Well, hello there! I hope that you are fabulously well and have had a lovely weekend. Rob and I are currently down in the Lower Zambezi, ahead of our opening of Kujana Camp. It’s an epic push to get things ready, but it’s not all hard work. On a couple of evenings, we have managed to get out on the boat and enjoy the river, something that is very, very different from back home and absolutely glorious. The camp is coming along, although if someone were to come and visit us today, they would panic on our behalf! But having done this many times, we know it is all coming together, and we cannot wait to welcome guests very soon.
Meanwhile, back in the Luangwa, well, what to say and where to start?
A quick Nsefu leopard update before we head to Tena Tena to hear from them. The female and her cub that were chased up a tree by lions have been seen regularly by the guests and are becoming firm favourites for the guides. However, the spotlight does remain on the beautiful Mutima, who has been seen mating once more. The last time was obviously not successful, so we wait to see how this time goes. But let’s be honest: having just taken over her mum’s territory, it would probably be great for her to secure her standing and territory for a little while longer without the added pressure of a cub. Nature will decide what is best, so in the meantime, we just watch and wait and enjoy the fabulous sightings she gives us.
Over at Tena, well, let’s just say George the elephant decided to make his presence fully known the other day and strolled into camp like he owned it. But then again, when you are that big, not many will argue with you! He did his very best to get hold of the guests’ lunch, but the waiters valiantly rescued it. After all the excitement, George decided that it was all a bit much, so he found himself a lovely spot just behind one of the guest rooms and had a lovely long siesta, with a lot of snoring and some other gassy outbursts!
Away from George and out on game drives, there have been some lovely sightings, from birds to honey badgers, along with the telltale squawk of the carmines as they start coming in, preparing to build their nests.
But there has been one standout sighting this week from Bertie, who came across a pride of lions that were looking hungry and starting to hunt. They came upon some buffalo and decided the hunt was on, but the buffalo had a different plan for the afternoon. They were not going to let one of their own be taken down for dinner, so they rallied the troops. The tables were turned, and the buffalo started to chase the lions!
So much so that one lioness was chased up a fallen tree, where she started by standing, let’s say, valiantly, but quite quickly crouched down, cowering and trying not to be seen on her dead tree as she was surrounded by the herd. They soon got bored of tormenting her, and everyone went their separate ways. However, I fear that it will not be long until the buffalo are once again harassed by the lions.
So, there we have it for this week. I am sure that there are more incredible stories to share, but that is all we have time for. I shall bid you a very fond farewell and hope that you have a wonderful week ahead, with plenty of smiles and laughter. And don’t forget to look after one another.
