Where in Zambia will we end up?

Today will be an adventure since even Chamu, our tour leader, doesn't know exactly how we're getting to our alternative camp in Zambia. We started with a chilly drive to the airstrip, then a flight to Kasane, we were bussed to the Chobe river, where we took a small boat across to Zambia, then bussed to Livingstone where we boarded 3 planes to the Lufapa river camp outside Kafue National Park. Having left at 7 AM, we reach our camp about 3 in the afternoon.

While we were travelling we saw a lot of bush fires from the air. When they created the park, they gave fishing rights to the native people. When the river floods the fish go downstream to spawn. The natives set poles in the river to wedge the fish and spear them. As they are walking the land they set fires ahead of them to drive the animals away and see better. The fires primarily burn the grass, sparing the trees.

In the evening we took a cruise up on the tributaries of the Kafue river. Lots of birds, a water monitor, crocodile and a pod of hippos. We startled a hippo near the boat as he came up for air, in turn we were startled as he quickly submerged.

Hippos in the river

A little about our camp, Lufapa. The camp was scheduled to open on July 1st. OAT called and made arrangements for it to open 2 weeks early. Wilderness, the vendor, grabbed employees from other camps in Zambia, and sent them here 4 days ago, since the eventual employees and managers are on holiday (after building this camp over the last 5 months). Some of the toilets were just installed, the food arrived hours before we did, and a lot of little things are missing like waste baskets and tissues. They seem to have done an amazing job in just 4 days of pulling this together.