After creeping to about a hundred feet from the elephant..........a month but was back in the wild country in less than six months.

Elephant attack !

After creeping to about a hundred feet from the elephant, Daryl set up the tripod. He tapped his wedding ring against the tripod leg. The elephant turned, spreading its ears wide and raising its trunk to sniff the wind. Immediately Daryl recognized the animal from the pictures he'd seen. It was Tshokwane alright, and Daryl immediately began to take some shots. Suddenly the bull rushed forward, swaying its head from side to side. It did this three times. The last time, it stopped just 20 feet away waving its trunk. Daryl recognized it as a mock charge. When Daryl decided that it was time to send the bull packing, he stood up and waved his arms and lifted the tripod. It had the desired effect. Tshokwane retreated to the scrub and Daryl was on his way to meet Sharna. After he had walked for about 350 feet he looked behind and saw the animal surrounded by the lush greenery. The soft, golden light of the morning sun lit the elephant so perfectly that Daryl decided it was a scene he had to photograph. He turned and slowly walked back towards the elephant. Suddenly Tshokwane charged into the clearing. He stopped fifty feet away from Daryl, bellowed loudly and with lowered head, he charged. Mock charges were usually silent. But now, Tshokwane had its head down, its ears were flapping wildly and his trunk was curled under its chest. This time the elephant was attacking for real. Daryl immediately turned to run. Tshokwane dealt the first blow on Daryl's lower back. It felt like a punch and was probably made with the tip of its trunk. The next blow was much heavier. It flung Daryl through the thorns. Daryl found himself lying flat with his face in the ground. Before Daryl had a chance to regain his strength, the elephant was on him, stamping its monstrous legs. Trying desperately to avoid the beast, Daryl rolled wildly on the ground. Then, hoping to ride out the attack, Daryl locked his arms around Tshokwane's right foreleg. Soon, his cheek and inner arms were rubbed raw as Tshokwane dragged him to and fro in an unsuccessful attempt to get rid of him. All of a sudden, Daryl felt a crushing, stabbing pain in his left leg. Tshokwane was standing on it and grinding it. Daryl screamed in pain and managed to move his leg away. Then he felt the elephant's trunk tightening above his knee. In a flash, he was thrown into the air and he crashed heavily to the ground. When he looked up, he saw Tshokwane aiming his massive tusk at him. He tried to move but he was not fast enough and he felt the tusk hit the side of his head. Then Daryl lost consciousness. When he woke up, he was extremely thirsty. His head and right hip were throbbing with pain. Daryl spotted his revolver. If he could get it and fire three shots, Sharna would be alerted to his distress and come in search of him. He dragged himself towards it at a snail's pace. When the pain got unbearable, he screamed in agony. Eventually he reached it and raised it to fire three shots before he passed out again. When Sharna heard the shots, she knew it must have been a trampling. She drove in the direction where the shots came from. After some time, the scrub became dense and she could only see a few feet ahead. Sharna ploughed on, relying on her instincts. Then suddenly, she saw an area that looked like a battle field with huge depressions in the earth. Bushes had been uprooted and shattered camera equipment lay strewn about. In a corner, she saw Daryl's broken body. With her bare hands, she cleared the thorny branches to form a path and reversed the truck closer to where Daryl lay. Sharna gently coaxed Daryl to lift his body with his arms. Then, wrapping her arms around him, she slowly lifted him forward and upward until he was safely in the vehicle. She rushed to the hospital at 75 miles per hour. At the hospital, doctors found that Daryl had a dislocated right hip, six fractured ribs and a cracked skull. Daryl had to be in traction for a month but was back in the wild country in less than six months.

Summary: After creeping to about a hundred feet of the elephant, Daryl confirmed that it was indeed Tshokwane. Daryl took a few snapshots of him. Although the elephant made a few mock charges, Daryl managed to chase it away and was going back to meet Sharna when he could not resist taking a few more snapshots. Suddenly the elephant charged and Daryl fled. Daryl was hurled onto the ground. Next, the elephant was stamping its feet on Daryl. To escape, Daryl rolled on the ground and then locked his arms around the animal's foreleg. But the elephant was soon standing on one of Daryl's legs and grinding it. Daryl was thrown into the air and again attacked by the elephant. Daryl fainted and when he regained consciousness, he grabbed his revolver and fired three warning shots. Upon hearing the shots, Sharna went in search of Daryl. She found him, helped him into the truck and rushed him to the hospital.