Thursday, October 22, 2009

Canoe trip down the Zambezi River, Zimbabwe


The lower Zambezi canoe safaris are unquestionably the best in Southern Africa - with an ideal combination of unspoilt wilderness, some of the finest game and birdlife in the region, truly excellent river guides and a wide range of options to suit all tastes.

The canoe trips run with a minimum of 2 passengers and a maximum of 8. Explorer Safaris are led by qualified canoe guides with thousands of hours of canoeing experience (a learner canoe guide must have at least 1000 hours canoeing experience just to sit the canoe guides exam).

Generally the day starts with tea / coffee and biscuits at sunrise. The camp is packed and the party sets off. These early mornings make for easy paddling as the wind is calm and it is not too hot. A stop will be made for breakfast, usually after a couple of hours. Stops are made at any point of interest.

The trip continues after breakfast, until breaking for a light lunch and siesta between noon and two pm. The night stop is reached at approximately 5pm. Camp is unpacked and set up and dinner prepared. Camp is generally set up on islands, at sites designated by National Parks.

All canoe safaris take place on the Lower Zambezi River between Kariba and Kanyemba. Most of the safaris start or end in Mana Pools National Park.

This section of the Zambezi River flows through a variety of different scenes. Below Kariba Dam the narrowest point is approximately 80 metres and the widest point is 4.2 kilometres near Chikwenya, an island inside Mana Pools National Park.

From the first put-in point, a short distance below Kariba Dam Wall, the Kariba Gorge is narrow and fairly steep sided, this continues for 18 kilometres before the River opens out in to a wide flood plain. The flood plain continues until the Chewore River mouth where the River narrows again at the start of the Mupata Gorge, which is approximately 46 kilometres long. This section is not as steep as Kariba Gorge, but is beautiful and very remote.

The River has not flooded since the wall was built as the dam regulates the flow. (There was a minor flood when three dam wall gates were opened in the year 2000. However, this had minimal effect to the ecology downstream.) There are not enough tributaries below the wall to cause a flood during the heavy rains.

There are no rapids on this section of the river. The water is flat all the way from Kariba to Kanyemba, with an average flow rate of 4 km per hour.

The depth of the River varies from 24 -30 metres in the gorges to as little as 150 centimetres in the flood plain areas, although there is always a deep-water channel. There are a lot of islands and sandbanks, which make good camping spots.

Mana Pools is the only game park in Zimbabwe to be granted World Heritage Status and encompasses some of Africa’s largest areas of Acacia and Mahogany woodland, combined with spectacular, full-canopy Mopane forest.

Mana Pools is part of a 300 million year old rift valley supporting a large variety of mammals and over 400 bird species. Covering over 200 square kilometres, this national park has been set aside to be kept as wild as possible. There is only non-invasive, zero-impact tourism allowed. There are no safari lodges, generators, electric fences or other structures associated with safari camps as these are banned by law.

All the camps must be taken down the day after guests depart to ensure minimal damage to the ecosystem.

Wildlife is abundant in the valley especially during the winter months from June through to late August with game still being clearly visible through to the end of October / early November when the rains start.

The River runs through the Urungwe Safari Area, Mana Pools National Park, Sapi Safari, Chewore Safari and Dande Safari areas respectively. Wildlife will be seen on every trip, most commonly impala, waterbuck, hippo, crocodiles, elephant and buffalo. Animals such as lion, leopard, etc, are more difficult to see but are certainly present.

Wildlife is much more abundant in Mana Pools, especially during the height of the dry season (July to October) when the game viewing can be fantastic. During the rainy season (mid November to end of March) game is around but not as visible.

Seasons:
High season - 1st July to 31st October
Low season - 1st November to 30th June

Book a Zambezi Canoe Trip today