By Richelle
Friday 11th of August 2017
I can only think of 3 times in my life where I have felt as happy as I did on the afternoon of August 9th. After so many months of seeing animals bound by chains and paraded like toys, the open plains and herds of wild elephants was enough to make my heart leap out of my chest in awe and excitement. Our afternoon started with a happy Dutch family, 2 parents and 2 little boys, one 10 and one 7. I instantly loved the 10 year old, he was a little shy, but bright and curious and reminded me of my little cousin back home. He didn't speak much English, but we connected straight away with his favourite memorised sentence ‘I like cats.’ Instant best friends. He also likes tuk-tuks and websites.
The family had decided to hire a jeep and driver for a sunset safari and we agreed to pile in too, to save some cash and share the experience.
There are 2 main national parks in the central northern district, Minneriya and Kaudulla. Not that you have to be in a national park to see wildlife, giant elephants are often spotted crossing the roads or hiding in the scrub waiting for a break in the traffic, usually surrounded by one or two cars, pulled over to get a photo. The question is often asked, ‘…which one should we spend our money on…’ (and it's no small amount of money, Kaudulla costs about $60 USD for 2 people in a shared jeep, Minneriya, double that). The best way, and the only way, is to ask the locals.
Every year, around August and September, the elephants venture down to the plains and the lakes in vast numbers - an event dubbed ‘the gathering.’ They roam around between the interconnected parks, so the local jeep drivers are really the only ones who know their whereabouts at any given time. Luckily for us, this week, they were in Kaudulla.
We joined a long line of jeeps at the entrance of the park, the monkeys watching on from the trees above. I have never been to Africa, but the landscape here is similar to what I imagine. We hung out of the open topped jeep, squatting to avoid the branches our driver seemingly wanted to hit. We were only 5 minutes in when we came face to face with our first giant grey elephant. He looked confused. The road didn't feel right underfoot. Backing away slowly and with a trumpeting roar, he headed into the thorny bushes on the roadside, attempting to hide. It was really, really cute. We drove on, the elephant probably sighing in relief.
A purple storm hung in the air as we followed the dirt track along the plains. It was flat, wide and dotted with the sculptural silhouettes of acacia trees. A huge lake took up the entire foreground, bare trunks abundant and ghostly. We saw a few peacocks darting through the grass and some beautiful birds dancing overhead. We rounded a large corner before the landscape opened up yet again and there before us was the ‘dry gathering’ of more than 150 wild elephants.
Babies waddled under the legs of their much larger parents. Their curious trunks sniffing the air and entwined in play. The father of the herd hung back, his white tusks brushing the grass, magical and graceful. The others stayed in a tight group, a mass of flapping ears and swishing trunks. They seemed aware of us, but unafraid. This was their territory. I assumed we resembled a swarm of mosquitos; abundant, annoying and humming uncomfortably close before darting away and disappearing before they got a chance to swat us away.
We sat in silent admiration for nearly 2 hours, occasionally moving from spot to spot, switching off the ignition and watching the herds move slowly over the earth. Lightning flashed in the east and the sun started to set in the west and it was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.
The light was leaving and the rain was beginning to fall, so we flipped the cover over the jeep and headed out of the park on muddy roads that were as slippery as ice. We all had huge smiles on our faces, knowing how special the afternoon had been. My little Dutch friend had now altered his favourite English phrase to “I like elephants.”
In the words of H.D Thoreau, ‘All good things are wild and free.’ How true that is.