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The next morning, it was all aboard the
Red Elephant, our transport for the next 3 weeks. Accommodating a group maximum of 12 travellers, it’s smaller & faster than previous overland trucks I’ve travelled on. With floor to ceiling windows, it allows us to get a feel for the places as we passed through to our next destination which is Gwambi on the Kafue River - though it does become a hothouse on wheels when not on the move. Travelling from Livingstone to Chirundu on the main transport route between Zambia’s capital Lusaka & Zimbabwe’s capital Harare, we passed lots of B-doubles & longer struggling with the numerous hills. To add, the roads aren’t in great condition & all traffic uses all parts of the road finding the smoothest path.
During a refuel stop, also a
bushy bushy (toilet) stop, 2 young African women were wanting to get to Zambia’s capital, Lusaka, which was 3-4 hours away. Through some local asking, it was discovered there was a car at the fuel pump heading there so they got in. With my upbringing, sirens were going off in my head saying ‘no go’ however it appears to be how things are here.
At the stop, I was surprised to see how expensive fuel is – equivalent to AUD2/L – almost the same price as home however the locals definitely don’t earn comparative income.
Along the way, there were lots of people out going about daily life. It appears there is little social welfare as well as little regulation, allowing for residents to be entrepreneurial – many buying a product in bulk & on-selling it in smaller portions by the roadside – something that couldn’t occur at home. From what I saw, many of these roadside sellers were women with some beautiful looking produce on display – tomatoes, oranges, mandarins, bananas, avocados (the avos are huge here – the size of eggplants) & so on. Watching one lady whilst we were stopped at traffic lights, she would search through the box of produce, appearing to select the best items from the box & polish it before stacking in a pyramid in her woven basket. The female sellers were often in groups – each lady with a specific produce – chatting amongst themselves whilst they waited for customers. Also on the rural roadside were bags & bags of charcoal – a common cooking
fuel source.
Some of the jobs I saw men doing were labour job such as road repairs & ‘mowing’ the grass on the verge with a swinging machete (
Ed note: What’s the WHS on that!?!) as well as all forms of security, money changing – particularly when near the border – & running shops. I did see numerous groups of men standing around whereas women seem to always be doing &/or carrying something – whether it be pumping water at the village well, carrying a child wrapped to her back &/or the basket balanced on her head. Their balance is amazing. I would not survive as a Zambian female.
The day was longer than expected so we were setting up our tents with fading light. I’ve got my own tent this trip being an odd female which is a blessing as I’ve got more stuff than needed – the result of my fried brain in the trip’s leadup. Tent up, it was off to the ablution block where I thought of the range of standard I’ll experience this trip – from communal facilities with dodgy toilets & occasional cold showers up through the range to all that makes
a safari lodge 5-star.
Staying on the Kafue River, we set off canoeing downriver and onwards for over 20kms before pulling up at Elephant Island – a sand island in the Zambezi – for a night of wild camping. Being the odd one in the group, I was upfront in Guide Pete’s canoe – front row uninterrupted view. 6km in, the Kafue River joins the Zambezi which is distinct ‘line’ of two different water sources meeting – I am always amazed to see this.
Along the river, people were washing clothes, tending to their farms & fishing. Out of sync to this were the expensive looking private lodges aka holiday homes built right on the banks. The locals, in general, build away from the river as they have their farming land next to the water source as well as for protection from the water animals of crocodiles & hippos. On the riverbanks, freshwater crocodiles were sunning themselves, jaws slightly open. These are much larger than Australian freshies, more the size of our salties. And there were plenty of hippos. In the canoes, we were able to get up close to elephants on the banks & a plentitude of
birds.
Paddling along the river, it’s not a calm river. There must be many underwater banks & debris as there were lots of swirls, eddies, rapids & currents, water moving at different rates. Guide Peter had us zigzagging across the river guiding us through the calmest waters as well as safest from the hippos. To track where the hippos are, guide Peter taps the side of the canoe with the oar. Hippos are inquisitive animal, popping their heads up just above the water to see who’s making that noise. To assist in their ‘camouflage’, their noses are the highest on the body of any mammal. It’s awfully cute seeing them pop up, just above the water line, their eyes blinking, their ears wiggling. However they are quite deadly for humans in their path. Hippos run along the bottom so are predominantly in shallow waters and travel up to 5km in search of food of which they eat a lot of. For safety, we paddled in single file with the lead canoe (aka me) the warning one…
Sitting in camp that afternoon, with the setting sun & the colourful display that triggers on the surrounding scenery, I thought ‘who
cares what’s happening in the world’, this is magic. That night watching the fire burning aka
African TV, we heard some stories about Zambia, its history, culture & people. The story that most will remember from that night is the male fertility test which is determined by whether your balls float or not. Byron Marcus was incredulous.
That night climbing into my tent, a praying mantis decided to join me though don’t think mantis knew where it was going. Trying to help mantis out of the tent, it took umbrage going into its defensive position – hieeya. Quite cute to see but my brain couldn’t recall whether they are safe to pick up or not so I played safe using a cloth & sent mantis on the way out of the tent. Nothing personal, just don’t need something landing on my face during the night. Across the campsite, snores could be heard along with the hippos – who have excellent voice projection sounding just right there outside the tent when they are some distance away across the river – as well as the elephants, though not as talkative.
Being away from light pollution & a late rising moon,
the night sky is amazingly bright & clear. The Milky Way easy to see & everywhere I’m able to spot the Southern Cross. I do need to improve my astronomy knowledge. That evening the moon rose after we had retired to our tents so when I did my midnight bushy bushy, no torch was needed to check there was no wildlife lurking nearby before stepping out of the tent. The following morning, there was fresh elephant dung next to the camp where Guide Gee was making pancakes for breakfast – fancy bush camping grub. Having our breakfast, watching the sun rise, you could take a million photos and still not capture the serenity of this place.
Back on the river, just outside camp was a group of hippos including mother & baby on a small island. Guide Peter instructing ‘Away, Away’ as hippos are protective and a mother more so. Us travellers were a little slow with ‘Away, Away’ as we watched the baby move into the water with mother’s support – aww cute. Deceiving as despite hippos being herbivores, they will trample you to death if you’re between them & the water. Also male hippos fight to the
death when claiming a group of females. Their only predators are lions & crocodiles however only for the young ‘uns.
To head back upstream to Gwambi, we transferred to a motorised boat. Whilst the motorised boat is faster & less work, it’s noise & speed doesn’t allow you to immerse yourself into the surroundings compared with the slower & less stable canoe. A benefit though was that we were able to get closer to hippos and watch them for longer. One group of hippos thought we got a little too close and charged at us. Boy, can they move creating a slipstream underwater & coming up akin to a horse jumping out of the gates. Sorry to disturb you but awesome to see.
Back at starting camp for late lunch, Guide Ishmael had prepared ostrich burgers which were delicious. A free afternoon was spent in & around the pool & bar. Overlooking the river watching the sun set across the area, I enjoyed a classic – a Cuba Libre using local Red Hart rum. Dinner that night was locally caught Bream which is known as Tilapia back home – another tasty meal. A fitting day for my birthday.
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Amie
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Hippos
Wow wow how amazing are the hippos. What a spot for your birthday. Can’t wait for the next instalment