A HUNTING TRIP

 

I have never been a morning person but this particular morning I woke up at 5:00 a.m. I surprised myself. Maybe it was adrenaline surging through me, I had slept at a friend's house. Three of our friends were there as well. It seems that they had just woken up and were just as impatient & excited as me. All of us quickly scrambled to our feet and brushed our teeth. We had a quick breakfast and later we changed into something durable. This was going to be our first hunting trip & we couldn't wait to get started!

Once we were done packing some essentials for a trip which included  tents, skewers, marshmallows, food and water. We said our goodbyes & took the taxi for the burrari hunting UAE.

We reached Barari Hunting around sunrise. We headed inside and signed up . The hunting was going to begin at 7 o'clock at the base camp. We had just enough time to get to the base camp which took 10 minutes to go by foot. When we arrived, two people were already present & by the time we set up it was already 6:55 a.m. Three more people had arrived after we had gone there, one of them wore a vest which had the company logo and indicated that he was going to lead today's hunt.

Exactly at 7, everyone gathered around and the leader made sure everyone was there. The instructor gave us our maps & hunting spears which also included crossbows. After instructions, we were divided into two groups which consisted of four people. After everything was settled, all of us headed out. It seemed like my heart was in my throat. Everyone was silent. I could practically hear my heartbeat. It was 7:30 am when the instructor said:  “From here onwards, the two groups will head in opposite directions . Once you are done hunting, you will use your maps to come back to the base camp.Each one of you has been given a compass & these small devices, this way we will keep track of your location in case you get lost here. Make sure to be back by 11:00 a.m. Good luck and safe hunting!” He had installed small devices in compasses and added trackers in the small devices and with that the hunting began.

By the time we spotted our first onyx it was 8:28 a.m., we quickly got out our crossbows and aimed for the Arabian oryx. Two of us shot the onyx using the cross. He dropped to the ground. Dead. We cheered each other out of pure joy. We didn't have to carry our kill back with us, but had to leave a tracker on it so it could be removed by one of the staff.

Heading back took longer than anticipated. We kept walking in circles and got lost. Turned out my friend holding the map was holding the map upside down. I sighed  and corrected her map but she was treated with angry glares from our friends.

We reached the camp around 10:00 a.m. We were the first group back. We sat patiently in our tents. While sitting down I remembered the sheer excitement and joy I had felt that morning. I also remembered the utter astonishment & fascination I felt along with the adrenaline rush when my arrow had hit the Arabian oryx.The only thing  I could feel now was tiredness and pleasure. I was very happy. Overjoyed. It was my first hunting trip & the best experience I ever had.

 

Maheen Zafar X O