Day 128: Zambezi River
So, while our lodge was super fancy and the food/accommodations/staff were awesome, there was one little problem which was out of their control. Last night we discovered that there is a nightclub at the bottom of the Batoka Gorge, which blared thumping techno music AT NIGHT LONG. Not even exaggerating – it was still going at sunrise. Worse, it was on the Zambian side of the river, so what could the owners do about it? Call a noise complaint with the cops? It’s another friggin’ country! You need a fucking visa just to go over there and complain! Oh well, we’re road-hardy travelers at this point. We popped in our earplugs and slept just fine.
Nightclub on the Zambian side of the river was still thumping techno at sunrise
We didn’t pre-book any of the activities at Victoria Falls, as many of them depend on the height of the river at the time. We really wanted to go swimming at the Devil’s Pool – a natural “infinity pool” at the edge of the waterfall, however, the water level was still too high and the pool wasn’t open yet (we were told we missed it by about 2 weeks). As an alternative, several people we met along our travels had recommended white water rafting. Igor and Lindsay had both been rafting once (Igor in upstate NY during a bachelor party, Lindsay in Montana during her bachelorette party), but neither had tackled Class 5 rapids. But we didn’t tell the tour operator that.
The trip was AWESOME! We went over 19 rapids – five were Class 5, most of the others were Class 3 and 4. The pace was perfect – we had plenty of time in between rapids to catch our breath and prepare for our next brush with Death. Our tour group was divided into two boats – we were paired with a couple of American girls from Las Vegas, both of whom had been rafting before. Our team had a great rapport and at the end of the day we boasted that none of us fell out of the boat. The other raft was made up of an Englishwoman and her daughter, and three Chinese guys. They did not seem to gel as well – when they hit Rapid #13 “The Mother”, three of them went overboard! Everyone was rescued safely, so it was very entertaining for us to watch. J
Getting ready to hit the water! Getting our safety briefing and gear at the top of the gorge
It’s a long, steep walk down the side of the gorge to the river
Below the Victoria Falls Railway Bridge – the border crossing between Zimbabwe and Zambia – about to set foot into the Zambezi River
The water level is low enough that we can start our tour at Rapid #1: The Boiling Pot
Thumbs up – ready to go!
Paddling fiercely toward a Class 5 rapid!
RAPID IMPACT! This photo is intense – let’s break it down, shall we?
Igor’s like, “Whoa!” Lindsay’s like, “Ugh!” Our guide is like, “Meh.”
High fives and thumbs up! Our team is killing it – we didn’t lose anyone to the river that day!
Walking around two rapids (#7 & #9) that are classed 6+ – Lindsay is barefoot, so she has to walk very carefully
A deicious BBQ lunch awaits us at the top of the gorge
AWESOME DAY with Shearwater Rafting! We chucked out the extra USD $50 for their thumb drive with video and photos, and we are so glad we did! Really impressed with the professionalism, quality and plain old fun of this company! Highly recommended.
The endpoint for the rafting tour was conveniently 5min away from the Gorges Lodge, so we got dropped off first and had about an hour to shower and change before hopping in the hotel shuttle to drive to our sundowner cruise at the top of the Victoria Falls. The boat was ridiculously crowded (actually, the whole river was crowded!), and all seating was communal (we were paired up with a very nice, older Australian couple), and while drinks were unlimited, we didn’t feel like chugging cheap wine and giving ourselves a hangover. But we did get a few nice shots of hippos and elephants, a pretty sunset, and some nice conversation, so not a terrible way to spend an afternoon. However, we were extreemly pleased when we returned to the Gorges Lodge and discovered we were the only guests for the night – we had the whole restaurant to ourselves! Feeling very VIP.
The Victoria Falls “Booze Cruise” – a sundowner boat ride at the top of the falls
Lots of hippos at the top of the falls
Look at those fangs! This guy will fucking kill you.
A group of elephants crossing the river in a herd for safety – probably scared of hippo attacks!
After our sunset on the Zambezi, our driver spots a herd of Cape Buffalo on the way back to the lodge!
Another fantastic dinner at Gorges Lodge!
OMG I feel like I got an adrenaline rush just reading about your team navigating those Class 5 rapids and your trek in and out of the gorge looked strenuous—thank goodness you both are in top shape and the Shearwater guides really know their stuff. Awesome pictures of the rapids, hippos, elephants (so glad you splurged on the thumb drive). What an amazing day you had and your team “rocked those rapids”.