Seeing the Best of Zambia

We had left the wonderful Zimbabwe behind and were about to enter Zambia – a country which we had not been sure we wanted to visit at all. Tales from other travellers of corruption at the border, and at police checkpoints, along with tsetse flies and animals poached almost to extinction had put us off. But other tales of beautiful landscapes, peaceful and remote national parks and safety had led us to decide to try.

Our first impressions were great. The border was complicated but everyone was helpful and there was no corruption at all. We managed to change money, get our toll certificate, pay our council tax and get our visas without too much trouble. We had chosen a small border to try and make things easier but even so, as we drove away with all our paperwork in place, I felt as though a weight had dropped off my shoulders. Of all the borders in Africa this had been the one I had dreaded most

The nearest town to the border was Siavonga and we headed straight there for cash, a SIM card and lunch. The town itself was small and dusty but there was a distinct change in the atmosphere since leaving Zimbabwe. Everything worked! We bought our SIM card easily and data was so cheap we thought we´d got the exchange rate wrong. We managed to get cash from the one and only bank in town and then started to think about lunch. So far we were enjoying Zambia, things were looking hopeful.

The lovely ladies at the mobile phone shop had suggested two lodges where we could eat but disagreed between them on which was best. So we took pot luck and headed towards one of them.

We were not disappointed with our choice. The whole place was very nice

The toilets were clean and it all worked – there was even water! We felt as though we were on holiday again. And the food was delicious.

Whilst sitting at the table we text the campsite we had chosen to stay that night, apparently we needed to arrange our arrival in advance as they have a locked gate and no mobile signal for miles. The manager was just leaving the town we were in and dropped pin locations to us on Whatsapp as she drove home so we could follow her once we´d finished lunch.

The drive was long and dusty but we found our way with few problems and arrived at the gate to find it was locked despite us being expected. There was about 15 minutes of surprise, concern, annoyance and finally despair before eventually we heard a quad bike in the distance which slowly got closer until the manager appeared with her two dogs smiling from ear to ear.

She took us to the campsite and settled us in. The view over Lake Kariba was as lovely from the Zambian side as it had been from the Zimbabwe side

But James had found something much more interesting – an enormous Mercedes overland truck parked up next to us!

Frank and Cathy were a French couple who had lived in Australia for 30 years and were now travelling the world in a vehicle which would fit ten Henrys inside. We spent most of the next two days chatting to them, sharing experiences and advice.

That evening we were sitting around the camp fire when James suddenly jumped up. A large scorpion had run past his feet. Both he and I were wearing our sturdy walking boots as we always do after dark but Frank and Cathy quickly drew their flip-flopped feet up under them looking decidedly nervous. I sometimes wonder whether we are too cautious but when things like this happen I thank the stars that we are!

That night it didn´t cool down much at all and the next morning was steamingly hot and humid. We heard rumours it was going to get up to 43 degrees by the middle of the day so decided not to plan too much activity whilst we were there.

We were invited to go with the ranger to feed the Sable kept on the farm. It was a short walk and when we arrived they were already there waiting

They were lovely

But it was too hot to do anything more than read and meet some more of the residents for the rest of the day

Until we joined Frank and Cathy on a sunset boat ride on the Lake

The Lake is used by the locals for fishing and we watched the little boats as they drifted along the water

When we rounded a corner into the main lake the view was lovely although the devastation caused to the area when the lake was created by the new dam all those years ago was very evident

The water was dotted with larger fishing vessels

But as the sun sank behind the horizon it all seemed very serene

Whilst here we were reminded by the manager that the lake, along with all the other fresh water lakes in this part of Africa, has the parasitic worm that causes Bilharzia. The worm sits in your body, sometimes for years, and basically eats you from the inside out – eyes, internal organs – until you go blind and eventually die. It´s a well known problem in this part of the world and anyone who swims in fresh water lakes here risks infection. But we also found out that all campsite showers around any lake use untreated water and so will also contain the worm.

Fortunately Bilharzia is treatable with a short course of tablets but the timely reminder made us add the tablets to our shopping list!

The Zambezi valley heat was getting too extreme for us so the next day we headed north to the Chirundu fossil forest on the way to the Lower Zambezi. Hopefully there would be more of a cooling breeze along the river and, in fact, the campsite we had chosen to stay at was called Breezes which we thought was a good sign.

We pulled up at Chirundu and found the plaque marking the fossil forest. But we couldn´t find anything resembling a forest. There were a few pieces of fossil wood here and there but it was a bit disappointing

Just as we were about to leave a local lady came up to us and told us that the best bit of the forest was on the other side of the road. She gestured for us to follow her. With nothing to lose we did as we were told

Across the road, skirting the village and along a small footpath – our guide was deftly picking her way along in her bare feet and we did our best to keep up. Eventually we arrived at the site and spent a happy few minutes poking around the huge fossilised trees

It was very similar to the fossil forest in Namibia but this time there was no tourist infrastructure and no high entrance fee!

Once we were done our lady showed us the way back to the road and we thanked her for her time. She smiled shyly but asked for nothing from us. I fished around in my purse for something to show our gratitude and found a 100 Kwacha note. I handed it to her with a thank you and she looked amazed. She clasped it to her chest grinning from ear to ear and said now she would be able to buy a whole bag of maize meal for her family. It was so little to us but so much to her – it was a good morning.

We stopped at the next town to stock up with food and were struck by how much cheaper everything was here compared with Zimbabwe – our shopping cost about half what we had become used to. And we had remarkably fast, working internet – it was a revelation! We also found a pharmacy that weighed us and measured out the required dosage for our Bilharzia treatment ready for when we needed to take it. We were rocking and rolling.

We carried on along the Zambezi river until we reached our campsite. At first it was still stiflingly hot and we were a little disappointed but before long a wonderful cooling breeze started up and we basked in it for the rest of the day, sitting by the pool and relaxing

We also made a few new friends….

Later in the evening we even had a gale and had to hurriedly put the awning away. The wind was so strong it kept us awake that night but we didn´t care – we were cool at last.

We were enjoying ourselves so much we decided to stay another day. I went up to the bar area to work on the blog and got chatting to a retired Zambian gentleman who lived on a boat moored near the campsite. When James arrived we were both invited for elevenses.

The boat was small but lovely

And the view was spectacular

We met the daughter of the campsite owners who was a life-long friend of the gentleman on the boat.

We declined wine at 11am and satisfied ourselves with fizzy water and good company!

There weren´t many animals around but a cute frog was busy blending into the scenery in the ladies toilets – these photos were taken about an hour apart and he had already done a good job…

And I was thrilled to see a bushbaby scamper across the grass and up a tree as we were getting ready to go to bed. I watched him with our torch for a few minutes but sadly it was too dark for a photo.

Our next stop was to be a campsite deeper into the Lower Zambezi which had been recommended by a lot of people. The manager, Ruth, is apparently a star.

We weren´t disappointed. Ruth really is a star – so much so that she made me some amazing banana bread and regaled us with tales of elephants breaking into the kitchen and hippos wallowing in the swimming pool. She had names for all the animals – even the ´naughty´ frog that hid inside the toilet roll holder in the ladies ablution block and made newcomers jump (me included!).

This campsite had plentiful animals, in fact we were surrounded. We heard hippos grunting all day and night. In the evening as we were washing up we spotted two snakes slithering up the trees over our heads. And the next morning my training was interrupted by a herd of elephants making their way through the camp

I wasn´t about to tell them they wouldn´t fit under the shower….

And with Ruth in town for the morning all we could do was stand and watch as they decided to eat, play and pull up the fences!

I stood watching for a while and felt that whilst I stood still they were happy to let me stay

But I was definitely not invited to try and stop them!

They seemed to be having a great time but I wasn´t sure how pleased Ruth would be with them when she got back….

Later that afternoon we joined two French couples for a sunset cruise along the river. It was a beautiful setting

With birds trilling in the trees

And villages slowly drfting past on the banks

And from this angle Henry looked very comfortable sitting in the campsite patiently waiting for our return

But sadly the campsite´s normal boat was stuck in the national park and Ruth had hurriedly hired another one from a nearby lodge to help out. This boat was not in a good way and the guide spent most of the time trying to get the engine to start

At one point we thought we were going to have to swim back!

But the sunset was lovely

With beautiful, swirling clouds

And we saw no end of hippo…..

The whole place was beautiful and never more so than after the sun had set

We had planned to do a guided walk the next day but there was an angry buffalo in the area which the rangers were trying to track. It wasn´t safe to go out so we stayed put and did some washing instead

A large group of southern africans had arrived the evening before and we got chatting to them. Some were from South Africa, some from Zambia, others from Zimbabwe and between them they knew a lot about the area. We were heading to the capital, Lusaka, that day and they recommended we took the escarpment road over the mountains rather than following the longer tar road. Ruth´s eyebrows hit the top of her head when she heard and she said it would be a brave move.

Whatever we decided, everyone told us that Zambians are very friendly and helpful as well as being tribal in nature meaning close communities with low crime. If we ever get into trouble they said, simply find the nearest church and they will give us somewhere to stay and any help we need. With this in mind we decided to take the brave option….

We chose well – the escarpment route was beautiful with far reaching views

Henry glided up and down the steep, rocky mountain road like a dream and only once or twice did I look down and feel the fear forever lodged in me by the accident

At one point we came round a corner and surprised two elephants in the middle of the road. But they politely stepped backwards and gave us space to pass. And later on as we stopped in a village to consult our maps a group of kids came up smiling and patting Henry, fascinated by us.

Zambia was turning out to be everything we had hoped and nothing we had feared.

Lusaka has a reputation as a laid back and calm capital city. When we arrived the traffic was busy but the roads were wide and clean without too much kamikaze driving. It seemed nice and very low key.

We headed straight to our campsite a few kilometers out of town. It was a lovely backpackers lodge with a huge garden made available for overlanders to camp

The manager was very friendly and helpful and we felt at home straight away

The ablutions were spotless and the whole place was clean and comfortable

We decided to stay for three nights to give us time to service Henry and see some sights. On the first morning we recruited three of the guys from the campsite to rock Henry back and forwards to check nothing was lose underneath. Everything seemed in good order but we wanted to get him up on a ramp just in case – there was a slight knock from under there which we wanted to get to the bottom of.

Whilst James did the service I went up to the communal area with the maps and itineraries and started the task of getting to grips with the rest of Zambia. The manager, owner and three other guests were up there and we all chatted for a couple of hours about where to go and what to see. By the end of the afternoon I had changed all our plans and was much happier with the new itinerary.

Pleased with my day´s work I wandered back to James and Henry to enjoy a lovely evening of Chinese stir fry steak, a glass of wine and a wonderful relief from mosquitoes in this cooler and higher region.

However the next morning our plans were turned on their heads again when the manager came over to tell us that the rains had started in the south and we would probably not be able to drive over the pass through the South Luangwa national park. This basically meant we could not do the route I had so carefully planned as we could not cross into Malawi in the south without a two day detour.

Undeterred I consulted the maps yet again and we made an unexpected decision to miss out both the South and North Luangwa national parks as well as half of the Waterfall Route and cross into Malawi at the remote and barely used northern border. At the end of the day we figured there were only so many waterfalls we could see without getting waterfall burn-out and with the rains coming neither of the national parks would be doing walking safaris, which is what we really wanted to go there for. And anyway, who needs to see more lions…..??

We crammed a lot into our last day in Lusaka. Our first stop was to a very highly recommended Landrover mechanic who shook Henry to within an inch of his life and found one of the rear shock absorbers was worn out. Luckily we carry spares so he changed it there and then.

We then bought our COMESA car insurance covering us for 8 months until we got to Kenya and after that the Malawi embassy helped us finalise our plans for our Christmas trip to the UK by confirming that a multiple entry visa allows entry by both land and air.

With all the admin done we treated ourselves to a hearty lunch at the Mint Lounge and headed to the Aylmer May Cemetery, a fascinating historic monument in the city

When we arrived we were met by the caretaker who was mute. He was also incredibly knowledgeable and clearly very enthusiastic about the history of the place. He showed us around for an hour pointing out some of the most interesting graves and taking us to a chapel built in remembrance of a young woman who died just months after her wedding day

He wrote on his arm or in the sand explaining what we were looking at

He also took me to a labyrinth and clapped when I finished it.

He was amazing and brought the whole place to life. We gave him a big tip and he beamed from ear to ear.

Next stop was the national museum where we hoped to see an exhibition on witchcraft. The impressive Zambian Freedom Statue was outside

As well as this little fellow who seemed to be enjoying himself

An ice cream seller stood in the car park and James thought he said the ice creams were 50 Kwacha. After buying one, giving the man the money and enjoying his ice cream, James was standing in the entrance of the museum looking at an art exhibition when the ice cream seller came in searching for him with a worried look on his face. He handed James 35 Kwacha and said that the ice creams were only 15 Kwacha and he couldn´t take his money for nothing. James was completely taken aback by the man´s honesty and I wondered at the internal debate he must have been going through for the last 15 minutes before deciding to return the money!

The museum was small and the witchcraft exhibition was very disappointing. But there was a fascinating display about the Mailoni Brothers who had terrorised a large part of the country for many years and the art exhibition in the foyer was stunning

But that was about it for Lusaka, there isn´t much else to see in the city so we left late that afternoon and headed north out of town towards a farm-stay ready to make an early start the next day for the rest of our Zambian adventure.

We stopped off at a supermarket on the way to stock up on food and essentials and I couldn’t help but smile at the music they were playing in the store – wall to wall Abba! This wasn´t the first – and definitely would not be the last – Zambian supermarket with an Abba soundtrack. Go figure!

The main road north east through Zambia is the T2, also known as the Great Northern Road. It has a terrible reputation which we discovered was very well deserved. Absolutely choked with slow moving lorries driving between Zambia, Tanzania and the DRC, spewing exhaust fumes. Pot holes everywhere. Traffic coming at you on the wrong side of the road trying to overtake regardless of what´s coming the other way. We needed our wits about us every second.

We spent a number of days driving this road but the stretch from Lusaka to the farm-stay was by far the worst. It took two and a half miserable hours to drive 50km. It was quite claustrophobic with no way off.

We finally arrived at the farm at 6pm expecting to see a cosy, family run place. Instead we found a big, impersonal operation. We were left to find the campsite on our own with no signs and no help and given a bunch of about 15 keys one of which apparently opened the ablutions block. When we finally found the campsite it was very run down, the ablutions looked like something out of the last century and it took me half an hour to try every key in eight different doors before successfully opening one of them up to find the toilet.

We were very surprised to find such a poor campsite in what we had come to regard as a very beautiful and well developed country. There was no-one else staying there so we settled in to dinner and a movie very disappointed and looking forward to leaving the next day and starting on our journey north to better places.

Little did we know that this was the start of the end of our very brief love-affair with Zambia. A county of two halves – paradise around the Zambezi river, something completely different in the north. The next two weeks were going to be a challenge…..