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Picnics, Puppies and Crocodile
Cookies
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bed at Kuyenda was wonderfully comfortable and I slept soundly until
Davey tapped gently on the door to tell me my shower was ready and
waiting. Raring to go, I bounced out to breakfast - an all-American
affair with fresh pancakes, delicious fruit salad, bacon, eggs and
great coffee.
Today we were to go on an all-day wild dog hunt. These are some
of the rarest animals in Africa, but Phil keeps track of all the
animals around Kuyenda and if we were going to see them anywhere,
then this was the place.
Babette and Lloyd (the chef) loaded up the vehicle with huge cool
boxes and picnic hampers and we set off with Phil and Bottle the
scout sat up front, eyes peeled. As we drove along, Phil filled us
in on his life in the valley - a Hollywood biopic waiting to happen
I feel!
Phil has spent over 40 years working in and around the South
Luangwa National Park, and there is little doubt that the Park owes
much of its unspoilt beauty and abundant wildlife to his management
and care. His knowledge of the animals around him is immense -and
not just general knowledge either but specific and detailed
information about the individual herds, prides and packs. As if to
illustrate this, he told us of Kuyenda's own elephant visitor who
comes rampaging in at night destroying the kitchen hut in search of
food. While the rest of the staff blow whistles to distract him,
Phil confronts him in the landrover and shouts out terrible threats
in his own patent 'ele-language', which, though strange, always
seems to work (all he needs is a loincloth and a liana and I might
have found my Tarzan at last!).
As Phil was regaling us with stories of the animals, we were
busily engaged in watching them as we passed them by on the dirt
roads. At elevenses time, we stopped to stretch our legs, sip
ice-cold drinks from the coolbox and snack on crunchy animal-shaped
cookies - lions, elephants, crocodiles and rhinos - very cute!
On the road again, a huge herd of buffalo held us up for some
time, just standing in the road and daring us to come and have a go
if you think you're hard enough - we didn't! The air was starting to
freshen up as we approached the river and prepared for a picnic.
Bottle and Phil checked to make sure no lunchtime gatecrashers were
lurking in the river or trees and we all got out and sucked down a
welcome beer whilst the food was set out. Lloyd is a magical chef
and this was one of the most glamorous and exotic picnics I had ever
had - tangy tuna mousse, fresh-baked breads of all kinds, crunchy
flavoursome salads and a whole glazed ham - a veritable feast.
After lunch and a lie-down to ease our tightened waistbands, we
headed back towards camp via the wild dog den whilst Phil told us of
some of the spectacular kills he had seen them carry out. And then
he casually dropped in the most exciting news so far - the wild dogs
had recently become parents again and we could expect to see several
month-old puppies!
This was great news - nothing is cuter or more photogenic than a
baby animal and Reuben began messing around with his lenses and
films in anticipation. As we approached the den there was a lot of
movement in the bush and the family must have decided to head back
to the den because as we drew up, there was nothing to be seen.
We sat and waited and gradually, first one adult, then another
appeared and finally, several little fluffy puppies tumbled out of
the den and started a complicated play fight around the bushes. I
can't tell you how sweet these little animals are - huge circular
ears, little pointy noses and fluffy chubby bodies - you just want
to pick one up and put it in your pocket. Not really advisable
though as these are some of the most savage creatures in Africa who
think nothing of tackling animals many times their size and then rip
it up in the most ferocious manner imaginable - cute to look at but
definitely not to cuddle!
We watched the wild dog families for quite some time and then
slowly meandered back to Kuyenda, game viewing on the way, as the
sun began to set.
By the time we arrived it was nearly dark and Babette had lit all
the lanterns and candles around the main area - a magical fairyland
of warmth and light. After showers, drinks and much excited
recapping of how cute the puppies were, we sat down to one of
Babettes specialities - curry night! Using spices which she brought
back from a recent visit to India, the meat had been simmering all
day in its sauce and was so tender you could cut it with a spoon.
Served with all the traditional accompaniments (plus a few African
extras such as banana!) it was a delicious end to a brilliant day.
Babette is a great hostess and told us a hilarious story about her
growling match with a too-inquisitive wild dog!
Tomorrow we were going to meet the Park's unique giraffes - the
Thorneycroft. It was an early start so we pre-ordered our showers
and headed off to our chalets - last night in Kuyenda - how could we
bear to leave?
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