Chaminuka Refuge

 


This was a fun assignment from President Whiting. His philosophy is that missionaries called to Zambia should never go home with only seeing an occasional dog, cat, or cockroach so he takes them to Chaminuka Refuge where they get to see animals in the wild. This particular time President Whiting asked Hal and I to take the two missionaries that will be going home soon. We took Elder Naegle and Sister Bhembe. The Refuge owns about 10,000 acres and is only about 45 minutes from Lusaka. We rode in an open land rover with a cover (like a tarp) on top. It was open on all sides. What a beautiful day...not to hot with a cloud cover!!


We saw three elephants...two large ones and a baby. The big elephant is about 35 years old. The color of elephants depends on the soil in their environment, or so we were told.

 

There are zebras and kafue lachwe in this photo. Kafue lachwe is native of Zambia. I asked about the co-mingling of herds--different kinds of animals in the same close area. I was told it was a way for protection. Lots of eyes and ears for watching out for predictors. It reminded me of a talk Elder Bednar gave awhile ago called "Watchful unto Prayer Continually."  So good! https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/10/22bednar?lang=eng 

 

The lions were in captivity because there was a new cub and they would prey on the new cub unless he was protected. They had only been in the cages a couple of days.

 

Elands are the largest antelope in Africa. The tall mound in the back near the trees is a termite hill. 

 Another termite hill


We rode through this area of trees where the guide said there were tree snakes.  Thank goodness none fell on us!

A herd of blue wildebeests. We saw quite a few!

 

Look close. There are giraffes in that stand of trees. Their legs blend right in with the tree trunks.
Awww. There they are! We were not very far away from them. I did not zoom the camera in to take this shot.

Can you see the giraffe behind Sister Bhembe and I?

              

This Black Sable is a trophy animal worth $25,000! He was a beautiful animal and posed so nicely for us!

Elder Neagle at Chaminuka.



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