And yet another safari season has started! Kafunta River Lodge re-opened on March 23rd, 2015 after over two months of closing while most of the staff went on their annual leave. A team of watchmen and maintenance personnel staying behind to look after the lodge and proceed with the needed repairs, led away by Levy, our Maintenance Manager from day one.

After a month on leave Assistant Manager Wilson (who has been with Kafunta Safaris since 2005) returned to a still quiet front office to start preparing for the new season. Shortly after, Leandi, happily returning from her holidays in South Africa for her 3rd season as Lodge Manager, joined Wilson and together they welcomed our first guests in a freshly re-painted and re-floored lounge.

Safari Manager Josephat and our long standing team of guides, Martin, Abel and Andrew, were reunited and delighted to rev again the engines of their safari vehicles and take on the trails in the park, anxious to see the conditions of the animals and vegetation after a fairly low rainy season.

Two new additions have also joined our team: Rob took on the role of Operations Manager and Izzy that of Reservations and Sales Manager. Though new with Kafunta Safaris, both have been popular figures in the Valley for a number of years and it is with great pleasure that we welcomed them on board

From left to right:  Ron, Luke and Anke Cowan, Leandi, Wilson, Izzy, Levy and Rob.

We are also looking forward to the arrival of extra help in the form of Eugene who should be joining us during the month of May and assist Rob  and Leandi in the Front of House department. And of course later in May, as Island Bush Camp reopens, we will greet the return of Klaus, our Bush Camp Manager.

In the meantime, Ron, Anke and Luke have shared their time between Kafunta and Australia, where Luke is schooling. They were last here for the Easter holidays but now Anke and Luke have returned home to Australia leaving Ron behind to master the design and building of Three Rivers Camp, our new tented camp to open in May 2016 (more below).

Kafunta River Lodge has once again been nominated for a number of Safari Awards, a total of 8 nominations amongst which

• Best Value Safari Property
• Best Safari Guiding Team
• Best Community Focused Safari Property
• Best Family Safari Experience

Running since 2008, the Safari Awards recognizes the best safari properties and operators in Africa. We’re very pleased to receive recognition from the industry and we’d like to say a big thank you to our supporters.

Last year we were finalists in the Best Value Safari Property category. This year we hope to win, so please click on the logo Safari Awards log, and vote for us in as many categories as you seem fit. 

And if you have a bit of extra time, we invite you to also vote for Project Luangwa nominated as Best Charity, the only nominees from Zambia in this category. 

April saw a bounce of late rains, keeping the Luangwa River high and the vegetation at its finest, with grass and leaves bursting in luxuriant shades of greens. The heavy rains however delayed the construction of our pontoon crossing, which we finally were able to open just recently. 

Levy, and a team of courageous workers, couldn’t however wait any longer for the rains to finally stop to head down South and start re-building Island Bush Camp due to welcome its first guests on May 21st.  It was an adventurous journey, reminiscent of the pioneering days, as it took 3 days for the boys (and the big truck) to reach the site – roughly 50 km from Kafunta! Chopping through the overgrown vegetation, on muddy and ungraded paths and across flowing tributaries of the Luangwa River – it was a trip they will talk about for a long time.

Nevertheless they made it to the camp location, and construction is well under way, Levy having re-surfaced at Kafunta a couple of times for supplies.

Ron and Anke had a similar trek on April 25, although not as “wet” as the one above, when they went down to survey the location for Three Rivers Camp. Levy and the workers took a break from Island bush camp and met up with Ron and Anke, to help in the planning of each tent’s location, communal areas and the likes. Ron and Anke returned ecstatic from their trip, as the project is taking shape not only in their heads but on the ground too.

Anke and Levy walking the trails

Ron and Levy, selecting each tent's location

After Anke and Luke departed for Australia again, Ron took a 4-day trip to South Africa to finalize the choice of the tents, completing one of the primary steps of building a new camp.

We hope to see the camp well off the ground by October this year, to organize a photo shoot, and will be excited to share the results with you.  The picture below is just to give you an idea of the tent style, as interior décor remains to be finalized.

by Canvas & Tents

Meanwhile at Kafunta River Lodge, the season is well under way, with guests from all horizons, either on a first visit to Africa or returning to the Luangwa for yet another memorable safari, enjoying the relative quietness of the Emerald season. Relative quietness in terms of fellow safari-goers because when it comes to wildlife the sightings have been absolutely stunning! Contrary to general belief, the months of April and May see some amazing abundance of predators such as lions, leopards and wild dogs. After a 10-day safari, return guest Gisela only jokingly deplored the lack of majestic male kudus, as her first-timer friend and her saw absolutely all the other animals one can dream off in this spectacular scenery, including multiple sightings of wild dogs, and on their very first outing, a pride of lions taking down an impala. 

Izzy, anxious to put on her blogger’s hat, found her first inspirations when lions walked by on the floodplains in front of the dining deck while guests were having dinner, and when joining an evening game drive where Martin skillfully spotted a small female leopard feeding on a prey hidden away in the tall grasses.

And there will be a lot more stories to come, so stay tuned and check our news page on our website to keep up with what is happening at the lodge and the bush camp this season. You can see our latest blogs here.

Whether you are in the early stages of planning an African safari, or if you are already booked for a visit later this year, you are most welcome to email us and we will happily answer your questions.  

All the best for now,

The Kafunta Safaris team