Mozambique - Days 6 and 7: Kambako Reserve

The first night we were in Montepuez, Alan and Rachel discussed a tentative agenda for our visit.  They mentioned that they had found a hunting reserve a few hours north and were in the process of emailing back and forth with the owner/manager/someone about a special consideration for us to come for part of a weekend, just for viewing (no hunting!).  There is another animal place nearby that they occasionally take visitors to, but they hadn't had much luck with seeing animals, so they thought it would be worth a shot to try something new.  After a little bit of emailing, we got the approval to go!  We were all very very excited, even though we weren't really sure what to expect. 

Days 6-7 (Friday and Saturday) were spent at the reserve and traveling to/from the reserve.

Here are some memories/highlights from Days 6 and 7:

*The hunting reserve was 4.5 hours away.. on very bumpy, very dusty roads.  During part of our ride, multiple biting flies decided to join us in the car.... and give us little nibbles.  It was extra fun with 3 little girls in the car. :)

*The drive to the reserve was so beautiful.  I love all the bush and mountains.  We pit-stopped in Chipembe, a nearby village, to let them know that we would be worshiping with them on Sunday.  I loved this guy's smile and his awesome hat.  PS.  he was wearing an awesome hat on Sunday too!

*Our guide's name was John Wayne.  Yep, that's right! John Wayne.  From South Africa.  and he always said "bon appetit" whenever he would start eating (usually a good 5-10 minutes after us) lol.  what a funny guy.

 Finally made it to the reserve

 Following John Wayne to the camp

*The main camp was full, so we got to stay at a tent camp.  It was awesome.  We were the only ones there.  Alan and Rachel and the girls stayed in a structure, similar to a cabin.  Aaron and I stayed in a really neat tent.  It even had a bathroom attached to it!  Since we were the only ones there, it was like our own private camp!  The food pavilion was really neat.  It had a huge tree growing through the middle of it and it overlooked the river. (which wasn't too much, as it was dry season)

 Africa Howells cabin/tent

 Our tent

Inside our tent.

 Food pavilion 

 

*After a delicious lunch of cottage pie, we went on our first ride.  Alan stayed behind with Katie Joy, so it was Aaron, Rachel, Abby, Ellie and me.

 Lugenda River

Baobab tree

*We saw an elephant print.. and some elephant poop.  But no elephants.

*Animals we saw included: monkeys, baboons, water bucks, impala, wart hogs. red duiker (somewhat rare), guineas, kudo, elands (from afar), and some pretty cool birds.

 Water buck

Water buck

Impala

Water buck

 

guineas 

kudu

Impala

Wart hogs

Water buck

Impala

Monkey

Baboon 

*One of the highlights of our safari was seeing LIONS!  Rachel spotted them, right by the car.. next to their recent kill, impala.  One of the lions did not have any food when we spotted them, so she laid down in the grass, flicking her tail.. which according to John Wayne, is a warning that we should keep away.  We eventually pulled forward some, so that she could come back to get some more food.  and so we could get a better look at her, of course.

Our first sighting of the lions!

 See the bloody paw??

She was not very happy with us!

She's licking her lips!

 Coming out to see if there is any more food.

See the lion under the tree, eating the impala?

*The African sunset is absolutely breathtaking.  According to John Wayne, it is very pink because of all the dust in the air. 

 

*That night for dinner, we had impala!  It was delicious.  Tasted like beef.  not chicken.

*Ellie fell asleep at the dinner table.  :)  It was a long day.

*After dinner, we (Aaron, Alan, Abby and I) went on a night drive.  For the night drive, Aaron and I took turns shining a huge spotlight into the bush looking for shiny eyes!  Since it was dark, I didn't really get to take pictures.  We saw bush babies, white tail mongoose, and a serval cat.

 *We got back pretty late at night (10) and were informed by John Wayne that we would wake up at 4:30, breakfast at 5:00 and morning safari starting at 5:30.  Whew! (originally wake up was at 4.. but I think he changed his mind after he saw my face!)

*After the morning safari, we headed over to the main camp to meet the owner/manager and for our final meal there.

 *I loved the views of the Lugenda River!

 

*The girls loved the pool!

 *On our way back home, we saw a gorgeous sunset over a river.  This is one of my favorite scenic photos from the trip and is currently my wallpaper on my laptop.

*With the drive there and back, the safari drives and the drive to the main camp, we calculated that we spent approximately 20 hours {bouncing} in the car in 2 days.  We were extremely exhausted once we got home, but it was so worth it.  We are so thankful to Alan and Rachel for taking us!

Ok, sorry for the crazy long post!

More to come!