Our last stop on this journey through Ethiopia was a small National Park called Chebera Churchura. High up in another mountainous region of Ethiopia, this National park barely features on any map. Like many of the Ethiopian National Parks, preservation of the natural habitats has come second to development, and a massive tarmac road was being cut through the forests like an ugly amazonian logging road. We’d come in search of one of the last strongholds of elephant in Ethiopia- and the enchanted forest in which they roam. We had arrived a little early in the season and the vegetation was still incredibly thick. Walking was a high-alert, high-adrenaline activity as we wandered the forests catching glimpses of Bushpigs.
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| Camped in an enchanted forest. |
We were very fortunate to catch some good views of elephants, occasionally clambering into trees to see above the ground cover. The real highlight of this park came the last night, when we took a walk that took us past some hot-springs that were frequented by people and their cattle. As we returned, the local rangers suggested that because no one was around that we sit on the rocks above the springs and see what might enfold. A troop of baboons came down and began their politics, but oblivious to our presence they created an atmosphere of trust, and minutes later, a Giant forest hog wandered into the clearing. A sow with hog-lets joined him. As we sat, filming and photographing, more sows came out and as the darkness began to threaten, we counted a total of 21 Giant Forest Hogs.
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| The Giant Forest Hog and hoglets are a forest species. |
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