One Ton – A Legend
This weekend, we woke to a changed world.
The news from one of the Great Plains guides came across that one of the large tusker bull elephants was down, very near ol Donyo Lodge.
We held our breath, but it was confirmed. One Ton, a favourite of many hundreds, even thousands, of our guests and visitors to the ecosystem, will have spent time with him, photographed him, shed tears at his magnificence, and will take comfort from two things.
We would like to thank Beverly Joubert for allowing us to include her wildlife fine art photography in the imagery included here. Please visit www.beverlyjoubert.com to discover more.
The most important thing is that One Ton, in this era of poaching and hunting of large tuskers for their trophy-sized ivory, seems to have died a peaceful and natural death. He lay down with his ivory intact, as should all elephants up and down through Africa.
The second is that, thanks to the daily hard work, dedication and kindness of rangers like those at the Big Life Foundation, One Ton was well protected – as are others like him; that next generation of big tuskers.
For Beverly and me, it is a profound loss, as it is for so many. My finest memories of this wonderful landscape are of sharing hours in silence with this graceful animal, often in meditation, always in awe. Safari salama. We have literally walked in the footsteps of giants.
If you feel moved to share your photographs of One Ton from your stay with us, please use this link.
Regards and shared sympathies,
Dereck and Beverly Joubert
