Leaving South Africa

I spent another 10 days crossing South Africa from Lesotho to Botswana. On my last night in South Africa I was in my hammock near a game reserve. As the sky grew dark I heard in the distance low guttural animal noises. The reserves here have tall wire fences that remind me of the Jurassic Park movies. I hoped whatever was making the sound was on the other side of that fence. I slept lightly. In the morning I heard it again, deep and distant, calling forth in the pale morning light as the last of the stars blinked out. Through the night I had conjured up images of mammoth buffalo snorting or some sort of trophy bred impala that croons at the stars. I packed my things and started down the road to discover what was ahead. I had an answer when soon I came across a group of tired looking cows. I was laughing at myself for turning a distant cow moo into a fearsome African beast when I reached the nature reserve. Movement on an adjacent hill caught my eye. An animal hopped low among the rocks. I thought it a goat but then it bellowed. It was the sonorous cry I had been hearing. It stepped into view, a dark baboon. Looking at me it called out again and I stopped. In the next few minutes about 30 baboons crossed the road, mostly adults, babies clung to their mother's backs, a few adolescents prodded each other and tumbled on the road. When it seemed no more would be coming I continued. They had moved onto the hill and into the trees. From above the whole group stared, watching me pedal slowly past.