Zakouma + Ennedi with Chalo Africa - Chad Feb/March 2020

[RC88COR]

Like many on their first safari I visited Tanzania's iconic Serengeti and the northern circuit, but my second safari was to be very different. I did a deep dive into African wildlife conservation, community support and tourism conservation which kept leading me to a word that sounded fascinating and an organization that was truly noteworthy. Zakouma, Zakouma, Zakouma ... it seemed like those in the know were all raving about this remarkable conservation success story located in a remote corner of south-east Chad. And as I read the story of Zakouma, I read the story of African Parks, a wildlife conservation organization that manages Zakouma and 19 other national parks across Africa. I was so impressed with Zakouma and African Parks that I wanted to visit so I could contribute to Zakouma's exemplary conservation story.   

 

Zakouma National Park is off the beaten safari track and required a thorough investigation into the logistics of travel to such a remote location and the best opportunities to visit - either solo or with a group. I did my homework, over about a 2 year period; I contacted every safari guide and agency that was leading trips to Zakouma. I even contacted Zakouma directly and inquired as to solo travel. In the end, I decided to travel with a small group led by the remarkable Sangeeta Prasad founder of the pioneering safari agency Chalo Africa and Kenyan guide/naturalist extraordinaire Zarek Cockar who was our guide for the Zakouma segment, in an itinerary that would encompass both Zakouma and the Ennedi, a rocky plateau and desert region of Chad that I longed to visit. Sangeeta's Zakouma and Ennedi trip was the only itinerary that included both areas and gave them the time they required, as well as the Ouadi-Rimé Ouadi-Achim Game Reserve in Central Chad. I definitely made the right decision and embarked on one of the most unforgettable trips of my life.

 

ZAKOUMA
- a truly authentic wildlife experience in Africa
- species in huge numbers and great diversity
- interesting and varied terrain 
- visited Riguiek Pan twice and it was fabulous - a birders paradise
- great for birders, but also fantastic for other species 
- the Zakouma elephants are a legendary wildlife conservation success story.  I was lucky to witness, for about an hour, a vast herd of about 300 elephants leisurely cross a river - this was the sighting of a lifetime and brought tears to my eyes

 

Wildlife Sightings:
- cheetah (very rare to see in Zakouma, but they are there), lions (multiple prides), african wild cat, serval
- roan, tiang, kudu, lewel hartbeest, red-fronted gazelle, western kob, defassa waterbuck, bush buck, bohor reedbuck, duiker
- buffalo (huge herds)
- Kordofan giraffe (large numbers)
- elephants 
- striped hyena, spotted hyena
- patas monkeys, tantalus monkeys, baboons
- many civets, genets and bush babies 
- ostrich
- crocodiles, savannah monitor lizard, spurs tortoise
- cobra

 

Birds:
- enchanting clouds of red billed quelea murmurs
- carmine bee eater, red throated bee eater, green bee eater
- great white pelican
- black crowned crane
- african spoonbill
- knob-billed duck, white faced whistling duck
- egyptian goose, spur winged goods
- saddle bill stork, wholly necked stork, african open billed stork, marabou stork
- abyssian crowned hornbill, african grey hornbill, northern red billed hornbill
- bateleur eagle, tawny eagle, african frish eagle, long crested eagle
- greyish eagle owl
- senegal coucal
- abyssian roller
- spur winged plover, african wattle plover
- great white egrets, little egrets, cattle egrets
- sacred ibis, glossy ibis
- purple starling, long tailed starling, nightjars

 

TINGA CAMP
- loved Tinga Camp and highly recommend it 
- a comfortable down-to-earth camp with a fabulous location overlooking a dried river valley that acted as an avian highway - awesome!
- the rooms were neat and comfortable with a bed, desk/chair and closet with an overhead fans, electrical outlets and mosquito nets (though did not need the nets as it was dry season so did not really notice any mosquitos)
- each room had an ensuite toilet and a separate shower and sink area
- each chalets is built with 4 separate rooms that are well sound proofed 
- the main open-air reception, dining and lounge area which is also thatched and overlooks the riverbed is just simply perfect
- excellent food 
- great service
- outstanding guiding and safaris (mornings, afternoons and evenings)

 

I visited Ennedi in late February and Zakouma in early March 2020, just before Covid shut the world down and I am so glad I went! 

 

We flew into Zakouma on a charter flight from the Chadian capital of N'Djamena and we drove back with a tented camping overnight enroute as it is a long drive. 

 

We did the Ennedi portion of the trip in 4x4 vehicles driving the entire distance, due to a cancellation of the scheduled domestic flights. But it was awesome - quite the roadtrip - and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

 

Zakouma is unforgettable! If you ever get the chance to go, GO!
It's an authentic safari in the conservation story of the century.

 

I will attempt to write a day-by-day trip report (might be point form) and add more photos for Zakouma and Ennedi soon. 

 

For now, here are a few photos of Tinga Camp.
 

Edited March 12, 2021 by RC88COR

[Caracal]

Great start @RC88CORand welcome to Safaritalk.

Sounds wonderful and looking forward to learning more. 

Good timing too with another TR for us homebound Aussies to enjoy!

Roll on.

[AfricIan]

This is going to bring back great memories @RC88COR, looking forward to more 

[michael-ibk]

What Ian said. Zakouma is such a great place, and I also look back very fondly at Tinga. More more more please!

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 1

 

Our small group and guide Zarek Cockar flew from N'Djamena to Zakouma. The flight was about 2 hours in duration, but fascinating to see the landscape of the Sahel from such a perspective overlooking large rock formations and villages. We were met at the plane by the Tinga manager who drove us the short distance to Tinga camp while introducing us to Zakouma NP, with a few bull elephants who made an appearance along the way. We arrived at Tinga Camp after lunch to a warm reception, checked in and settled into our chalet rooms. 

 

We decided to do a night safari from 7-10:30pm on Day 1 as our first safari in Zakouma. We did a few evening/night safaris during our week at Zakouma and this first night safari would be the beginning of our civet and genet count, as it seems Zakouma has a lot of them, more than most wildlife areas according to our guide. 

 

I only have videos in MOV format from this night drive, but I do think there are some photos taken on other evening/night excursions coming up in the TR.

 

My photos are taken with a hybrid camera, nothing fancy, so the photo quality is what it is. I am interested more in taking photos as visual memories.

 

Here is a list of our first night safari sightings:

civet x 5

genet x 4

bush baby x 4

african wild cat 

side stripe jackal

Lelwel hartebeests

red fronted gazelles

Kordofan giraffes

buffalo

greyish eagle owl

nightjars

Edited March 1, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 2 

 

Morning

- enroute to the Riguiek Pan 

 

I was super excited to start the first daytime Zakouma safari. I really wanted to get a feel of the park and the wildlife. I sensed that today was going to be epic, and it was.

 

I found out at breakfast that we were heading to the Riguiek Pan, and I could not wait!  I had heard so much about the Riguiek Pan and seen many photos of the vast numbers and diversity of birds that converge on this pan during their migratory routes. I wondered if it would live up to my expectations. It did, and then some!

 

But first, here are a few photos of the sightings enroute to the Riguiek Pan, giving me a sense of what was to come in Zakouma.

 

[gatoratlarge]

@RC88COR  Wow!   Anthing about Zakouma always is of interest and seeing photos of Ennedi --- well it's just amazing!!! 

 

So excited for this trip report!  I went to Zakouma using Chalo with a great group of fellow Safaritalkers 3(?) years ago (doesn't seem possible but with covid, time has really gotten crazy to gauge) and I thought it was fantastic, but I wanted to return to see the Ennedi region as soon as I saw African Parks involvement and the photos are over the top!!!  So next year I'm trying to rustle up a group of six to go to Zakouma, Ennedi and Ouadi-Rimé Ouadi-Achim Game Reserve just like y'all did!  The cherry on top being Ouadi Rime and seeing the rarest of desert wildlife reintroduced into the Sahara!

 

I'm arranging through Chalo as well and we're doing the same itinerary except I think we've booked a charter flight to Ennedi and then to Zakouma and back to N'jamena so we'll save a few days on the road that way (although that sounds like an adventure as well) our American allowance for vacation days hasn't advanced like Europe and other countries 

 

How was Zarek Cockar?  He has agreed to guide us in Zakouma as well....your wildlife viewing list looked to be very impressive!

If any SafariTalkers are interested in joining us, PM me.

 

 

[RC88COR]

@gatoratlarge Thanks for the comment.

 

I will be posting a lot of Ennedi and OROA photos after I finish with the Zakouma segment of the trip. We actually did Ennedi and OROA first, then Zakouma. We had planned to fly in and out of Ennedi, but the commercially scheduled flights were cancelled at the last minute, so we had to drive in and out which added a few unexpected long travel days, but you won't have that issue with your charter flights.

 

Ennedi was awesome, magnificent, adventurous, meditative - we realized early on that it really defied description and has to be experienced. 

 

The Zakouma Ennedi combination itinerary is easily one of the very best travel experiences of my life!  
 

Zarek Cockar was great! I was so impressed by his experience, knowledge, demeanor and guiding capabilities. I would join any itinerary where he is the guide. 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 2 

 

Morning safari continued ...

 

Riguiek Pan 

I think I will just let the photos speak for themselves. Please note my camera zoom could not capture the depth of field with great clarity, but I like the atmospheric painterly quality of the blurred images. You will also see a photo of Camp Nomade which sits on the edge of the pan. 

 

Enjoy!

 

 

[RC88COR]

 

And here is a Camp Nomade photo.

 

 

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by RC88COR

[Botswanadreams]

It's so great that you @RCC88OR started this trip report. It will give me many fantastic memories. You were very lucky to get the combination with Zarek and Steve for Zakouma. We know Zarek from a trip to Lake Turkana. Ennedi is a ones in a lifetime place to visit and we enjoined it as an addition to Zakouma very much in 2019. 

[RC88COR]

8 hours ago, Botswanadreams said:

It's so great that you @RCC88OR started this trip report. It will give me many fantastic memories. You were very lucky to get the combination with Zarek and Steve for Zakouma. We know Zarek from a trip to Lake Turkana. Ennedi is a ones in a lifetime place to visit and we enjoined it as an addition to Zakouma very much in 2019. 

 

And thank you @BotswanadreamsI saw your beautiful trip report on your Zakouma Ennedi trip; it helped me make my decision to go. 

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 2 

 

morning - enroute back to Tinga Camp

 

I have also included a couple photos from the morning after Riguiek Pan on the way back to Tinga Camp. We came across a murmur of red billed quelea - so beautiful. I wish I could include the videos. It would be a taste of what was to come.

 

Here are a few highlights - a solo Roan male and the beautiful orange/red gum arabic tress seen throughout Zakouma.

 

We also had a brief visit to a Zakouma headquarters to see bull elephants that drink from a nearby waterhole. They have grown to trust Zakouma personnel, and come close to drink from a waterhose held by visitors. It was a very moving experience. To see Zakouma elephants with their history of severe poaching and terror by humans, garner the trust to venture close to humans. This is a true testament to what African Parks has achieved with the conservation story of Zakouma National Park.

 

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 2

 

afternoon safari

 

After lunch at Tinga Camp we headed back out for a late afternoon safari. It was hot, but not too bad, about 30-32C. It was a comfortable hot.

 

After our visit to the Riguiek Pan in the morning, I was eager to see and experience more of Zakouma. 

 

We saw red-throated bee-eaters riverside cliff hole-nest, which was pretty awesome! 

You can also see a photo with large crocodile hole-nests in the riverside cliff. This was in the same area as the red-throated bee-eaters nests.

 

And we ended up doing an impromptu riverside walk to watch from a distance two lionesses and a lion lying along the river observing a buffalo who had waded into the river. I think the buffalo was old or injured. When we returned two days later and found the buffalo carcass, probably killed by the lions during the night.

(A photo of the buffalo is intentionally blurry - I was being creative - and it is one of my favourite photos of Zakouma, so including it here.)

 

The drive back to Tinga was partly a night safari. This is when we saw a striped hyena. I had to be very quick with my camera to get this photo, so it's quite (unintentionally) blurry, but you can still see the stripe on the hyena. I understand it is not too common to see a striped hyena. 

Edited March 2, 2021 by RC88COR

[gatoratlarge]

wow!  A striped hyena!  That is a great sighting!  Never seen one...yet!

[RC88COR]

@gatoratlargeyes, we were very lucky to see a striped hyena. But Zakouma had even more surprises in store for us. 

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 3 

 

morning safari

 

This morning would be all about lions with two different sightings: a pride of 4 females and 1 young male finishing off a kill and then drinking some water with a couple of spotted hyenas waiting in the wings, and then later on a lioness with 2 cubs resting under a tree. 

 

Hyenas are fascinating. I included a photo of the 2 hyenas and their meeting behaviour.

 

There also was a lone male Roan nearby who quickly picked up the scent of the lions and stamped and snorted to let the pride know he knew they were there. 

 

Also spotted a female ostrich, Lewel Hartebeests, a striped gazelle (they are fast - hard to get a good photo), a bull elephant wading in the water, baboons, and road markings left by a puff adder.

 

Starting off with a photo of one of the resident bushbucks at Tinga Camp.

Love bushbucks - they are like abstract paintings.

 

 

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 3 

 

morning safari - continued

 

Also spotted a female ostrich, Lewel Hartebeests, a striped gazelle (they are fast - hard to get a good photo), a bull elephant wading in the water, baboons, and road markings left by a puff adder.

 

 

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 3

 

afternoon/evening safari 

 

The afternoon safari was quite atmospheric, ending with a beautiful sunset and some of my favourite images. 

 

We saw patas monkeys but from quite a distance, so the photos are not super sharp. Other highlights included a nile monitor lizard, African spoonbill, and a white tailed mongoose (but no photo - I wasn't fast enough).

 

We also saw a number of Kordofan giraffes. Love Kordofan giraffes - what a stunningly beautiful animal! 

 

I included a few landscape photos (some with a creative blur) to give you an impression of the terrain.

 

The evening ended with a surprise sighting of a large solitary lion who was just getting up to start his territorial patrol. We followed him for a bit as he walked down the road infront of us marking his territory.

 

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 3

 

afternoon/evening safari - continued (more photos)

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 4

 

full day safari 

 

Zakouma's elephants

I had read so much about the history of Zakouma's elephants, about the poaching terror years and of African Parks resolve to protect and create a safe landscape for them to thrive. I knew the elephant numbers were up, with over 100 calfs and sub-adult elephants born in the last couple of years. The elephants were beginning to bred again, which was great news! 

 

So when we started out for our full day safari in search of the large elephant herds of Zakouma I crossed my fingers and hoped that we might get so lucky as to see them. Another group staying at Tinga Camp heard them, but could not find or reach them. So, we headed out hoping that we would have better luck, and I am thrilled to say we did! I will write more on the elephants (with tons of photos) in the next post.

 

We took lunch and lots of water with us for this full day safari. It was going to be a very hot day! We were headed quite a distance from Tinga Camp in the direction of where the large elephant herds were seen last, a good 2-3 hour drive from camp. 

 

We made a quick stop to the riverbed where we had done our impromptu walk with the lions watching the buffalo wading into the water a couple days ago. All that was left was the buffalo carcass and tons of vultures.

 

In the same area, we came across a magnificent Kudu. It was difficult to get a good photo as the area was thick with bushes and trees.

 

Enroute to the elephants we passed by a massive herd of stampeding buffalo. I managed to get 1 photo of the herd  through the trees, you can just see the herd in the distance, they went by so fast! The sound of the stampede was powerful. We would see them again in the afternoon on our way back from the elephants. 

 

And we also passed by the boma made for the rhino that were translocated to Zakouma. The 2 rhino were now out living in the park and being closely monitored by African Parks rangers. I have included a photo of the boma. 

 

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 4

 

full day safari - continued

 

Zakouma's elephants

 

Our Tinga Camp guide Togi and his father Ibrahim a Zakouma ranger were incredible! They had an idea of where the large elephant herd was due to African Parks tracking/monitoring system and while we were looking for the herd were in contact with the ranger HQ, but ultimately it was due to their impressive tracking skills and knowledge of the park and the elephants behaviour that we were able to find the large herd. 

 

It was around 11:30 when we approached a bend in the river surrounded by densely wooded areas. Our guide and tracker ascertained that the elephant herd was nearby and would be heading towards the river. We would wait there for them, so the vehicle was positioned on the riverside and we waited. 

 

It wasn't long before small groups of elephants began arriving and crossing the river to our left. There were about 30 elephants in small groups of 5, 7, 2 ... We watched for about 30 minutes as they swam and enjoyed the river while crossing to the other side. We were positioned perfectly, not too close to them, but still a good visual, and downwind so they could not pick up our scent. We all watched silently; it was beautiful. But this was not the big herd we were waiting for; they were still heading in our direction. 

 

While we waited for the big herd to arrive we had our lunch near the vehicle on the riverside. We soon ventured back to sit in and around the vehicle to wait for the big herd. 

 

We could hear them coming, before we could see them. The sound of the herd of elephants we had been tracking all day was really close, to our right this time. And then it happened, the herd started to emerge from the woods and into the river. At first we could see 1 the large matriarch leading the herd, then 10, 20, 30, the numbers just kept growing. Soon there were so many elephants in the river that they must have been 50 deep, and encompassed the entire river width while continuously crossing for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. They trumpted, sprayed water, drank, socialized - it was pure joy! Our guides and tracker estimated the herd to be 300+! There were many elephant calfs and younger sub-adults in the herd as well - a strong healthy herd. 

 

I don't think anyone said a word; I was moved to tears. 

 

The first set of photos are of the 30 elephants that arrived first to the left of our vehicle. 

 

The next set of photos will be the big herd. I have video of the crossing which I wish you could see and hear.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by RC88COR

[RC88COR]

ZAKOUMA - DAY 4

 

full day safari - continued

 

Zakouma's elephants

 

And here are photos of the big 300+ herd of Zakouma elephants!

 

You will see some big bulls at the end of the herd crossing.

 

 

 

[Caracal]

WOW! and so many youngsters. How wonderful to see.

[RC88COR]

@CaracalYes, it was unforgettable!