We are back from the bush which was an oasis in the park but had very limited wifi.  So, time to catch up with the rest of our safari adventures.

Saturday August 13th was our last day at Flatdogs Camp before we moved to a smaller camp (Puku Ridge) in the park.  We had heard lions during the night and were hoping we would find some on our morning drive. We headed out just before 6am with Wallia (our guide aka Wally) and Susan and Brian (the retired school teachers from Melbourne who had joined our safari car).

After a delicious brunch we headed off with Wally for the 45 minute drive to Puku Ridge.  We hated to leave Flatdogs as we loved the camp, all the people running it and the way they work with the local community and are so mindful of preserving the wildlife.  It is a fairly large camp by local standards with a maximum of 40 people but it spreads out so you never feel it.  But, we were also excited to see what it was like to sleep in the park.

There are supposedly only two entrances to S Luangwa Park on the east side.  One was the main gate near Flatdogs.  The second one was several miles south and was accessed by a truck ferry.

After a short drive, we arrived at Puku Ridge and were greeted by Leve (the manager) and several others.  It is run by Sanctuary Retreats which has properties around the world.  They also had a larger camp up the road which was formerly the vacation home of a previous Zambian president.  But Puku is more intimate with only 7 “tents” at the camp which each slept 2 people.  On the first night, it was just us and an American woman (who was working for a local organization) with two local Zambian kids who were traveling with her.  The “tents” were spacious and a slight step up from Flatdogs without being over the top.  We had a great view out to the waterhole which was pretty dry as the recent rainy season hadn’t been very wet.  But we saw lots of animals come through.  There was a main gathering point for the camp which had a large sitting area as well as a deck with comfortable chairs and swings as well as several tables for eating.  An oasis in the middle of the park.  

After an enjoyable rest, we had a delicious late lunch before heading out with Alick (our guide) for an afternoon/night drive.

She’s a little calmer here.

When we returned to camp, we had a great dinner on the deck listening to all the animal sounds.  And later after relaxing on the deck, we had our watchman walk us back to the tents and listened to lots of animal sounds throughout the night.  Another incredible day.