Pachyderms & Rhinos, OH WOW!

I need to be brief, mainly because I'm still digesting the experience.
After the pervious week working on the the rock walls at the well sites, We've just returned from another week stint in the bush. We traveled light, one set of clothes, canvas bedroll and maybe a toothbrush that's all. There were sixteen of us together under the stars, each night cooking over an open fire, no tents and less then 300 liters of water for all to last for cooking, drinking, and whatever. We traveled in open vehicles, suffering from near hypothermia when a cold front swept across the veld that brought snow to Sossevlie to dehydration when the east winds returned the desert to it's hot dry norm.
The veld and desert area is called Damarland and we were somewhat north of Brandberg Massif. This is the "home" of the desert elephant and we found the H1 & H2 herds. We followed these groups for two days and because of our trackers skill and experience a number of times we found ourselves amidst the herds, with one young bull actually nudging the truck, and a mother with a new born calf passing within a handful of feet of us. Quite remarkable since these are wild herds, not park animals and more familiar with mans darker nature.

On our last days we turned to the deeper desert. This is a rugged uninhabited area where dry sandy river beds are the "roads."
As I said for a number of reasons I need to be brief, but let me just say after hours of open tracking we found a solitary black rhino.

I must leave, I'll write more later but now as we head in different directions, we say farewell to some remarkable people who shared and helped make the last weeks memorable. Next Mary & I head to north to Etosha.

MH Holden PLS
[email protected]
Tacoma WA
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