MALAWI

In search of the Bar Tailed Trogon

We left Gurue, a quaint tea plantation town in eastern Mozambique, at 5.30am to drive the 200 km dirt track narrow road to the Masenga border crossing. There was little to no traffic on the road and we were able to average around 40 kph. The area is very rural and the landscape is hilly and scenic. This region of Mozambique is less often visited than the coastline and it would have been nice to have spent time out here in a remote area of Mozambique. Fortunately there had not been much rain here yet so the road was quite passable.

We made the border at 10am and found no other vehicles there. We changed our money into Kwacha and were through both sets of borders in 45 minutes. Arriving in Malawi, we were back on tarmac roads and made our way towards Blantyre where we hoped to get Malawi SIM cards and stock up on a few items. The landscape is hilly and very green. The south seems to be where the tea comes from as there were large farms with swarms of people picking the tea leaves. What struck me most was how busy Malawi is compared to Mozambique. In comparison, there are people everywhere and lots of traffic on the roads. Clearly it is more advanced and there appears to be much more commerce, both small scale and large. We arrived at a town on the outskirts of Blantyre and found a Standard Bank, taking all types of cards, and a mobile network outlet. We got all that we needed to do here so did not have to drive downtown, which would save us lots of time.

We headed northwards towards our intended destination of Cape Maclear on the southern edge of Lake Malawi. We then had our first experience with Malawi police. During the afternoon we were stopped three times and got a speeding fine of K5000 for going 56kph in a 50kph zone. One officer asked to see our warning triangles, which I had expected frequently in Mozambique. We were stopped more in one day in Malawi than we were during our 4 week stay in Mozambique. By 4pm we had made it to Lilondwe and decided to call it a day. We found a decent campsite called Shire Camp along the Lilondwe river and pulled in for the night. It was a pleasant area and it even got cool enough in the evening that we did not have to use our tent fan.

The following morning we drove the 200km to Cape Maclear and were stopped just once by a pleasant police officer who was curious how we got here from England. Just before we got to Monkey Bay we took the 25km dirt road to Cape Maclear and a national park. There is a lot of bird life in this area and I had a good feel about this place that is generally highly regarded by travellers we have met along the way. When we got to Cape Maclear we sought out the Fat Monkey Camp, which is located right on the lake shore, We immediately liked the spot, found a perfect shady area to set up camp and booked in for two nights. The water is a fine blue colour and is crystal clear. The water is a perfect temperature and we wasted no time in getting in and lazing around. Later that afternoon I wondered down to the lake shore fishing village and got some great photos. The people are very friendly and I chatted with some fisherman who explained how they catch the sought after small Kapenta fish at night time with decoy lanterns. Our neighbours were a North American couple working in Lilongwe, Ben from Louisiana and Laurie from Saskatchewan. Laurie is a physiotherapist and offered to work on John’s problematic right foot. Laurie reckoned that it was misaligned and worked some magic to greatly improve it.

Later that evening we watched some six nations rugby at the bar whilst having some cold beers. The horizon was lined with the fishermen’s decoy lights as they tried to tempt the Kapenta from the depths by fooling them into thinking it was dawn. As it was a weekend it was fairly lively at Fat Monkey’s with local expats and volunteer workers.

The following morning we decided to hire a kayak and head out to the nearby islands to do some snorkelling. A local asked us if we wanted any fish and after a brief chat we bought a kampango fish which looks a bit like a cat fish, and is supposedly very tasty. Whilst waiting for the kayak to arrive we arranged to have a couple of shirts made up with crazy patterned local cotton material.

We paddled out to the island and spent two hours snorkelling around the rocks. The water was crystal clear and there were shoals of colourful cyclids. They were many different colours and it was like snorkelling on a coral reef. Later that afternoon we returned to shore in a ‘zig zag’ as the rudder had ceased to function. We picked up our fish and wood so that we could cook on an open fire that evening and later our new shirts turned up. We cooked the kampango, which turned out to be very tasty.

We enjoyed our couple of days at Cape Maclear but the following day it was time to head to the capital, Lilongwe, as we needed to get Proper Job serviced and also pick up my sister Jane. We had been told of a garage called Costantini Brothers which is Italian owned and used a lot by expats. Such advice has during my trip through Africa turned out to be good advice so I decided to check them out as soon as we arrived in Lilongwe that afternoon. We drove back to the tar road and headed towards Lilongwe. John was deriving and 45 minutes later he got his second speeding fine. Again we were quite miffed at the lack of speed signs, and even more so when a couple of locals that the police stopped just drove off. This time we were doing 72 kph in a 50 kph zone but the fine was the same as before, 5000 Kwacha. You may as well speed through Malawi if that is the case. The police told us that the speed guns had been given to them by the British police. John has now had three fines, two for speeding and one for not wearing a seat belt. Let’s see how many more he will rack up during the trip up the east coast.

We found Costantini Brothers and spoke with the owner Vince about the service. He could not do it that day but could do so in the morning at 7,30am. Vince told us a good place to stay nearby called Mbuya Camp which was run by a British couple who were ex overlanders. We quickly visited Shoprite and bought a few ‘very expensive’ items to stock up for the next few days. We initially thought we had been charged someone else’s shopping bill as well. Lilongwe is a pretty neat city though and is not so crowded with traffic and people. We drove to Mbuya Camp and booked into a basic chalet for a night so we could get away quickly on the morning. The camp was lively with volunteer workers and has a great swimming pool. That evening we had one of our Mozambique pineapples with dinner which left three for Jane when she arrived. We would earn lots of ‘browney points’ for dong that.

The following morning I left John at the camp as his foot had worsened over night. I made my way to Costantini Brothers and was working on the car with the mechanic by 8am. I had persuaded Vince to let me work with the mechanic so I could learn more about the machinations of Proper Job. We toiled in the hot sun for four hours and finished at midday thirsty and overheated. No time to rest though as Jane was arriving at 12.30. I said my farewells to the team and would highly recommend them to other over-landers. They are much cheaper than the Lilongwe Toyota garage. I made my way back to the camp to pick up John. On the way I turned on my mobile and got a message from Jane saying she was at the airport customs. I sent a message saying I would be late because the service had taken longer than planned and the road to the airport was supposed to have a few speed cameras. The airport lies about 20km away. We arrived at 1pm and had no encounters with speed cameras on the way. It was great to see Jane and I was looking forward to the next few weeks as she is great fun on safari. We loaded her bags into Proper Job and headed eastwards towards Lake Malawi. Our destination was Senga Bay where we planned to stay for a couple of days at Steps Camp, next to the Livingstone Hotel.

The drive was through a scenic landscape of hills and after about an hour we descended down the high escarpment and towards the lake. Jane always does a lot of research on the countries she visits so she pretty much had an itinerary planned for Malawi (and probably Tanzania as well but she hasn’t told us about that yet !!). She also mentioned that Bilharzia, a water borne parasite, was a problem in Malawi. It is a nasty parasite and people can develop major complications if they catch it. My Cornish friend from Accra in Ghana, Angelo Massimino, knew a person that had been paralysed by it. By the way Angelo, you never confirmed if the US$1000 loan repayment had arrived in your account. I don’t want the Camborne mafia chasing me around Cornwall. We decided to buy a course of tablets along the way, as John and I had spent a lot of time already swimming in Lake Malawi.

We arrived in good time at Step Camp and found a shady flat spot to set up our camp. The camp has good facilities but was quiet as it was not the busy season. There were two other campers, one group from South Africa and one from Germany (who had travelled down the east coast). Jane and John worked out how to set up Jane’s new tent and I took some time chatting to the Germans about their route through East Africa. That evening we ate at the camp restaurant and enjoyed a few cold ‘greens’ (Malawi Carlsberg). We also arranged to go on a three hour hike the following morning to Hippo Pools. A storm was building on the horizon and by about 8pm it arrived. For the next twelve hours it rained solidly. This would be a good test for Jane’s new tent. Thankfully it kept the rain out.

The following morning we had a quick cup of coffee and headed out towards Hippo Pools. The track went through the bush and along the lake, passing by a couple of rustic fishing villages, We heard stories from our guide of how the Chinese are starting to infiltrate even their basic village activities like craft making and fishing. There seems to be a growing dislike for the Chinese whom they claim treat them badly. The day was very humid and we eventually arrived at Hippo Pools to be told that they were now gone into the reeds. I have seen many hippos but Jane was a bit disappointed at not seeing any. I am very confident that she we will see all the animals she wants to by the time she departs to the UK from Tanzania in six weeks time.

We walked back to camp and jumped straight into the lake to cool down. After lunch Jane and John went on a boat trip to the nearby Lizard Island. I decided to relax and catch up with some chores. Some fishermen stopped by and I bought two Lake Tigers (the locals call them butter fish) for dinner. These have sharp razor like teeth but are not related to the hard fighting Tiger fish from the Zambezi. The fish was tasty and we ate them at the bar as the winds once again started to build. The wind brought the rain clouds and again we had quite a lot of rain during the night. The following morning we awoke to the pandemonium of a troop of Baboons around our camp. They found the remains of our pineapple in a nearby bin and ripped it apart to get inside. We had a quick breakfast and packed up our wet tents and drove northwards.

Our destination that day was the remote Bua River Lodge Camp which lies along the Bua River just inside the Nkhotakota Reserve. We filled up with diesel along the way and bought a few more supplies. We left the main roads and drove for 25km along a winding dirt road. We passed by the entrance gate to the park on the inside and arrived at the camp. It is a very peaceful spot and overlooks the river which is currently a chocolate colour. The waters in this river originate in Zambia so I guess they are having a lot of rain there. Again we found good places to set up camp; Proper Job on a flat shaded area and Jane on a shaded wooden platform overlooking the fast flowing swollen Bua River.

That evening we went for a guided walk down the river with a Swiss couple who were the only other campers. Along the way we surprised a couple of poachers. They were not animal poachers though but fish poachers. The guide had some fun sneaking up on them, and as they fled he grabbed their bamboo fishing rods and confiscated them. I must say I sympathised with the fishermen as they were from the local village that were displaced from the park area. Looking at their fishing equipment they were clearly not catching fish on a large scale and were more likely catching a few to eat. The guide told us they could get up to two years in prison for poaching fish. That is totally over kill in my book. We stopped on the way back to camp for a couple of sundowners and I drummed up a tasty vegetable stew when we arrived back at camp. The Moroccan spice I bought in March is still working its magic, turning basic stews into a tasty affair.

There are no network signals at Bua River Lodge so that evening I used my satellite phone for the first time during my African trip to call my friend, and stockbroker, Ronan Clohissey in Toronto. I had recently decided to switch some of my gold shares around so needed to keep on top of the markets for as few days. Ronan has been great during my African trip and reckons he now has more telephone numbers for me than any other of his clients, He is always good to chat to and genuinely enjoys hearing of my adventures.

The rains came again during the night and for the first time on my African adventure it feels as if we are now truly in a rainy season. Fortunately we seemed to have mostly missed the rains in Mozambique and southern Malawi. Going northwards over the next couple of weeks into Tanzania we should once again be out of the rains. The following morning Jane and I went on a two hour bush walk through the bush and along the river to a set of rapids. The bush is thick, green and lush and we were not likely to see any animals. I was once again surprised by the quietness of the forest and walking brought back memories of earlier silent forests visited during my journey. We did see a crocodile with its mouth ajar in fast flowing water waiting for any passing fish to slip into its jaws. That evening we sat at the lodge and had a sun downer followed by pasta chicken. The heavens opened up again at about 6am the following morning and we had a quick cup of coffee before packing up in the rain. This is not ideal, but we needed to move on and I was concerned by how passable the road coming down to the camp site would be after heavy rains. I locked up all the differentials to crawl up the slippery road but Proper Job managed it without any problems whatsoever.

We got back onto the tar road and headed towards the Chinchetche Strip on Lake Malawi. This area had been recommended to us by the manager of Bua River Lodge so we decided to give it a go. After a couple of hours driving we found the turn off for Makusi Bay Lodge and drove down the winding t rack through farm lands and to the lake. We were immediately impressed by this picture perfect place and found a great camping site. We soon set up camp and went for a swim in the lake. The lodge is run by a South African couple and owned by an Englishman called Tony Jackson. Later that afternoon two other overlanders arrived and we soon caught up with stories and information. One thing that became apparent was that there was now a serious shortage of fuel in Malawi. There had been some demonstrations which had been put down by the police. Malawi had run out of foreign currency and the tankers were lined up waiting to depart from Mozambique and Tanzania. Locals criticised the fact the president had recently bought a brand new jet for himself and had lent money over the past year or so to Robert Mugabi who is some relation to his wife. Luckily we had filled up both tanks when we left Senga Bay so we had enough for a while. Throughout my journey in Africa I had not been in a country which had literally run out of fuel.

That evening we went to the bar and had a good time with the managers and the owner. The food was very good but also very expensive. We found out some useful information about the highly recommended Chizimulu Island which we hoped to visit next. Most people travel to the island on the M.V. Ilala, which plies its way south to the north on a weekly round trip. We were told that there were now two ferries running from Nkata Bay so one did not have to spend a whole week on the island waiting for the M.V. Ilala to return. The M.V. Ilala leaves from Nkata Bay at 8pm on Monday so we planned to stay one more day here before heading to Nkata Bay.

The following morning I headed out on a walk and when going past the local school met two volunteer teachers, Molly and Lauren, from Australia. Molly has Cornish heritage so I invited them to come around for a pasta and tuna dinner. They quickly accepted as they had not had pasta for a few weeks. After dinner we surprised them with a Snicker chocolate bar each for desert. Jane had brought these with her from the UK and we all relished them. We had a fun evening with them and finished the evening off with a couple of beers at the bar.

The following morning we packed up and made our way to Nkata Bay. We drove to Mayoka Village and enquired further about the ferries to Chizimulu island. We were told that there was only one ferry, the M.V. Ilala. We asked about a private boat but the thought of a plus five hour journey in a wooden boat back from the island did not appeal so we reluctantly decided to abandon our plan. We stayed for one night at the nearby Nyaja Lodge and then moved northwards the following morning to the Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve which lies in the west of Malawi near to the Zambian border. Along the way we looked for diesel but found none. Each garage told the same story, no one knew when they were getting any more. We stocked up at Mzuzu and managed to get some rump steak for a barbeque.

The road to Vwasa Marsh was rough and they had recently had quite a bit of rain. When we arrived we were warmly greeted by the staff and they allowed us to camp at the site of a semi completed chalet. We had a great view over the lake and marshes, which lay were about 20 metres from our camp. That evening we made a barbeque and enjoyed fine steaks and a couple of beers. The marsh has a lot of hippo’s and we say a herd of elephants in the distance. It is also very rich with wildlife and we organised to go on an early morning game walk. We were the only ones staying so had it all to ourselves. The major downside about this place is the large numbers of biting insects, Mossies, Tsetse and Horse fly. By the end of our stay we had been well worked over by these annoying pests and were looking forward to going to the highlands at Nyika where there would be none.

During the night it rained again, but had cleared by morning. At 6am we set out for our guided walk and saw many different birds and a few animals. When we returned to camp, the South African couple (George and Patricia) that we had first met at Senga Bay arrived and we caught up on events. Later that afternoon a herd of elephants waded across the marsh in front of us and we went on another walk. That evening I cooked a meat and vegetable stew and we sat and listened to the sound of the marsh. The frogs were in full swing, sounding like bottles clinking together.

We arranged for another guided walk the following morning and again set off at 6am. About an hour into the walk it started raining heavily and by the time we got back to camp we were soaking. We decided we would stay an extra night so that we could dry out and leave at a reasonable time to drive 110km to our next destination, the Nyika Plateau, along a rough road. That afternoon the sun came out and we managed to dry out our wet clothes etc. During the night there was no rain either so when we awoke the next morning we packed up dry and departed. We enjoyed our stay at this lovely place with its rich bird life and friendly staff.

We were advised of a short cut to the main gate at Nyika and decided to take it. Often I have found that such tips rarely turn out to be good ones. However, on this occasion it was well worth it. Not only did it cut down the distance considerably but the single lane road was good quality sand which went through very pleasant rural Malawi. Along the way we saw many birds, especially around the village maize fields. We made the entrance to the Nyika Reserve in good time and booked in for two nights at the camp site. From the gate it was about 50km to the camp site and we had an enjoyable leisurely drive, stopping at midday for a cup of tea and mangoes. As one ascended the plateau the landscape gradually changed from typical African bush to a British moorland. We arrived at the camp site and met our South African friends, George and Frances. They had arrived the day before and had endured a fierce rain storm which drove the rain horizontally. It actually forced them to abandon their tent and seek shelter in the communal hut.

We went down to the main lodge to register and checked out the activities. One can fly fish, mountain bike or go on game drives. On the walk back to the campsite we stopped into the friendly staff village for fresh bread. When we arrived back at camp the attendant had made a nice fire for us and the weather held up to enable me to cook our remaining rump steaks. The view from the camp site is great and you can observe wild animals roaming across the grasslands.

The temperature is a lot cooler up here at 2,500 metres above sea level and it was a welcome respite from biting insects. For the first time since leaving the western coast of South Africa I dragged out my beanie and fleece jacket. That evening after dinner we sat around the camp fire which we kept stoked with the abundant pine wood that is in this area. During the night it was cool enough to get inside the sleeping bags again, and in the early hours the rains started and lasted until 10.30am the following morning. We had hoped to go on a drive and walk in the morning to try and find the rare Bar Tailed Trogon, but the rain killed this plan. Instead we enjoyed a cooked breakfast and got the maps out to plan our last few days in Malawi.

By midday the skies had brightened and we headed down to the main lodge to find a guide. We were in luck as White, a very knowledgeable guide, was available. He drove us to some old patches of forest and we set off to find the Bar Tailed Trogon. The forests are quite impressive and have that very old look and feel to them. Over the next two hours we heard and saw some rare forest birds, but alas did not even hear the Bar Tailed Trogon. For anyone who is wondering what all the fuss is about, Google it and take a look. The downside of roaming around these old forests was the number of ticks that latched onto you as you brushed against the bushes and grasses. We had a great time looking and on arrival back to the jeep enjoyed a cup of tea and some home-made biscuits. We took a roundabout route back to the lodge and saw many antelope along the way. The landscape here is different from anything else I have seen in Africa and it would be a great place to return to in the future, maybe on another trip. We had a cold beer with White and he drove us back to the campsite where we cooked dinner and made a large camp fire out of the stack of logs that had been left for us by the campsite attendant. A large Spotted Eagle Owl landed in the campsite and started to hunt for food. Later a herd of Zebra roamed in and grazed on the lush grass. We had no rain during the night so thankfully would be able to pack up dry the following morning.

After a quick breakfast we bade farewell to the staff and headed back down the plateau towards the park entrance gate. It was a glorious morning and after a couple of hours we reached the gate and picked up a jar of Nyika honey. We drove back to Rumphi along a rough road which thankfully was not water logged. When we reached Rumphi we stopped at the BP Station to enquire about diesel and were surprised to hear they had some. There were a couple of large lorries filing up so we enquired whether there was diesel now in Karonga, the main town near to the Tanzanian border. We were assured there was plenty of diesel at Karonga so we drove to the lake road and headed northwards along the scenic lake side. We had toyed on going to Livingstonia for a night but when we approached the turn off decided to give it a miss. The road looked in bad shape and a black storm was gathering in the hills around Livingstonia. A couple of hours later we arrived at Karonga and, surprise surprise, found all the stations were empty of diesel. Anyway, I estimate that we have more than enough fuel to get us over the border with Tanzania and to the first fuel station. So we could get a quick getaway the following morning, we decided to stay at the Safari Lodge Annex which was rated quite highly in the Lonely Planet. In reality it is quite basic but would do for a night. It is strange how things work out; we had today realised that we had lost our East Africa Lonely Planet book. Sitting at the bar later that afternoon, we saw a copy of the same book and, upon enquiry, found out it had been left by another over-lander. It seemed like fate, so a quick chat with the manager, 1000 Kwacha (UK£4) and we had a new book.

The following morning we arose early, ate breakfast and drove the 45km to the border. The border crossing was efficient and we were through in an hour. Next task to head to Mbeya, fill up with diesel and buy new SIM cards for phones and computer dongles.