South Africa 2025 -Umlani Bushcamp- The Lion King
It’s the evening of my second day at Umlani Bushcamp. We have two games per day and we have already seen a lot of animals, including many lions.
After dinner, we sit in the boma around the fire to tell and listen to various adventure stories.
Umlani Bushcamp is unfenced, except for the wire that keeps away giraffas and elephants, that’s why for security reasons, as the night falls, we are accompanied by the staff to our huts and we are forbidden to leave it alone during the night.
« Do they really enter the camp? » somebody asks.
« Yes, it happens sometimes. Once we were sitting at the restaurant and a lion came in. He walked till the entry, staid there for a while and then he walked back from where he came ».
We look at each other, half excited half scared, not really sure about what we should hope, to see a lion walking among us or not.
In the meantime, maybe the lions sense we are speaking about them as we hear their roaring.
« Are they close? »
« No, they are not, they are quite far, several kilometers away».
Warrick poses.
And then he adds:
« Believe me, if a lion is close you would feel it because as he’s roaring, your hair on the neck will stand and your blood would freeze ».
After this goodnight story, it’s time to go to bed as at 5.00 we need to be ready for the morning game.
So, I’m already in my bed about to fall asleep.
And unexpectedly, I hear it.
A powerful, merciless roaring.
It sounds frightening close.
I freeze.
All my senses are awaken and I’m scared to death as it sounds like the lion is right in front of my door.
As Warrick has predicted, the hair of my neck is standing.
I’m paralyzed by terror.
I can’t lift a finger, I barely breath.
I sincerely believe that if I stand up to go and check if the lion is really sitting in front of my door, he will eat me, so I hide under the bedsheets (as it could provide any protection).
The guy, I mean the Lion King, goes on for a good while with his roaring, at least 40 minutes, before the sounds starts diminishing.(Don’t his vocal chords hurt after a while? Question for the ethologists).
And for good measure, I stay awake for at least another 40 minutes, to make sure he’s really gone and not jumping in my hut from the shower side, that is open.
In the morning, at the coffee break, everybody asks the same question:
« Was he in the camp? »
« No, it was in the river bed ». Which still means, he was really close, less than 1 km.
Warrick looks at me and says: « You were the closest one. He was about 800 mt from your hut ».
Well, at least now I know why my hut is named the Lion one. Fair enough.
When I go back, I’ll ask for the same one.
