Zambia Day 6: Lion vs Crocodile vs Stick

Today we walked lions in both the morning and afternoon.  We also visited the town of Livingstone and went on a night safari. 

During the night safari we rode in a vehicle after releasing 4 mature lions from their enclosure.  We chased a combined herd of zebra and wildabeast.  We also saw a herd of impala and a lone jackal.  Unfortunately the lions did not see or capture any of the animals we saw; which was the purpose of the safari.

The highlight of the day was our afternoon walk with Rafiji, Ruma and Rwanda.  We walked these lions to the edge of the Zambezi river.  All 3 lions went into the river and later rested at the edge of the shore with us.  Just as we were about to leave, a crocodile jumped out of the river and attacked one of the lions.  The crocodile was a juvenile, about 4 feet long and no match for the lion.  One of the lion handlers, concerned that the lion may get injured threw a stick at the crocodile and hit it in the head.  This caused the crocodile to retreat back into the river, thus its life was spared.

On our trip to Livingstone, Julia rode in comfort in the front seat of a small pick-up truck.  Bob rode in the open bed of the truck along with 6 others.  One of the others in the truck was carrying a very impressive looking rifle.  When Bob inquired, he discovered it was a fully automatic AK-47 rifle.  The owner of the rifle explained that he carries the rifle while patrolling the game reserve for poachers.  Bob asked if he could take the rifle man's picture, but he declined because he was not in uniform.  When we dropped him off in town, he looked odd walking around with an automatic rifle while wearing civilian clothes.

Julia at Livingstone Market

Ruma Relaxing

Rafiji taking a dip in the Zambezi river

 

Zambia Day 5: Dead Donkeys, Lion Poop, Birds and Orphans

Today started on a very stinky note.  Julia and Bob helped prepare meals for the lions.  Unfortunately for us this meant that we had to cut and weigh large pieces of dead (and very stinky) donkey. 

After completing this unsavory task, we next de-pooped a lion enclosure.  This was a dream compared to working with dead donkeys!

Fortunately lions are fed only once every 5 days, or more if they capture their own food.  With a bit of luck we will not have to do any more meat preparation!

The morning’s activities weren’t all drudgery.  Later in the morning we went bird watching with binoculars in hand.  The locals pointed out several exotic bird species, all within a 300 meter radius of our dwelling.  We did not have an armed guide with us, thus it was not safe to venture much farther. 

In the afternoon we visited an orphanage in Livingstone called “Lubasi Home”.   We brought a suitcase full of gifts for the children at the orphanage.  The gifts included clothing, soccer jerseys, toys and enough calculators for every child.  We also visited the market next to the orphanage.  Some of the food sold in the market (dried caterpillar for example) made dead donkey seem like a delicacy!  



Bob weighing the head of a donkey.  There are worse jobs; just ask the donkeys!



We were surprised to find a solar oven donated to Lubasi Orphanage from various Rotary clubs including 3 in Ontario

Yuck....dried caterpillars!

New Years Day: Rain, Village Visit, Lion Walk

Today we started the day by visiting Maunga village; a rural village about a 40 minute drive from where we are staying.  The village has no running water and no electricity.

At the village we helped weed a garden and met many locals.  There is a water supply at the village.  Water is retrieved via a hand operated pump.  Villagers travel (in their bare feet) from as far as 5 km to get water from this location.

We treated all the kids to candy and took a tour of the school in the village. 

On the drive home, we encountered the first significant downpour since our arrival.  By the time we were due to take the lions for a walk in the afternoon, the rain had stopped and the weather was quite nice.  The lions were especially active in the post-rain cooler weather.

In the evening, after dinner, we were visited by a bushbuck named Baby.  Baby was found abandoned in the wild not long after it was born.  The staff here bottle fed it until it was able to live independently.  Baby loves to drop by to visit us often.

Julia with Maunga Village Children

Muanga Village Girl with Candy

Maunga Village Boy with Candy

Water Station in Maunga Village

Baby, Julia, and Pan the cat relaxing

Day 3 - The 3 R's

Today we went on two walks with a litter of lions known as the 3 R’s:  Rwanda, Ruma and Rufiji.  These lions are 16 months old and consist of 2 females and a male.

We bonded further with the lions today, who allowed us to pat their faces and pull (blood engorged) ticks off their bodies.

We also participated in a “Behavioral Enhancement” project.  We built a crocodile and an impala using sticks, grasses, and other natural materials found in the game reserve.  These figures are used by the lions to practice stalking and capturing prey.  We heard later in the day that Besa and Bemba were walked near the “impala” which was promptly pounced upon and torn to shreds.

Despite the ominous weather predictions when we left for Zambia, the weather has been great.  We have yet to see any significant rain and are enjoying very warm temperatures.

We look forward to starting the New Year in Zambia!

Ruma and Rufiji fighting

Rwanda, the Male R.

Zambia Day 2: Lion Bonding and Poop Patrol

This morning we walked with Besa and Bemba for approximately 2 hours.

The purpose of the walk was for the lions to get to know us better and learn to obey us. 

We were joined by Cara, the program manager, 3 lion handlers, and a scout.  The scout was equipped with a .375 caliber rifle.  He walked far ahead of the group to ensure that the intended route was safe, and stayed in constant radio contact with us.

The afternoon was poop patrol time.  We de-pooped 2 lion enclosures, each approximately 60 meters x 60 meters.  Those were the biggest litter boxes we’ve ever cleaned.  Later in the day/evening we encountered various animals including hippos, cape buffalo, antelope, monkeys and a couple of curious owls.

This lion is 16 months old and has its 2nd (and final) set of teeth

Bob, Julia and Bemba

Day 1 in Zambia

After a grueling 30 hour journey, we have arrrived at our final destination in Zambia, Africa.  We were quite tired, but still had enough energy to go for a 1 hour walk with a couple of young female lions.  Despite that it's the rainy season we enjoyed nice weather today; no rain!  We are living in simple accomodations nestled in a game reserve.  So far we have seen lots of animals in the wild:  elephants, baboons, crocodile, various types of birds, antelope and more.  We are staying very close to the shore of the Zambezi river and expect to see hippos (we were warned not to wander for that reason)



Julia petting Besa.



Julia & Bob with Bemba and Besa in the background.

Departure Day

It's departure day and we are very excited about our upcoming trip.  We have collected many donations for the orphanage including soccer jerseys, toys, 46 calculators and one small computer.

We will be traveling from Toronto, to Frankfurt, to Johannesburg to Livingstone; with layovers, a total of 30 hours travel time!

The weather forecast is as expected for this time of year in Zambia (the rainy season):

Long Term Forecast Updated: Monday, December 27, 2010, 12:18 SST

	Tuesday Dec. 28	Wednesday Dec. 29	Thursday Dec. 30	Friday Dec. 31	Saturday Jan. 1	Sunday Jan. 2
Conditions 6am - 6pm
	Thunder- showers	Thunder- showers	Cloudy with showers	Thunder- showers	Light rain	Thunder- showers
P.O.P.	90%	90%	40%	40%	90%	60%
Conditions 6pm - 6am
	Thunder- showers	Thunder- showers	Cloudy	Light rain	Cloudy with showers	Chance of thunder- showers
P.O.P.	90%	90%	30%	100%	60%	60%
High	30°C	31°C	31°C	31°C	26°C	32°C
Feels Like	37	39	38	37	34	39
Low	20°C	20°C	21°C	20°C	20°C	21°C
Wind	NE 15 km/h	E 5 km/h	NE 10 km/h	NE 10 km/h	NE 5 km/h	NE 5 km/h
24-Hr Rain	close to 15 mm	close to 10 mm	less than 1 mm	close to 10 mm	10+More than 10 mm of rain possible mm	close to 5 mm