Today we opted for a 5.30 wake up call and wandered up the beach for a 5.45 tea and muffin before heading off into the bush for an early morning game drive - back for 0930, breakfast and a restful day until a 1700 canoe trip, in a traditional canoe along the brackish river at the side of the camp.
Both trips revealed some great wildlife (see below); in the intervening break I went for a jog - it was a bit hot but I found that I could only jog oneway as the wind coming back was so strong and hot it was impossible to run....so I power walked instead. Having cooled down from my jog I wandered up the beach taking photographs of the beach at low tide with the sea which was way away ( today's picture)....there was also picturesque driftwood strewn up and down it.
We wandered up for lunch at 1300 - simple but lovely vegetable quiches with salad - but without realising it until too late I served my salad onto my upside down plate - and had to quickly retrieve the situation! Sensibly the plates were upside down to keep them clean in the wind while our arrival was waited in the open sided restaurant. Never mind I got it right eventually and enjoyed my meal properly served with mango to finish and no further mishaps .
Wildlife today :
Vultures, white fronted beeeater, then around a waterhole - great egret, hammerkops, giraffe, Lichtenstein s hartebeest, waterbuck and zebra - which had not been seen for several days and the park only has 6 - we saw them all. More lions this time a mating couple - the male hardly had any mane so he was not a beautiful beast - but she loved him ! We also saw warthog, a martial eagle, European roller and elephant foot prints.
On the canoe trip we saw yellow, white and red mangroves, mangrove crabs, malachite kingfisher, pied kingfisher, long tailed cormorant, intermediate egret, white striped night heron,and a green backed heron which I eventually photographed, even though he seemingly made it difficult for me as he wended his way in and out of sight between the mangrove roots.
After the canoe trip I tried to check my emails on the office computer but the system was so slow I gave up - I deleted some and opened one but the time it took was horrendous .... And dinner beckoned! Tonight it was Swahili buffet as camp was full with us and 23 people who are part of a US aid mission in Tanzania.....helping coastal communities find sources of income other that fishing. Luckily they are only staying one night and then it is back to just us!