Here’s some more from my old friend Brian Jackman’s new book Lion Song, which is basically a love-letter to Panthera leo. “For over 40 years I have walked in Africa and for my money it is still the best way of getting to know the bush.”

You cease to be a mere spectator and become a participant: treading the same earth as lions and elephants. Brian writes: “It is possible to see Africa without ever leaving the comfort zone. Yet increasingly visitors are putting adventure first and opting for good old-fashioned walking safaris instead of watching animals from a Land Cruiser.”

Well, you can do both on the same trip, of course and I generally do: but that thrill of passionate intimacy is something you only get from walking: kept safe by a scout with a rifle with the best guides in Africa alongside. That’s what happens in the Luangwa Valley in Zambia.

I have looked into the eyes of lions on many occasions. You can get very close in a vehicle: but the lions don’t see you for what you really are when you’re part of that big, loud smelly machine.

But when you see them in the course of your morning walk – golden shapes on the ground, viewed from a respectful distance – it’s quite different. There’s a hint of wariness – they know about guns. They’re also a hint of assessment: they know you’re edible. But crucially they’re also familiar with walking humans who mean no harm.

That brings to us all  – lions and humans both — a sense of balance. The lions will neither advance nor run away: the humans won’t intrude on their personal space, neither will they panic and run. Mutual respect: mutual understanding: mutual tolerance. It’s as if the whole world is caught in a single moment of perfect stillness and perfection.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/lion-song/brian-jackman/9781917523998

https://www.wildlifeworldwide.com/group-tours/walking-safari-in-heart-of-zambia