Steve and Marietjie African Trip 2016: Kaingu Lodge Kafue

To get out of Liuwa Plains we had to take the pontoon to get across the river once again. Our next destination: Kaingu Lodge in Kafue. The trip to Kaingu was almost 600km. We got up in the dark, and started traveling with the first light of day. We knew that despite our early rise, getting out of Liuwa's thick sand, waiting your turn to cross the river by hand drawn pontoon, and stocking up in Mongu, would not get us to Kaingu Lodge before dark. Instead we opted to camp at Mayukuyuku Lodge en route. The next day we only had 137 km to drive to get to our destination. It took us 4 hours to complete our journey to Kaingu. The first 40 km we drove was on a good tarred road, with many speed bumps, as we were traveling through Kafue National Park. The next 40 km was on a reasonable gravel road. The last part of our journey took us on a beautiful, winding track, through dense forests dotted with massive granite boulders. Every now and then we spotted Zebra, Puku, and Vervet Monkeys. on this track we collected passengers in the form of tsetse flies. I noted in the instructions we got from Kaingu that we had to stop and spray our vehicles against these pests at some point. At a 'check point' we enquired about the spray, but the official did not know what we were talking about. We continued on our way to Kaingu. Kaingu clearly stated that we were not to bring the tsetse flies to the lodge. We were nearing the lodge and all we had in the caravan was Doom. We stopped the car. Steve rushed to open the caravan with hundreds of tsetses attacking him. I retrieved the fly swotter (aptly named 'Iedere vlieg se moer') and set off doing exactly that! Steve entered the caravan with tsetses in tow, closed the door behind him and made a lot of noise! I was outside swatting myself to get rid of tsetses biting me, jumping up and down and waving my arms. After Steve had emptied the can of Doom, he exited the caravan, well marked by tsetse biting marks, and remarked drily: Well, we declared war on the tsetse flies, and the tsetses won! We continued our journey and 'licked our wounds'. About 2 km from Kaingu Lodge we came upon a big sign that read: PLEASE STOP YOUR CAR HERE FOR 5 MINUTES. THIS IS A TSETSE FLY CONTROLL AREA. which we did. Lo and behold! All the tsetse flies lost interest in our vehicle and disappeared! I have been dreaming about visiting Kaingu Lodge for more than 2 years. A few years ago we discovered that Gilmore and Julia, a couple that we had met on a 4x4 trip from Luderitz to Walvis Bay, had bought shares in and was helping to run Kaingu Lodge. So we were so excited to meet up with Gilmore and Julia once again! The team of Rick (a retired veterinarian) and Lynda (pharmacist), Gilmore (a forestry specialist and practical engineering person), and Julia (with her artistic background) makes a formidable team at Kaingu Lodge. We camped at Chief's Camp, but could also use the lodge facilities. We went on a river cruise, a game drive, and had dinner at the lodge. The staff at Kaingu was friendly and helpful. We did not want to leave! The last day Gilmore and Julia took us on an interesting walk. We ended on top of a granite rock (similar to Paarl Rock) with a beautiful view from which we watched the sunset and had some drinks. Then they invited us for dinner at their house. The house is absolutely unique. It was built on and incorporated into granite rocks and trees. There are no glass windows and the doors do not get locked. All the furniture were hand made and Julia's artistic flair is everywhere to be seen. Julia's own personal art adorns the lodge as well as the Chalets at the lodge. We stand in awe at all the work Julia has put in to building and decorating, not just their own house, but also the ablution facilities at Chief's Camp, and the bathrooms in the Chalets.