Nyika

2/10

I made it! Oh, the scenery here is just breathtaking. Think Scotland, think highlands- am I even in Africa??! It’s incredible. I live in a log cabin, right in the heart of the national park, sharing these magnificent views with five other ladies. Today we started our morning with a large mammal transect drive and managed to see quite a few different antelopes as well as number of zebras. I got the best picture of one of the zebras and I simply cannot wait to share it with you guys. Unfortunately the reception here is shocking, so I won’t be able to upload much. We also managed to get a couple of carnivore scats, one really fresh (and smelly) leopard one. Apparently there are heaps around!

I can’t begin to tell you how different the vibes are here compared to where I was. In Nyika, people are a lot more open and friendly, giving you the feeling of belonging and purpose. Sense of humor does go a long way as there is a lot of laughter in our days. Of course we work hard too, but in the right company everything seems to be more enjoyable.

Boy is it cold though. I can forget about the tan as I will be busy wrapping myself in layers clothing before heading out for drives! It does warm up around midday, so on our walks we can easily get away with short sleeves.

Tonight’s plan is to go for a night drive and do spotlighting. Night drives are the prime time to see hyenas and leopards. Fingers crossed!!

Before I wrap up for today, I would like to talk about my drive to the camp. As you know I caught a bus from Lilongwe to Mzuzu. Good thing was that I got the whole back row to myself (I was a real backseat bandit alright), the bad thing was that the bus driver had to announce that he was sober for the drive (as apparently it is not a given here in Africa) as well as the fact that we were doing a solid 120 in a 50 zone and we were overtaking cars in pretty unreasonable conditions (such as, hey, there’s a car coming, perhaps don’t try to over take right this second and wait a little). But I made it and I’m in one piece so… I’ve got that one going for me, which is nice.
From Mzuzu I was collected and taken to a motel. Had a really nice sleep and hearty breakfast/lunch the day after. Also got a bit of shopping done and got more bits and pieces for Nyika.
The drive from Mzuzu consisted of a 6 hour journey on dusty and really bumpy unpaved roads. I don’t think we really exceeded 50 km per hour, but I got to see a lot of the scenery and there’s a certain excitement in going somewhere so remote and excluded.

My first impression of the camp was just a jaw dropping “wow”. Large log cabin with a massive fireplace and all the amenities- NOT bad at all! We only get 4 hours of electricity per day, but at least we can charge up everything. We also get hot water, we just have to heat the boiler.
Anyway, I feel really spoilt and appreciative. Waking up to antelopes free roaming in your front “yard” is an incredible feeling.

I’m definitely starting to fall in love with Africa.