After 2 1/2 days of travel through Miami, Heathrow, Johannesburg South Africa, Lusaka Zambia, and Mfuwe we finally arrived. Our driver from Puku Ridge met us at Mfuwe airport and we were finally off.
It's their road first!!
Puku Ridge general quarters
There was an injured Hippo that was taking advantage of the small waterhole. He would leave at night and then return during the day for more healing. By the time we left Puku, he had rejoined the Pod.
We were then escorted to our beautiful room .. this is beyond anything we could have imagined.
Campfire and dinner in the evenings
Game Drives are from 6:00 AM until around 11:30 and again at 4:00 until around 8:00 PM. The morning drive always stop for coffee and sweets and the evening drive we have our "sundowners". Michael and I always had Sauvignon Blanc and Rose. What a way to celebrate evening cocktails. Our guide was incredible (Pius) and remained with us the entire stay. Oh the wildlife we saw.
Crawshay's Zebra are pure black and white with no brown shadow. This species is unique to South Luangua National Park. You can easily spot the one that got away (probably from lion) and went on to live another day!
The Thornicroft Giraffe: The Rhodesian giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis thornicrofti), more commonly known as Thornicroft’s giraffe, is a subspecies of giraffe. It is sometimes deemed synonymous with the Luangwa giraffe. It is geographically isolated, occurring only in Zambia’s South Luangwa Valley.[2] An estimated 550 live in the wild, with no captive populations. The lifespan of the Rhodesian giraffe is 22 years for males and 28 years for females.[3] The ecotype was originally named after Harry Scott Thornicroft, a commissioner in what was then North-Eastern Rhodesia and later Northern Rhodesia. The faces are whiter than the common Massi Plains giraffe and there are no markings below the knees.
Another species that is unique to South Luwanga National Park is Puku. (Puku stand about 80 cm (31 in) at the shoulder and weigh from 70 to 80 kg (150 to 180 lb). The Puku is sandy brown in color, with the underbelly a slightly lighter brown. The coat is rougher than the similar-sized southern reedbuck, lechwe or impala, or the smaller oribi. Males have 50-cm-long, ridge-structured horns which are very vaguely lyre-shaped.) Puku Ridge is named after this antelope.
The ubiquitous impala - the first group was right outside our veranda.
We only saw bushbuck once on the entire trip.
Leopards were in abundance at Puku Ridge. We saw them during the day and at night. The red light is sed for the night drives in Zambia. There is lots of data that this is better for the animals.
Other night finds: Hare, White Tailed Mongoose, Genet and Civet
Elephants are everywhere, but my favorite is seeing the adults and babies taking mud baths!!
Fat lions satiated after feasting on a buffalo kill the night before
When the vultures start to arrive two lionesses try to move the carcass to a more secure location
Even the females are in charge of initiating when to mate.
Lots of Water Buck and Kudu. I love the ears on the female Kudu
The one thing I wanted to see was African Wild Dogs and I was not disappointed. We saw them running across the plain while we were eating breakfast followed by a hyena. Off we went to find them. We saw them two days in a row and the second encounter was all due to Pius!!
Wart Hogs, Hippos, Crocs and Buffalo.
Hyena and her pups at the den. Pius had been watching the pups and they had only come out this past week. What a treat.
My very favorite Lilac Breasted Roller
What an incredible experience. Hosts Grant and Annemie Parker were the best in the world. How luck Puku is to have them inn charge. Pius was the best driver and guide one could ever hope for. The fact that we were the only ones in the gorgeous camp for 3 days was lucky beyond compare!! I will never forget this experience. Our incredible farewell dinner:
Our final goodbye:
Stay tuned for more pictures and events from Old Mondoro, Chiawa and Tongabezi
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