DPhillips
.375 member
Reged: 09/10/03
Posts: 819
Loc: Alaska
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"The sound came like faint thunder or distant artillery, and the first time was felt more than heard. It came again, and I tried to fix the location. It was a long ways off, perhaps toward our bait, and it was unmistakable. I listened as long as I could but finally gave in to the jet lag and fell into a sound and dreamless sleep, untroubled by phantom sable or charging leopards...
That evening as I drifted off to sleep, the lions roared."
From Mount Kenya to the Cape by Craig Boddington
describing his first evening in camp along the Kafue Plateau in Zambia.
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500Nitro
.450 member
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 7244
Loc: Victoria, Australia
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Outstanding.
It really stores up the Hunting thoughts.
I want to get on a plane to Africa right now.
500 Nitro
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clark7781
.375 member
Reged: 28/10/04
Posts: 612
Loc: Fairfax County, Virginia, USA
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One day I'll experience that. It must be one of those "closest to God" moments in a person's life.
My wife and I were doing a Kayaking excursion off the northern tip of Vancover Island two years ago. Our group came across a pod of orca whales. There were about 12 of them together and they surfaced all around us. I looked over the side of my kayak and saw one swimming underneath our boat--deep, about 30 feet or so. It surfaced about 40 meters to our right. The sound of it blowing air out of its hole was one of the coolest things I've ever experienced in the wild.
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Clark
Double Rifle Shooters Society
.500 NE and .577 NE
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shakari
.400 member
Reged: 09/02/03
Posts: 1107
Loc: South Africa
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There's some sights, sounds and smells that are so evocative of the good times in life - fresh mown grass, fresh ground coffee on a crisp morning, the snowy crown of Kilimanjaro and the best of the best is the sound of a Lion roaring as you sit around an African campfire - It never fails to thrill me & never fails to wake me if I'm asleep. 
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Steve "Shakari" Robinson
Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd
info@kuduland.com
www.kuduland.com
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NitroX
.700 member
Reged: 25/12/02
Posts: 40649
Loc: Barossa Valley, South Australi...
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A pride of lions roaring and scwabbling over a a kill is very impressive. Especially when it is only about 500 metres away in the dark. This was in the Maasai Mara in 1988 and we had been "delivered" to our camp but the vehicles had left to get the gear. Vehicle breakdowns had resulted in a 'ferrying service'. But no tents and no vehicles at the time. We had a single Maasai moran with a big broad bladed spear as a guard. No firearms.
A big male lion circled our camp from the opposite direction on his way to join the feast just outside of firelight and he grunted with each step of his left paw. The staff 'knew' him from his sound and his injured leg and said he was a "bad lion". He had treed one of them for most of a day once when first setting up the camp site.
The Massai Moran spoke of the feasting lions, pointing in their direction -
"Simba Sings"
All very dramatic and entertaining. Some of the women were very afraid. 
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John aka NitroX
 ...
Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"
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shakari
.400 member
Reged: 09/02/03
Posts: 1107
Loc: South Africa
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Some years ago I was helping a zoologist friend on a study of giraffe feeding habits in one of the private sections of the KNP - to cut a long story short I accidentally walked right into a pride of Lions that were feeding on a fresh Buffalo kill. I was so close before I realised, I could have easily kicked one or two up the ass! - Luckily they were so engrossed in the grub I was able to get the hell out of it and back to the truck. To say it scared the living daylights out of me is an understeatment........
Actually, come to think of it, I've had quite a few close encounters with Lions. - but the bush wouldn't be the same without them.......... 
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Steve "Shakari" Robinson
Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd
info@kuduland.com
www.kuduland.com
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NitroX
.700 member
Reged: 25/12/02
Posts: 40649
Loc: Barossa Valley, South Australi...
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Steve - new shorts required that day perhaps. 
I have imagined walking in the bush right up to a crouching lion by mistake and what I would do if it happened, and the brain shock must be something.
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John aka NitroX
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Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"
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shakari
.400 member
Reged: 09/02/03
Posts: 1107
Loc: South Africa
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Damn nearly John, although probably the scariest one for me was the one I told you about when I took that picture (that you posted for me)of the Lions mouth and his brother snuck up behind me and licked the back of my neck.- why my hair didn't turn white I'll never know!!!
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Steve "Shakari" Robinson
Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd
info@kuduland.com
www.kuduland.com
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Scott
.275 member
Reged: 11/01/05
Posts: 89
Loc: Florida, USA
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If that does not get your full attention, I do not know what will.
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AdamTayler
.375 member
Reged: 22/03/04
Posts: 688
Loc: B.C.
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DPhilips
The closest I have come to that was when I lived in Penticton, a semi arid area in the Okanagan valley. I lived on the east side of Skaha Lake and the game farm was on the west. During the summers, when we would get incredible sunsets, the lions would roar and the sound would carry across to me. Pretty cool. At the same game farm, I was standing at the lion cage when the big male walked over to me, turned, lifted his tail and sprayed me. When I got home the cat went sideways.
Clark
I was taking a live aboard sailing course around the Gulf Islands when a very large sea lion passed us heading for the closest beach. A minute later a pod of killer whales broke the surface chasing the sea lion. We turned the boat around and followed at a respectful distance. The sea lion was about 500 meters from shore and the pod had disappeared; the calm before the storm. Suddenly a big orca exploded out of the water under the sea lion, taking him in it's mouth, and fell onto his side. The other whales dove right in and the water was churning in a 100 foot circle. While the orcas were feeding a seal bobbed amongst them and they did not even take notice. I think I would have felt a lot more vulnerable in a kayak.
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It's the journey, not the destination.
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