THE SOUND OF THUNDER

The sound of thunder is ominous. It is the pending sound of violence. The date was June 2014. I had just completed my first safari of the season and was privileged to have experienced some of the finest hunting of my career. Iwas returning from my Kafue concession in Zambia and had a story to tell. June is considered early season and there is still much moisture around after the rains, which usually dissipates in May.

For whatever reason, the usual big herds of buffalo had not yet crossed from the Kafue National Park into my Kafue concession, as they would normally do at this time. There was quite a bit of lion activity, which could make for a viable explanation, but it meant our pickings were slim. However, all was not lost as the game scouts found evidence of some lone bulls up against the communal belt occupied by the Kaindu tribespeople – the traditional landlords of this area. Here the soil was clay and dominated by the thick and long Hyparrhenia grass varieties. Buffalo seek out this damp, dense cover, and hunting in it was electric and very exciting indeed.

These grass stems were