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Old
Mondoro Bush Camp Newsletter
April,
May, June 2006
 Helen
and I have started the season coming home to Old Mondoro to
find a paradise green with lushness after a very good rainy
season and we could hardly recognize our surroundings in
contrast with what we left behind in 2005. From the second
we set foot in the Zambezi valley, the magic of this wild
place started to weave a web around us that you can not
easily get out of, words can not describe it!
The Chakwenga river was still flowing
when we arrived (what a sight!!) and when I crossed it for
the first time I could no longer wait to see what surprises
nature will throw at us during the season. So far we have
not been disappointed and to me it feels like living a dream
and the vivid images of the things that I have witness with
our guests is engraved in my memory.
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The
big cats have been good and the arrival of three
Zimbabwean male lions that crossed the Zambezi river really
stirred things up, they have since met the oldest of the 3
lionesses from last year, and the biggest of the three
entertained us with mating and being very jealous over his
new girlfriend ! It seems like they have settled in the area
and the roar of 3 male lions at night can not be beaten by
any other bush sound. We have not yet seen the other 2
lionesses and the 3 cubs, but they will be
making an appearance when the time is right. The
lioness with the 4 male cubs has been spotted
east of the Mushika river, all of
them looking great!!!! |
Photo: Uli Latzell |
 The
leopards, now what can I say. The lucky guests were
Jenny Purdie and Keith Hart from Australia, they had a big
male leopard mating with a female, we watched as the
sighting stretched out to almost half an hour, in the open,
right in front of the vehicle, sorry, I got no photographs I
could not bring the camera to my eye and Helen had to thumb
me in the ribs: “take pictures!!” by then it was all over.
We sat in awe…
We watched in anticipation as a female
leopard started hunting, stalking and chasing 4 times during
our sighting, but without success and then watched her
drinking at a waterhole nearby. We also had, and this is
building up to what might be the highlight of the season, we
found two male leopards fighting in the top branches of a
big winterthorn tree one night with incredible sounds and
branches falling from the tree, the big older male then
climbed out and went sleeping at the base of a nearby tree
(see picture) waiting for his challenger (see picture) to
make a dart for his life! This all happening with 3 hyenas
joining us as spectators! Magic…
 Now,
for the leopard finale. On foot one morning with newly weds
Tim an Jacqueline Webb from London, we were quietly walking
through the bush following a water channel to join up with
the Zambezi river just after climbing a 3.5m bank, following
a hippo trail. In the corner of my eye I spotted movement… a
big female leopard walked into a clearing below the bank in
perfect soft morning light, unaware of our presence…we
slowly sat down and it was like watching a top class
documentary being filmed. She walked to the edge of the
water, over green short grass looked around for fish, took a
mouthful of water and turned around pausing a moment as to
show of in front of us. She then climbed on top of a fallen
dead tree, stretched and looked around as if she’s looking
for something to hunt… she jumped of the log and went into
short undergrowth, and started chasing a white-browed coucal
up and down with lightning speed but without success, came
out again into the open and sunlight, and went for a drink.
We slowly and quietly moved for a better view, and had to go
back the way we came and still she did not see us, but her
sixth sense warned her and she paused for a while, looked
around and spotted us sitting down to watch her escapades,
she trotted of looking very sheepish !!!
 All
of this, on foot, in the best light, with a female leopard
acting out a play that is so natural, it can just not get
better!! Magic again, and damn good magic I may add.
I can never mention all the spectacular
sightings, there’s just too many, but, and I can not help
it… martial eagle taking out an Egyptian goose
duckling, water monitors mating, elephant bulls
fighting, Narina trogon , African wildcat , serval,
Sharpe’s grysbok, buffalo herd of 350 strong, two female
leopards with a hyena taking away their impala,
wild dog with 2 puppies chasing zebras, and it goes on…
Our team at OM grows stronger as we
welcome the arrival of our new Zambian guide Levy Farao as a
qualified game drive and canoeing guide.
A brand new Toyota Land Cruiser also
makes our team stronger and will help to tame the dusty and
bumpy safari roads in Africa.
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OLD
MONDORO, where it all happens
Safari regards
Roelof & Helen
PS: Good
news, just returned from Jeki airstrip, 3 lionesses and 3
cubs have been spotted near KK ruins, it made our day…
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Photo: Uli Latzell
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“Absolutely
first class!” David and
Carolyn Tett, California, USA
“We came
back, the first guests just could not stay away, just as
magical, thank you very
much” Alison and John King, UK
January 2006
Newsletter
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