Hi!
To write Chanda's Wars, I went to bush camps in Malawi and Zambia to learn wilderness survival tips from local trackers. It let me experience some of skills that Chanda uses as she journeys through a vast SubSaharan national park to rescue her young brother and sister, who've been kidnapped by the brutal warlord General Mandiki.
1) Air Bubbles Mean Trouble
Check for air bubbles any time you're near unknown water -- it's a sign of crocodiles lying just beneath the muddy surface. Pay special attention to the tips of reeds near the banks: some of them may be croc snouts.
2) How To Avoid Getting Trampled By Elephants
Most lion and elephant charges are bluffs. Stand still -- usually they'll back off. If not, make a lot of noise. Whatever you do, don't run. Elephants will trample you, and if really angry will take the time to knock over any small tree you've climbed. BTW, Lions kill by strangulation, not by biting or ripping. By contrast, crocs bite and spiral to tear off a limb, which is how they take down large prey -- one limb at a time. Your only way to survive a croc attack without a rifle -- and it's a longshot -- is to stab it in the eye with a knife.
3) For Sweet Dreams At Night
To sleep safely at night, make a boma (enclosure) of acacia boughs. The thorns will keep nighttime predators away -- lions, leopards usually go for antelope anyway. (Despite their fierce reputation, leopards will usually only attack something small, like a child, never two or more adults. They carry their prey into trees, to feast undisturbed by other predators. Discovering a carcass on a tree bough can be disconcerting.)
4) Stay Awake Around Hyenas
Unless sick, hyenas won't attack when you're awake, but may rip off a chunk of your face, or another hunk of your body, if you sleep unprotected. (See need for acacia boma above.)
5) Waste Not, Want Not
In a pinch, you can survive on bush rats and monitor lizards. They taste like chicken. You just have to catch them. The rats live in nests in the ground. You can smoke them out. Bush rats are generally eaten off a stick -- skin, tail, bones and all. I passed on the rats, but ate mopani worms; these are thick grubs that live under the bark of the mopani tree. They can be eaten dried or fried and have an unmistakable aftertaste. And I mean unmistakable.
If you found this blog interesting, please let me know and I'll write one about what I learned about tracking people or animals!
All the best,
Allan
Allan Stratton
Author of Chanda's Wars, Chanda's Secrets, and Leslie's Journal
www.allanstratton.com
www.myspace.com/allanstratton
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