Travelers' Tales: Zambia

Walk this way A tour of Zambia’s National Parks on foot brought Jan and Mike (right) close to birdlife, lion, flora and elephant

ZAMBIA

Jan Pester and Mike Widdis traveled to Zambia with Audley

“It could be impala,” I ventured,

“or perhaps kudu.” “Well, it’s not elephant or hippo,” said my husband, not very helpfully. The two of us, together with Joseph, our guide, and Goodfellow, our ranger, were standing looking at a pile of dung. Joseph gurgled with laughter. “Elephant poo is massive – and hippo! Do you know about hippo?” We shook our heads. I hadn’t expected to be engaging in an early-morning conversation about dung. We’d gone to Zambia for a safari in three of its national parks, staying in three different safari camps. Our second camp, Luwi, was very simple – it had just five thatch-and-reed huts, which were rebuilt by hand every year after the rains. We ate

outside under the trees by a small thatched bar and an even smaller ‘kitchen’, which nevertheless managed to provide great meals. An ‘animal highway’ ran across the plain right in front of camp, and we watched families of elephant wander past during the day on their way to the nearby lagoon.

A HIPPO’S TALE

Activities here focused on walking safaris, and it had been with a degree of trepidation that we’d set off on our first walk. After a 5:15am wake-up call and a breakfast of coffee, toast and eggs by an open fire beside the river, we left camp at 6am. Joseph led us in single file, while Goodfellow brought up the rear – no loud talking, which would disturb the animals and birds. We stopped whenever we came

across something interesting, so Joseph could tell us more about it, or whenever we wanted to ask a question. It was far from the fierce variety of trekking that I’d been fearing.

“Let me tell you about the hippo,” continued Joseph. “You need to understand that God was tired when he created him. It was his last day, and he didn’t have much material left. So he put together what he had and made it into a clumpy shape with a big ugly head and dumpy legs – and told the hippo he had to live in Africa.”

“But it’s so hot there,” said the hippo. “Can we at least sit in the water?” God considered this but decided not.

“Look, I’ve made the rivers and put the fish in and we don’t want them eaten by you. So, no, you can’t sit in the water.”

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TRAVELERS’ TALES

“But what if we go down to the water at dawn and then sit there until dusk. When we leave, we’ll open our mouths wide, so you can see there’s no fish in there. Then, when we go back on land and relieve ourselves, we’ll scatter the dung far and wide so you can see again that no fish have been eaten.” “OK,” said God. “It’s a deal.” “And to this day,” said Joseph, “hippo leave the water at dusk, yawn widely and clomp inland along their hippo highways.”

WALKING THE HIGHWAY

Our early start meant that the temperature, which could rise over 85F around midday, was cool when we started, and pleasantly hot when we finished: it was the other way around in the afternoons.

Apart from becoming dung aficionados, we experienced so much that we’d never have seen sitting in a 4x4. We walked on a hippo highway, investigated termite mounds and examined the bark of trees used by traditional healers to whom rural villagers still turn. We even watched two carmine bee-eaters (pictured) – surely the most beautiful birds in the world – as they rested on a thorn tree before flying back to their nests in the steep, sandy riverbank. And, our guide had more time to talk with us about rural life in Zambia.

During our walks, we felt so much more a part of Zambia: we were as close to nature as we could possibly get, and could take time to watch and listen, and to start to understand.

In contrast, our game drives in 4x4s were an altogether different experience.

They were at a far quicker pace, and although we saw many animals, we were unable to approach them on foot. On one drive, we saw a lion and his cubs sprawled out in the shade of a tree.

At night, lit by our 4x4’s headlights and torches, we encountered a leopard, enjoying his meal amid the safety of the branches as a hungry hyena sat expectantly below. In a canoe, we glided quietly past a herd of elephant enjoying a cooling dip in the river. And, from our boat on the Zambezi, we at last caught sight of an elusive Cape buffalo on the riverbank.

But, unexpectedly, it was our walking safaris that made our Zambian trip so special and so memorable. And, in the end, we’ll never forget the story of the hippo.

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