Face it. Schlepping over to Africa to hop into a zebra-striped tour bus in order to try and spot an elephant or two through the forest of blue hair surrounding you is so over. So done. Luckily, in the game of life there are eccentrics and innovators. And South Africa’s Alwyn Wentzel is both. He’s very hard at work in the mud and muck of the Amazulu Game Reserve, developing the latest wrinkle in Wetass ecotourism: frog safaris. The idea is simple. Spend all night crawling and wading through the swamps and wetlands of the 30,000 acre reserve in an effort to spot as many frog species as possible. Sort of like bird watching, except you try to grab the frog so you can really give it the once over. And, oh yeah, you have to watch out for snakes, crocodiles and lions (the crocs look like little red lights moving through the darkness toward you). “Frogging is physical, it’s challenging. Unlike game viewing or birding you have to get in there and get dirty,” Wentzel said as he sloshed through the muck in search of quarry, a headlamp lighting his way through the inky darkness.
Now, don’t get overexcited and think you’ll be cataloging hundreds of the leaping critters. A good night will yield, umm, ten species. So I guess it’s more about the journey than the destination. But think of the safari tales you’ll be able to tell back home (“His powerful legs hammered me in the face, but I still managed to whip out my digital camera…”)
Big Little Game?: “Dammit. I don’t mind all the attention. But why are all the French tourists carrying pruning shears and licking their lips…?” (sorry, Frederic, couldn’t resist)
The Earthist Chronicles 