My name is Austin Stevens.
I’ve made a living photographing the most dangerous animals in the world.
Austin: “Oh, he did bite me!”
But I’ve never had to get a shot of an elephant charging straight at me…until now.
Austin: “I don’t know what to do.
I don’t know which way to go.
I’m right under the bloody elephant.
This is not good.
This is not good.”
I’ve spent years chasing the perfect shot of a wild elephant.
I know first-hand just how dangerous they are.
Austin: “Isn’t that fantastic?
That’s a complete herd.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven animals.
Eleven animals!
They’re actually going to move behind me.
I’m thinking just to stay where I am.
Oh, and I’ve got another one coming ahead of me.
I’m a little bit surrounded; just what I didn’t want to happen.
I’m gonna have to move, whatever happens; I’ve got elephants on both sides.
I’m completely exposed here and he’s looking at me still.”
(((elephants making noise)))
Austin: “Oh man, that was close.
I mean that’s really pushing it a little bit.
Obviously if I get in the way of these guys, right in front of their path, I’m looking
for trouble.”
But that’s exactly what I’ve been asked to do.
I’ve agreed to try to photograph an Asian elephant charging straight at me.
And believe me, that’s a whole heap of trouble.
I’ve come to Sri Lanka.
The elephants here are strikingly different to the ones back home in Namibia.
Asian elephants spend most of their time in small herds, hidden in forest and jungle.
But in the dry season, these herds are drawn to the island’s waterholes –
offering me a unique chance to use my African experience and get close to these secretive
animals.
Austin: “There should be great gatherings of elephants
at this time of year, in the dry season, coming to drink water.
And I’m hoping to get into those herds and take really close-up photographs.
But not just of any animals.
I want some of the big tuskers that are still found around here.
Some of these elephants still have tusks right down to the ground, and I want to photograph
those.”
But what I want more than anything is to get a tusker charging straight at me.
And this is the perfect place to get that shot.
A small island off India’s southeast coast, Sri Lanka is home to four thousand elephants.
Most of them are hidden away in remote forest areas.
But the first elephants I see are right here in the city of Kandy.
I’ve never seen anything like this at home.
There, these powerful beasts are virtually untamable.
But up close, it’s easy to see the differences between these and the African elephants I’m
used to.
Smaller ears, patches of pink and, most striking of all, no tusks.
Strangely, very few Asian elephants grow tusks.
In fact, there’s thought to be less than 70 tuskers on the whole island.
So finding one will be quite a challenge.
Asian elephants are often used as beasts of burden.
But these ones are here for a special reason – the same reason I’ve started my assignment
in this city.
Austin: “Because tonight there’s a massive parade,
which includes elephants, and I want to see this and get pictures of that first.”
The Esala Perahera procession is famous for its tuskers.
These sacred animals are central to this Buddhist festival.
Austin: “Look at these elephants!
And as far as I can see up the street, they’re still coming.
More and more elephants.
Each one completely covered in lights and cloth, beautiful gleaming bold cloth.
All of them have got tusks, with a gold sheath on the tusk.
Magnificent animals.”
The procession climaxes with the arrival of the Maligawa tusker.
Austin: “Look at the size of their centre animal.
That’s the most sacred elephant of all.
It’s the only animal considered sacred enough to carry that casket, which holds the tooth
of Buddha.”
The legend of the Buddha’s tooth is deeply felt here and the tusker bearing the relic
is especially revered.
Austin: “It is the most magnificent parade I have
ever seen in my entire life.
I long ago lost count of how many elephants there are.
More than sixteen.
If I could be that fortunate in the wild to see that many elephants, I’m gonna have
a good trip.”
But seeing those enormous tusks has got me thinking.
Do I really want a pair of those charging straight at me?
I’m in Sri Lanka to photograph a charging elephant – probably my most foolhardy assignment
yet.
But before I attempt that, there’s one last place I want to check out.
Austin: “Look at him, wah!
There we go.
It’s a spectacle cobra, beautiful snake that you find in Sri Lanka.
You often find cobras and other snakes in areas like this, especially around temples
like this.
The snakes are revered, and so nobody tries to fool with them.
Nobody wants to kill a snake here.
Now, of course, cobras are highly venomous.
Wow.
These guys are neurotoxic.
They have a powerful nerve-destroying venom.
You don’t wanna get bitten by ‘em.
Listen to him hiss.”
Particularly striking is the pattern of circular markings on its neck.
Austin: “Cobras said to have once made a hood to
shade Buddha from the sun.
And Buddha blessed the cobra by placing his fingerprints on the back of his hood.
The cobra doesn’t mind, as long as he doesn’t see any sudden movements.
It’s a beautiful story.
Oh, see that?
He’s just watching all the time; he’s on guard.”
Austin: “Just listen to this guy hiss.
In actual fact, it’s not a true hiss.
A snake has got one long lung, about a third of the length of its body.
Takes a deep breath and exhales forcibly and that’s what you’re hearing, that whoosh
of air leaving his lung.
And if I touch him and I play with him a little bit, then he’s going to give me a blast…just
like that.
Just an extra puff to show you that ‘I’m dangerous; keep away from me.’
A good warning.
The minute I move away, he’s going to move away as well.
Okay boy, thank you for that little visit.
You are stunningly beautiful.
I’m gonna go find elephants.”
To find wild ones, I’m going to have to leave the central highlands.
I’m heading for an area eighty kilometres north of Kandy, in the tropical lowlands,
where patches of jungle hide herds of elephants.
Austin: “There’s an elephant, right there by the
shop.
Look at him, just standing there, all on his own.
I don’t see anybody with him; I don’t see a mahout.
It makes me wonder, is he wild or is he tame?
That’s unusual.
That’s unusual.
I wanna go check that out.”
I wonder if the shopkeeper knows what’s going on right outside his store.
Austin: “Good morning.
It’s a wild elephant?”
Shopkeeper: “Yeah, wild elephant, yes, uh.”
Austin: “It’s not dangerous, eh?”
Shopkeeper: “No, no, no.”
It seems this elephant is a regular visitor.
He’s just one of may who pass through the area.
Austin: “So it’s okay if I take a picture?
It’s no problem?”
Shopkeeper: “No problem, sir.”
Austin: “No problem at all.
I take picture of elephant.
Thank you very much.
Thank you for helping me, eh?”
Shopkeeper: “Bye.”
Austin: “Thank you.”
Austin: ”Hello you gorgeous thing.
Are you a gorgeous thing?
This is an amazing story.
This is a wild elephant.
Can you believe that?
It’s a wild elephant.
But this is in his range.
He actually crosses this road every now and then and had been doing that for the last
seven years or so and stops over at the village over here.
So they’ve been feeding him, and he’s actually got used to that and he comes quite
regularly.
You’re so gorgeous, aren’t you?
This is something that wouldn’t normally happen.
I mean, elephants, they’re usually skittish of people.
But this guy’s exactly the opposite.
He’s adapted completely.
He’s taken to these people.
And, of course, elephants are quite sacred around here.
So they’re quite happy to have him, as long as he doesn’t do any damage.
And so they feed him bits and pieces and he loves it.
And he’s become a completely friendly old bull.
Hey, you’re a big boy.
He doesn’t even mind you touching.
I mean, you’d never believe you could touch a wild elephant.
Never believe that, not in a hundred years.
It’s wonderful.
And he’s so gorgeous.
Let me get a couple of shots.
Look at him looking down at me.
I’m looking for elephants in the wild.
I’m never gonna get this close, I wish.
But it’s fantastic to just see how enormous they actually are.
Go on, there he goes.
He’s had enough.
Off he goes.
That’s fantastic.
I’ve gotta be on my way too.
That was an incredible encounter.
I mean, I’ve been right up to a wild elephant.
He’s taking a walk across the road and I’m going across the road too.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
So there definitely are wild elephants in the area.
I just didn’t expect to see one at the bus stop.
Austin: ”Who would have thought my first wild elephant
would be basically shopping on the side of the road, you know?
Isn’t that fantastic?
I’ve got some good information from the owner there.
He told me the farmers buy from him and they’ve been saying there’s a lot of elephants moving
through the fields here lately.
So it could be I’m in a good area.
I just want to find a way off this road and into the jungle and see what I can get.”
I’m looking for somewhere a bit wilder, where I might get my chance to photograph
a charging elephant.
This looks like the perfect place to start my search.
Austin: ”Just look at that – elephant deterrent.
Farmers put these up to keep the elephants out of their crops.
Of course, we know an elephant could bash straight through this if he wanted to.
But they’re quite sensitive and the noise will put them off.
But it’s a sure sign that there are elephants in this area.”
It’s also a sure sign that there’s a farm nearby.
Austin: “Hello.”
Farmer: “Hello.”
Austin: “Ah, good.
Your house?”
Farmer: “This my house.”
Austin: “Yeah.
I’m looking for wild alia, I want to take picture.
You can help me?
Yeah?
We go find some wild alia?
Yeah, fantastic.
Show me the way, show me the way.
Excellent.”
This all seems a bit too easy.
I don’t know if this is the guy the shopkeeper told me about, but it’s obvious he has a
problem with elephants.
A single elephant can devour up to two hundred kilograms of rice a day.
Just one could destroy this field overnight.
That’s why farmers here keep careful tabs on how close the elephants are getting.
Austin: This is an elephant path.
Find elephant, yeah.
Okay.”
Farmer: “Okay.”
Austin: “Alright, thank you.
Thank you.”
Farmer: “Thank you.”
Austin: “Very much.
It was a good job.
Okay, keep well eh?
Ciao.”
The farmer says this narrow little trail is the elephants’ main route into his field.
The elephants here stick to well-worn forest paths.
And these trails look really well used.
Austin: “I was right.
I was right.
Look at this.
You see this?
This is mud here and here.
It’s still wet.
There’s an elephant walking just ahead of me somewhere.
He’s been dousing himself with mud and water.
He’s moved through here and his body’s rubbing against it.
And look how tall he his from his back, his back going through.
Look at this.
Look at that.
He’s been right through here.
Look, even on the leaves.
It’s so fresh, there’s still mud on the leaves.
I’ve got an elephant walking just ahead of me somewhere.”
It’s one thing finding the clues left behind.
But to spot the animal itself, I’ll need to get dangerously close.
Elephants kill around 60 people a year in Sri Lanka alone.
They easily outrun a human.
Austin: “Got him.
I got him.
Look at that.
Woah, these guys are fast.
Watch him go.
They puff up and they strike out.
They can bite like mad.
It’s a bronze-back tree snake.
Fast-moving guy.
Watch him, watch him, watch how he can balance.
See him strike out there?
Look at him, he’s lunging, he’s lunging.
He wants to get away.
He’s lunging at the next thing he can climb on, which is right over there.
Look at that.
Because he’s used to climbing from one branch to another, so he can hold his body right
out full length, look at that.
Go on.
Are you settling down now, eh?
Yes.
And they’re so prehensile.
Watch this, I’m gonna show you the length of his body.
Let me just get his head.
No, I don’t wanna hurt you, there we go.
Just take your head.
I’ll show you the length of his tail because you can’t tell from the, from the topside.
That’s all body, body, body.
And you go right down to the anal scale, down here.
Tale starts there.
All of that is tail.
Long thin slender tail.
Look how thin it gets.
It gets like a needle thin.
So with this tail, he can hook onto any branch, he can hang, he can hold himself in any position
while the rest of his body’s searching out where he can grab next.
Fantastic.
Really maneuverable snake.
What a nice boy.
You’re such a cute boy.
I love your face.
I just love your face.
Look at that, he just loves it when I tickle him.
Yeah, he’s calmed down; he’s a pet.
Within five minutes, he’s a pet.”
Austin: “Alright, I must get a picture of him.
My camera’s down here.
Let’s see if I can get a shot of him.
I’ll have to leave him just on my hand, because otherwise, if I let him go, he’s
just gonna be gone like a shot.
But he’s fantastic.
That’s nice.
Now he’s not even in a panic.
If I release him again, he’s just gonna sit there and take his time and move off.
And that’s exactly what I’m gonna do.
Put him down in the forest.
You’re a gorgeous boy.
That was so nice to see you.
Put him right back here.
There we go.”
Distraction over, I get back to the task at hand.
Austin: “I’m right on top of the elephant.
I’m right on top of it.
He’s just right here.
See what I mean?
You can’t see them; they’re camouflaged.
I’m just gonna move to behind this tree.”
I’ve got to hope I can read this guy like I would the ones back home.
Austin: “Oh, he’s turned to face me.
See his ears flapping?
The elephant is right here.
He’s right here.
You know what it is?
It’s the middle of the day.
What I’ve come across is a dozing bull.
Because I’ve seen no sign of any other animal here.
But he’s just dozing and he was eating a bit or flaffing about a bit, almost like a
warning that he’s there.
Watch it.
He’s actually looking at me.
He’s actually looking.
That’s as close as I want to get to this guy.
I’m gonna leave him alone.
It’s been fantastic.
I almost walked right into him.
It’s incredible to see how well camouflaged they are.
It’s a good warning for the future.
But I’m gonna slowly move back and leave him alone.”
This guy isn’t in the mood to charge.
And even if he was, I’d never get a clear shot in here.
I’ve probably got a better chance back on the farm where the ground is more open.
Austin: “I was fortunate running across this guy.
He’s been really kind to me.
He’s let me stay in this little tree house of his.
This is what he actually uses to spot elephants at night.
He, he sleeps up here because the elephants come and raid his crops.
And he has to keep an eye out for that.
So he’s allowed me to stay up here in between.
So I can walk out all day every day and come back.
I can use this as a base.
It’s really, really fortunate.
Make a big difference to me.”
So I settle down for my first night in the forest.
[shots heard, farmers yelling]
Austin: “What’s all the noise?
Ah, there’s elephants in the field.
That’s what’s going on.
So they’re throwing crackers up into the air and trying to frighten them away.
You can’t blame them, of course.
They’re gonna chase the elephants away.
The elephants are gonna come and eat their popos, their bananas, everything.
Yeah, that does..ah, jeez.”
With the  farmers doing all they can to scare elephants
away, my plan to get close is going up in smoke.
After a long, sleepless night I convince myself that I’m never going to get my shot here.
Austin: “I woke up, picked up my camera, was about
to take my blow and blow the lens clean, and look what I found.
A tarantula.
A big boy.
It’s a male.
And he’s enormous and I’m not keen on spiders.
What worries me is where’s he been all night?
He’s been moving around in here, probably walking all over me.
They don’t attack people; I’m too big to be eaten.
But if you fool with them and they get mad, they lift the front legs up with the fangs
like that and they can zap you.
And they’re a very, very painful bite.
They’ve got fangs that about half an inch long.
I wanna bring him out here gently, have a bit of a look at him.
But they can scurry very quickly if they get upset.
And they can jump and they can move fast.
Ah, I’m nervous of spiders.
I don’t like spiders.
He’s enormous.
I don’t want him in bed with me.
I want to walk him out of here a little bit.
Ooh.
Look at the size of this guy’s fangs.
It’s amazing.
The fangs are right in front.
Right over there.
Woah, I don’t like this.
I don’t like them too much.
I’m, I’m nervous of spiders.
I’m gonna just gently touch him, get him moving so he can just go.
There we go.
Off he goes.”
A hundred and fifty Sri Lankan elephants die every year in the battle for food and land.
This relationship between people and animals is just too fraught here to get the photographs
I need.
I need to find somewhere well away from people.
Not too far from here, there are some ancient reservoirs that attract thirsty elephants
during the dry season.
The nearest is at a place called Minneriya.
As the reservoir is meant to be just beyond these hills, I decide to go on foot.
Looking back the way I’ve come, the main obstacle facing me becomes clear.
Austin: “From up here, it’s easy to see the problem
I’ve got to finding wild elephants.
I’ve got this beautiful water and all the jungle around it.
This is what they want.
All around that is farmland, more and more farmland.
And the elephants have to cross through that, past the people, in other words, to get to
that water and jungle.
This is becoming a problem.
And the people, of course, are always frightening the elephants away ‘cause they don’t want
them amongst their crops.
So the elephants are becoming skittish and disappearing.
Harder and harder to actually find wild elephants.”
Hopefully down there, on the other side of the hill, things will be a little wilder.
But in Sri Lanka, it seems you’re never far from the modern world.
[auto rickshaw ice cream music]
Austin: “How are you?
Hello.
I can get an ice cream from you?
Eh, I can’t believe I’m getting an ice cream all the way out here.
I’m lucky today.
Give me a sucker, anything.
That would be fantastic.
Thank you so much.
I’m glad you stopped.
Alright.
Thank you.
Ciao.”
I hate to admit it, but the modern world does have a few things to recommend it.
[auto rickshaw ice cream music]
But it doesn’t bode well for finding an unspoiled patch of wilderness.
A two-hour walk takes me to the water tanks of Minneriya.
And in the surrounding mud, are the unmistakable signs that elephants have arrived ahead of
me.
Austin: “Look at these elephant footprints.
Fantastic footprints.
I mean, they’re so deeply imbedded in the mud.
But they’re so confusing.
I mean, because of the slip and slide of the mud, I can’t even make out for sure exactly
which direction he was either coming or going, or if there was more.
But there were elephants here.
The thing is, this is very soft now; it’s dry.
This is old.
There’s already flowers growing up in here.
Earlier in the year, this would of course have been covered in water.
Sometimes eight to ten foot deep.
There’s only a bit of water over there.
Now I can see it in the distance.
So these elephants are moving through.
I don’t think this is too fresh.
I’m not right on their trail, but there’s definitely elephants in the area and that’s
what I’m after.
So I’m gonna head close towards the water.
Where the water is, you will always find elephants.”
Austin: “Just look at this place.
I’ve been following elephant sign everywhere through the forest.
All seems to be leading here, and I can see why.
Idyllic place for elephants, plenty of grass, surrounded by forest, so they can feel secure.
But it is the middle of the day now; it’s really hot.
But I imagine they come out here from any side – I’m not sure when.
If I can stake myself out somewhere behind a dead tree or something, somewhere safe,
and just wait, I might get the elephants actually coming to me.”
One advantage of the waters receding is that it’s left these huge grassy plains – perfect
feeding grounds for elephants.
But the main draw is the water itself.
At this time of year, elephants from far and wide are migrating to these last few pools.
But despite the fresh footprints, the reservoir appears deserted.
Then suddenly I spot a herd way out in the open.
Austin: “Just look at this.
I’ve got a whole herd of elephants.
There’s thirty or forty animals.
A lot of young ones with as well.
Now, I’m gonna just creep just over the rise.”
This is very unusual.
Asian elephants tend to live in small family groups.
So seeing this many together is really quite rare.
Looks like I’ve hit the jackpot!
Austin: “They’re not even detecting me being here.
They don’t smell a thing.
The wind’s quite strong in my favour.
But the grass is so green here.
You can see how lush it is.
They’re enjoying it.
They’re eating as much as they can before they actually go to water.
The water’s just over there; I can see it.”
Away from the safety of the trees, these animals get extremely nervous and can become dangerous.
But I have to move in.
Austin: “I really gotta get closer.
I just see like a grey line through the lens.
This is a two hundred mill.
I wanna put on my wide angle and get that close that I have to look up at the elephants.
That’s what I really want.
I’m thinking if I can just crawl up to there.
But I’m completely exposed here.
I don’t want, I don’t want them to see me.
I’ll just drop my kit.
I’ll just see if I can go a little bit closer for a few more shots.
I just don’t like being in the open like this.”
Austin: “There’s one on the right.
He’s been keeping to the side, almost as if it’s on watch.”
The narrow trunk and head tell me it’s a female.
Her size and confidence suggests that she’s the matriarch – the herd’s experienced
leader.
Austin: “She’s right on my butt here.
And I don’t trust her one bit because there’s young ones here.
Moving across.”
She’s just seven metres away now.
Austin: “She’s got her young one with her.
That’s what worries me.
Here she comes.
She’s looking this way.
They’re all looking at us.
Okay, we’ve got problems.
Baby’s come up for security.
It’s all up to this matriarch.
If she decides something’s wrong, she’s gonna let the whole herd know.
If she decides it’s okay, then they’re going to pass.
We’re right under the bloody elephant.
I don’t know what to do.
I don’t know which way to go.”
If she decides to charge, I’ve had it.
Austin: “When in doubt, take pictures.
It’s the young one that me nervous because he keeps coming closer; he’s curious.
And then mom comes with him.
I’ve got about four metres between me and these animals.
I don’t know what to do.
They keep coming forward.
She’s so close, my pictures are no good because I’m looking straight up into the
sky.
With her looming in the front, she’s just black.
This is exactly what I wanted, but now that I’ve got it…uh-oh.
This little one is right here.
Uh-oh, there’s one coming from behind, another female that’s coming straight ahead.
She’s curious.
She’s come to look at me.
Oh, and she’s chasing the young one away.
Holy mackerel, what’s going on here?
This elephant’s getting too close.
The matriarch’s turning away.
That’s what I want.
She’ll lead them off.
Holy mackerel, she was just about on top of me.
She must just keep going; I don’t want her here.
Keep going, keep going, keep going.
I’m shaking so much, I can’t get the pictures.”
Gradually, the herd moves off.
And the matriarch is the last to go.
More elephants than I ever thought possible, and I got so close, I couldn’t dare get
the shot I wanted.
This is one of the most amazing elephant spectacles I’ve ever seen.
But there’s not a single tusker here.
And there’s little chance that other elephants will join a herd that’s already so incredibly
large.
If I’m going to get my photos, I have to move on.
Reunited with my vehicle, I’m heading twenty kilometres west to Kala Wewa, another ancient
reservoir.
It’s surrounded by swamp forest.
So this time, I’m hoping there’ll be slightly more cover to protect me.
Even out here, there are people eking out a living, fishing the shrinking floodwaters.
Austin: “Hi, guys.
Hello.”
Fisherman: “Hello.”
Austin: “I’m looking to go to the other side.
Can you take me, please?”
Fisherman: “Yes, yes.”
Austin: “Yes?”
To get to the swamp forest, first you need to cross the swamp.
Austin: “Got it.
Thank you.
Thanks a lot guys.
If I come back, you’ll fetch me?
Okay.
Thank you.
Cheers.”
Things immediately look promising.
Austin: “Look at the size of these prints.
I mean, wherever you look here, there’s…
Ah!
I got it.
I’ve got him, ah!
Yes.
It’s a rat snake.
It’s one of the biggest rat snakes.
These guys get up to about ten foot long sometimes.
The only way I’m gonna have a good look at this guy is to get his head.
Relax boy.
I’m not gonna hurt you; I just wanna talk to you a little bit.
Watch him puffing up.
He’s flickering his tongue and he’s got his throat slightly puffed up.
He’s warning me now.
If I just touch him, he’s gonna go for me.
Ah!
I don’t wanna get bitten.
A nasty bite.
Maybe a hundred little teeth in there.
If he actually bites onto me, they twist and it makes lacerations like you can’t believe.
You could get stitches from a little guy like this.
Rat snakes are known for their aggression.
Look, come on old boy.
You’re such a good boy, come on.
Relax a bit.
Relax a bit.
This is looking for trouble.
I’m relying on him relaxing when he realizes that I’m not trying to hurt him.
You’re gonna get relaxed?
He’s relaxed.
Ah, I just made it.
I just made it.
Look at that.
Oh, that’s a bit nerve racking because if you take him just an inch back from there,
he’s gonna let you have it straight away.”
Austin: “See, because he’s got his mouth open,
you can clearly see the esophagus, which he can push forward.
And he’s doing it right now.
And when like this snake swallows something big, like most snakes, swallows a large rat
or something, pulls it down, it fills his whole throat.
And to enable him still to breathe while he’s doing that, he pushes that esophagus right
forward and opens it up.
So he can breathe with that esophagus pipe sticking out the side of his mouth, even when
his whole face is full of rat.
They are powerful constrictors, but they don’t wait for they prey and grab it and constrict
it; they chase after it.
That’s why they’re so fast.
They move like grease lightning and they grab their prey and then they throw coils around
it and they squeeze it.
Also, what he’s doing right now, what you can’t see, you see over there, maybe if
I show you.
He’s secreting fluid over here from the anal gland, and that stinks terribly.
And it’s the last defence that something that’s grabbed him might let go when it
smells that terrible fluid.
There you can see he’s actually got the cloaca open, the gland’s on the side here.
Aw, pungent smell.”
Austin: “What I’m gonna do is just take him and
release him on the side then.
What’s, ah.
Oh, he did bite me.
He did bite me.
I didn’t see that before.
I’m actually bleeding.
He got me in the leg while I was jumping around.
Ah, just shows you, eh, how sharp those teeth are.
It’s like hypodermic needles going into you.
You know actually know until you see afterwards.
Thank goodness he’s not a venomous snake.
Wow, that’s quite a lot of blood too.
I wonder how he got me there.
You got me so you could smile.
It’s okay.
He says, ‘I love it, I love it when I bite them.’
He’s gorgeous.
I’m gonna take him and let him go now.”
It may seem crazy to be relaxed around snakes and nervous about elephants.
But there’s no doubt in my mind which is more dangerous to get close to.
Austin: “There’s elephants.
I’ve got a whole herd of elephants, just coming out of the edge of the jungle.
It’s incredible.
One minute there’s nothing; the next minute there’s elephants everywhere.
They’re like ghosts.”
This is just what I needed last time around.
Austin: “I’ve got a really good position here.
Lots of trees around me.
I’m well hidden, I’m safe.
The trouble is the elephants are also hidden in the trees.
I’d like to get closer, but I’m nervous.
I want to see which direction they’re moving in.
I’d like to get them coming out into the open.
That would be great.
And I could see what I’m up against.
‘Cause elephants are coming out of the bush all the time.”
Sure enough, the herd starts heading out into the open.
“I’m just gonna stay with them and follow them for a while.”
This is just perfect.
Austin: “I found one.
This is what I’ve been looking for.
It’s an enormous tusker; he’s got enormous tusks.”
Austin: “Look at the length of those tusks.
He can barely get his trunk to the ground and his tusks are already touching on the
ground.
These are just like the ones I saw in Kandy, bigger maybe.
There’s actually two animals here with big tusks, but the one is much bigger than the
others.
I wanna get some close-up shots of this tusker.”
This is a real find.
Remember there are probably fewer than 70 tuskers in the whole country.
To find one in the wild like this is something really special.
Austin: “Obviously a very successful little herd
as well.
There’s babies of every stage.
Watch those babies playing.
They’re so at ease ; they’re so relaxed.
Tiny little babies and they’re fighting and tussling.
The young ones, they’re so young.
They’re already testing their strength against each other.
And there’s another animal there.
The tusker’s big, but there’s one elephant bigger than the tusker, but it’s got no
tusk.
But an enormous elephant.
Look at the size of him next to the tusker.
He sticks out above.
Wow.”
I’m getting some great photographs.
And with some luck I might just get the money shot – a charging elephant.
Austin: “There’s a certain amount of jostling
going on.”
The bulls are competing for mates.
With tempers running high, a charge may be imminent.
And before I can decide on my next move, the situation erupts.
Austin: “Holy shit.
Stay where you are, guys.
Stay where you are.
Stay where you are.”
Austin: “That tusker’s coming to sort it out.”
Now there are three deadly elephants in the mix.
Austin: “It’s like a test of strength.
They’re getting closer and closer.
This is not good.
This is not good.
They’re right in the way here.
Turn away, turn away.
There we go.
Turn away.
The big tusker seems to be wanting to settle everyone down.
Just go past, guys.
Just go past.
Wow, that was nerve racking to hear that sound.
They were coming straight towards me.
Holy mackeral.”
A tusker charge!
I can’t believe it!
My heart is still racing!
Austin: “Everybody’s settled down again.
It’s incredible.
A few moments of total pandemonium.
The ground is shaking, your ears are bursting, they’re going berserk.
And then ding, ding, ding, ding and they’ve changed their minds again; everything’s
sorted out.
And what amazed me the most was that big tusker.
He’s obviously got some authority in this herd.
He just moved in and he tried to separate the two.
And now everybody’s settled down; it’s back to normal.
I love elephants.”
It all happened so fast, I’m not sure what shots I got.
And it looks like I won’t get a second chance.
It’s only afterwards, when I review my pictures, that I realize this trip has worked out incredibly
well.
Austin: “And it started with the elephant parade,
when I saw that first enormous tusker.
And then, when I finally got into the forest, I got my own wild elephant that was right
amongst the herd that were actually feeding all around me.
And then, suddenly, two bulls fighting, almost on top of me.
And then, like the cherry on top of the cake, I got that tusker coming towards me and I
got my pictures.
That was incredible.
That’s an experience I’m never gonna forget.”
