We leave today for home, so hard to believe our trip has finally concluded. Beth and I were remarking just 3 weeks ago that we can’t believe we still have three weeks left, it was going so slowly back then. But here we are on our last day in Africa. However, we don’t have to leave camp until 2PM today, as our flight doesn’t leave Mfuwe until 6PM tonight, so we get to do one more game drive! We ask our guide Nyambe to bring us somewhere new, as we have cruised the same roads for the past three game drives. It was a great morning with a couple new birds to add to Marc’s list, and the usual gators, impalas, giraffe, hippos (of course), and baboon antics. Some 4-wheeling through the shallow part of the river added to our adventure. The terrain was beautiful and unspoiled and the river is truly ruled by the massive amounts of hippos and crocs. Our guide was telling us that the village loses 3 to 4 fishermen every year to croc attacks. The river is so muddy that you just can’t see them coming and some of them are enormous. We had a nice leisurely lunch back at camp, everyone got showered and packed up. Our driver, Ken, took us to two local stores for some shopping of locally produced goods. First up was a jewelry store called Mulberry Mongoose where the artisans make jewelry out of the snares that are recovered from the bush by the anti-poaching teams. Part of the proceeds go towards fighting poaching as well. The jewelry was unique and well made, and the cause made it all worthwhile. We then visited a store called Tribal Textiles where they make linens like pillow covers, tablecloths, runners, etc. from hand dyed fabric, really good quality. We picked up a few things, then it was off to the airport for the beginning of our journey home. A 1 hour flight on a Proflight 30 passenger turboprop landed us in the capital city of Lusaka, Zambia, for a 2 hour layover. From there we boarded an Emirates 777 for the flight to Dubai, which is where I sit writing at this moment. More stories and anecdotes to come, as we reflect back on the past 4 weeks. See you at home!
Yellow Billed Stork
Bird Paradise
Pukus are so photogenic like their impala cousins
Stork nesting grounds, insane number of storks
Big croc, about 12 feet
Fields of impala, so pretty but camera doesn’t do it justice
Hippos sunning themselves and looks like they are nursing some wounds
Some underwater 4 wheeling
Cute baby baboon with enormous ears
Another cute baby
Hippo posing with some battle scars
Lillian’s Lovebirds, hard to see
Saddle Billed Stork, always so striking
More stork nesting grounds
Great ground hornbill
Cute baby again
Hippos are so plentiful here and we never tire of their sound or antics
Emerald Spotted Wood Dove, note dark green markings on wings
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