Modern safari: Cadys experience unique vacation
Staff reporter
There's Kansas wildlife and North American wildlife. But those don't compare to African wildlife.
Jerry and Enid Cady of Marion recently spent a week in Africa and saw exotic animals and scenery on a unique and adventurous vacation.
The Cadys traveled through South Africa and Zambia, and stayed in Botswana. They also visited Zimbabwe and Namibia.
"We read about the trip in a Wichita Eagle travel section," recalled Jerry. The Cadys saved the section and called the travel agency.
Jerry was told by the agency May was the best time to go weather-wise and price-wise.
However, when Jerry contacted the agency, all of the slots in May were filled. Luckily the agent was able to rearrange some of the reservations and the Cadys were able to book a flight and hotel accommodations in May.
"The plane tickets were sent to us by Federal Express on a Friday and we left the following Monday," Jerry said. "Within 10 days of calling, we were on our way to Africa."
The rainy season was over by May which reduced the risk of mosquitoes and flooding.
The seasons in southern Africa are the opposite of North America — springtime here is fall there.
It was no easy fete to get there and back, however.
The Cadys flew from Wichita to Atlanta. From Atlanta they flew to Johannesburg, South Africa, which took 18 hours.
They flew from Johannesburg to Livingston, Zambia. At Livingston, they took a vehicle to the Zambezi River. From there they took another vehicle to Chobe Safari Lodge where they stayed.
The lodge was located near the Chobe Wildlife Refuge where the Cadys went by boat and vehicle within the refuge to see wildlife.
Experienced tour guides escorted the tourists at all times due to the danger of the animals.
"These animals are in the wild," Jerry explained. "They hunt on their own and are very much wild."
There was a sign on their lodge door stating the need for visitors to be cautious of hippopotamus and crocodiles in the evenings while walking on the grounds.
"The most dangerous animal there was a hippopotamus," Jerry said.
The tour guides knew the animals' temperaments, habits, and signs of danger.
"The animals didn't seem to be bothered by the vehicles and people," said Enid. More than 100 safari vehicles were in the park daily.
"While in a tour car, we would be within 20 feet of a lion," Jerry recalled. He said once when they were in a boat, a lioness with blood on her whiskers came within 10 steps of their boat.
"She just looked at us and went on drinking," Jerry said.
"The tour guides would take us right up to the lions and elephants but not the hippos," said Enid.
One way to keep the hippos out of the compounds was a low fence.
"Hippos can't climb," explained Enid.
The Cadys went fishing one time but didn't catch anything because the guide said the fish were spread out since it was the end of the rainy season.
While fishing, the Cadys noticed large birds nesting in trees over the water. Crocodiles were lying in wait under the trees while the young birds were learning to fly. The crocs were counting on the young birds failing at flying.
"The crocs would sit there and wait for those birds to fall in the water," said Jerry.
The Chobe National Park has what is believed to be the largest surviving continuous elephant population, with an estimated elephant population of 120,000.
The Chobe elephants have the distinction of being the largest in body size of all living elephants.
"The guides could tell when elephants were serious about charging," Jerry said. One time, an elephant was doing a "mock charge and the guide knew the difference."
There were two ways to cross the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe — a toll bridge or a barge. The toll bridge was too expensive for the commercial trucks to use so the drivers would wait in line to use the barge which could only take one truck at a time.
"It wasn't unusual for the trucks to wait in line for four or five days to cross the river on the barge," said Jerry. The drivers would spend their time playing cards and visiting with the other drivers.
Communication was not a problem because English was the language spoken in all of the areas the Cadys visited. The newspapers were in English as well.
The resort accommodations were comfortable with television in the rooms that provided four or five different channels, said the Cadys.
"There weren't any rafters," said Enid, "so you could see the thatched roof with the wire."
The rooms were air-conditioned and the beds were comfortable. Mosquito netting was provided over the beds at night but the Cadys did not notice any swarms of insects.
Prior to their trip and since their return, the Cadys are taking a series of malaria pills as a precaution.
Buffet meals were provided in the resort compound near the rooms. Monkeys would come down to the eating area and, if they weren't careful, the monkeys would steal food off their plates, said the Cadys.
Botswana has a population of approximately 1.5 million people. The median age for natives is 19 years of age with a life expectancy rate of only 30 years of age.
Botswana has the world's highest known rate of HIV/AIDS infections but also has Africa's most progressive and comprehensive programs for dealing with the disease.
Nearly 40 percent of the adult population has HIV/AIDS.
Infant mortality rate is 70 deaths to every 1,000 live births.
The country is slightly smaller than Texas in land size.
"It's a very impoverished area," said Enid. The unemployment rate is 30 percent, added Jerry.
Enid recalled women and children along the roads, carrying their belongings and market items on their heads. Men carried five-gallon buckets of liquid on their heads as well.
"I asked two women and a young girl if I could take their pictures," recalled Enid. "They said I could but wanted to get paid for letting me do it."
The locals lived in grass huts which were visible along the road. There was a sharp contrast between the impoverished and the affluent areas, Jerry said.
Their fishing guide lived in Namibia. During the wet season, his farm house was under water so he lived in Kasane.
"It was no big deal to him," Jerry said. He said he could not imagine losing his belongings and re-establishing a household on an annual basis.
The Cadys traveled to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and were amazed by the beauty and wonder of the falls.
The greatest natural wonder in southern Africa, Victoria Falls is known as the "smoke that thunders."
The falls form the largest single curtain of falling water on earth, measuring nearly one mile wide and 302 feet deep. When the conditions were right, the spray plume was 1,640 feet high and could be seen from as far as 40 miles away.
A rain forest was located near the falls area. A downpour of rain would occur whenever the wind shifted but the weather wasn't humid otherwise, said Jerry.
The Cadys enjoyed their experience and said they would do it again but not anytime soon.
From the time they left the motel at Botswana and arrived at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport, it was 32 hours.
Besides the travel time to and from Africa, the Cadys said it was relaxing and enjoyable.
Tourism is one of the country's main industries, said Jerry, so they want people to return and bring other people.
"We saw a lot of interesting things there we wouldn't see anywhere else," said Jerry. "I told the people in Africa if they could just to move their country a little closer to us, it would be more enjoyable."
