Limpopo Transfrontier Park

Well, we are back after an absolutely delightful week of camping ...not without its hiccups along the way, but overall, it was lovely! Just what I needed!!! I'll go back to the beginning and share our adventures in order....

Our first destination was the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park. (www.greatlimpopopark.com) It's a brand new park, recently opened and still in its very early stages of development. Essentially, it is an extension of South Africa's Kruger National Park that overlaps into Mozambique. There have been rumours of this transfrontier conservation area being established ever since I was a little girl living in South Africa. I've taken a keen interest in it since then and even did part of my senior independent research at ENC on this park. So.... it was with GREAT excitement that I set off with Mom, Dad and Mary on the four hour drive to reach the park.

It took us a while once we reached the town of Massingir -out in the middle of nowhere- to find our way, but we managed and soon found ourselves driving along the wall of the Massingir Dam, an impressive sight! The park entrance was on the far side of the dam. We took care of paperwork, paid, and headed on towards the Campismo Aguia-Pesqueira (Fish Eagle Campsite).

Because the park is still in its early stages, there are still villages within the park and very little in the way of wildlife. People were friendly and waved and called out as we bumped along. Only 4x4's are allowed in the park and we could certainly see why!! Very rough terrain indeed!

We eventually reached the camp and met up with the manager...who was delighted to have some Portuguese speakers there for a change (most visitors there are from South Africa). It must be a very lonely job... we were the first people to come all day. It's a small camp, only 10 sites total and two ablution blocks and outdoor kitchenettes. He assigned us site #6, the best of them all. It had an absolutely GORGEOUS view out over the Massingir Dam.

We set about unpacking and setting up the tent, all the while listening to that quintessentially African call of the fish eagles around the dam. We watched the fishermen in their dugout canoes criss-crossing the dam on their way home. We scoured the dam with our binoculars, searching for hippos but my guess is that they stay near the river mouth.

The sun sank lower in the sky and the colours of the water and surrounding mountains and foliage were absolutely breathtaking! Added to that the near-full moon rose in the east. Words cannot describe how beautiful it was!! Another family - South African - set up camp next to us, so we didn't have the entire place to ourselves after all, but despite that it was very, VERY restful and quiet. We had some curry and rice, cooked over a small gas ring that we brought along (Mom had prepared several meals in advance and froze them -- packed tightly in coldboxes surrounded by ice). We sat around the fire for a while and then turned in early.
I awoke around 3AM, gazing up at the almost lacy network of shadows cast by branches and leaves in the moonlight. It was so very quiet, even the crickets and bats were silent. I lay there savoring it for a moment before dropping off to sleep once more.

We were up with the sun and I had a cold shower (there was a gas heater for water but it didn't work) -- there's nothing as invigorating as a cold shower on a chilly African winter morning! :o)

After a bite of coffee cake and something warm to drink, we took down the tent, packed up the truck, looked out over the dam once more and then headed out -- on our way westwards towards Kruger Park !!

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(The director of the Limpopo Park is actually a member of the Maputo Central Church of the Nazarene and I was really hoping to be able to meet him while we were there. Unfortunately, it was only today that I found out that he was in Maputo while we were there in the park. He had gotten the date wrong and had been planning to have a dinner there for us while we were there...shame! (Heh! I wanted to ask him about potential job/volunteer opportunities in the park some day in the distant future... oh well...perhaps another opportunity will present itself! ;o)