I’ve found that leeches aren’t nearly as bad as stories lead people to believe, but it’s still unnerving to look down and find one stuck to my toe.
There are four main ways to navigate the area: by jeep, canoe, elephant or on foot. For many reasons, traveling by elephant is the most crucial to running and maintaining the park. For that reason, I’ll focus this article on traveling by elephant!
Mounting this tall animal is quite an interesting task. A rider stands in front of the elephant, facing inwards. Next, he or she leans to one side of the elephant’s head and grasp one of its ears in his or her hands. Then he or she leans to the other side to grasp the other ear. Pausing for a moment, the rider recenters in front of the elephant. When the rider is ready, he or she raises one foot, turning it slightly horizontal and placing it about one third of the way up the elephant’s trunk. At this time, the rider carefully stands up on that leg while the elephant simultaneously begins raising its trunk. From there, the rider slowly walks up the elephant’s trunk and over its head. Once comfortably on top of the elephant, the rider can turn around and take a seat straddling the elephant’s neck.
Steering is similar to riding a horse. There are stirrups hanging just behind the elephant’s ears that riders put their feet in. By tapping the elephant behind the ear, the rider can indicate which direction he or she wants the elephant to go. Riders also use verbal commands. For example, when they want the elephant to stop walking or to sit down, they shout out what they want the elephant to do. However, I wasn’t able to recognize the words they said.
