Zambia
Synonymous with the finest walking safaris in Africa, although game drives are naturally also available, Zambia epitomises the real, raw Africa and has the most phenomenal amount of game. Walking is one of the finest ways of experiencing the bush and one can either stay at a single lodge or journey on foot between camps, mobile camps and flycamps. Each day is so different as you rise with the sun and the strong smell of dew on the wild sage plants permeates the air. You will see birdlife and wildlife at close range and appreciate the expert skill of your guide who will explain every facet of the bush, including the medicinal purposes and folklore of individual trees and flowers. You will learn to identify the spoor marks of various animals, your adrenaline levels highly charged, as you become part of your environment. There are no more than a handful of people in every group, this ensures personal attention as the intrinsic detail of the bush, such as insects and their role in the ecological balance, unfolds.
The Luangwa (North and south), Lower Zambezi and Kafue National Park, together with Lochinvar, offer visitors an extraordinary variety of both animals and birds; Luangwa has probably the most prolific animal population in Africa. The major highlight of Zambia is the fact that the camps that we use are all owner managed, which speaks for itself. From Robin Pope and John Coppinger (in North and South Luangwa) who both offer superlative walking safaris in each park lasting from two days to two weeks, to the Busanga Plains and Kafue and the scenically beautiful lower Zambezi, Zambia has something to offer both the novice and most jaded of safari travellers.
The accommodation has come a long way; one can either choose from a fly camp (see our accommodation guide)to a lovely, comfortable tented camp with en suite loo and shower (this is the category that most of the camps are designed), to an utterly luxurious camp, with huge rooms and claw baths with stunning views across the river.
The Busanga Plains, often overlooked, is home to one of the greatest concentrations of wildlife and a mini Serengeti in itself with its wide open plains, large herds of wildebeest and zebra and numerous prides of black-maned lions as well as flocks of crowned cranes. As well as the bushcamps, where the accent is on walking, there's canoeing in Zambia, of course, on the lower Zambezi staying at one of the beautiful lower Zambezi camps which are family owned. Tiger fishing is unprecedented along the Zambezi, many a client has cast their rod to catch the eponymous Tiger. Don't forget that Zambia has some luxury, private, houses that invite relaxation.
A lovely combination is to explore the magnificent Lochinvar National Park, one of the most beautiful and rarely visited in Africa (which makes it twice a joy!), and then finish off at Livingstone near Victoria Falls staying at one of the small and personal lodges on the banks of the Zambezi - or on an almost-private island (which could be taken over for a small group). Livingstone Island is unmissable: perched literally on the very edge of the Falls, a champagne lunch with the spray, rainbow and magnificence of the Falls as a backdrop is never to be forgotten.
And lastly, for those that have seen most of Africa, the most beautiful region is that of the Liuwa plains in the far western corner of Zambia. We have couple of set departure safaris with eminent guide Robin Pope, visiting these vast, open grasslands. One of the remotest and wildest regions in Africa, it is spectacularly beautiful. This notorious status is due to the wildebeest population - some 35,000 blue wildebeest that move between the western boundary and the centre of the plains. Many say this is the third largest migration in Africa. However the movement is not en masse. You tend to see large herds of up to 1000 wildebeest, with zebra and sometimes tsessebe amongst them.
So why have so few people been there? It is extremely hard to get to, being cut off other than by boat
for 4 months of the year (Jan - April), and the terrain is fairly rough. The bird life throughout the year is spectacular. It is home to large groups of crowned crane, sometime numbering several hundred and often mingling with the many wattled cranes that are never far from view. Bustards, both Denham and white-bellied, are common and secretary birds stalk the plains. The water birds are diverse in species and the sheer numbers are staggering. Flocks
containing hundreds of pelicans, egrets, spoonbills, yellow and open billed storks gather at the pans,which are often a white carpet of water lilies. The waders run around the shores of these pans keeping any birder occupied for hours. In December the resident birds are joined by many thousands of migrants passing through. Other than wildebeest, there are zebra, tsessebe, red lechwe, oribi and steinbuck with (the less common) roan, eland and buffalo. The predators include hyaena, large packs of wild dog, cheetah and a single remaining lioness. These set departures are in December, May and June. Please contact us for further details. These safaris are possible for private groups of eight guests, too.
