The Busanga Plains: Remotest Kafue

Author: Laura Waite of Green Safaris Photos: Dana Allen / Wilderness Safaris

The remote Busanga Plains lie in the far north of the Kafue National Park. This ever shifting seasonal floodplain is a hive of activity for all creatures great and small, from tiny malachite kingfishers to enormous grumpy buffalos. A biosphere, which represents a unique area in Zambia for game viewing. Visitor numbers and indeed camp numbers are low but those who do make the journey are rewarded with an experience unlike any other in Zambia and often come away having left a piece of their heart behind.

Between November and May the plains are inaccessible due to the influx of the summer rains. The channels of the Lufupa River and the many other crisscrossing tributaries of the Kafue River fill and then burst their banks spilling water over the floodplain and turning it into a treacherous swampland. Only the ‘island’ outposts dotted with wild date palms, fig and sausage trees remain above the waterline.

Mr Busanga

time of year belong to the resident wildlife and the few hardy souls who remain in the camps keeping an eye on everything over the closed season. Any required movements for humans are by mokoro or on foot. Life in the swamps in the ‘green season’ is tough, the conditions extreme. The lechwe with their long and relatively narrow marsh adapted hooves don’t have much trouble. The hippos and crocodiles also get an easy life. They roam freely after having been confined, at the end of the dry season, to just the few remaining pools or driven out all together. In the ‘green season’, for the predators in particular, the sheer amount of water present makes moving around and hunting extremely hard work. It’s a real struggle for survival.

As the waters recede in April a journey into the camps for their custodians becomes a possibility – this is not to say it is by any means easy but it is possible. By June camps are guest ready, but after landing at the airstrip visitors are still highly likely for the next couple of months to use the combination of a vehicle and then a mokoro or motorboat to reach their accommodation.

are cut into the swamp, opening up boat ‘highways’ to explore the plains and meander between the ‘islands’. Birders who visit at this time of year are in their element, the marshland is a haven for our feathered friends. The early morning mist at this time of year is very dramatic. Shrouded lechwe and pukus are semi-visible through the haze before it burns off mid morning.

Typically from about August onwards the landscape begins to dry out and visitors make the switch from boats to vehicles for their safaris. There is even an option to take to skies in a hot air balloon and drift silently over the flat lands gaining height from time to time to avoid the odd collection of trees.

This gives you a rough idea of what to expect but the conditions are always subject to the climate and for the last two years in the plains we have had two very dry seasons. In 2015 the roan and sable arrived on Busanga in July, earlier than we have ever heard of before. We were driving all the way into camp by June.

The Busanga Plains are famous for their vistas much reminiscent, in my opinion, of the Maasai Mara but without the accompanying hordes of safari goers. According to Isaac Kalio, resident Busanga guide, the plains are ‘extremely magical for game viewing’. They are revered for their wealth and diversity of mammals and birds. But perhaps their most famous residents, due to their population density, are the lions. Their Anyone with a safari or African interest and who doesn’t live under a rock will have heard the sad tale of Cecil the lion, who was killed in Hwange, Zimbabwe, in June 2015. This news story took the media by storm and for those of us based in the Busanga Plains we were saddened by this news but also encouraged by the accompanying fact that so many people were taking an interest in protecting these beautiful animals.

The story of Cecil is sadly reminiscent of a similar occurrence in the Busanga Plains back in August 2007 where our alpha male who we knew as Big John was baited out of the area and crossed unknowingly into a hunting concession. There he met his match. He may not have the same fame as Cecil has encountered but he is close to our hearts, and in fact related to a lot of our current lion residents.

Over the years, three different prides, various male coalitions and individual loners have competed for the best enclaves on the plains. We’ve watched, captivated, as their territories shift and change. After the loss of Big John, his son who we dubbed Mr Busanga, became the king of the plains and his reign lasted for 7 years. He was recognisable by his sheer size and generally had a hareem of accompanying females at his side.

But age catches up with us all eventually. Sensing weakness, in late 2014 a previously unseen 3 male

Shumba hippo tussle

lion coalition appeared on the plains. We also began to see a lot more of the so-called ‘Musanza Boys’, a pair of male lions with particularly striking dark manes. Change was afoot and one afternoon it all came to a head in a battle of epic proportions involving all of these competing males itching to flex their muscles. They chased, roared and clawed at each other all attempting to assert their authority. The Musanza Boys were sighted the following day licking their wounds but apparently victorious as we didn’t see the coalition, Mr Busanga or indeed any of his females again for the remainder of the season.

By season open in 2015 the Papyrus Pride, generally found in the north of the plains had seized their chance teaming up with the Musanza Boys and taking over Mr Busanga’s previous domain. We watched in awe as this ferocious team, staked claim to their new territory and developed a special skill for taking down hippos. Other newbies, alone or in groups, wandered in and out of the scene but none strong or numerous enough to tackle the new residents. And then, one early morning in August, whom should we see but Mr Busanga strolling alone but majestically across the plains. One final encore for his fans perhaps! It’s certainly the last we saw of him that season.

By 2015 season close the Papyrus Pride was made up of three lionesses, two sub adult males and just one cub that we nicknamed ‘Princess.’ One of the older females gained the alias ‘The Machine’ due to her incredible ability to hunt whilst heavily pregnant. Sadly the season ended before she gave birth and the other two Papyrus cubs sighted earlier in the season were nowhere to be found. The Musanza Boys also remained in residence. Further previously unsighted males made sporadic but short-lived appearances on the scene. None were strong enough for a takeover.

For me, the 2015 season was my last working on the plains and I do wonder what my fellow colleagues will find at the beginning of the 2016 season when they make the long journey in to open camp. I certainly hope to visit and find out! Perhaps you should too?

One thing is for sure, power shifts and struggles aside, one thing will undoubtedly be the same for 2016 – the plains themselves. Their beauty and peace will remain unchanged. TL Z

You can reach central Kafue easily by air or road from Lusaka or Livingstone. Drive time from Lusaka is approx. 3.5 hours on a well-maintained tar road. From there the Busanga Plains are then reachable by road but only in the height of the dry season – between August and October. The road is not in great condition. Total drive time from Lusaka would be approx. 8 hours and I would only advise this journey if you are an experienced Africa hand, own a 4 x 4 (essential) and ideally travel with a satellite telephone as you will be driving some sections along a little used road with no population. Guided road transfers and charter flights can be arranged into the Busanga Plains depending on which lodge you choose to stay at. Make contact with Wilderness Safaris or Mukambi for accommodation within the Busanga Plains, or Jefferey and McKeith for a mobile safari in the same area.

Sable antelope on the edge of the plains Musanza Boys