According to legend, Tarzan of the Jungle rode on an elephant’s back. Hannibal and some of his soldiers rode on the backs of elephants over the Pyrenees and the Alps to win three major victories in the Second Punic War in Italy. In India, the elephant was once the mount of kings and royals. In Africa, however, elephants have always been wild, and apart from a training school in the Belgian Congo between 1900 and 1950, there’s no documentation of the domestication and training of the beast.
Yet, in South Africa today, many people – such as my wife and I – are taking to riding elephants for a chance to get up close and personal with the world’s largest land mammal. And while getting close to other large creatures is usually something of an adrenaline rush, getting close to elephants is somehow different. It’s a more profound and moving experience – thrilling and calming at the same time.
Elephant “sanctuaries” have sprung up all over the country in the last few years. From Knysna to Haartbeespoort Dam and the border of the Kruger National Park, interactive elephant encounters are more widely available than ever before. But they are not without controversy.
It’s an emotive issue and there are many who would condemn the practice of training elephants, saying they belong in the wild and that’s that. I’ll agree with that sentiment in the case of circuses, but it’s not such a simple, cut and dried issue and there are many big grey areas involved, if you’ll excuse the pun. What of orphaned elephants? What of compulsive crop raiders facing the gun? What of those destined to be culled? Is there another destiny for such animals?
In my mind there is, and I can tell you that a life at Elephant Whispers is a viable and acceptable alternative to no life at all. Am I an expert on elephants? Well, yes and no. I’m not a veterinarian or some other kind of self-proclaimed animal psychologist or “whisperer” yet, as a safari guide, I’ve been around wild elephants countless times, often in close-up situations where determining the mood of the animal is paramount in keeping out of harm’s way.
And to me, the six elephants lined up in front of us as we began the Sunset Interaction and Elephant Back Ride activity at Elephant Whispers were quite content, feeding happily on sugar cane and stock cubes while we were given an introductory talk by general manager André Kotzé.
Far from using violence or the threat of violence as a training tool – something described by André as the Indian method, which goes back centuries in India and South-East Asia – the methods at Elephant Whispers are relatively new and are based on the ask-and-reward principle, where every desired action by an elephant is rewarded positively through touch, kind words and a handful of cubes put into the end of the waiting trunk.
These methods were pioneered by Rory Hensman, elephant trainer and partner in Elephant Whispers, over 20 years ago when he ended up with two young orphaned elephants on his farm in Zimbabwe.
Since then, Rory has been directly involved with the successful training of over 80 individual elephants and has a natural gift when it comes to dealing with one of the world’s most intelligent animals.
After the introduction talk we were introduced to the Elephant Whispers team – elephants Tembo, Ziziphus (after the buffalo thorn tree Ziziphus mucronata), Medwa, Shamwari, Andile and Lindiwe, and Brighton Machipisa and his team of handlers.
Tembo started out life as a culling orphan and spent his formative years in a reserve in the Hoedspruit area before he took a fancy to roaming through the neighbouring fruit orchards, snacking as he went and causing damage to plantations.
Authorities were poised to destroy him when Rory stepped in and made him part of his Elephants for Africa Forever (EFAF) company, the aim of which is to set standards for elephant handlers and the management of trained elephants through a test and certificate system for handlers and the trained elephants.
Today six-ton Tembo, due to his size of 3.2m at the shoulder – and he is not yet fully grown – is the star of the show. The other five were rescued by EFAF from other culling operations and have settled well into the Elephant Whispers routine.
After the introductory talk, head handler Brighton, who has years of experience and obvious passion for the pachyderms, aided by willing subject Medwa, the young bull, gave an incredibly enlightening and humorous talk on elephant physiology. Medwa lay down on his side and Brighton began at one end and ran us through the whole system from tail-end to trunk-tip, allowing us to touch and feel as he went, Medwa all the time being rewarded for his co-operation.
Interesting facts were rolling off Brighton’s tongue all the time and I learned why some elephants in the wild have those big tears in their ears – it’s not that they were ripped on thorns but are rather a result of damage to a vein on the back of the ear, after which a portion of tissue, from the point of damage spreading outwards to the fringe, dies and disintegrates.
Brighton also mentioned that you can work out an elephant’s shoulder height from the circumference of its front foot.
We then moved on to Lindiwe, who opened her mouth to show us her brick-sized molars and soft and muscular tongue, which operates like a conveyor belt to move massive amounts of food into the chewing zone. Next up was Tembo, towering above us, and we were able to feel his impressive hard-as-concrete stomach muscles and his skin, which is hard and rough on his flanks, but in the armpit is soft.
After the body inspection it was time to go for a ride, with the other two participants on Tembo and my wife and I on Shamwari, a 14-year-old male. Even though only two of the elephants had paying passengers, all six headed out on the walk together with the handlers and the two dogs, just to keep up the sense of routine.
Riding is a comfortable, leisurely and rather aromatic affair. On level ground the gait is slow and ambling, with up to two passengers sitting behind the handler on a canvas saddle. The elephants grab snatches of leaves as they go and are pretty much always eating – and their massive digestive machine is always on the go, hence the organic aroma that surrounds them.
The half-hour walk ended at the stables, where each elephant has its own hay-lined stall, though by the time they got into the stalls the feast of fresh foliage was the most pressing priority. We, in turn, had sundowner drinks and snacks outside the stables.
My wife and I then headed back to Hippo Hollow, a wonderful accommodation venue across the Sabie River from the Elephant Whispers reserve, where we were staying for the night. We’d arrived that afternoon and spent our time bird-watching from the balcony of our river chalet overlooking the Sabie River.
For the evening we had a Shangaan cultural experience at the Shangaan River Club, which turned out to be highly entertaining, thanks to an excellent chief as the lead performer and a group of keen foreigners – Germans, I think – who were willing to be coerced into joining in with the dancing.
The ritual of dance, music and verse was followed by a “traditional” meal, perhaps somewhat more exotic than a regular pap and braai menu to the Germans, but which was very good nevertheless.
The next morning we headed home to Nelspruit, an hour’s drive away (stopping off at the Belgian Bakery at Perry’s Bridge for a few treats), feeling privileged to have been able to partake in the Elephant Whispers experience.
Of course, that’s not to say I condone all such operations, but when the right people are involved it’s a good option for animals that would otherwise have no chance in life. If you don’t believe me, then go and see for yourself.
l Contact Details: E-mail: reservations@elephantwhispers.co.za; info@elephantwhispers.co.za.
Website: www.elephantwhispers.co.za. Telephone/Fax 013 737 7876. Cellphone 082 498 4683.
l Activities and rates: There are seven different activity combinations available, from a basic Elephant Interaction to an Ultimate Elephant Experience. Others include an Early Morning Wake Up, Interaction and Ride and an Elephant Interaction and Shangaan Cultural Dinner combination. Prices begin at R495 per adult and R250 per child under 12.
l Directions: Elephant Whispers is just outside Hazyview, Mpumalanga, near the Kruger National Park. From Nelspruit, follow the R40 north to White River and on to Hazyview. Elephant Whispers is on the left after you pass through the town, and just after you cross the Sabie River.
l Children: Children under 12 qualify for child rates and all children are welcome to take part in the activities as long as they are under the supervision of a responsible adult.
l Accommodation: There are many accommodation options in the area, such as Hippo Hollow Country Estate. Hippo Hollow offers three standards of room, with the river chalets overlooking the Sabie River and providing glimpses of the elephants as they wander about with the handlers.
Contact: www.hippohollow.co.za; adel@seasonsinafrica.com; 013 737 6624. - Saturday Star