The Essence of the Journey!

Mutinondo - Birding big day

Expectation, excitement, full of emotion, I awoke.  Today was going to be a big birding day 5 lifers maybe.  I hummed contentedly to myself, the sun had not yet risen as I put on my summery sandals.  Some early morning coffee, and then I’d be off.  There was a bit of a breeze I noticed, oh well, nothing that a few warm rays of sunshine would not brighten up.

There were three feint stars left, and the rosy hue of sunrise was starting to show as the strong coffee was well received.  There was a chill in the air surprising I thought for a location 12 degrees south of the equator.  The family were snug, warm in the tent, not thinking of getting up yet.

It had been a slog to get to Mutinondo.  20000 kilometres, having not taken the most direct route, sheared chassis’ of trailers, but this was the locale of our Miombo birding hotspot.  The place where we were going to see Anchieta’s Barbet, Lead Coloured flycatcher and their friends.  The breeze, now a wind, had picked up.  Cloud cover had moved in, disturbing the rising of the sun, the birds were not calling.  The script was unraveling at a horrible rate, there was no time for re-takes, I had to focus.

The site that we had picked for our camp looked over some beautiful whale backs.  These granitic masterpieces had risen from the earth’s crust millions of years ago, and separate the different valleys in the region.  Some of them were hollow as you walked over them, almost giving off a basal drumbeat with each step.  Beautifully odd. 

The high-pitched, creaky, metallic sound of a sunbird, awesome, Miombo Double-collared, not a lifer, but nice to see in the area.  Bulbuls, Turtle doves, starting to chatter, maybe the script will get back on track.

Climbing the whalebacks gets the circulation going and the view is really spectacular.  In the valley below, the sounds that characterize a river falling hard over unforgiving rock, filters through the brachystegia and julbenardia.  Perhaps a stroll down the valley would provide more birds.  I suppose I should hold myself responsible for pitching up in May in Miombo, for the

quietness.  However, these birds are resident, they must be around?  There are fruits around and we even saw some flowering proteas (Protea angolencis) coming in yesterday.

The river is darkly coloured, largely thanks to the dark bedrock it flows over, the water is crystal clear.  Faeces of a small predator, perhaps side-striped

jackal directly on the path.  Even though the waterfall is loud, one should still here some birds, its prime time, where are the spurfowl, kingfisher or even greenbuls?  The sky is still cloudy, the wind is getting louder and it is really quite chilly – no sign of the sun.  Up the valley we go, perhaps a barbet, anything.

With the birds not flirting at this time of year, it has been incredibly tough.  I do not consider myself a novice birder, and yet, my results today prove otherwise. 

It is easier to see a Shoebill than Anchietta and her friends.  If only a whaleback would fluke it’s tail…