Zambia-More Questions
 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I contacting the Luangwa River Lodge and it looks like that will be a great place for the six nights. The next question is where else should be go. I would love to have feedback as to the Lower Zambezi vs going to perhaps another lodge in the Southern Luangwa, Northern Luangwa or Kafue. I love the idea of the Mana Pools but read that there are some safety issues with Zimbabwe. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

I haven't yet been to Zambia, but am leaving in mid Oct for 3 weeks on two "packaged" itineraries that include Kafue: http://www.eyesonafrica.net/safaris/...fue-rivers.htm
and N & S Luangwa: http://www.luangwa.com/nsluangwa.htm
Not sure what your travel dates are, but I plan to post a report on return...

Just to set the record right about Mana Pools. There are really no more safety issues with going to that park over any of the Zambian parks. This park is across the river from LZNP- its actually much bigger and contain more of the plains area of the valley than LZNP. Less expensive, a wider variety of activities in the park at all price ranges, to name a couple things. The only reason to go to LZNP is if you like to name drop some luxury lodges, and pay a rediculous price to do that. But then I like to get close to nature which seems not to be a priority to alot of travelers. Sorry about the rant. Just my perspective. Its a great place to canoe- btw, you will find out that the Zambian safari companies often take you to the Zim side(when canoeing the GMA section) for wildlife viewing. Too bad they can't camp or bushwalk there too.
Then there is the bushwalking and camping-luxury or otherwise, that you can do in Mana Pools.

An exerpt of an email from someone who just left Mana Pools and is on her way to ZLNP.
"it was such an incredible experience!!!! Such an amazing contrast with only having been in a town so far to get out so remote and truly in the midst of all of the wildlife, it was literally all around us and coming thru the campsite."

lh
i don't know anything about mana pools - it's a white spot still for us which needs to be covered in 2009 - but i may asure you in view to safety: zim is absolutely worthwile to consider!
there are some fodorites who just visited and these folks are very pleased with the experience.


i myself will be briefly (:-( ) going to zim in mid nov 08 visiting vic falls and hwange. and i am by far not willing to cancel as i don't see any reason to do so.

so pls. go ahead with your zim-planning! give these people a chance to earn a buck in order to get some relief from their misery.

happy planning

div

We were in Zambia last year and spent two nights at LRL. Enjoyed it very much although there were alot of vehicles from other camps around. The food was great and we thoroughly enjoyed it but two or three nights was enough. We also went to Kaingo where we had the best sightings and would go back again in a heartbeat.

Our last camp was Chiawa which is in the lower Zambezi. We had very few animal sightings there so I can't recommend it but we were told that was just a fluke and that normally it is quite good. I didn't care for the rehearsed nature of that camp and the planned outings, it all seemed too forced. We did have an amazing tent there that made the stay better.

Let me know if I can answer anything else.

I would just like to agree with the comments by Luangwa Blondes and DWC0201

We found Lower Zambezi to be almost totally void of wildlife, we also sayed at Chiawa and were told the same thing.

You should visit Mana Pools it is exceptionally beautiful,has plenty of interesting wildlife and is also a lot cheaper.

lhgreenacres,
We were in LZNP last September at Chongwe River Camp and enjoyed it very much -- particularly the water activities. We saw lots of game. My trip report describes our stay in detail: I seem unable to insert the link, but search for "Part I - Kenya" or under my name. The Zambian part is at the end. Hope you have a great trip -- wherever.
Samcat

Or try this link
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...amp;dirtyBit=1

DWC0201 & Sniktawk,

What month were you in Zambia and the Lower Zambezi?


Thanks,

Keri

lhgreen

i would like to put something in perspective in view to lwer zambesi NP:

we spent almost 1 week in LZNP at several camps and i have to agree it's expensive but worth any penny if you are looking for more upmarket camps.

regarding wildlife:

we saw different leopards in different locations - one walking just beside our car for almost 20 minutes!

we watched a coalition of 2 male lions asking for a showdown with the resident male and its pride which eventually happened. that was a particularly exciting experience which we hadn't seen before and haven't witnessed after!

we saw big groups of elefants incl. a breeding herd.

we also were rewarded with all sorts of game.

i would not call LZNP an empty place - especially in june when we visited it was pleasantly worthwile to visit!

we are visiting again in early nov which we wouldn't IF experiences had tought us LZNP being a "void" area.

div

ps
"... we also sayed at Chiawa and were told the same thing."

cannot make anything off that statement.

Do consider Kaingo & Tafika (SLNP) where we had a memorable 17 nights (this time) last year,
See trip report here:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35077638

Cheers
Marc

We were at Chiawa in early August which should have been good game viewing. Who knows if it was just a fluke but if I were going again I would consider Zimbabwe or another camp in Southern Luangwa that does not have many other camps sharing the area.

africaaddict- Thanks for the suggestion regarding Kaingo. It looks great. Has anyone also stayed at their bush camp Mwamba as well. I thought it might be good to stay at both but was told that it might be too similar. Would anyone also recommend staying in an additional location besides Kaingo in S. Luangwa or would that be repetitive and would it be better to just stay in one place. It looks like this trip is really going to happen and I am more than excited.

Yes. I've just returned from Kaingo & Mwamba.

Both camps use the same gameviewing areas. An added bonus is the hides allowing for activities during the quiet hours around midday.

Geoff.

If you put puku in the search box, my report (Penguins to Puku) which contains lots on Kutandala in N. Luangwa will come up.
It is all walking there.

LZ not so productive in Aug, at least at Chiawa? That seems like it might have been a little bad luck. If you want some water time, then LZ is perfect. Canoeing is king there. The Chifungulu Channel between Sausage Tree and Old Mondoro was an amazing day long canoe trip.

Regarding the LZ vs Mana Pools comments, I can only compare the two based on 4 days in each, but MP had better wildlife viewing. LZ was very good though, and I walked with honey badgers there.

Here is an excerpt from something I had posted on Kafue:

In the 3 days in Busanga Plains, we spent most of our time hanging out with a pride of about 8 lions. Their unsuccessful hunt under the full moon with all of them thundering past the vehicle in pursuit of a puku was heartstopping. Later that night at dinner we heard them make a kill just outside camp and immediately took off to join THEIR dinner.

Also spotted: a pair of cheetah, 2 separate serval sitings, a honey badger, sable, oribi, Lichtenstein's hartebeest, roan antelope, reedbuck and huge herds of red lechwe.

Some interesting bird sitings were: purple heron, Fulleborn's longclaw, rufous-bellied heron, lesser jacana, numerous watled crane (including a pair feeding their chick), flocks of open billed stork, and black bellied korhan.

Because the Busanga area is so remote and distant, I spent a day at the very lovely Lunga River Lodge, also in Kafue, both before and after Busanga Bush Camp. (That totals 5 nights in Kafue) It is a 3-hour drive from Lunga River Lodge to Busanga Bush Camp. (I think they do a helicopter transfer now) At Lunga we could do walks, day & night drives, plus canoeing and boat rides on the Lunga. Sightings included: tree hyrax, otter, roan antelope (on foot,) a serval (on foot), and 2 cheetah brothers. Other people saw elephant on a game drive.

Interestingly, all 4 cheetahs in Kafue were spotted on night drives.

To see more and better views of the anteleope, which Kafue is noted for, September or October would be better than July, when I went.

You may see this in the report if you read it, but let me mention this point here too. In late July I saw WAY more hoofed wildlife in the Mfuwe sector of S. Luangwa than the Nsefu sector where Kaingo and Mwamaba are located. A combo of some time in Mfuwe and Nsefu is ideal. I really loved the walking I did from Kakuli in Nsefu and we saw 2 leopards and a lion pride on drives there. But the abundance of zebra, eles, giraffe, puku, impala, warthogs was far greater closer to the airport.

I second the Tafika suggestion. Kaingo is high on my list to try, though.

Good luck planning.

We stayed at Kaingo and Mwamba in 2005 and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is further away from the entrance than most so there were not many other vehicles there which is a plus for us.

They do use the same areas if that concerns you. We stayed at two other camps so we did get diversity there. The feel of the two camps is quite different with Mwamba being a lot more rustic.

We also enjoyed the hides and it was one of the reasons we chose that camp -- in essence an additional activity included.

Of the places we stayed, the wildlife was most abundant at Kaingo/Mwamba. The Luangwa River Lodge was the plushest. We would stay at either but there were a lot more vehicles around Luangwa River Lodge.

Sounds like Lynn was MUCH luckier than I was in Kafue, in July of 2007. We did witness the reunion of two lionesses who had each had cubs in separate seclusion. That was incredibly sweet, but otherwise almost nothing. One camp manager confessed that they had been struggling with the lack of game, and that beginning in August, things were more reliable. FWIW.

Pula, I saw a pride of 7 lions in Kafue but no cubs. There was one in seclusion that never appeared during my stay. You never know.

That Kaingo hide is what intrigues me the most about the place.

Another option would be The Bushcamp Company has a number of camps in the remote southern portion of South Luangwa. Their specialty is walking safaris and you can walk a circuit between camps, they have a reputation for exceptional guides. I won't be there until October 2009 but I have heard great things from everyone who has been. There is a very good report from Greendrake on Fodors.

It looks that we are narrowing things down. We are pretty set on Kaingo(the hides for photography are a huge factor) and are considering Mwamba or Takifa as a second camp. We are then thinking about 4 nights at Chongwe. I am extremely excited about this trip. Do you think this would be a good first trip to Zambia? It would be seven nights in South Luangwa and four nighs in Lower Zambezi.

Would any suggest another camp in combination with Kaingo in the South Luangwa that would be better than Tafika or Mwamba?

Thanks again,

Lisa

Lisa,

Shenton's hides are great but they tend to be used during the middle of the day so the light is not the best for photography. That said the hippo hide can be great when there is some argy bargy with the hippos.

It is a good use of the idle hours of the day though.

Recently 7 guests, a guide & a ZAWA game scout spent 2.5 hours in silence crammed in the Mwamba hide watching 2 lioness attempt to ambush impala & bushbuck at the waterhole. It was rivetting viewing but bloody hot and I was covered in sweat when exited the hide after the baboons gave the game away.

Another amusing tidbit is that the Mwamba pride have taken to the hippo hide with a couple of lions falling through the roof and others leaving deposits on the floor. They like the shade & coolness it provides.

Tafika is a beautiful camp but my knowledge is outdated as I last stayed there in 1999.

Just remeber one thing. When it comes to gameviewing it is the luck of the draw. There can be superb sightings one day and nothing the next.

Any of the SLNP camps can produce great gameviewing.

Geoff.

We did 4 nights Kaingo, 2 nights Mwamba, 3 nights Luangwa River Lodge and 3 nights Kasaka.

I do not think you can go wrong with either Mwamba or Tafika as I have heard good things about Tafika. Tafika will use a slightly different area than Kaingo/Mwamba if that is of interest to you. These lodges work together so the transfer should not be a problem. On the other hand, you may receive a discount for the 7 day stay at Kaingo/Mwamba -- we booked directly with them and received a 10% discount when we did it. I would ask for either that or a free night for a 7 night stay. So, if keeping costs down is a consideration (it always was for us) the Kaingo/Mwamba combination might be best. Mwamba is very small -- only takes a maximum of 6 guests -- and is more rustic -- I remembere it was the guides' favorite -- magical is what they called it and it was really great.

Kasaka and Chongwe are both outside the LZNP. If I went back, I would prefer to stay in the park even though it costs more. One reason is that it will take a half hour or so to get to the park from the camps. You have to be out of the park when it gets dark -- when you stay in the park, you just have to get back to the camp. If you are a few minutes late no real problem but if you are late leaving the park it is a problem because they do lock the gates. The park is large so if you are a far bit away from the entrance, it can be a rush to get back -- I remember that happening more than once. It just seemed getting out of the park and back to the camp took forever -- an hour or so over not great roads. Chongwe is a little closer to the park than Kasaka was but I would definitely look at Sausage Tree or Old Mondoro or Chiawa if I went back.

Just saw GeoffG's reply regarding the hides. Yes they are usually used during the day but I found Kaingo very accomodating and, if your seatmates don't mind, I am sure they would try to find a way for you to go there when the light was good. If you look on their web site, you will find that Jules has become a great photographer and Ithink she would be happy to try to arrange that for you.

mpkp,

Jules is very busy with her baby daughter these days. She rarely visits the guests. I saw her out with Dereck and her camera only once when Al called in to say that lions had brought down a buffalo.

The current positioning of the hides is not good for light. In the morning you would be shooting into the sun from the hippo hide and in the afternoon the closer hippos would be shaded by the river bank.

That said the hides are brilliant.

Tafika would definitely use a different game viewing area as it is on the other side of the river.

Geoff.