The Nyika Plateau

TheNYIKA PLATEAU

[WRITER / PHOTO: Robin Pope ]

To many who know Zambia, the name Nyika Plateau evokes a wistful sigh with the comment ‘one for the bucket list’. To those who have visited the Nyika this name conjures up images of misty highlands, steep escarpments cloaked in sub montane forest, open montane grasslands, trout fishing, roaring fires in the grate, always a fresh wind, the sounds of unusual birds singing from the grasslands and forests and the smell of bracken and pine.

The Nyika Plateau massif an area of some 4500 square kms straddles the Zambian/Malawi international border, located some 1200kms north east of Lusaka .

In geological terms the Nyika is a large plateau which sits at the separation of the Luangwa fault from the African rift valley. The plateau was created by the tectonic movements and erosion cycles that also created the southern rift mountains. The sides of the massif are steep, dissected by deep river valleys, and the lower slopes are covered by Miombo woodland. Above 1800m the miombo declines and is replaced with mixed Protea and Masuku (Uapaka species) and above 2000m, grasslands and bracken briar and heaths predominate across the undulating plateau. The grassland is dissected with stream and river valleys interspersed with montane and sub-montane forest patches.

Standing on the edge of the plateau looking west there are magnificent views of the distant Makutu and Mafinga mountains of eastern Zambia. The blues of these distant mountains gets lighter the further one looks. From the eastern edge at the Kasaramba view point, views of Lake Malawi can be glimpsed and to the north east the Livingstone mountains of southern Tanzania are visible on a clear day. One is really perched close to the junction of the three countries at an elevation of some 2250m (7381 ft). The highest peak on the Nyika is Nganda peak with a height of 2607m (8553 ft) above sea level.

The original inhabitants of the countryside surrounding the Nyika were/are the Akafula, later the Phoka-Tumbuka peoples known for their iron smelting skills. It is thought that historically the high Nyika was not extensively settled due to its elevation, temperature and soil type.

In the 1940s a portion of the Nyika was declared a forest reserve to protect the isolated endangered remnant Juniper Forest. This wood has the most wonderful fragrance. The grassland extent covering the top of the plateau was rich in wildlife and became a nonhunting area in the 1950s. An experimental plantation of blue gum, pine, and wattle was planted over 522ha. The Malawi Nyika became a National Park in 1965 after independence. The Zambian Nyika originally was an extension of the Northern Lundazi Forest reserve and became a National Park in 1972.

I first travelled to the Nyika with my parents and brothers in 1963 and we have repeated this journey many times. It is a journey of some 1200 kms from Lusaka, requiring a few overnight stops. There is the option of including some of the interesting and worthwhile diversions on the way such as the Luangwa Valley with its wildlife reserves and the Vipya escarpment across the border in Malawi, created by the same tectonic processes which formed the Nyika. The Vipya has extensive forestry plantations and extraordinary granite inselbergs and good birding. There are a few places to stay in the Vipya. Another excellent, although longer, extension to a Nyika journey is Lake Malawi, known evocatively as the Lake of Stars. It is the third deepest freshwater lake in the world. Nyika highland provides a critical water reservoir and catchment for streams and rivers which then flow off the Nyika to the Luangwa valley in the west and Lake Malawi in the east and provides life giving water to farms and people living below.

The international border between Zambia and Malawi bisects the Nyika National Parks with 10% of the park lying in Zambian side and 90% on the Malawi side. These two national parks have been amalgamated into a trans-frontier national park, managed by Peace Parks Foundation in partnership with the Departments of Wildlife of Zambia and Malawi.

In the 1986 the Pope’s association with the Nyika became more focussed when Robin Pope Safaris undertook the long-term lease of the old government rest house and our tenure there lasted ten years. This rustic eight bed Zambian Rest House overlooks eastern Zambia at an altitude of 2286m (7500 ft). It has a great

deal of history attached to it. Built originally by the Northern Rhodesia Government in 1946, later managed by the Game department, NPWS, Zambia National Tourist Board, Zambia Tours and Lodges, Country hotels, and the District Council.

It was a joy to re-invigorate and restore this rest house in the mid 80’s. It enjoyed a new lease of life as a fully equipped, self-catering rest house. The staff were well trained and had their homes at the base of the Nyika. Interestingly one had trained as a cook on Robben Island when Nelson Mandela was incarcerated there. The country on this western ‘Zambian’ side of the Nyika is more varied with areas extensively covered by Protea which flower in March to May. Two largest sub montane forests patches on the top of the Nyika are on the Zambian side. Arguably Zambia’s highest peak, Mwanda Peak 2148m (7147 ft) stands sentinel at the south boundary of the park and on its slopes are historic potshards from the iron smelting period. This peak has some extraordinary rock formations, it is a good area to find the rare white-headed saw-wing swallow. In the last few years, the Zambian Rest house has again been renovated, this time by Peace Parks/DNPW, who are looking for a company to lease it.

The Malawi side of the Nyika has three accommodation options: a well-equipped lodge, four self-catering cottages and a camp site. There are three dams which are stocked with trout and a network of game viewing roads, options for walking, game viewing activities and mountain biking.

Generally, one encounters a larger number of game within a 10km radius of the lodge and camps. The further one travels away from this tourism development the less game is seen. However, further out are spectacular view points, historic sites, peaks to climb, great walks and absolutely magnificent views.

During the dry season prevailing easterly winds blowing from the coast of Africa and across lake Malawi, mushroom up over this massif, bringing bracing cool weather, mists and guti/ chiperoni- (London-like rain). Temperatures can fall below zero degrees in the winter months of June and July. The lowest recorded temperature of -12 degrees Celcius was recorded in the 1950s. During the rains, moisture laden winds break against the sides of the escarpment, then welling up cauldron-like over the escarpment edges bringing mists and storms full of heavy rain to this plateau.

This trans-frontier national park is a critical island of biodiversity in a land of increasing population and settlement. The Nyika TFCA has 460 species of birds recorded, including one endemic and a few near endemic species. A number of the bird species are palearctic or intra-African migrants who move south and north depending on the season, temperature and the movement of the rain belt. Ninetynine species of mammal occur on the Nyika including a large number of rodents and bats. The most commonly seen larger mammals are roan antelope, eland, reedbuck, zebra, bushbuck, duiker (common, blue and red forest), hyena, leopard and very occasional lion. There are increasing number of elephant sightings as elephant seek the refuge of the high Nyika for safety from settlement and poaching pressure around the park. There are an amazing number of species of butterfly; 150, of which three are endemic to the Nyika. During the rains there is a very rich orchid flora with over 150 species of beautiful terrestrial orchid of which 33 are endemic and 13 near endemic.

The magnificent mysterious relic montane and sub-montane forest which cloaks the eastern escarpment and patches on the western side, are alive with the sounds of unusual forest species of bird and insect. A number of the forest tree species such as the Entandrophragma, Aningeria, Podocarpus and Ficus species are massive, growing to over 55m tall. They are the mothers of the forest and support a fascinating host of plant and animal communities living and growing on their branches and trunks and feeding on their fruit. One is dwarfed by the huge tree trunks festooned with lianas and monkey ropes, a church like quietness prevails in the lower canopy. Higher up one can hear the cries of a host of forest birds. Samango monkeys and black and red squirrel also frequent these forests. Occasional rustles in the leaf litter indicate blue forest duiker or chequered sengi (elephant shrew). Leopard use the forests for hunting. These forests are essential and safe nesting sites for some of the larger species of raptor (birds of prey). Eagles such as the crowned and black eagle soar over the forests and may be sighted ridge surfing along the escarpment edges. As a naturalist, lover of mountains and vast views, seeker of unusual birds and plants and someone who is most happy in nature, Nyika ranks as one of my favourite destinations and I endeavour to continue to visit for a few weeks on an annual basis.