Dzalanyama

Dazalanyama
Part 1-
Another weekend comes along and I am off to explore a different part of Malawi. This time I headed just south of Lilongwe to the border with Mozambique where the Dazalanyama Mountains are located. It is a perfect distance from Lilongwe for a quick weekend trip.

The lodge is a nice little place located next to a creek and is very quite and peaceful. Lucius is the guide/cook here at the lodge. You bring your own food and he will cook it up and does a fantastic job -even the oatmeal for breakfast was amazing! There was a group of Dutch volunteers staying at the lodge that weekend and we had such a great time spending the evening getting to know them. They all work for an express postal service in Holland and the company offers their employees an opportunity to volunteer 3 months with the UN World Food Program.

The next morning Lucius takes us to the top of the highest mountain in the Dazalanyama Mountains – Mtsotsoto Mt. (5063 ft). From the top of the mountain, we have these great views south into Mozambique. As I’m checkin out my first glimpse of Mozambique I spot this beautiful rock faced mountain to our south and I ask Lucius if one can hike that mountain. He says yes! It is then decided, I will have to return, because this mountain in Mozambique is calling me :)

Enjoying our dinner:




Mtsotsoto Mt:




On the top of Mtsotsoto Mt.:




My next destination:




The Lodge:

Kasungu National Park

Kasungu National Park – May 27th and 28th, 2006

I went to Kasungu National Park with my friend Jill and another VSO ‘full timer’ from the Tanzania office. We drove up from Lilongwe on the M1 to Kasungu and then headed west to the Lifupa Lodge on a long dirt road. The lodge is on the far end of the park and located close to the border with Zambia. This was my first ‘safari lodge’ in Malawi so I was pretty excited to see some good Malawian wildlife!

When we arrived at the lodge, we were told that we had just missed the elephants…I have a sneaking suspicion they might say that to all of the newly arrived guest. We were hoping to do a small safari, however the lodge vehicle was still not working so we opted to enjoy the view of the watering hole while enjoying good food and conversation at the open air restaurant. The dry season is just beginning so this particular watering hole was attracting a good amount of wildlife for the ‘lazy man’s’ safari. There was a large group of hippos on the other side of the lake and it was great to sit there watching the wildlife right in front of you! Even though the hippos are quite common here in Malawi, it was a special sight for me.

That evening as we slept, we could hear the hippos grunting throughout the night and appeared to be getting louder…which meant closer! By the morning, the hippos were on our side of the lake and I was able to safely take some photos from the lakes edge. The elephants never returned, however, the hippos kept us plenty entertained.

As we headed out of the park Sunday morning, we came across some baboons crossing the road. So even though we didn’t have an official safari, we did get to see some good wildlife I don’t see at home everyday.

On the way back to Lilongwe, we stopped for a hike up Kasungu Mountain. This was a nice hike with some nice views from the top.

Another good weekend in Malawi!!

The Lifupa Lodge:






The lodge is situated right on a watering hole where you can view wildlife:




Hippos lounging across the lake:




Hippos with one baby:




Hippo and constant companion:







Puzus:




Hippos in the morning sunlight:



Baboons:






As we started hiking up Mt. Kasungu, our climb was accompanied by the Sunday choir at a church below:




Small wildlife spotted on the hike, however this spider is not so small-it’s about 2 inches in length:




On the top of Mt. Kasungu: