trigona bees. Melanie frantically located the insect repellant. After
dousing herself, she passed it to the others.
‘It smells like a damn swamp,’ Melanie complained.
‘This is scary,’ Candace commented from her position in the bow. ‘I just
saw a snake, and I hate snakes.’
‘As long as we stay in the boat, we’ll be fine,’ Kevin said.
‘So, let’s not tip over,’ Melanie said.
‘Don’t even suggest it!’ Candace moaned. ‘You guys have to remember I’m
a newcomer. You’ve been in this part of the world for years.’
‘All we have to worry about are the crocs and hippos,’ Kevin said. ‘When
you see one, let me know.’
‘Oh, great!’ Candace complained nervously. ‘And just what do we do when
we see one?’
‘I didn’t mean to worry you,’ Kevin said. ‘I don’t think we’ll see any
until we come to the lake.’
‘And what then?’ Candace questioned. ‘Maybe I should have asked about
the dangers of this trip before I signed on.’
‘They won’t bother us,’ Kevin said. ‘At least that’s what I’ve been
told. As long as they are in the water, all we have to do is stay a
reasonable distance away. It’s when they’re caught on land that they can
be unpredictably aggressive, and both crocs and hippos can run faster
than you’d think.’
‘All of a sudden, I’m not enjoying this at all,’ Candace admitted. ‘I
thought it was going to be fun.’
‘It wasn’t supposed to be a picnic,’ Melanie said. ‘We’re not
sightseeing. We’re here for a reason.’
‘Let’s just hope we’re successful,’ Kevin said. He could appreciate
Candace’s state of mind. Kevin marveled that he’d been talked into
coming himself.
Besides the insects, the dominant wildlife were the birds. They
ceaselessly flitted among the branches, filling the air with melodies.
On either side of the channel the forest was impenetrably dense. Only
occasionally could Kevin or the others see for more than twenty feet in
any direction. Even the shoreline was invisible, hidden behind a tangle
of water plants and roots.
As he paddled Kevin looked down into the inky water that was covered
with a plethora of darting water spiders. The disturbance he caused with
each stroke made fetid bubbles rise to the surface.
The channel soon became straighter than it had been in the marsh, making
the paddling considerably easier. By observing the rate at which they
floated by the passing tree trunks, Kevin estimated that they were
moving at about the speed of a fast walk. At this rate, he figured
they’d arrive at the Lago Hippo in ten to fifteen minutes.
‘How about putting the locator on scan?’ Kevin suggested to Melanie. ‘If
you narrow the graphic to this area, we’ll know if there are any bonobos
in the neighborhood.’
Melanie was huddled over the compact computer, when there was a sudden
commotion in the branches to their left. A moment later, deeper into the
forest, they heard twigs snapping.
Candace had a hand clasped to her chest. ‘Oh my,’ she said. ‘What the
hell was that?’
‘I’d guess another one of those duikers,’ Kevin said. ‘Those little
antelopes are common even on these islands.’
Melanie redirected her attention to the locator. Soon she was able to
report that there were no bonobos in the area.
‘Of course not,’ Kevin said. ‘That would have been too easy.’
Twenty minutes later, Candace reported that she could see a lattice of
sunlight coming through the branches directly ahead.
‘That must be the lake,’ Kevin said.
After a few more paddle strokes, the canoe glided out into the open
water of Lago Hippo. The trio blinked in the bright sunlight, then
scrambled for their sunglasses.
The lake was not large. In fact, it was more like an elongated pond
dotted with several lushly thicketed islands chock-a-block with white
ibises. The shore was lined with dense reeds. Here and there on the
surface of the lake were pure white water lilies. Patches of
free-floating vegetation thick enough to allow small birds to walk
across them turned lazily in slow circles, pushed by the gentle breezes.
The wall of surrounding forest dropped away on both sides to form grassy
fields, some as big as an acre. A few of these fields were peppered with