The ill-fated voyage of the Malachite

Our abortive houseboat trip on Lake Kariba. The hydraulic line to the steering ruptured.

Video Kazangula Victoria Falls

Video Chobe National Park

Video Makgadikgadi Maun Drotsky's

Empty camps in southern Africa

July to September is the peak safari season in southern Africa, as I remember it from my days in the safari tourism industry. It is winter, but dry, which is good for viewing wildlife and the days are warm – shorts and t-shirt weather. Malaria risks are also low. Coinciding as it does with school holidays, the period usually sees South Africans flock northwards in their 4x4s. But what struck me on our overland safari through Botswana, the Caprivi Strip (or Zambezi Province as it is now known), Zambia’s Zambezi shore and Zimbabwe’s northern areas, was the extremely low occupancy of national park and private camps and lodges.

 

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Canoe-hippo collision at Mana Pools

Two incisors about 90 cm aft of the guide's bum.

There we were quietly enjoying the tranquility of the Zambezi from our Mana Pools campsite. As is so often is the case, tranquility is an illusion in the wild. Suddenly there was a commotion upstream of us. A canoe safari group had rounded the bend and one canoe had “exploded” as if torpedoed and the other was circling around trying to rescue its two occupants.Continue reading and view the photos here.

Sisyphean torture at the border

Crossing into Zambia at the Kazangula Ferry took upwards of  2 hours. Not that there was a queue for the ferry because we literally drove in and on board. By contrast there was a truck queue of kms, where truckers can stand for up to 5 days (the ferry can only ship one truck at a time, but other vehicles, 3 or 4 at a time make up the load)– ever wondered what happened to your truck Mr Transport Owner? I estimate that the ferry can do 30 trucks one way on a good day. The ferry’s arced voyage across the 500m Zambezi takes only 10 minutes.
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Photo Sphere at Kubu Island

Views: Sua Pan, Botswana by Ralph Pina

Safari photos so far

Go to Safari 2015 photo album

Bowing to Baines

Yesterday was epic. After a great drive across the pans and stay at Kubu Island, our convoy weaved through the woodland following myriad sand tracks, some drivers paying more heed to the instructions of Doris on the GPS, who I am sure had no clue which of the next four forks was the right one, than their eyes and sense. It is also quite amusing to take a sharp left turn in the middle of an endless pan because Doris says so. Anyway we reached Gweta eventually. But if we thought we had seen the worst, we were about to be taught a lesson.

The "road" in Nxai National Park to Baines' Baobabs, our next camp, is probably one of the worst sand tracks one could wish for - "strictly 4x4s" as the sign at the gate admonishes. You should believe it. My 4x2 Hilux gallantly ploughed a few k's in, where a small rise slowed it to a standstill. I was not the only one - 4x4 vehicles with trailers also bogged down. After much struggle, digging, towing, to-ing and fro-ing we managed to turn the convoy around, and headed for the gate in a cloud of dust, collective tails between our legs. No refunds were forthcoming from the determined ladies at the gate, so we headed to Maun in the dark. This drive was hazardous enough in its own right: zebra (scores of the them), cattle and donkeys reflectorless and paying no heed to rules of the road, meandered across the tar strip. One errant cow had Marion inadvertently shouting "STOP!!" into the walkie-talkie, her finger firmly pressed on the press-to-talk button, for the benefit of the rest of the convoy.



Here's a link to a growing Safari album on Google Photos: Safari 2015

Douglas stopover

Our first little adventure: a sundowner cruise on the Vaal. Beautiful weather.