ZAMBIA
river reveals itself in the pink colours of dawn. We set off on a two-hour hike through the bush, with trusted guide Innocent. We encounter elephants and a few smaller creatures as we delight in Innocent’ s explanations of plants, dung and animal tracks. A surprise brunch is set up on the edge of the river to complete the experience. On our game drive later we encounter a herd of buffalo and then there they are!
It is the same pride of lions from the previous evening, explains Innocent. There are 14, including cubs, dozing indolently in the late afternoon sun. After a sundowner stop, we spot a leopard and a lone hyena, and as we drive back to camp in the dark, the lions make their appearance again, stalking a puku( an antelope similar to an impala).
The night silence is pierced by ferocious growls and snarls as the lions pounce. We watch in stunned silence as this show of the merciless cycle of life and death in Africa plays out some 20 metres away from us. The cubs are just as brutal as the adults as they try to snatch whatever piece of the prey they can, but they are unceremoniously swiped away by the older ones.“ That puku didn’ t know what hit it,” says Innocent and we are glad we didn’ t have to see the animal suffer.
When we say our goodbyes my poetic proclivities leave me lacking, like a joke searching for a punch line, when later I try to describe this corner of Africa.
Journalist Elspeth Huxley once wrote:“ Africa is a cruel country; it takes your heart and grinds it into powdered stone – and no one minds.” I can suddenly forgive her lack of fetish for geography, because her description is so apt.
Best time to go:
April to September.
Where to stay:
Chongwe River Camp We stayed in the Albida Suite, a luxurious, colonialstyle tented suite. It sleeps four guests in two spacious, octagonal bedrooms set on either side of a private dining room and lounge area with its own bar fridge, plunge pool and fire pit. It has a spectacular view of the river, looking out over Zambia on the one side and Zimbabwe on the other. Apart from cruising, the camp also does full-day picnic trips and tiger fishing excursions, day and night game drives and walking safaris.
Mchenja Bush Camp Mchenja is a lavish tented camp overlooking a sweeping bend in the Luangwa River. Each of the five octagonal tents has its own en-suite, open-air bathroom plus Victorian-style baths with river views. Guests can choose whether they want to view their wildlife on foot or from an open game viewing vehicle.
Contact:
Norman Carr Safaris on: www. normancarrsafaris. com or + 260-216-246-025.
Getting there:
South Africans don’ t require a visa when travelling to Zambia. SAA flies return to Lusaka daily from Johannesburg: www. flysaa. com.
36 Travel Update | issue 9