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Zambia (October 2014) Travel Log

Continued

Elephant family at Tafika

The rooms at Tafika were a thatched open aired chalets, ideal for the heat at this time of year (some days 40 deg +) with reed matting walls for the bedroom, the bathroom was a roofless enclosure underneath a tree giving shade from the sun. A shower under the stars was a novelty. On the first night a family of elephants decided to feast on the shower tree and surrounding shrubs, that night we lay awake listening to the flora being devoured by these silent giants of the night only feet away from our beds. An encounter a bit too close for comfort but the night passed away without a problem.

Something Special

As dawn broke we were aroused by the night guard, 5am was the time to start each day, we were on our way an hour later after a casual breakfast by the open fire whilst looking over the Luangwa river. We passed through the park gates by 6am, it was just the two of us this time with our guide Lloyd who was our guide for most game drives at Tafika.

Soon I discovered most game drives in the morning start quietly with frequent sighting of the regular game but once or perhaps twice on each game drive something would appear that was exceptional turning the game drive into something very special. For this game drive it was the wild dogs that appeared from over the hill and run down the track towards us. It was the water in the small stream on our left they were after but for 20 minutes we were privileged to have 6 wild dogs resting and playing just a few yards in front of the vehicle. I have travelled to Africa a number of times in the hope of seeing wild dogs but only once did we glimpse these predators on those occasions. Wild Dogs quenching their thirst Suddenly, they all grouped up together, ears all pointing in the same direction and then they ran back up the hill at a trotting pace in search of breakfast.

We knew we had been treated to something extra special. We followed them at distance for some while and it was obvious they were in hunting mode but alas we did not see the kill as it was in an area we were unable to go.

We found the wild dogs again in the afternoon game drive but by the time we came close the light had faded to an extent that decent photography was not to be had. I had seen more wild dogs that day than I had ever seen before, a big one to tick off the list.



We were advised by another vehicle that lions had been seen back where we had come from, so we made haste back to the stream to find 11 lions (the 'Village' pride) Female lions of the 'Village' pride at the same spot we had watched the wild dogs only an hour before. Again I was able to practise my photography with predators only feet away from my lens.

Photographic Notes: It has been my experience that you do not always need a long lens to take good photographs of wildlife but of course a long lens does have it’s part to play.

Because the ground was parched and dry dust became a major problem for photography when on a drive, the dust seemed to get into every nook and cranny, even if you religiously put the bits of equipment away when not in use. So cleaning the camera kit was a daily task, sometimes more frequently. All my lenses, extenders, caps and cameras were cleaned at least once a day after each game drive.

From a photographic point of view I discovered the morning drives produced most of the better shots, mainly from the point that as the morning drive progressed the light improved, whereas the afternoon game drive the light started to deteriorate quickly after about an hour into the drive perhaps sooner if sun fell behind the clouds on the horizon. Therefore, when on the afternoon game drive the sightings had to be found quickly. A large part of the afternoon game drive was a night.

At Tafika each day followed a similar pattern, up with the lark and back after dark from the afternoon game drive with a rest and lunch during the heat of the day back in camp. We saw many leopards on our night drives, I do remember on one evening night drive we came across a young Leopard just after she had made a kill and we watched her drag the Impala up the tree to safety, out of reach of the Hyenas. Carmine Bee Eater perched on top of the river bank The Impala must have been half the size again as the Leopard, such strength and determination. If that had been during the day I would have some remarkable shots but just watching her was nearly as good. However, I had few photography opportunities of Leopard during the day whilst at Tafika but there were plenty of other wildlife sightings to keep me photographically amused on each game drive. Apart from the wild dogs the other special close up game experience was that of two mating lions, we saw them first on day 3 but it was cloudy morning and the light was poor, photographs were OK but could be better. The next day we meet them again but this time we had good light and photographic positioning and a few pleasing snaps to tell the tale.

Tafika has it’s own Carmine Bee Eater hide not far from the camp, a good place to spend an hour in the afternoon. The best shots I was able to take was from the bank above the nesting place where the birds would perch quite close on the shrubs on top of the bank.

We finished at Tafika on day 6 it was time to move on as I think we had exhausted the photographic potential on that side of the river. I must say we very much enjoyed our stay there, a professional run lodge with excellent food, excellent company and excellent guides.

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