Arguably, some of the greatest moments of our time here at Masebe have come in the form of the drives to and from habitat assessments. It may sound strange, but unlike the frustration and mindlessness of driving at home, out here it’s a blast.
Telekishi is about a kilometer from Masebe, and each Habitat Assessment site is tucked away in the park, nestled among the beautiful trees and, of course, an ample supply of wildlife. As such, we do a fair bit of driving from place to place, careening through the narrow dirt paths and crashing over bumps and potholes. Even with the morning drives—which are 40 degrees while going 50 mph—it’s always exhilarating.
One of our many freezing morning drives. PC: Kaye Zhang
Every day at dawn, before and after lunch, and at dusk, we find ourselves hurtling down the red dirt path the connects Telekishi to Masebe. The wind is fierce, as we travel at up to 90 kph (that’s around 60 mph, if you were wondering), and anything that’s not held tightly—so hats—gets carried away into the road. Baboons and vervet monkeys stare at us as we soar past, their expressions ranging from alarm to indifference, and the more days we’re here, the more roadside trees I can identify as they whip past.
Even better, though, are the drives through the park. Masebe is so divese, with everything from rocky mountaintop and rich forest-savanna to dense, jungle-like woods. Everywhere we drive is like a new adventure. One moment, we’re clinging on for dear life, laughing and smiling and clutching our cameras protectively as the truck rocks tremendously over enormous rocks. The next, we’re rolling peacefully over soft, flat earth, keeping one hand on the camera and the other out the back of the bakkie, letting the course grass slip through our fingers as the sun chases away the cold.
Faster than a speeding camera shutter…
Wildlife comes and goes in a flash here in Masebe, and we’re just as likely to see nothing on a drive as we are to slam on the breaks in time to watch a herd of impala launch itself across the landscape. Each antelope flies past too quickly to register on camera and with such agility that the boulders and trees might as well be pebbles and twigs.
We’re living the dream here in South Africa—we’ve traded squirrels for kudu and rush hour traffic for empty bush paths—and with each blurred photo and wind-stolen hat, I’m falling more and more in love with this country and everyone in it.
The Charriots: These bakkies are each two straight tons of glory. Low riding, gleaming white, with suspension tighter than a mini skirt on an elephant, these trucks are built for speed (and by speed I mean practicality). PC: Jill Gerberich
Where we fit in: Quite perfectly in the beds of these bakkies, sitting shoulder to shoulder on the nifty benches built onto each long side of the truck bed.
The Drives: Though the mornings are frigid and the path can, at times, be dangerous (spined branches, enormous rocks, a black mamba once…pretty standard stuff), nothing beats the wind-whipped glory of these rides.
Like I said, spined branches can cause drives to be quite the adventure. Here, a buffalo thorn tree snagged Maria’s hat as we reversed away from a Bird Point Count site.
THE A-LIS(H)T 