LUANGWA DREAMING

May 2004

I'm so excited that I've been packing and repacking for days. I'm off to Island Bushcamp tomorrow to look after our first guests of the season. It is in such an incredibly beautiful and remote area of the park.

The staff have done a sterling job and transformed the bush in only two weeks from a wall of impenetrable grass to neat golden thatch chalets, each with their own ensuite bathroom and private verandah, complete with a vista that city folk would drool over. Neat steps have been cut into the river bank so that the boat crossing is a dignified affair, rather than a mad scramble up the side of the bank; the kitchen has been made hyaena proof and everything from wine glasses to paraffin lamps polished and in place.

Island Bushcamp is, as it's name suggests, on an island, right in the middle of the Luangwa River. Sleeping bulges of hippo are scattered about in the brown water in front of camp, to the east are the picturesque Nchindeni hills and to the west, the sheer blue face of the Muchinga Escarpment, the boundary of South Luangwa National Park. Elegant palm trees line the river bank like a garden of Eden and of course… there is 360 degrees of wilderness stuffed with animals waiting to be discovered. It is the most perfect place for walking safaris.

If you have never been on a walking safari, it is an incredible feeling. One's senses are heightened, aware of every nuance - from the tiny scratches in the sand made by the long quills of a porcupine, or the pungent aroma of fresh elephant dung to the call of oxpeckers amongst the tall grass hinting that big game is close by.

Back at the Lodge, our pontoon across the Luangwa River is operational now too. During the height of the rains there is a vast amount of water stretching for the best part of a kilometer from bank to bank in places (really a breathtaking sight). So we have to wait until the river has dropped enough before we can start building the pontoon - unless you want to be swept out into the Indian Ocean several thousand kilometers downstream! It takes twenty men two weeks to fill all the sand bags and complete the necessary mud moving and whatever else they do to build the pontoon. The park is now literally a 5 minute drive away with the added novelty experience of a pontoon river crossing. Lots of photo opportunities there.

Our resident female leopard spent most of last night calling from the back lagoon - Ron saw her on the road with an enormous male, literally no more than thirty metres from camp just a couple of days earlier. So, lets hope she is joined by a resident cub in 3 months time.

The night before that lion were harassing a hippo right in front of camp for the best part of half an hour before it was "rescued" by one of it's mates and they managed to escape to the safety of the river. The hippo certainly made enough noise about it all with lots of agonised groaning and bellowing. So much so, that some of the more experienced guides were convinced that there was a buffalo being finished off in the darkness. And from all accounts there wasn't even a scratch on the hippo - he certainly knew how to cry wolf and had us all convinced that there was an exciting kill in progress.

We never have a chance to get bored out here in the bush!

© 2004 Bridget Wijnberg