Mana Pools to Nkhata Bay

Another lengthy border crossing as a result of Interpol requesting a bride for us not carrying a police clearance certificate pursued. This came to an abrupt ending when Brent, loud enough for those standing around to hear, said “I am not going to bride you!” We were quickly on our way again and the wisdom of his decision was thankfully not to be questioned.

We pushed on past Lusaka and spent the night at Bridge Camp on the Luangwa River with Mozambique as our neighbor. In the morning we made our way to Cape Maclear – on Lake Malawi - via Lilongwe for a short food shop, where everything is about double the price of that in South Africa.

Each country has its own ‘personality’ which surfaces after a few days. In Malawi one gets the feeling that you are now well and truly into Africa. This is the quiet season and everyone is trying their utmost to sell you anything or trade something. However, this poverty is accompanied by the friendliest demeanor we have encountered so far. If you walk through the village or go for a run, almost without fail, you are greeted by a “Hello, how are you?” When walking around at night to go for a drink or supper you feel 100 percent safe.

Over the next three days Brent and Murray took it easy on the lake and I did my unbudgeted for open water dive course. Looking forward to diving in Zanzibar and Mozam!

We finally procured some curios and paintings and headed north to Kande Beach. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t at its best but we took comfort in the news that the Bulls remain at the top of the log with a game in hand. Go Bulle!!!

We only had a short drive the next day (60km) to Nkhata Bay. The town is a lot larger than some of the other we have visited and is clearly a popular tourist destination. There is a thriving local market with a lot of fresh produce and prices are reasonable. The afternoon will be spent on a short boat cruise to a nearby beach. On the Lake, time is on your side.

The Lake is a beautiful and easy going place. While too far to pop up for a short holiday, hopping on a plane to Lilongwe and renting a car to drive along the Lake is certainly not out of the question. Put it on your bucket list!

Murray’s successful Board II results meant that Friday night (26th March) was to be celebrated! In anticipation of this we had booked another booze cruise on the Zambezi and, while Brent and I remained completely impartial to the arrival of approximately 20 female British teenagers doing volunteer work in Malawi, this only served to add fuel to Murray’s fire.

The celebrations ensured that the trip from Lilongwe to Mana Pools would be a long one. An arduous border crossing meant that we did not make it on time to be able to enter Mana Pools so we camped at the office just outside the park.

Zimbabwe if often referred to as “God’s own country” and it is easy to understand why. Almost immediately after crossing through the border there is a change in vegetation and landscape. The bush is beautiful and one gets the feeling that should the land be given the opportunity, it would quickly restore itself to its former glory. I have never thought of nature as been something that is measurable but here you get the feeling that nature is abundant.

If we thought that our time in Moremi and Chobe meant that we had graduated from ‘bush school’ we were soon to be proved wrong. Whilst collecting wood on foot an elephant mock charged us. We headed straight for the nearest ablution block with Murray actually running out of his slops.

The campsite we stayed at is on the Zambezi River. This must be one of the most beautiful and tranquil places I have ever visited, during the day we had only a few families of hippo to accompany us. Otherwise, there was not a single other visitor in the park.

The night again proved slightly challenging in terms of finding some rest. With hippo, hyena, ellie and lion nearby our tents offer little comfort. At about four o clock we decided to go have a look for the lion, partially to get a viewing and partially to justify our nerves/fear.

Nothing came of our early morning game drive but as we were leaving the campsite after breakfast we came across a single male lion not more than one kilometer from our tents.
Unfortunately, because of the rain most of the roads inside the park are closed. However, a drive along the main road leading into and out of the park still yields plenty game.

Having settled in a bit our second night proved to be more restful. After packing up camp and returning from a shower (you always shower last) we discovered that there were a few monkeys that would be energetic (Game), well hydrated (Rehydrate), malaria free (malaria tablets) and see a bit better (contact lenses) after having been through my box.

After a brief flight back to Maun in a plane that looked twice my age and a pilot that looked half my age we quickly went about organizing our supplies and bookings for the next three days.

After overnighting in Maun we headed to Savuti Camp in the Chobe National Park. Due to it been the rainy season the bush is grass green which unfortunately makes game viewing a bit more challenging. However, as we were preparing supper a bull elephant crosses the Savuti River – which is flowing for the first time in 30 years – less than 50 metres from our campsite and again in the morning one came down to drink.

Our second night was also spent in Chobe at Ihaha camp. The vegetation in the north is less dense and we saw a lot of general game.

The next day we filled up on fuel - which is literally double the price in Zambia – and crossed the border at Kazengula on route to Livingstone. The Waterfront campsite is positioned on the Zambezi and the deck at the bar provides breathtaking views. We headed on a booze cruise that evening and I’m glad to report that we put in an honest effort.

Any toxic substances were quickly washed out of our system early the next morning as we hit the lower Zambezi for a morning of whitewater rafting. Anyone wanting to understand what it means to ‘command respect’ simply needs to be introduced to the mighty Zambezi. It’s never been easier to follow instructions and to hold on tight!

The following morning we spent watching the Zambezi plunge over Mosi oa Tunya (Victoria Falls). The summer rains have made there way to the falls which ensures that the entire length of the falls is overflowing. If I may quote Sir David Livingstone, “No one can imagine the beauty of the view from anything witnessed in England. It had never been seen before by European eyes, but scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight”.

That afternoon I bunji jumped off the bridge which crosses over the Zambezi and connects Zimbabwe to Zambia just below the falls. One can’t help but be nervous, however, I have now discovered that I certainly have a liking for jumping off things.

Today is our final day in Livingstone before moving on to Mana Pools. If the morning is anything to go by then the afternoon will be excellent. Abseiling, the flying fox (foofy side) and a gorge swing were exhilarating although the nerves were plainly evident. This afternoon will be spent on another booze cruise on the Zambezi.

On a less exciting note it has been overcast for the past two weeks and the sun seems to have forgotten Africa. To ensure that team spirits remain up we employed the services of a Zimbo who made some team kit for us. This will prove useful as no one has a single dry item of clothing remaining.

This place offers so much more than what our time – and more importantly – our budget allows. Jet boating, heli flips and high tea on Livingstone Island, while sitting on the lip of the falls, will have to wait until next time.

A short stop at Popa Falls – on the Okavango River – for a single night and then we were into Botswana. Without the intention of sounding like a seasoned traveler (this is only our second country), but one definitely needs a day or two before you fell like you have settled into the next phase of the journey.

We overnighted in Maun to stock up on some supplies for our little three day ‘excursion’ to Moremi Game Reserve. As surprised as we were to see a Nandos, Toyota, Spar etc in Maun we were even more surprised by just how wild the Moremi reserve is. The drive to camp was pretty good with a lot of ellies, general game and birding was plentiful.

We returned after our first game drive to find that our entire box with all cutlery, crockery and cooking equipment was missing. Fortunately we found it the next morning near the camp where the hyena had left everything more or less intact.

Our first night bordered on disastrous as a massive stormed passed over but thankfully all tents were still in one piece afterwards. On the second night we spoke ourselves into such a frenzy after the lion, hippo and hyena calls that we doubted whether we would be able to sleep although Brent reported that 20 minutes after getting into our tents, Murray was talking in his sleep (a regular habit) and that I was snoring (hopefully not a regular habit).

Our final night was spent further north in the park and we had definitely settled a bit by then although there were hyena’s in camp trying to carry away our fellow campers equipment.

There is only one way to describe Moremi and that is “Wild”. You feel like the park belongs to you as we didn’t see a single vehicle on our game drives. Without a GPS you will almost certainly get lost on the various tracks in the park and when you creep into your tent at night you will be forgiven should you sleep with one eye open.

We returned to Maun as Ray managed to organize us three nights at Xudum Lodge in the delta. It goes without saying that we are been spoilt rotten. The lodge is top class but what has really made our stay was the chartered flight into the lodge and awesome sightings of two leopard cubs as well as the rare Pel’s Fishing owl. This has all been accompanied by a few game drives as well as makoro and boat rides in the delta.

All-in-all, another tough week in Africa.

Next we went in search of the infamous desert elephant in the Palmway concession on route to Etosha. We split the drive up by spending an evening at the ‘White Lady’ on the footsteps of the Brandberg (Namibia’s highest Peak) & spend an arvie testing our new hiking boots on the trail up to the Bushman paintings and the odd ‘White Lady’.

The following morning we took the off-beaten route through some tracks in the middle of no-mans land before joining up with the main road again. After some 4×4ing we arrived at the Palmwag concession. The concession has had plenty of rain and hardly resembles a desert as we were previously expecting. Nonetheless we enjoyed the experience & even managed to find ourselves a few ellies…. Apparently believed to be a sub-species of the normal African elephant.

Etosha was much anticipated with this being our first true game reserve. The rainy season has been kind to the usual dust-bole that Etosha is thought to be. With water lying in every dip and hole throughout the park, it lead to some slow & tough game spotting, however successful. All the summer birds were in full flight and our first park was greatly enjoyed by all.

After a long wait our trip has finally gotten started. Murray, Brent and I headed straight for Augrabies Falls in the Northern Cape on our first day. Although not spectacular I suppose the mind will wonder until you have seen the Orange plunge over.

Our first nights’ camping was pretty uneventful and everybody seems more or less happy with their equipment for the next few months.

The following morning we trekked northwest into the south of Namibia and to the Fish River Canyon. The canyon is enormous! Postcards do not do it justice and it completely surpassed our expectations.

The next two days were spent in unexpected luxury after Ray managed to organize us some bed nights at Sosusvlei Desert Lodge. Whilst there we made a trip to Sossusvlei to see the dunes and climbed “Big Daddy”, reputed to be one of the highest sand dunes in the world.

Namibia is vast! The trip to the lodge and on to Swakopmund gives one an appreciation of exactly how vast Namibia is and how well the animals and plants have adapted to the harsh landscape.

The German influence on Swakop is undeniable, in fact, it is everywhere you look. A morning of quad biking in the dunes followed by the Welwithcia trail has kept us busy. The following day we made an unsuccessful trip down the coast & through the dunes, as our nerves got the better of us and the destination lived up to its name “Sandwich” harbour!

Although our trip is still young, the beauty of Nambia has been an unexpected but welcome surprise.

Scatterlings of Africa - inspired by the hit from Johnny Clegg, we felt it an appropriate name for our trip.

After much deliberation from a number of friends, we finally settled on a final crew of 3 distinguished gentleman, namely Murray Kuiper, JR Hume and Brent Dickson. Ray Hume will be joining us half way at Dares Salaam for the final 2 months.

Our basic route is the reverse of Nick & Kylie’s, starting this Sunday (31st Jan) with Nambia, followed by the northern parts of Botswana (swamps), into Zambia with a short stop in at Mana pools in Zim. From Zambia we’ll be making our way up the shores of the Great Lake of Malawi and into Tanzania. After a brief visit from our better-halves and some friends in Zanzibar, we’ll be trekking up the Tanzanian coast & into Kenya. Reaching as far as Mombasa, we then revert back into Tanzania for the short lived trip into the Serengeti & a hike up Mount Kilimanjaro. From the peaks of Kili we’ll be making our way back through Kenya & into Uganda to brave the rapids of the White Nile & hopefully spot ourselves a rare Silverback in the forests. From Uganda we’ll start making own way back to civilisation down the Mozambique Coast, just in-time for the kick-off the soccer world cup!

Our intention is to update this blog on a weekly basis, so please feel free to add some comments, as it will be great to hear from you. In an effort to become familar with the site & merely learn the basics of ‘web-design’ I thought it would be appropriate to upload a picture of the Great Bryanston Lion, more formerly known as Bonnie. From the above picture, there is a splendid shot of Bonnie in her natural habitat, along with her personally chosen mohair rug, settling in for a long afternoon nap. Hopefully within the next week, we’ll be encountering a less vicious lion of Etosha….

Desert dunes, mysterious misty mornings, strange geriatric-like plants, rolling moonscapes and lots of wonderful company - this is what Swakopmund had in store for us!

With both sets of parents and us, we had two full (and slightly nervous) cars traversing this unusal landscape.

Chilly nights were spent in cozy restaurants, reliving the days’ adventures

Just when we though that the Namibian landscape couldn’t get stranger… it did! We are now in Etosha with Wes & Jan and the bleakness is quite overwhelming..

The main pan is just a grey bowl of dust that carries on forever, the odd ostrich emerges now and then from a distant mirage. Elephants are pasted with white mud and herds of animals hovering tentatively on the edge of the watering holes, waiting their turn for a little drink.