Africa is a wild and wonderful destination and one of the wildest highlights is the South Luangwa Valley in Zambia.
It's way off the beaten track and a huge pristine wilderness where few footsteps tread.
One of the most stunning ways to experience this part of "the real Africa" is in a bushcamp.
There are a total of 5 camps run by the Bushcamps Company with exotic names like Bilimungwe, Chamilandu, Chindeni, Kapamba and Zungulila.
These remote camps are all different and take you back to nature - but in luxury.
That means very comfortable accommodation with en suite facilities, superb food, excellent staff and very experienced game rangers!The camps accommodate a maximum of 8 guests, so the service levels are amazing.
An exciting way to travel between camps is by walking with an armed ranger.
Your luggage travels separately in a Land Rover.
This is certainly a way to get to grips with the African bush and it's not that strenuous.
My best experience in my visits to this wonderful safari area was seeing lions mating - from about 30 metres away.
It was quite incredible!Lions mate frequently over a period of about 4 days but for very short times per every half hour or so.
Each "session" lasts a few seconds and it's all over.
Then it happens again..
..
and again..
..
and again...
This mating session was viewed from a Land Rover and the lions were not at all disturbed at.
They were very aware that we were there, but took no notice of us.
It was a rare and very memorable sighting and the first for me after decades of living in Africa and visiting game reserves on a regular basis.
If you plan to "do" a really authentic African safari I can really recommend Zambia as a destination and the bushcamps in the South Luangwa Valley for a truly memorable experience.
You may even be lucky enough to see lions mating!
It's way off the beaten track and a huge pristine wilderness where few footsteps tread.
One of the most stunning ways to experience this part of "the real Africa" is in a bushcamp.
There are a total of 5 camps run by the Bushcamps Company with exotic names like Bilimungwe, Chamilandu, Chindeni, Kapamba and Zungulila.
These remote camps are all different and take you back to nature - but in luxury.
That means very comfortable accommodation with en suite facilities, superb food, excellent staff and very experienced game rangers!The camps accommodate a maximum of 8 guests, so the service levels are amazing.
An exciting way to travel between camps is by walking with an armed ranger.
Your luggage travels separately in a Land Rover.
This is certainly a way to get to grips with the African bush and it's not that strenuous.
My best experience in my visits to this wonderful safari area was seeing lions mating - from about 30 metres away.
It was quite incredible!Lions mate frequently over a period of about 4 days but for very short times per every half hour or so.
Each "session" lasts a few seconds and it's all over.
Then it happens again..
..
and again..
..
and again...
This mating session was viewed from a Land Rover and the lions were not at all disturbed at.
They were very aware that we were there, but took no notice of us.
It was a rare and very memorable sighting and the first for me after decades of living in Africa and visiting game reserves on a regular basis.
If you plan to "do" a really authentic African safari I can really recommend Zambia as a destination and the bushcamps in the South Luangwa Valley for a truly memorable experience.
You may even be lucky enough to see lions mating!