost inside the vehicle. My heart raced as he did so, but the thrill was exhilarating. To be so close to an elephant was unreal. And I have never felt quite so small in my life. I imagine what a cat must feel like next to a large dog...a mouse next to a cat...and so on. Being back in the bush is wonderful. This kind of heart pounding rush in the city would only come from a close call at an intersection......
At first I thought this was incredible and wonderful, then after reading Graham's post, I thought this was hilarious Pen!!! You're soooo cute. I gotta say, I have no idea how I would react in that situation. The only thing I know for SURE is how much I ADORE animals (of all kind). I keep thinking how much I wish I could be that close to them too. I wish I could pet them, talk to them, hug them and give them food. I know...but you know me!! I really mean it :D LOL xoxoxo
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