Cameia National Park

Cameia covers around fourteen thousand square kilometres of the flat Zambezian plains in Moxico, a landscape of seasonally flooded grassland, papyrus swamp and miombo woodland around the Chifumage and Lumege rivers. Wildlife was severely depleted in the late twentieth century and surveys since have found small numbers of antelope and abundant birds rather than large mammal herds. The flooding cycle is the defining feature and it dictates when any of it can be reached.

What you actually see

• The floodplains - grassland that floods for months and dries to open plain.
• The papyrus swamp - permanent wetland along the river channels.
• The birdlife - wetland species in numbers, the park's main wildlife interest.
• The miombo - woodland on the higher ground between the floodplains.

When to go

June to October is the dry season, after the floods have receded, and the only practical window. From December to May much of the park is under water. Birds are most numerous at the end of the wet season.

Honest expectations

Large mammals are scarce and this is not a game-viewing destination. There is no management presence, no roads maintained and no accommodation. Visiting requires a fully self-sufficient expedition with fuel and water carried.

Nearby

Lake Dilolo is west, and Luena is northwest.