Some of the places Donna-Rae and Greg traveled were well away from paved roads.  Often they would see animals that would shyly disappear before they could stop to capture them on camera.  The best time for animal viewing was at dusk as the four-legged hunters would start their evening prowling and growling.  Bunny-hugger Greg would often wait long after the campfire had died down to hear the primal screams of the hunted being caught by the hunters.  Donna-Rae would likewise wait for the sounds of the hunters, more anxiously than Greg, often believing they were sniffing or padding within inches of her inside the tent.                     

     Spitzknopf rock formation was one of the highest in Namibia.  Camping at the base was blissfully serene until Donna-Rae learned there were three cheetahs living in the rocks.  The older of the three was recognizable because it had a deformed leg from having broken it years before.  The crippled leg made it slower than the other two cheetahs and thus less successful as a hunter, therefore always hungry.  With no trees to climb or Land Rover to sleep in, Donna-Rae nervously asked Greg how they could save themselves if the cheetah wanted either for dinner.  Greg responded, “Follow me, we’ll out run it.”  Donna-Rae said that she did not think running would save her because of her loss of mobility from the Parkinson’s Disease, let alone running fast.  Greg smiled, took another sip of his swill, then said, “You’ll be able to run just fast enough to save me.”  After nearly 20,000 miles on the road together Donna-Rae and Greg had come to appreciate the other’s humor to the point they could each laugh at their infirmities, whether their own or the other’s.

Rare in the desert was rain.  Donna-Rae captured this rainbow as showers fell on Spitzknopf.  She said she thought they had picked one of the most beautiful places in Africa to pitch their tent that night.  Then she was told about the three cheetahs.