March 30-April 1
Hello everyone!
Having at least a week off work allows me the opportunity to
get to more distant places in Malawi. There has been one place I’ve been
itching to experience since shortly after arriving in the Warm Heart of Africa:
its only ‘Big Five’ national park.
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| Hippos lurking in the river behind the humans |
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| Elephants from many generations eating by the Shire |
Majete is a long slog from Lilongwe, taking us a little over
7 hours to reach even with limited traffic and stops. It is about two hours to
the southwest of Blantyre. The road upon which you drive meanders and swerves
spectacularly along the Thyolo escarpment, resulting in some stunning views and
sharp corners. A goat also decided to run into the side of the car in the town of Chikwawa, such is life here.
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| Long drive! |
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| A beautiful view on the way down to Majete |
Majete is about 180 metres above sea level, making it 1000
metres lower than Lilongwe. The difference in climate soon becomes very clear. As
you drive down the mountain, steamy air starts to smack you in the face and
makes sweat drip from every pore.
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| The glistening Shire (SHEE-ray) river |
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| The pool at Ngona Lodge is a necessity during the day! |
Majete National Park is in a transitional process,
recovering from poachers hunting most species to local extinction up until the
end of the 1990s to become the only park in the country which has lion,
leopard, buffalo, black rhino and elephant.
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| Elephants visible from the river |
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| Hippos have been present throughout Majete's history |
African Parks, a private company which look after parks
across the continent, took control of the park in 2003 and have overseen a
renaissance, leading to the reintegration of many species and the introduction
of many more.
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The last individual elephant was killed by poachers in 1992;
now there are hundreds again. |
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Zebra were one of many animals reintroduced after
the African Parks takeover |
Many of the usual suspects can be found in the park. Majete
is known for its variety of antelope, with many different species easily
spotted.
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Our guide called impala 'McDonald's' - if you look at
their rears, you may see why... |
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| Mother and baby waterbuck relaxing by the river |
One particularly lovely antelope is called the nyala. Quite large, its white vertical streaks and orange
‘socks’ give the males quite a striking appearance.
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We were told the nyala is endemic to southern Malawi,
however it can be found in many countries in southern Africa |
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These are female nyala, with the dark-skinned picture
being a male |
Spotting any of the ‘Big Five’ is a much trickier task. On
our game drive, we only saw a sole elephant munching on fruit from the marula
tree (what Amarula is made from) near the airfield. The rest of our drive was
fruitless, even after spending time tracking fresh lion tracks.
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Apparently it is common for animals such as elephants
and baboons to eat the marula fruit, then become quite tipsy |
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| A lioness' footprint |
More success was had on our boat ride the previous day. In
addition to the expected volume of hippo and crocodile (our campsite was at
Ngona Lodge – Ngona is the Chichewa word for crocodile), we were regularly
spotting elephant in the distance. The baby was particularly photogenic as it
desperately tried to pull leaves from branches, at one point crashing into the
bush.
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| A hippo glistening in the heat |
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| A baby elephant looking for food |
The river we were travelling on was the Shire, Malawi’s main
river and one which feeds into the Zambezi. The boat started just above
Kapichira Falls, where David Livingstone’s expedition had to stop and dismantle
their boat, transporting it up to Blantyre and on to Lake Malawi before
reassembling and continuing their journey. It’s also close to where Bishop
Mackenzie, name provider of my current employers, succumbed to malaria.
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| The Shire meets the Zambezi in Mozambique |
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| As well as malaria, there are more visible threats... |
Majete is often said to be Malawi’s premier wildlife
destination. It has competition for that title, and I have to admit that I was
underwhelmed a bit with Majete when compared to Liwonde National Park in the
east of the country. Maybe, having been spoilt by the plethora of animals in
the Masai Mara the previous week, my expectations are a bit too high.
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| On the search for animals in Majete |
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| Some eagles were flying over the park |
Nonetheless, seeing any of these animals in the wild is
always a thrill and always something I need to remember to cherish. The day I’m
on safari and say, “Oh, it’s just another elephant,” is the day I need to be
removed from this Earth.
It also reflects the fact that Majete is still a work in progress. Considering the state of the park twenty years ago, it is a great achievement and great for Malawi that there is a national park here at all, let alone one which contains such a variety of animals. We didn't see the big names here but still had a wonderful time in some fabulous surroundings.
Love you all
Matt
