9: The Mighty Zambezi!

Our friends Janet and Chris are due to arrive later today, so we have the day to explore.

The Victoria Falls National Park has been recommended to us by a Zimbabwean chap we met at Robins Camp and so we decide to give it a go.

Much of the Park runs along the banks of the mighty Zambezi River above the Falls; the river here is very wide and very, very fast flowing.

Dotted along the river bank are picnic stops - this tickles us as there are strict rules forbidding people from getting out of their cars in the Park except at these designated areas which are no more secure than anywhere else!

As we're eating lunch in one of these spots, we become aware of a monkey sitting nearby and watching us intently.

He makes no move and just sits quietly - that is until he suddenly hops up onto Rocky's bonnet and attempts to remove one of his windscreen wipers whilst at the same time treating us to a close up view of his powder-blue crown jewels!

We bid our monkey friend a hasty farewell and as we're driving along a remote track we see some warthogs running out of the undergrowth, we wonder why and then we see - a herd of about thirty-odd elephants appears silently as if from nowhere.

They walk along parallel with our path and we drive slowly along beside them - they are really close and it's thrilling.

There are a couple young calves who trot along, desperately trying to keep up with the adults. So sweet, with their little baggy legs!

As silently as they appeared, the elephants melt away into the bush and vanish, like phantoms

Satisfied with our day, we head back to Victoria Falls.

Inevitably for a tourist honey-pot like this, there are people trying to sell anything and everything including the now defunct Zimbabwean currency.

At one point, the country experienced such rampant inflation that the treasury was issuing 50 billion dollar notes - Nick can't resist and buys a selection as a souvenir for a couple US dollars!

We return to the camp site at just the moment that Chris and Janet arrive - what are the chances of that? They have flown into Kasane in Botswana and they'll collect their hire vehicle from there in a couple of days; in the meantime they're staying in the hotel in the grounds of which we are camping.

It's great to see our friends and we have a jolly evening catching up on news from home and talking about the adventure to come!

We've seen the spray rising from The Falls (you can see it from miles away) and the crashing sound of the water is a constant backdrop wherever you are in town, today we're going to actually see The Falls in all their glory.

Visitors to Victoria Falls follow a walk through a rainforest which thrives because of the warm temperatures and the constant spray of water. The walk takes us to various view points. There is no doubt that this place deserves the accolade of one of the Natural Wonders of the World; it’s breathtaking.

The Zambezi careers at immense speed towards The Falls, plunges over the edge and crashes down to the water below sending up huge waves and plumes of spray.

In full flow, an incredible 19,260,000 gallons per minute flow over the edge!

Some visitors have come well prepared with long, waterproof coats and wearing flip flops. We have less extensive protection and by the end of our visit we are soaked through to the skin with sodden shoes and feet.

No matter, we wouldn't have missed this for the world.

What we do decide to pass on is the bungee jumping from the bridge connecting Zimbabwe and Zambia across the Zambezi!

This evening we treat ourselves to a sunset cruise on the Zambezi.

Often these cruises are a bit disappointing but this is great; the boat is luxurious, the dinner delicious and the drinks flow; add to that good company, the gorgeous setting…

and a fabulous sunset and you have a recipe for a really special evening. Not cheap but worth every penny.

The excitement doesn't end there; today we have booked a helicopter ride over The Falls!

We have to be weighed before getting onto the helicopter. Those in the back have to sit in certain seats to make sure the helicopter is balanced.

The others very generously let Janette sit in the front as she has never been in a helicopter before.

The water in the river is pretty high at the moment and whilst that makes for a very dramatic waterfall it also means that the spray is so extensive that some of the views from ground level are obscured; this won't be the case from the air and it'll be an alternative view of an iconic sight.

The view from the air is stupendous, we really get to appreciate the full extent of The Falls and the canyon that the mighty river has carved out of the land as it powers on its way into Zambia.  

We decide not to leave for Botswana until mid-afternoon as we want to wander around the craft markets in town. The market stalls are all over the place and are filled mainly, with stone and wood carvings.

We would like to buy a large stone piece to put in our garden and we manage to negotiate a sensible price however the shipping cost makes it prohibitively expensive and so we have to pass on that. We do however buy a couple of small wooden carvings and Janette finds some fabric that she likes so not all is lost.

Janet and Chris will travel to our next destination across the border by taxi and we'll meet them there. We have to cross back into Botswana via the Kazangula Border Post and although this is on a major tourist route and we’ve been warned it’ll likely be busy, we’re the only people there and the crossing is the quickest and easiest we’ve done so far.

We're all heading to Sinyati Camp with its popular waterhole where we spent a night before crossing to Zimbabwe. We're staying for three nights . Tomorrow Chris and Janet will collect their vehicle and we'll all stock up on supplies in Kasane.

Sinyati proves to be a great choice; the visitors to the waterhole are even more plentiful and varied than when we visited before.

There is an underground hide - which is a triumph. From there you are at eye-level with the waterhole and so close to the animals. The elephants seem to know we are there and frequently walk up close and look right into our eyes - amazing!

We're treated to big herds of up to 30 elephants every evening…

as well as giraffe, warthogs, mobs of mongoose and gangs of baboons who raid the camp every morning looking for any unattended food they can swipe.

This morning we head into Kasane to collect Chris and Janet's vehicle which is the business, fully expedition-ready and very impressive.

The handover is very thorough and take about an hour and a half. There’s a lot to take in!

Then we're all set and head to Kasane to stock up on food - and then it’s off to the police station!

The iconic baobab tree in Kasane, situated right in front of the current police station, has quite a remarkable past — with its enormous hollow trunk, it served as an impromptu jail and functional post office in the colonial and early post-colonial era.

We spend one more night at Senyati campsite and then it's a long drive off to Linyanti - a real wilderness experience!

Chobe National Park is often described as the jewel in Botswana's crown and we decide to take things slowly and do a game drive through it to get to Linyanti - rather than taking the main road through the Park. What an amazing place!

As with the Victoria Fall National Park, much of this drive is in the part of the Park known as the Riverfront as it sits on the banks of the Chobe River.

We see plenty of animals of different types and it's hard to tear ourselves away.

However, we've got a long way to go and need to make tracks.

As we leave the Park, the road is tarred but not too far into the journey, we have to turn off onto sand and it's horrible - very bumpy and the sand is extremely deep in places. The road stretches ahead of us for miles - seemingly never-ending and we start to feel the strain.

It’s slow progress and exhausting for all of us, but especially the drivers. To cover the distance before dark and make the ride more comfortable on the corrugated surface it helps to keep your speed up - but there hidden dips in the soft sand. Rocky slams down into an especially deep one and we leave our seats banging our heads on the ceiling, everything goes flying. Rocky seems to have escaped unscathed and we have no choice but to press on anyway.

Arriving at Linyanti is a bit of a surprise. There is still a thatched gateway there as there is with all National Park entrances but this looks very forlorn indeed and is clearly derelict.

There are some lodges just inside the gate but they appear to be abandoned too. We feel a bit nervous as to what awaits us.

Linyanti Campsite is set in absolute wildness, there are no fences and the animals are free to roam wherever they wish. 

We are shown to our remote site and advised to drive to the ablution block as elephants, buffalo and lions are frequent visitors to the area.

Our pitch is at the top of a bank overlooking marshland and the views are very special.

Our first visitors are a band of baboons who thankfully keep a reasonable distance.

The same cannot be said of several elephants who walk right through our pitch just feet away from us. We are delighted although it’s a little unnerving!

Many different animals and birds make this area their home and we just enjoy sitting and watching them come and go.

Driving to the ablution block isn't really an option once we've set up our tents and so we decide to risk the walk as it's not far and we live to tell the tale!

We settle down for the evening to do some animal spotting with a cool glass of wine from a 5 litre bag! It’s all class on this trip!

Dawn brings a cacophony of animal sounds. It's quite thrilling to listen to it from the safety of our tent, there are rival troupes of baboons making a sort of barking noise at each other, hippos grunting and elephants trumpeting to say nothing of the birds. At one point leaves and twigs rain down on the roof of our tent dislodged by the baboons in the tree directly above us!

There are many animals and birds in the marsh today but we are particularly charmed by a very friendly little bird - a Crested Babbit - who at one point frightens the life out of Janet by landing on her leg and waking her up!

We also see three African Fish Eagles having a bit of a bust up in the long grass, when they fly off and start to soar and wheel overhead, their grace and magnificence is a thing to behold.

We don't go anywhere today, we sit and enjoy the view… it’s exhausting work, so some of us feel the need for a snooze!

Rocky needs a bit of a clean inside to get rid of some of the dust and Nick needs to assess any damage from yesterday's excitement in the deep sand so he has to grovel about in the dirt and dust to look at Rocky's underbelly.

The verdict on Rocky is good and bad really. Good in that he's still okay to be driven, bad in that the skid plate underneath Rocky has been bent and a front shock absorber has leaked oil - but this can wait to be dealt with when we get home,

We bid a fond farewell to Linyanti which has been a very special place for us. Next, we are staying in the wild again and visiting Savuti where the big cats are king.

The road is horrible all the way again, more very deep sand and at other times horribly corrugated. The park gate is not deserted like Linyanti and it is clear that although this is a remote place, it is more frequently visited. This is confirmed when we reach the camp which is busier than Linyanti and in our opinion far less attractive. Everywhere is very deep sand which makes it very dusty and difficult to walk around.

Animals are free to wander where they please here too and the ablutions block has been elephant-proofed - it looks like a fortress!

We laugh but next thing we know a massive bull elephant is walking through our pitch!

We go on a game drive in our own vehicles this evening. We see very little except a huge male lion fast asleep and completely unbothered by the numerous vehicles surrounding him.

It's only a brief stopover in Savuti and we aren't sorry to leave today and start to head to the famous Okavango Delta.