42 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF: RAY MABRY / JOHN BURGESS / RAY MABRY / SAFARI WEST giraffe habitat. Getting so close to these sky-high creatures is surreal. “Giraffes are kind of a weird animal,” Jeff says. “But I think that’s why we all like them.” As if to prove his point, a towering mammal two yards away assumes a wide-legged, tripod-like stance and strains her long neck to reach the sweet, green grass far below. Next, she raises her head to the nearby tree and, snaking out a long purple tongue, wraps it around some leaves before pulling them back to her mouth. “Their tongues are 15 to 18 inches long,” Jeff notes. “A good rule of thumb is that for every foot tall a JUMP IN THE JEEP When I arrive at the reserve, I’m linked with a khaki-clad guide named Jeff DaSilva for a threehour tour. Jeff wears a feather in his hat and boasts the kind of impressive tan earned from a life spent in the sun. He offers me a hand as I scramble aboard a hulking double-decker safari jeep, then swings nimbly into the driver’s seat. As we pull onto the dirt road, we pass a trio of warthogs (one answering to the name Pig Newton). It takes all my self-control not to burst into a song from The Lion King—and the urge only intensifies as we pull into the {due west} giraffe is, it has an inch longer tongue.” Apparently, a few lucky guests have received kisses from these gentle giants. As we drive deeper into the property and up into the winding wooded hillsides, we rumble along a rugged road that has me channeling my inner Indiana Jones. Fortunately, the jeep handles well on this bumpy terrain and we pull into a clearing to watch a small herd. The zebras among them are easily recognizable. “People sometimes think of the zebra as a horse,” Jeff says, but there’s another species they’re more closely related to. “That’s a stripey African donkey.” He identifies the other species as the common eland. “The males can get up to 2,000 pounds when they’re full-grown.” Off we go again, meeting wildebeests and cape buffalo along the way. Nearly back at the campground, an ostrich runs up and keeps pace with the jeep. Getting approached by this sixfoot-tall creature with its snakelike neck and sizable beak is intimidating, but the prehistoriclooking bird seems as curious about us as we are of him, and we leave on good terms.
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