In Africa, water is the most precious commodity, except in the wet season which we happen to be right smack in the middle of. In the past two days we have seen what the wet season in Africa truly means. A sunny scorcher, can turn into a fury of lightning and a flash flood of rain in minutes.  Without a cloud in the sky, I was enjoying a dip in the pool at my camp site. In the distance, I can see clouds forming and a roar of thunder silences everyone in the pool. Luckily this storm passes by us in the distance, but two days ago we were not so lucky.

As I closed my eyes to go to sleep I could feel the thunder shaking the ground beneath the tent. Looking up through the mesh window all I could see was the starry night sky, so I went to sleep. A short while later I am awakened by a slight spray of water. The sky had turned from clear to menacing in a very short time and I realized that I didn’t have long to batten down the hatches. I ran outside, forgetting about Puff Adders and Black Mambas and zipped down all the rain covers on the tent. The second I was back in the tent, the sky unleashed a torrent of rain that I don’t think I have ever seen. The fire was snuffed out in seconds and our dusty camp site turned into a mudslide.  It is times like these you are thankful for Gore-Tex Tents!