Ellies of Knysna

Sunday 1 June 2014

I have an endless list of stories I want to share about my trip back home so brace yourself lovely readers. I wanted to start with one of my favourite highlights – the day we walked with the Knysna Elephants. I actually grew up in the small coastal town of George, not very far away from the Knysna Elephant Park, but being an ignorant local, I never ventured inside. We decided to rectify this wrong this past holiday and armed with a hefty feeding bucket of chopped vegetables, we gingerly made our way over the grass to the herd of 15 something elephants roaming the forest. The sanctuary provides refuge for orphaned calves, relocated ellies and ellies rescued from culls and circuses, so some of them are a little shy and battle scarred but I think this made them even more special. We spent some time feeding these greedy giants and then were able to walk amongst them. They were surprisingly obliging, letting us rub their ears, trunks and tails and on occasion, giving us a subtle nudge when we stood in their way. It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life and if you ever find yourself in Africa, do yourself a favour and walk amongst an elephant herd.

Just take a look at that wrinkly fuzzy head!

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We were fascinated to watch them eat - they grab the grass with their trunks and then hold their trunk in place with their foot to make pulling the grass easier!

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Had to get a close up of the fuzzy head and the stubby feet!

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All images via Wishful Thinking

7 comments

  1. Gosh how amazing is this, an elephant park. I would have LOVED this as a child. Elephants were my favorite animals. I had white rubber elephant toy that I loved and took with my everywhere until it literally cracked and fell apart!

    Allie of ALLIE NYC
    allienyc.com

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  2. what an amazing experience! i have always loved elephants (but really who doesn't love elephants?!). i would loooove to do this. and if i ever make to that part of the world it will certainly be my first stop. xo

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  3. Oh, I am so envious! What a spectacular moment you had there. Elephants are so stunning, such smart and gentle giants. I love that you got to do this. And the photos are stunning too.

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  4. Oh my goodness, what an incredible experience! Elephants seem like such gentle, majestic creatures!

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  5. This is SO incredibly cool

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  6. Wait, you went back home? Wow, I'm now going to catch up with what I missed.

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  7. Elephants are my favorite animal (aside from penguins) and these photos almost made me burst into tears. Such beautiful, majestic animals!! I would love to snuggle one, they really do seem like the most gentle giants ever. xo

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