Folks, it’s been a WILD couple of days (bad pun intended)! Nick and I spent last Friday through Monday safari-ing in Majete National Park, a protected wildlife reserve in Southern Malawi. While we’ve had two mini safari experiences since arriving (Kuti & Liwonde), this was our first legit, multi-day safari.
Unfortunately, the drive there proved to be a bit longer than expected (7 hours in all). We had left the house at 6:15 in the morning and got there a little after 1 PM. We stayed a Robin Pope’s Makulumadzi Safari Camp, a high-end property that’s totally off-grid. They have their own boreholes for water, their own generators for power and there’s no wifi or cell service.
The first thing we saw upon arriving was this foot bridge (photo below). Literally everything going into and out of the camp goes across this footbridge. And while it was sturdy, when you got a few people on it the thing got extremely bouncy. All I kept thinking was how if I had a couple drinks and walked the bridge it would be the end of me… that being said, it was especially cool coming back from the evening safaris when they had it lit up with hanging lanterns!
We were starving by the time we arrived around 1 PM, as we’d driven straight for 7 hours. Thankfully, we were able to sit down for lunch immediately. And boy was it delicious – definitely some of the better food we’ve had in Malawi. There was no time to dawdle though, as we needed to get checked into our room and be back for the 3 PM tea, which segued immediately into the 3:30 – 7 PM game drive. Then it was home for a quick shower before 7:30 dinner began. Who knew safari could be such a grueling pace?!
The room was divine, probably the nicest accommodations we’ll experience on safari. The room had a physical concrete structure around 3 sides and then the 4th side opened onto a deck and at night a canvas flap was rolled down and zipped up on that side. It was a brilliant design. Even more brilliant was this in-bed cooling system that they had. There was no in-room air conditioner since the room had screens entirely on one side. Instead, they had this amazing contraption that blew air down on you from the frame above you. It worked amazingly well and despite the ridiculous heat, we slept quite comfortably.
The main lodge was quite luxurious too, but maintained the feel of being in nature. The dining area overlooked the Shire River and there were hippos or elephants to observe below at most times of the day. Watching the animals from the infinity pool was also a highlight for us. Just beautiful all around.
We did two game drives per day. We got our wake-up call at 5:15 am, had to be down for a mini breakfast by 5:30 and were out on safari by 6. We usually came back between 9 and 9:30, at which point we had a full breakfast. The late morning and early afternoon were spent cat-napping and relaxing. Then it was back out by 3:30 for the afternoon drive.
Much of the park was forested, but the part closest to where we stayed was where the Shire river cut through the valley. We did quite a bit of driving near the river and other watering holes, since the dry season draws the animals to the water. On the morning drives we’d have a mid-morning coffee at a blind and watch the animals for 30 minutes or so. In the blind pictured below, the water hole was on the other side of the fence.
During the evening safaris we enjoyed a ‘sundowner’ drink as we watched the sun set. Each day had a different location and it was a lovely ritual that I looked forward to each day.
In case you couldn’t tell, we had a splendid weekend together. Great food, unique new experiences, total relaxation – it was exactly what we needed to feel rejuvenated. Tomorrow I’ll do another post about the wildlife we saw! Stay tuned…
