By Peyton Foster, of College of Saint Benedict / Saint John’s University
This day was a rough one for everyone at Dizhana Camp in Mababe. As we all rose from our tents and set out to get ready for the day, our instructors had us circle around the kitchen table for a group announcement. As we started in on our usual morning breakfast of tea, coffee, and porridge, our instructors informed us that Round River had to make the difficult call to end the program early due to COVID-19. Although life had been peaceful in the bush, we learned that South Africa was issuing travel bans and lock-downs, with Botswana likely to follow… if we delayed, we might not be able to make it home. Needless to say, it was an emotional conversation for all of us.
Ben, Shay, and Dix told us though that we would be going on one last game drive before we packed up to leave. All of us; students, instructors, escort guides, and others from Dizhana Camp, piled into some of the vehicles and tried to enjoy the last day we would be spending out in the bush. It was a good drive, and we were able to see quite a bit on our short trip. We drove by a pool of water filled with hippos, and the ground surrounding the water was dotted with various species of birds, some of these being white-faced whistling ducks, knob-billed ducks, and Egyptian geese.
Mababe is beautiful for its water – we passed a slow river full of hippos and waterbirds. At some point we came to a more open spot and decided to get out and take photos together. Past us, to our left, was the river, and beyond that were a small group of wildebeest and an elephant moving through the brush. On the branches of a dead tree, a flock of knob-billed ducks rested. Often with the sun in our eyes, we gathered and to take photos together, some serious, many silly. In quite a few of the photos, the birds and elephant could be seen in the background.
Back at camp we set to work packing, organizing, and loading our stuff into the vehicles. The local escort guides Rasta, Collin, and others helped us, and we all climbed around the water tower that was in the camp area to take a group photo of all of us together. We said our last goodbyes before heading back to Maun.
At the Round River house, we were welcomed back by the neighbor’s dog, Nana. Her happy greeting was greatly appreciated as we unloaded a bit and started making calls to parents and planning return flights home. It was a bit hectic for a while, but things calmed down shortly as we settled in to entering some of our remaining data and playing card games.
For dinner that night, we had a wonderful time at an Indian restaurant in town. We laughed and joked about the situation we were in and about how we would have to adjust back to the colder climates back home. It was a bittersweet time for us, but we tried our best to make the most of it. After dinner back at the house, we spent the remainder of the evening around a campfire in the backyard, enjoying each other’s company, and being surprised by Adam’s music playlist.
I couldn’t have asked for a better group to get evacuated due to a global pandemic with, and I am excited to continue spending time with them, if even at a distance.
