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Uganda and Ethiopia - Feb 2013 - Murchison Falls, Senkelle, Bale Mountain and Awash


Safaridude

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From my earlier post on Murchison Falls:

 

"Paraa Safari Lodge is perched atop a hill overlooking the ferry station on the northern side of the Victoria Nile... Curiously, the staff village is situated several hundred yards below the lodge near the ferry station, and the lodge staff wander between the lodge and the village at all times. Of course, dangerous animals such as hippos wander between at all times as well. If you Google search for “Murchison + hippo charge”, you will get an idea of what this several hundred yard stretch is all about. Apparently, the man survived with just an injured arm."

 

I meant to do this earlier but forgot... here is the link to the hippo charge story: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1208479/Shocked-gamekeeper-runs-life-ton-hippo.html

Edited by Safaridude
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  • 2 weeks later...

Great trip report, Safaridude - a real beauty. Some of the pictures provoked a sharp intake of breath - not just because of your skill with the camera, but because of what it recorded. The parks you visited couldn't have a better ambassador.

And I am learning my antelopes - slowly but surely I am learning them. You can tell me about Soemmerings Gazelles 100 times without much long-term impact, but show me one lovely picture (the females) and I'll not forget them now.

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Thank you for the kind words Pault. We never got close to any female Soemmering's gazelles, but they can be seen in the herd photo.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm up to Sport in Somaliland. For an antelope collector, you have to be pleased with the variety of species and the variety of activities they engaged in for you. So my favorite antelope (nyala) comes in Mountain variety!

 

Fantastic bird shots. Who spotted the Cape Eagle Owl? Good thing you weren't 20 minutes later or the shoebill might have been gone!

 

The wolves making rodent kills and bonding are wonderful.

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Thanks Lynn. Dom (guide) spotted the Cape Eagle Owl.

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I remember the hippo charging incident you mention from back in 2009. Yikes! You have done it again with eloquence, fantastic photography, and humor (porn on the kob!!!). Ethiopia will benefit too, as your report will undoubtedly send more visitors.

Along with @@twaffle, I am hating you for the same reason! ^_^

 

Looking at your Ethiopian antelope species, I am seeing far more similarities between nyala and bushbuck than I had previously detected.

 

So many wolves! Do you know if your experience is typical or if you were exceptionally lucky?

 

How did you come to pair Murch Falls and Ethiopia together? Do you think your # of days allotted to each Ethiopian park was about right?

 

Back to your collecting--how many new antelope species did you see on this trip? And do you have a favorite? Nyala is mine. My criteria was not only attractiveness, but I liked the story of the white makes on the face is where god held the antelope's head in his hands and kissed it.

 

A couple of odd collecting notes:

 

In college I knew a guy who collected old, discarded combs, trying to get into the Guinness Book of World Records. He figured he would have no competiton. Who else would collect old combs? Well, one day when he bent down to pick up another specimen on the ground (Ewww, I know) somebody's hand grabbed the other end of the comb. After a brief tug of war, it was determined there were at least two individuals in the world seeking the same record.

 

My collection is playing cards that I find individually on the ground. I am intrigued by the randomness of it all. It began when I found the Ace of Spades while celebrating my 21st birthday. I thought that was a symbolic start. To be part of my collection, it must be a single card, not a lost deck or a part of the deck. I have cards from all over the world and though I have way more than 52, I have not compiled a deck.

 

So an antelope photo collection is nowhere near as strange as a lot of other things you might collect.

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That @@Safaridude gets around! Now that I am reading your explanation, it is all coming back to me now how the itinerary took shape.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Safaridude
On 4/20/2013 at 11:52 PM, Atravelynn said:

That @@Safaridude gets around! Now that I am reading your explanation, it is all coming back to me now how the itinerary took shape.

 

All your questions well answered by former member while I was away...

Edited by Tdgraves
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Atravelynn

How nice to have a personal assistant, and such a knowledgeable one at that!

 

Welcome back.

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  • 2 years later...

post-49296-0-42672400-1448391735_thumb.jpg

 

~ @@Safaridude

 

I've wanted to have a clear image of an oribi, as I've never seen one but have heard it mentioned several times.

A French diplomat posted in Nairobi told me over dinner in Masai Mara about his oribi sightings in West Africa.

Thank you for the fine oribi image. I also appreciate the African skimmers, a species I've yet to encounter.

As to the hartebeest, that's how I feel at the end of a dawn to dusk day spent grading student homework...

Tom K.

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