Game Drive!

Sometimes being stranded can be a good thing. I completely appreciate that there are a number of contributory factors and mitigating circumstances that can all play a part in just how the situation affects you. However, I stand by what I said: sometimes being stranded can be a good thing. Claire, Mike Malawi, and I were, as you can probably guess, stranded. We had been in Chilinda Camp after our hike for a few days and had no idea how we were going to get back to The Mushroom Farm. However, there are much worse places to end up for a few days. Due to not being able to get away we’d already taken a stroll and seen zebras before finding out that we had a new nephew. And then, after realising we wouldn’t be able to leave the camp until the next day, Claire and I decided to go on a game drive.

The morning had been incredible. Speaking to family and finding out we had a new member to meet when we finally made it home, had put us in good spirits so we decided that we wanted to see what else Nyika National Park had to offer. And, luckily for us, we had the entire van to ourselves. Our driver/guide was called Blessing, and his assistant who would accompany us on the trip was called Adam. Both were local guys. Blessing was in his late thirties and Adam looked like he was in his early twenties. The four of us set off in the spacious van, and Claire and I were provided with blankets to keep us warm as the temperature was set to drop as the sun went down. We’d done game drives before, but only ever in the morning, never seeing the wildlife out in the evening. This meant we were excited at the prospect of possibly seeing leopards, who are notoriously hard to spot, but usually are more active once the sun disappears behind the horizon.

As we slowly drove away from the camp we saw a range of herbivores including more zebras, bush bucks, impalas and other antelope-like animals. Blessing and Adam were great company, with Blessing in particular being chatty, interesting and very informative. About twenty minutes into the drive we stopped. Claire heard a bird tweeting in the shrubbery, its high pitched chirps the only sound in the silence of the late afternoon. However, we were unable to see the bird that was making the noise. Not that this bothered Blessing, who jumped out of the van, found the chick and picked it up. The mother flew a few meters away, startled by our guide’s invasion of her space. He brought the fluffy little bird up to the side of the van so we could see it up close, before throwing it back down on the ground to reunite with its mother.

The four of us then continued on our way seeing plenty more zebras and antelope as the sun began to set behind the clouds on the horizon. It was then that Blessing pointed out to us the zebra carcass nearby. It had been killed that morning and when Blessing came across it with another group the animal was being feasted on by a huge number of vultures. By the time we were there, some eight hours later, the zebra was reduced to a head and legs, with most of its midriff completely eaten. Blessing told us that the hyenas would be next to have their fill on the animal. We asked if leopards would ever scavenge and were told that that was not their style. They would often kill an animal and stay with the kill until it was all eaten. It was for this reason that the leopard was Blessing’s favourite animal in the park. “They don’t unnecessarily kill animals,” he told us. “They kill one animal and they stay with it until they have eaten it. I like that. Other predators will kill one animal, start eating it, then kill another, leaving their first kill to rot.” We then asked Adam what his favourite animal in the park was and he chose the zebra, a choice which was now popular with Claire and I.

After seeing the dead zebra we pulled up next to a large rock. “This is a viewing point,” said Blessing. “We can get out and take a look around and watch the sun set.” So, we all jumped out of the van, Claire wrapped in her blanket to keep her warm, and climbed up the large boulder. There we stood for fifteen minutes taking in the sights. We could see Zambia in the distance, plenty of mountains and miles of Nyika National Park were also sprawled out below. Within minutes the sun was very low in the bright orange cloudy sky, and then moments later it was gone. As we turned around to climb down the hill we saw Adam stood next to the van with his arms wide open and a giant smile on his face. In front of him he had set up a small table, with a couple of thermos flasks, some mugs and a box of cake. It was very endearing, just how pleased he was to present us with our surprise tea break. The four of us stood there for a further ten minutes drinking tea and eating lovely banana cake, chatting as the evening turned into night. I asked Blessing which he preferred, sunrise or sunset? “I like sunset as it’s easier to see. You don’t have to get up early!”

After the tea and cake was eaten and the table was packed away we all jumped back in the van. Adam got out the spotlight and stood in the front, his top half sticking out of the hole in the top of the cabin. He proceeded to shine the light out over the terrain that was, by now, cloaked in darkness. All of a sudden there was anticipation in the air. The idea of spotting a leopard prowling at night had us all scanning with our eyes, following Adam’s beam as it searched our surroundings. After around ten minutes Adam froze. His light was locked on one spot. And shining back at us were the eyes of a creature. The cat’s eyes were bright and reflective in the darkness and within seconds we had made it up close to the leopard. This majestic animal was calmly sat staring at us in the brush. We all stared back in silence. The leopard then got to its feet and began to slowly walk alongside the van as we followed it. It was yet another amazing experience and another sight that I am sure neither Claire nor I will ever forget. This leopard then picked up its pace to a trot, and made its way off over a hill and out of sight. The four of us were buzzing. We had been told how hard it was to spot leopards ever since we arrived in Africa, and we had been lucky enough to see one out in the open

We continued along and the mood in the van was great. All of our spirits were high. You could tell that Adam and Blessing were very pleased that they’d been able to find a leopard for us. We knew it was our lucky day when moments later we came across another one. This one was prowling around the perimeter of a forest. We sat and watched it slowly walking back and forward staring into the wood, seemingly looking for its dinner. After leaving the second leopard, once it disappeared into the trees, we began making our way back to camp. Along the way we managed to come across a pair of jackals walking along the side of the road. There is something quite special about seeing predators at night, with just the light of a torch illuminating them. They are framed by darkness and you can see them going about their business, looking for their next kill. They look purposeful, whereas the animals that constitute prey often look rather worried – not that you can blame them – we are shining torches at them highlighting their location in the black.

Once we made it back to camp, Claire and I thanked Blessing and Adam for the drive and sat down for our dinner. We were elated, and other members of staff were pleased to hear that we’d managed to see two leopards. It was whilst we were eating that one member of staff came up to us with a message. “There is a leopard outside,” he said. “it’s just outside the lodge, so be careful when you walk back to your room. Take precautions,” and with that, he was off. What a message to relay. Claire and I chuckled, maybe we’d see a third leopard that day. But then I started thinking and said to Claire; “What does he mean? What does he mean, ‘take precautions’. You can’t just come over and say ‘oh, by the way there’s a deadly animal outside, take precautions’. What precautions? What precautions do you take? Do we run? Do we walk? Give us some specifics.” We laughed.

In the end we just walked the thirty metres to our room at a brisk pace. We didn’t see that third leopard. Not that we were complaining.