Gotta tell ya about this....

  Kasane, North West, Botswana
Monday, August 22, 2005

Hi Everyone

Well we crossed into Botswana about an hour ago and stopped in this town called Kasane to do some shopping, change money, etc and I thought I would take the opportunity to share my Vic Falls experience with you.

As I mentioned last time we arrived on Wednesday afternoon. That evening most of the group did the Booze Cruise. I didn't go cos there is one price and it includes all you can drink - I don't drink so didn't bother. That night we had a bit of a late one and then next morning did the rafting. The Zambezi was a bit different to the Nile but great fun! The first rapid is a grade 4 and it goes across the river, so we had to get over it to continue. Our raft took 3 attempts, after losing 4 people on each of the first two tries (I stayed aboard for all 3 goes - lucky I guess). Lots of grade 4 and 5 rapids - awesome - then a long walk out of the gorge followed by drinks and food. The scenery was beautiful. This is a great time of year to do rafting here as the water level is very low, though it is still too deep to worry about hitting rocks when you fall out. The water will drop another 2 metres by the end of October when the rainy season starts again (the last time it rained was February 23).

The next day I did very little. On Saturday afternoon I wandered over to Zambia to see the falls from that side - very nice. The water is very low at this time of year so you can actually see the falls without getting drenched by the spray. Also because the water is so low I thought I would go to The Devil's Bowl and swim at the top of the falls. However it costs $25 to do that these days, so I just found a nice little pool by the trail and sat in that for several minutes. I couldn't relax completely as I would have been taken into the current and taken over the falls - not a good idea. But it was still nice to just sit in the river about 20 metres from the edge of Victoria Falls. To give you an idea what sort of people I am travelling with, I was the only one on the truck to bother seeing the falls from both sides.
 
On the Saturday night after our pre-departure meeting where we met our new crew for the trip to Cape Town, we all went to a restaurant called Boma for dinner. Boma is similar to Carnivore in Nairobi. Boma has a great drumming show though - everyone gets a drum to have a go with - loud but good. Meats on offer included Ostrich (better at Carnivore), Impala (ok), and Warthog (fantastic!! Best meat I have ever had). A late night followed as the group was splitting up - 9 to Jo'burg, 8 to Cape Town, and 3 flying out.

Sunday morning up early to go tandem kayaking on the Zambezi. What a great experience. The rapids look quite different when you are that much closer to the water, even the grade 3's are very exciting. We went upside down a few times but my guide always managed to get us back up the right way (it took 3 attempts on two occasions). Possibly the best thing I have ever done - just mind-blowing!

This morning (Monday) I was up early again to go for a flight over the falls in a 64-year-old tiger moth. Great fun and awesome views! We flew at about 4000 feet in a plane made out of wood and canvas and open cockpit. Brilliant fun.

All up I crossed from Zimbabwe into Zambia and back four times; to see the falls, rafting, kayaking, and the flight. 
 
Then back to camp to get on the new truck to start our journey to Cape Town. The 8 of us who were on the truck from Nairobi are the only passengers - so we all know each other and since the truck is designed for 23, there is plenty of room.

Anyway, just wanted to tell you all about Vic Falls while it is still fresh in my mind.

Well, gotta go. We are off to our camp. Tomorrow morning we do a game drive in Chobe National Park (last chance to see a Leopard) and we do a boat ride in the afternoon.

It is very hot here (supposed to be Summer, but there you go). I hope Winter in NZ is nice and warm and dry too (fat chance!)

Take care

Colin :-)