PORT ST JOHNS

Walking from Mbotyi Huberta had to walk inland, then half way to Port St Johns move to the coast line.  Zooming in on the google map will show just how rugged the coastline is from Mbotyi, nearer to Port St Johns it changes.  Huberta's stay in Port St Johns was interesting with lovely stories and experiences that people related.

"I am an experienced traveller, I know the best hippo

 restaurants and accommodation"

An aerial view of the town, the river

and the market place with trees can

be seen.  Huberta was close to the 

water and the market place had delicious

grazing..  Here is the story.

In the early hours of the morning she was found in the Market Square making a meal of the green grass which grew there.  As soon as she was discovered, she dashed off into the darkness - but the next night the determined Huberta was back.

As she was happily grazing, torch light shone on her.  Huberta hating the blinding shafts of light which were like evil eyes peering out of the blackness of the night at her, she charged at the people holding the torches before making her escape!

Exactly the same thing happened on the third night when she came back once again to feed on the sweet grass in the Market Square - but this time, when the lights of the torches were turned on her, she simply sat down on her haunches like a dog would do!

There she sat, staring back at all the bright, unblinking "eyes".  Then, slowly she heaved herself to her feet and casually trotted back to the river which was her temporary home.

Una Blomefield a young lady of 13 years was living in Port St Johns at the time of Huberta's visit to the area.   Una's father was the bank manager of the town.  She remembers that some of the townfolk did not believe that Huberta was there at first, until she was sighted.  Farmers complained of their crops of mealies being trampled and would not leave their huts at night for fear of meeting up with Huberta.  Una tells her story:  "Huberta always seemed to go wandering at night, very little during the day.  One evening friends and myself were sitting on the bottom step at the jetty talking, it was dusk and not easy to see very much.  Suddenly, only a few feet away, Huberta surfaced and blew out her breath across the water.  We got an awful fright, jumped up and ran home."  She told her father what had happened and he shook his head and said: "Lassie you have just missed a golden opportunity to see Huberta.  She could not have climbed the steps anyway."

Another funny story was about a Mr Ramsay, who was a very short man.  He was going home late one night from the pub when he met Huberta along his path.  He got such a fright that he clambered up the first tree he could find.......it happened to be a thorn tree!

The market place and the jetty as seen today