A Short Break - Jo'burg to Victoria Falls and Back Again

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I’ve been away from Guba the past 2 weeks, doing an incredible camping tour of Botswana and Zimbabwe! The tour started and ended in Johannesburg, where I splashed out on a decent camera before my trip began.The first 3 days we drove a long way through Botswana, which was tiring, but the group (there were 13 of us) at least went on an evening game drive the first night at Stevensford Game Reserve in Tuli Bock, to get our first taste of African wildlife. We saw a couple of Kudu, springbok, impala, wildebeest, skip hare and some new birds. The drives through Botswana were actually interesting, I found it incredible being surrounded by endless trees and scrub! The same in Zimbabwe. There were a lot of cattle grazing, plus some donkeys and goats, which would usually be wandering down the road...

After 3 days of driving, we arrived in the Okavango Delta! What an incredible piece of wilderness! A speed boat took us through the papyrus-lined Delta, past several crocodiles, occasionally following egrets, alongside an astounding variety of birds all the way! Just the other side of the Delta, we drove to a campsite by the floodplains, having to be rescued along the way when our truck became stuck in the dry sand! We arrived just in time to go on a sunset canoe trip, where we spotted a herd of zebras and a fish eagle high in a tree. We went on two more canoe trips the next day, each time to a different part of the floodplains, punctuated by walks on the small islands or the mainland. I watched hippos, saw more zebras, looked at elephant prints, found elephant tail hairs, marvelled at marabu storks, and just so many more animals! Including a cute, small green frog who made a home in the boat!

Next, to Chobe National Park, where we went for an early morning game drive and a sunset boat trip. Saw 4 lions! Hyenas, giraffes, babboons, impala, birds and birds and birds! Lots of elephants drinking and bathing in the river at sunset. A monitor lizard eating the fish eagle’s latest catch. Nature everywhere!

Then, Victoria Falls, via Namibia - another beautiful country, but one that seemed poorer than Botswana - much sparser food in the supermarket. The Falls were amazing.... Epic!! Such power, such force created by all that falling water. I watched people bungee jump from the bridge that leads to Zambia. Bought some gorgeous carvings from some local street sellers. Though a more prosperous town in some ways, than others I’d been to, the poverty was all too obvious, apparent desperation of the street sellers to sell whatever they had in exchange for any, money piece of clothing, or piece of jewellery you had - as a tourist, it could be hard at times just to walk down the street without being constantly hassled. A difficult situation! On our second night, we ate a wonderful African dinner at Mama Africa, the best I’ve had on my trip so far! Peanut butter rice is a definite winner!

The journey continued onwards through Zimbabwe to Hwange National Park, via the Painted Dog sanctuary, where we learnt the sad story of a painted dog family persecuted by poachers, farmers and reckless drivers, and how the species is becoming threatened with extinction. They sold lovely souveneirs made of wire from snares. We had a fantastic guide for our afternoon and evening game drives at Hwange - a Zimbabwean called Andy, who’s passion was contagious and who’s knowledge was incredible! He talked about the problems the reserve faces with the elephant population, which used to move long distances but which tends to now remain around the man-made water holes year-round, putting pressure on the surrounding vegetation. In the evening we came close to a herd of elephants, a truly special experience, them just drinking and enjoying themselves around us. Incredibly, our campsite, Gwango, wasn’t fenced, so the local elephant bull could be heard eating a few metres away for much of the night! Though we didn’t see any, we were also told there were a couple of local lions that are seen most days. It was an incredible feeling, to be so close to nature like that!

Matopos National Park was next, which is famous for its white rhino population. Sadly, these poor rhinos are in grave danger from poachers, and are well-guarded by a variety of dedicated rangers and police. We got within 15 metres of 5 rhinos, something I never expected! To be so close to these impressive, peaceful animals, who were hardly phased by our presence at all, just a little curious. Our incredibly knowledgeable guide, Dean, explained how the rhinos are under ever more pressure from poachers, and how he, and most other rangers and people involved directly with rhinos, feel the only way to quickly save the remaining rhinos, which are disappearing at between 1000-3000 a year, is to re-legalise the trade in rhino horn, and slowly sell the existing stockpiles. NOBODY wants the rhinos to carry on dying, not even the poachers, who ultimately need a sustainable source of rhino horn, and therefore of rhinos, to continue their trade indefinitely. Yes, people need to be educated in the effects, or lack thereof, of rhino horn, but that’s something which takes time - and time is something that is currently not on the side of rhino populations! At the current rate, rhinos are set to become the fastest ever species to extinction. This crazy situation has to change - please, if you want to do one good deed today, e-mail someone involved with rhinos - your national CITES representative, rhino conservation organisations, newspapers/magazines... And argue the case for legalisation of rhino horn. The situation couldn’t be any worse than it currently is! Literally no more rhinos could be killed a year than they are being now.

Anyway, so after that, we saw the Great Zimbabwe Ruins, which were completely awesome, and to a hot spring, to refresh at the end of the trip - nice! Now, it’s back to Swaziland and to Guba, and I’m overexcited to return and get started again and make the most of the next 6 weeks!!!

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Camping Africa
4 Lions, wow. Sounds like you picked a great trip. Loved your tent. It is about the animals but the countryside has its beauty. Nice blog.