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Mon Jun 09 2003 (Seronga - Mokoro)

Up at 6.45 but can't get into toilets or shower (locked). Spend a bit of time packing then get breakfast at 7.30 (fruit cocktail, egg, bacon, beans & toast). Eventually get key to toilet block at 7.50. Ready to go around 8.30, get underway just before 9. In bakkie, driver and Alex up front, me and Justin in back. 20 min drive down dirt track to where all Mokoro's are laid out on bank. Turns out Justin is Mokoro poler. Will resist tempatation at this point to get a cheap laugh from the fact I'm paying a 6ft black man to pole me for two days. Load stuff into boat and we push off. Difficult to get usedto my arse being below the water line and my head not being too far above it. Every time Justin pushes the boat rocks about a bit and I'm convinced we'll not last more than half an hour before we sink. Cross over fishing net and into large area of day lillies. These are white and open from dawn until dusk. Then through some rushes and into some night lillies, open from dusk until mid morning. Through papyrus into lagoon, 2 hippos 150m away, Justin knocks pole at side of boat then another couple appear. Last week there were 25 here. Reverse and back into 3 foot rushes, getting concerned about growing collection of wildlife in boat. Spiders running around all over the place, crickets, mozzies. We stop to watch 8 elephant on bank. My first attempt at standing, bit rocky,gets worse when I try using binocs at same time. We carry on, see loads of birds, cormorant, ibis, bee-eater, fish eagle. Have to stop for a while as our channelgoes near to bank just where some more elephant are feeding. Now getting seriously hot and I'm beginning to frazzle as I'd chosen mozzie repellent over sun block. I conduct an inventory and find I now have tens of small spiders, about 6 medium sized ones, a frog and prized possession, a praying mantis, cool as anything. Arrive at camp after around 2.5 hours. We have water on two sides, underneath huge tree with termite mound on water's edge. Clear sandy soil and pitch tent. Justin makes fire and digs bush toilet. He's lived in Seronga all his life and has been a poler for 5 years. There are around 75 polers at Seronga. Cook lunch. Justin has maize meal, I have baked beans and nuts/raisins. Spot a couple of hippos about 150m away through binocs. Wash pots and have a lie down until our walk at 4. Loads of flies and a huge black wasp that makes a noise like a Lancaster bomber. After an hour or so I can hear cracking of trees and a short while later Justin gets me out of the tent. They're almost at the camp and we stand near the Mokoro just in case. They come close then turn back a little. Then they return and get within 40m. Hippos getting restless as they're not great fans of elephant. We evacuate via the Mokoro, about 80m off-shore. Then Justin hits the pole on side of boat. Elephant in water panics and charges into woods, others follow suit, plume of dust with sounds of trees and bushes being trampled off into distance. Back to camp and bush walk. Have to change tack part way through to avoid elephant. See tracks and droppings of various antelope, hippo. Various trees with uses - wild sage to prevent mozzie bites; upset stomach cures, basket dyes. See cattle grazing up to their necks in water. Back to camp, use Mokoro to fetch loads of firewood as Justin worried about elephant returning. I drive back (just a few hundred metres) and it is much more difficult than it looks. Takes me ages and I'm knackered. Nip out to lagoon to see sunset. Get fire going, I have beef chilli and vegetable packet soup (swamp water) with a tin of corned beef thrown in. Show all photos. By time I'm done, soup is ready. Turns out really nice, and plenty of it. Hippos making loads of noises off shore, want to come in but prob scared of us. Also sounds of crickets, frogs and pair of fruit bats in tree above us 'pinging' for hours. At 9 I'm knackered and crash. Photos from today