Am I the lion's breakfast or the hyaena's dinner?


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Africa » Zimbabwe
July 31st 2012
Published: July 31st 2012
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Zimbabwe Trip

Travelled approximately 4300km

Mana  PoolsMana  PoolsMana Pools

Sunrise over the Zambezi
My husband and I wanted to explore Zimbabwe on a camping trip. There were a few doubts, though. I was a bit concerned about just having a thin canvas wall between me and a lion! The reason: a few of the camps we wanted to stay in were not fenced off and the animals could walk right through at any time. It's not that I haven't been camping near wild animals, but usually we have stayed in a fenced off area. We had also heard some horrifying reports that are unfortunately true, of people being attacked by lions. Another concern was how safe it would be to travel on our own with regards border crossings and police road blocks, bribery and corruption. Then we heard of a tour group doing a tour through Zimbabwe which sounded perfect for us, so we decided to join them. This also put my mind at ease - safety in numbers be it on the road or in the bush. I was still a bit sceptical about those lions!
Months of planning and decisions on what we needed to take with us on our tour lay ahead. We have a trailer with a rooftop tent on
Matopos HillsMatopos HillsMatopos Hills

Stunning view
top, but this time we couldn't take it with us as there wouldn't be enough space on the ferry. We also had to cater for our own meals. Should we fit a dual battery system to our car for our fridge/freezer as we had heard that power would be a problem in some places and men always want cold beers and women need to think of keeping food fresh. Water would be another problem as well. Most places would have water for showers but not necessarily drinking water, so we had to take a fair supply of water with us. None of this was totally new to us, as we had done similar trips like this before, but we usually had a trailer to fit everything into and this time it all had to fit into the car. It is very difficult to decide what is a necessity and what is a luxury. We would be away for two weeks, so some careful planning had to be done. Eventually my husband decided a dual battery system was a necessity and as an extra precaution a very good friend loaned us a solar panel to charge our battery if we needed
Matopos HillsMatopos HillsMatopos Hills

Such magnificent rocks
to.
Time drew near, we packed our vehicle after much deliberation as to what we really needed and what could stay behind and hit the road. We met our fellow travellers just outside Pretoria, looking at each other with curiousity and apprehension. Would we get on well with everyone and who would complain about being disturbed by the load snoring (as some partners are prone to do) through those thin tent walls that would be pitched very close to each other. After all, we would be spending a lot of time together and doing trips like these can test the patience of a saint, no matter how much fun you might have. We were nine vehicles in total in the convoy. We headed towards the Botswana border as we were going to spend the first night in Francistown then head through the Plumtree border post to Zimbabwe as our tour leader found this was a better route to travel into Zimbabwe. First border crossing from South Africa to Botswana - went without a hitch, after having to declare just about everything including our kitchen sink, for when we entered South Africa We arrived at our campsite in Francistown as the sun was setting. We could upgrade to a basic cottage instead of camping which we did as we would make an early start the next morning and we hadn't got into the swing of things with setting up camp and taking it down again the next morning. We were so grateful the next morning as the winter chill in the air was somewhat unpleasant, while just packing our food and clothes into our vehicle and made our bare hands ache. We had to endure many a morning doing more of the same thing as well as taking down our tents and packing them away. Unclipping tent pegs with numb fingers is not pleasant. Luckily we had some recovery gloves in the vehicle that we vowed to use on the other mornings.
Next leg of the trip was up to Plumtree border then onto Matopos hills for one night. At Plumtree border we couldn't have asked for more helpful staff and entered Zimbabwe without a problem. Perhaps having nine vehicles and their passengers go through all the same procedures made it far easier than we had anticipated and when you are travelling on your own. At last we were in Zimbabwe!
HwangeHwangeHwange

Dubious giraffe
No sooner had we left the border post, than we hit the first police road block and all the stories we had heard previously about fines for not having all your necessary items or having a piece of your vehicle missing or broken and expecting a fine came rushing back to our minds. One of the vehicles already had a crack in their windscreen after travelling on a short section of gravel road, when a stone hit the windscreen and immediately started forming a crack. Luckily they let us through without a problem and we could head for our destination for the night. Matopos hills is the burial site for Cecil John Rhodes and what amazing rock formations! We set up camp and then proceeded to drive around and explore the area. There are quite a few caves with bushmen paintings which were quite well preserved and my husband and I proceeded to climb a few steps up the hill to have a look. Well worth it especially with the view we had on the way up. Unfortunately photographs with our camera just cannot do justice to the magnificent views we saw. We visited Rhodes' memorial site that was on
Hwange elephantsHwange elephantsHwange elephants

More and more arrive
top of one of the rock formations and just stood there, taking it all in.
After taking down camp the next morning, we took a short drive into Bulawayo to stock up on fuel and supplies, repair windscreens and headed to our next destination where we were going to spend 3 nights: Hwange, previously known as Wankee. We were all looking forward to this as this would be our first taste of the wild animals we were hoping to see. We were most impressed by the campsite, as we weren't expecting much. The facilities are basic with warm water being provided by a 'donkey' - not the four legged kind, but a wood fuelled boiler that heats up the water. If you don't take note of the condition of the fire you could end up with a cold shower, but if you get some wood burning just before you hop into the shower you can have lovely hot water. Some of us only got the warm shower right after some failed attempts! Furthermore, there was a fence around the campsite, which was unexpected, so we could feel fairly safe from the wild animals. The first night we drove to a
KaribaKaribaKariba

Six months on a leaky boat?
water hole relatively close to the campsite and what a sight! We must have seen hundreds of elephants walking back and forth to drink water. One group would arrive and drink water, and splash and roll in the water and as they started leaving the next group would arrive and do the same with very little confrontation between the groups. Fantastic to sit and watch the antics of the young elephants as well and with only a tiny trunk sticking out at times. There were some resident hippopotamus and crocodile at the water hole and various other small game were very cautious when they came to drink some water. One particular giraffe took several attempts to drink water and just getting its stance right to lower its head to drink, when it decided it did not trust the crocodile and took a few steps back. Eventually after numerous attempts it's thirst overtook it's fear and it managed to drink safely. We saw a fair amount of game while driving around in Hwange, but if you want to see elephants, this is the place to come to. One of the luckiest sights was to see a pack of wild dogs -
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Reversing onto the ferry
painted dog as it was known to the locals and quite an appropriate name - as we left the park, not something that is often seen.
Next part of our adventure: we were heading to a ferry which would take us across the Kariba dam from M'libizi, which is close to the southern tip of the dam. We would cross the dam to the town of Kariba which was just about the northern tip of the dam. We we looking forward to this as it would be 24 hours of no driving, which would be a welcome break after driving non stop since leaving Johannesburg. On the way to the dam we drove through a very hilly section and one can see why they decided to build the dam where they did. At the ferry we had to reverse our vehicles into the bowels of the ferry and park them very close to each other. What a tight squeeze! But with the instructions and directions of the staff of the ferry, all the drivers did a sterling job and we were ready to sail across the dam. A welcome drink was had by all and then lunch was served. We
Mana  PoolsMana  PoolsMana Pools

Baobab tree
could relax and put our feet up and just take in the sights of this magnificent dam. The sheer size of it blows you away, considering this is not a natural dam. The distance we covered was 220km, my question was how long did it take to fill the dam. Apparently about 5 years! We were treated to a snack of kapenta, small fish that is caught at night using lights to attract them. They are dried and then shallow fried. Interesting and quite a rich, but eaten regularly by the locals. We were fortunate to have the whole ferry just for our tour group and after a lovely meal we sorted out sleeping arrangements which consisted of a mattress, placed boarding school style on the floor with blankets or our own sleeping bags. Luckily the drone of the engines drowned out any snoring from our fellow travel companions. But by this stage we were all getting to know each other quite well and had already formed a bond amongst us. There was much bantering and a good few laughs. Morning came all too soon, and we were reaching the end of our trip on the Kariba but fortunately had
KaribaKaribaKariba

Disappearing into the bowels
another interesting destination to head to. Driving off the ferry was far easier than driving on and we were on our way after restocking with fuel, which was quite a mission as a few of the garages had no diesel. Eventually we found some and after a spectacular view over part of the dam and restocking our supplies we headed to Mana pools, on the banks of the Zambezi river. This was going to be the test of courage. This was the campsite that had no fences around it and where we could be exposed to all the wild animals. We had heard a report that someone had been attacked and killed by a lion last year at the Mana pools - vey sad and unpleasant for the family involved..The thought had crossed my mind that I could always sleep in the car, not very comfortably, but non the less I had a much safer alternative. I was not the only one that was concerned about the possibility of being so close to the animals, but once we got to the campsite all thoughts were forgotten about any dangers either from exhaustion or from the beautiful location on the banks
KaribaKaribaKariba

Tight squeeze
of the river. We set up camp quickly, as it was getting dark and then proceeded to prepare our dinner on a communal fire. On my way back from our tent, which could only have been about 15 meters away from the fire I was asked if I saw the hyaena. With only a head lamp with a small beam I hadn't seen it and our dinner knives would not have been a match against its strong jaws at all. In that instance, the hyaena walked past us but was luckily not concerned about us at all and disappeared into the dark of the night. It was obviously on its way to a far tastier meal, which was thankfully not one of us. I was amazed at how calm and fearless I felt when I was watching it. Camping next to the river for three nights, there were many dangers lurking about. If not a lion, there is always a hippopotamus or a crocodile to contend with! Some eager fishermen were trying to catch tiger fish from the banks of the river in the dark, but that was their problem, not mine! I certainly wasn't going to push my luck.
KaribaKaribaKariba

Useful sprinkler system
The scenery in this area was contrasting from amazing sunrises, lush green areas to stark dry dusty landscapes and remains of stumps of trees that had been devoured by elephants or fire. The most amazing and beautiful baobab trees, especially as you overlook the Zambezi valley. We managed to see a pride of 9 lion just after a kill and watched them for a while catnapping. On more than one occasion we discovered that most of the time the animals are more scared of you and they walk or dart away. They will only attack if they feel threatened, so we try to be alert but chances are they are aware of you long before you are of them. We all left Mana pools with a heavy heart as it truly is a special place with the most beautiful sunrises and if you are lucky you will see plenty of game to satisfy your curiosity. If nothing else, you can lie in bed and listen to the sounds of the hippopotamus at night with occasional sounds of lions, hyaena's and other sounds of the wild. A good way to get close to nature.
Now we suddenly realised we were more
Eastern HighlandsEastern HighlandsEastern Highlands

Magnificent!
than halfway through our adventure. We headed to the outskirts of Harare for an overnight stop at a quaint and eccentric bed and breakfast establishment before heading to the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe to a place called Nyanga, another favourite spot of Cecil John Rhodes.
We stayed in chalets with log fires next to the Rhodes dam for two nights. The log fire was great, as it was very cold at night and to crown it all there was no power for 1 day. Luckily we were well prepared campers with our own gas stoves so we could manage and it all added to the adventure. Some stunning views looking towards Mozambique.
All too soon we were at the final stage of our trip and our last place of stay was at the Great Zimbabwe ruins. This was one of the places I have always wanted to see. There was much dispute for a while who had built it and I was fascinated by how it was done. Certainly far more advanced than some the building done today. Another cold night was spent in our tent and we had reached the final leg of our journey. We were heading to
Great Zimbabwe ruinsGreat Zimbabwe ruinsGreat Zimbabwe ruins

Climbing to the structures on top of the hill
the Beit bridge border and then home. We parted company with our fellow travellers and arranged to get together to share photographs and stories. We were pleased to have done the trip with such a lovely group of people who we met as strangers and say farewell as friends. They made the tour all the more worthwhile and it wouldn't have been the same without them. We were pleasantly surprised by Zimbabwe and thought we would see more ruin. The roads are on the whole in a better condition than some South African roads, although the infrastructure still needs far more attention. We managed to get most of the supplies we needed and the water supply was not bad at all. Ablution facilities varied and on occasion I showered with my headlight on as there was no light. But we managed as our expectations weren't so high to start off with. The people of Zimbabwe on the whole were very friendly and helpful and proud of their country. What an amazing trip!


Additional photos below
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Great Zimbabwe ruinsGreat Zimbabwe ruins
Great Zimbabwe ruins

Rocks used as part of the walls


1st August 2012

Repairs to car
My wife mentioned most things except that one of the cars broke down at Mana Pools, which was the most Northern part of our trip and far from any garage. The car refused to start and after many heads were put together we diagnosed a faulty started motor. We had no option but to try and repair it ourselves and luckily we managed to share tools, labour and a few beers and get the starter out, clean it up and get it going again. The group was so pleased that our bush mechanic skills got our 81 year old travel companions car going again that they found a bottle of champagne to thank us for our efforts. Being self sufficient in these remote areas is an advantage.
4th August 2012

A Trip to Remember
Enjoyed your story and pics - we did very similar trip in June and can relate to you experiences.....
11th August 2012

Dit was nou n wonderlike rit so saam met jul herinneringe. Dit moes iets ongelooflik gewees het. Sien uit na die volgende skrywe.
18th August 2012
Hwange

love this picture! it reminds me of drunk people on the dance floor at weddings :)

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