Of black maned lions and rampaging hippos

[bPeteb]

Fri, 2 Aug

A quick wander around the hotel before being picked up for our microlight flights.

I've already said it but this is a beautiful hotel in a spectacular location

 

[bPeteb]

Our microlight flights were amazing. We were picked up just after 7 for an 8am flight. It was a bit cool but I of course was in shorts. Al and I had different experiences. Al flew higher. Al saw impala, buffalo, and also the submerged hippos that I saw. They looked so amazing.

Anton took me much lower. Victoria Falls was spectacular. We’d talked to someone on the sunset cruise the night before who said she thought it was disappointing. We listened to her during the evening and then the next morning at breakfast, and I think she would always think things were not as good as they could be (or actually were).

I saw lots of hippos, three elephants, crocs galore, lots and lots of zebras and an elephant skeleton on Long Island. The elephant had died 10 months earlier of natural causes. I saw a vulture sitting on its nest. We both saw the rhinos that we’d be walking with the following morning.

A couple of pictures pre-flight. No phones/cameras can be taken up (undertsandable). We bought the USD40 (?) video of the flight expecting a few edited minutes. Instead it is the full 15 minute flight from take off to landing and it is bloody brilliant.



Just before I went out


I was asked while we were waiting to be taken back to the hotel in the office if we could change our sunset cruise to tomorrow. Said no, we were leaving in the morning. When we got back from the flight we were asked if we could change to lunch instead of a sunset cruise. Said yes (we’d done sunset yesterday).

Flight was only 15 minutes but seemed much longer. Maybe it was a little bit more.

We had breakfast when we got back. An amazing spread. Tried some of the Zambian breakfast items - beef stew, some veg we had no idea what it was, other stuff then lots of other things. Great breakfast. Rhino walk pick-up very early tomorrow so will miss out on a second helping.



Watched a hippo emerge from the river not far upstream and disappear into the bush on Long Island.

A couple more pictures from our room

 

[Quickstatus]

Victoria Falls was spectacular.

Was it flowing freely. BTW when is the Wet season?

Did you do thr Devils Pools - swin to the edge?

 

[JohnM]

Was it flowing freely. BTW when is the Wet season?

Easy to Google: March-May.

 

[bPeteb]

Was it flowing freely. BTW when is the Wet season?

Did you do thr Devils Pools - swin to the edge?

JohnM has answered the wet season question. Flowing question to be answered soon. Not a chance I was going near Devil's Pools!

 

[bPeteb]

Fred, our Livingstone Adventures driver, was at the hotel right on time at 11:30. He’d picked us up for the microlight. Explained that we would be taken back directly to the hotel on the boat.

There was no-one else at the landing. Taken down to the boat by Charles who explained there was just us. SCORE! A private boat tour when there could have been anything up to 14.

Joined by Mathew the skipper and off we went. Immediately a large group of a dozen or more hippos sunning themselves above the shore. So many hippos, So many crocs. Male has a shorter snout and can grow to 5m. Biggest we saw was about 4. Huge.

Croc


first of many hippos


first of many impala


African bee-eater


swallows (?)



hamerkop


crocs getting bigger


hippos getting smilier

 

[bPeteb]

This was a premium beverage package cruise so we started with some beers. Al then changed to a SA sav blanc. I stayed with beer. Matthew told us the more we drank the more animals we’d see. Hahaha.

Large group of impala. Lots of bee-eaters and the little colony they had in the riverbank.


Two elephants right down near the shore.

So many birds. Baby croc. Big sea eagle. Lots of lapwings and ducks. Geese. A vulture in a nest.

Then Mathew spotted an elephant swimming across the river towards Long island so we followed it across. They said we were very lucky to see it.


Stopped on an island for lunch. Charles checked for elephants and hippos. Crazy lunch spread. Just the two of us, Big strong g&ts with lunch.


We were dropped back at the hotel jetty. It had been an amazing and unexpected private tour.
Then a zoom around the shallow rocky river and back to the hotel. Yet another amazing experience. It was US$246 each combined.

 

[Flyfrequently]

Here we are, sat in the J lounge in Brisbane, wondering just when our flight to Sydney will eventually depart. And they wondered why we weren't comfortable with a two hour early morning connection!

View attachment 399682

Finally off to southern Africa in the morning. I'm not sure if I'll try to keep this up to date along the way, or just when we get home. You'll all know at the same time as I do.

Tonight down to SYD where we're staying at the Novotel across the road from the international terminal.

Tomorrow off to JNB on QF63. One night at the airport at the City Lodge then Airlink to Livingstone on Thursday.

Two nights at the Radisson Blu Mosi-Oa-Tunya then across to Vic Falls and one night at the Cresta Sprayview where our tour with World Expeditions/Kiboko begins.

20 days through Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.

An extra couple of nights in CPT, Lift up to JNB, night in JNB,
then home in J on QF64.

This trip has been a long time in the planning, and the waiting, and we are very, very excited!

Am a bit late onboard @bPeteb but keen to hear of your travels.

 

[bPeteb]

Another unmemorable dinner, we should have chosen the Asian buffet, with who knows what we drank.

Day two in Zambia and it was the reason we came here instead of into Victoria Falls. It was Rhino walk day.

Jenny messaged me and asked to put the tour back 15 minytes due to it still being a bit chilly. That gave us time to get some breakfast

A doughnut tree!!


Jenny, the owner of Livingstone Rhino Safaris Livingstone Rhino Walking Safaris, had contacted us letting us know that we’d be leaving at 6:45 instead of 6:30 as it was a bit chilly. That gave us 15 minutes to scoff down some breakfast.

We came out to reception and our safari vehicle was waiting for us. Gift introduced himself as our guide and introduced us to Oscar our driver, then told us it was just us! Another private tour. Incredible.


We drove through the suburbs of Livingstone that border Mosi-Oa-Tunya National Park including Dombwa. Such a house proud community.


At the entrance to the park we parked dub by the river and had muffins and coffee.


We were joined by our ranger Patricia who was armed with a very menacing looking automatic rifle. Just in case.

Lots of vervet monkeys in the trees near the river along with white browed weavers.



Gift explained that Patricia would only use the rifle in extreme circumstances. Elephants and rhinos are unpredictable.

We drove further into the park. First some elephants appeared out of the bush then some very pale southern giraffes. Yayyyyyyy!!

 

[bPeteb]

Lots of impala everywhere.


Then baboons. Lots of them. So many babies all having so much fun. We loved them.




We drove past a couple of permanent waterholes that are supplied using solar powered bores. We saw the same at another park later in the trip.


More baboons. Lots more!

The saddest thing we saw were a number of dead warthogs. Warthogs are reliant on roots and tubers. In drought the supply literally dries up.

We knew when a dead warthog was nearby by the terrible smell. So sad.

More elephants



It was time to walk. Gift explained how we were to walk in single file, led by Patricia. Talk quietly. Obey instructions.

The walk was excellent. Again lots of impalas.

 

[bPeteb]

And then we saw some zebra. It was fantastic.



We walked through a group of ruins. Gift explained that it had been a ranger camp. It housed the rangers and their families. After three rangers were killed by elephants it had been abandoned.



Patricia asked us to be very quiet. We walked through some thick scrub and then into a clearing to find all nine rhinos in front of us. Unbelievable.

 

[bPeteb]

Two adult males, two juveniles, four females and one baby. We were so close. It was incredible.

At one point one of the juveniles started heading towards us. Patricia backed us up slowly. When he kept approaching she threw a large stick on the ground and he turned away. Got to about five metres away I suppose. Rhinos have terrible sight but great hearing. White rhinos are also not aggressive. Lucky!

I’m not sure how long we spent with them. 30 minutes maybe. Possibly a once in a lifetime moment.



Oscar was parked not far away. We got in and continued the drive around the park and back to the river for coffee and cake.

Gift, Patricia, with gun, and Oscar

 

[Quickstatus]

How many steps did you do on the walk?

 

[Quickstatus]

March-May.

Its variable though....
@bPeteb did they guides say when the floods (if any) would reach Victoria Falls

 

[drron]

Walking with the rhinos is an amazing experience. We did this in early 2013 not long after the third importation of white rhinos into Zambia was released from their holding pens. The first importation was in 1964 with a pair. By 1981 there were 13. All lost to poachers by 1989 so again tried with 6 in 1998. One male survived until 2008 when 5 more were imported. The were still in their holding pen in 2011.

When we saw them we were just told we were going on a morning excursion. We were taken to a small camp of soldiers on the banks of the Zambezi. Paid $US20 to the officer. He radioed and off we went into the Park where we met 3 soldiers with AK47s. Each was given $US10. Then they pointed out the rhinos who we then followed for a bit over half an hour. There were 8 in the park and each one had their own guard 24/7.
We followed a pair of adults with a young one.








Sadly the number rose to 13 by 2017 but in 2018 there were only 10. Still just 10 in 2022.

 

[JohnM]

Not a chance I was going near Devil's Pools!

Awww... - go on, be a devil:

 

[BriarFlyer]

Thank you so much for this trip report, @bPeteb, and the fab photos. We were in Zambia in early August last year and did some of the same activities ... but not the ultralight flight! My profile pic is from our Zambesi sunset cruise. Mosi was my beer of choice as well. Lovely memories.
And thank you for the baby elephant pics!

 

[bPeteb]

How many steps did you do on the walk?

Not really sure. I'd have to have a look through my app. We didn't ask about the increased flow. When at Hakusembe we were told November but that is the Kavango River.

 

[bPeteb]

Awww... - go on, be a devil:

View attachment 403228

still no

 

[RooFlyer]

I see the rhinos still have their horns. Is that a sign that poaching might not be such an issue? That’s what we were told at the.Madikwe park in SA.