Ah, The Smells of Africa
We landed in Johannesburg, got our bags, went through immigration and went out for a breath of fresh air, African exhaust smells so much better than ours! And the accents of the people asking if we needed a taxi or a luggage cart was music to my ears!
Went back in had a croissant and soda at one of the shops and checked into Nationwide for our flight to Livingstone. Nationwide is a great airline, on an hour and twenty minute flight they give you juice, a sandwich and soda or cocktail. My first of too many g & t’s! Arrived in Livingstone and headed for the transit desk at immigration. I think we were the only ones who knew about the $100.00 visa fee. Everyone else was screaming at the poor immigration officer who did her best to remain cool, which comes easy for the Zambian people. We smiled, handed over our $100.00 each, thanked her and now had a three year visa for Zambia, what could be better than that? We were met by our driver who took us over the border into Zimbabwe, soaking up the smells, sounds, colors and vitality of Africa. On the way we saw 5 impala by the Zambezi Sun Hotel and a few warthogs. We paid our $45.00 double entry visa fee to immigration and were over the border in minutes.

Disabled Animals Home
We were dropped of at Ilala Lodge in Victoria Falls for our overnight stay. It’s a beautiful hotel complete with television and air conditioning and a door onto a grassy area where you can see the mist from the falls off in the distance. Our first animal encounter was a one legged hornbill hopping on the patio, I gave him some shortbread cookies from the plane which attracted more interest from the giant ants than the bird. Shortly after that there was a warthog limping across the grass followed by a baboon with a stump of a leg. I guess they feel safe here so they all hang around. Also saw a warthog mom with her 3 babies living in a drainage pipe on the edge of the grass. Took a shower and went exploring around Victoria Falls town, went to the gas station (which had no gas) and had a coke light and talked to some Zimbabweans in the little cafe there. Came out to mass of people trying to sell me some wooden carved animals. I explained I was going on safari and couldn’t carry anything, but I’d be back in 9 days to shop. It was 97F at 3:00 p.m.

JACKPOT!
Went into the Kingdom Casino, very beautiful hotel, but only 5-6 people playing slots so I thought “What the hell, I’ll try my luck here” First pull of the handle and I got a $600 jackpot! WOOHOO! Oh wait, that’s in Zim dollars so I won $2.50 U.S., Oh well, took about an hour to lose $10.00. Came back to the hotel and went to the Palms restaurant for dinner. Had a bowl of butternut squash soup and a filet steak, a couple of drinks and off to bed. Took an Ambien and slept good all night. Woke up refreshed and went up to their breakfast buffet, complete with omelet station and was feeling pretty satisfied.

Handsome And The T-Shirt
Our transfer to Namibia would pick us up at 11:00 so I had three and a half hours to kill so decided to go see the falls in case I didn’t make it back from the safari, I had to see Victoria Falls before I died. As I was walking to the path to the falls, a nice looking kid named Handsome came over trying to sell me a wooden elephant. I told him no but if he walked me to the falls and kept all the other hawkers away from me, I’d give him a t-shirt from Hawaii and $5.00 (I read about doing this on a trip report) so he was happy with the shirt and did keep everyone away. The falls were spectacular! Words can not describe it! The temperature was 85F, the sun was bright and each of the falls had rainbows over them. Spent about an hour walking almost to the end, but as I got closer to the Zambia side, I could see not much water was flowing. Left the falls and Handsome saw me and took me to his friend Oy-Oy’s shop for a soda then back up to the hotel. While I was at the falls he changed into his Hawaii t-shirt and about 10 boys came over saying they would give me their carved animal if I would just give them a shirt like Handsome’s. I could have gotten a suitcase full of souvenirs for free if I had brought more t-shirts with me. Said goodbye to Handsome, told him I’d be back in 9 days and would buy a carved elephant from him then. Went back to the hotel, checked out and waited for our ride to Namibia. The hotel has a policy where if you charge things to your room and pay in U.S. dollars on checkout, you get 40% off the bill, so our dinners, drinks and sodas throughout the day came to $71.00 U.S.

Three Countries in Two Hours
Our driver from Wild Horizons picked us up on time and we were on our way. Checked out of Zimbabwe, into Botswana, out of Botswana, into Namibia. The drive was nice, very scenic though didn’t see much game other than cattle and an occasional impala and warthog. We got to Kasane, a very nice town in Botswana, and met Alfred, our guide for the next two nights from Ntwala Lodge. Took a motorboat trip across the river to Impalila Island to go through immigration. Then it was off to Ntwala.

more, more, more!!! (ps caught that about the stapler )

Dennis:
funny intro. looking forward to your next installment(s)

Dennis - I will be checking back here hourly (if not more often) for your next installment. So glad you liked Ilala Lodge - guess I did forget to mention da kine breakfast buffet they have there.

So far, so good!!!!! Sooo.... where to next year, Dennis?

Lynda- from someone who took almost 3 months to finish your report, you have SOME NERVE asking for more so soon
Vee- it might take awhile, I'm still burned out and want to work on the pics.
Cooncat-definitely back to Zim and more parts of that country and hopefully squeeze in LRL!

Dennis,
Welcome back! So glad you didn't have a hemorrage or any other un intended excitment. Looking forward to more!
Lily

Dennis

Virgin upper class is the bomb. But generally any carrier is better than United in any class.

Paragraph 1 is a hilarious trip down Fodors memory lane.

I have whiplash from your three countries in two hours.

Glad you enjoyed Ilala. I don't recall it attracting so many animals with problems.

Your list of sights foreshadows an excellent trip and report. Can't wait for more.

I've been thinking about the Caprivi Strip. How nice of you to go check it out for me and report back.

Still laughing at those dangers you avoided this time out.

Over the Top At Ntwala!
After leaving immigration, it was about an hours motorboat ride to Ntwala. Along the way we saw lots of cattle, fisherman and fishing villages lining the shores of the Chobe and Zambezi rivers. Once the rains start, the villagers move to areas not in the flood plain and the next year rebuild their villages from scratch. It was a beautiful ride and saw many birds but no game, other than the resident pod of hippos that stay by the entrance to the lodge. We arrived at Ntwala and were greeted by the hosts Natasha and Dietrich, with a cold hand towel and fruit drink, very refreshing after the ride. The lodge is reached by walking on a raised wooden pathway opening into a beautiful entrance with dining room, library, wine cellar, and a deck over the river. We were shown to our chalet, more the size of a small house. There was a huge sitting area, large beds surrounded by mosquito nets, a closet and shelves for unpacking, a writing area with desk, fully stocked wet bar with ice, wine glasses, cocktail glasses, snacks, huge bathroom with a gigantic tub, two sinks, an indoor shower, outdoor shower, recessed lighting, our own private plunge pool with deck chairs, a deck over the river with hanging chairs, very, very nice, the only thing missing was a feeling of Africa. Other than the mosquito netting and a large print of an elephant, it could have been on any river in the world. Each chalet (four) has their own guide for the duration of your stay. Lunch was chicken legs in a sweet bell pepper sauce, very good.

Over the River and Over the River
After lunch we went back out on the river for sundowners and cruising around the island. Still no game and with the motor on the boat running, you couldn’t hear the sounds of Africa! There were a lot of beautiful birds to see. Sundowner finger food was biltong and peanuts....what????? A fancy place like this and they serve beef jerky and nuts? Truly disappointing! Alfred our guide was a nice enough guide, a bit wet behind the ears, but with no real game to point out it was hard to tell, and very formal. Dinner was cold avocado soup, steak in a balsamic reduction sauce, vegetables and chocolate soufflé for dessert. Took a dip in the pool after dinner and went to bed. The power goes off at eleven and the room got quite stuffy with no air flow. The next day we had breakfast and took off for Chobe Park in Botswana in the motorboat. We saw quite a bit of game, impala, warthogs and hundreds and hundreds of elephants drinking out of the river and more coming over the hills to drink. It was truly an incredible sight to see so many elephants at one time, I was in heaven! Spent a few hours there, then back to the lodge for lunch, which was a pork filet with yogurt dill sauce. After a siesta and swim in the pool, Alfred and I went to visit a fishing village. It was quite interesting, though most of the villagers were either out fishing or hiding as I only met 3 people there. Sundowners on the river and the finger food was biltong and peanuts.....what????? Twice in a row! I don’t like biltong anyway, so Albert ate the whole bowl. Back to the lodge for dinner, lamb chops in eggplant and onion, and a chocolate flan for dessert. Back to the room, took a dip in the pool and went to bed, heading to Susuwe Lodge in the morning.

Thoughts on Ntwala
Ntwala is a very beautiful lodge, though needs more African touches. Food was excellent other than the finger food at sundowners. The hosts were friendly enough, though when dinner was served they disappeared. There were 2 other people there and in order for us to talk and compare notes on our days, we had to shout across the patio where we dined. I enjoy eating with and talking to the hosts and other guests, hearing their tales and life in a safari lodge. The guide needs to loosen up and have fun so the guests can have fun also. The only activities there are by motorboat, no canoeing, no mekoroing, just motorboating on the same stretch of the river time after time. I think if you are on a honeymoon or romantic getaway and don’t care to see game, want to stay in your room the whole time, it would make for a nice stay, but for me, I didn’t care for Ntwala and would not return.

Dennis,

Glad you had a fantastic time....your sightings seem fantastic....appears like Hwange was the stand-out portion of your trip and can't wait to read all about it, when you get a chance to write....

Hari

thanks for the next installment.

Dennis, great report (I'm really looking forward to your impression of Hwange).

Also, any comments on your travel companion's reactions (if it was his first trip). I am thinking of traveling with a friend, and she has never been on safari, and I wonder if you have any observations of a repeat, compared to first-time, visitor to Africa.

Thanks, Michael

Dennis, welcome back! Glad the trip was a success. I'm going to read in earnest after work (or during lunch). I always enjoy your reports. Something humorous inevitably happens.

Welcome back Dennis - glad your trip was disaster-free! Can't wait to hear more. You surprised me with the last item on your list of new sitings - I guess I thought they are everwhere in Africa. We got to see the Roan antelope at Ruma NP - I think they're beautiful!

Cyn

Really enjoying this report and looking forward to the next episodes.

BTW have you ever gone from Hawaii to JNB via Sydney? Around 1500 fewer flying miles than via LHR.

What a great report! Can't wait for the next installment, Dennis.

Like your report very much, Dennis...wish I'd known about the "T-shirt for Handsome" trick! I just took sports caps for my walking safari crew to keep them on-side.

John

Dennis, I'm looking forward to reading about your tsessebe sightings.

Thanks for the next installment. Glad the ele action was so good.

Really enjoying so far. Looking forward to the real stay in Zimbabwe.

Take your time and give us something to look forward to. Glad you enjoyed but am wondering what the "just another great trip (for the most part)" is in reference to - hope it's only the biltong that your talking about.
Sherry

Michael- Tom also went to Zambia with me, so he's not a safari virgin. He was anxious about going to Zim but loved it as much as I did.
Gardyloo-I checked into flying the other way, through Oz or Asia, but with the layovers, it took twice as long and the price was double at least.
Cynstalker- I don't think they have wildebeests in Zambia, at least not in South Luangwa as I never saw them before this.
afrigalah- I wish I had brought more t-shirts, Handsome was a "star" in his...such joy for something so cheap
nyamera-I saw so many new "hoofed/hooved?" animals I can't tell them apart in my pictures...hopefully I'll identify them before I post them
thanks to everyone else who's enjoying this report!

On The Road Again
Got up and had breakfast, said our goodbyes and back to the motorboat on our way to Susuwe Camp. Today it would be out of Namibia, into Botswana, out of Botswana, into Namibia. I ended up with 28 new stamps in my passport this trip. The cruise to Impalila Island was a bit more productive...we saw a crocodile! Then across the river to Kasane and were met by Patrick and Amanda who would drive us to Susuwe, a three and a half hour drive. They are a nice couple who will soon be opening “Joe’s Beer Shack” in Livingstone. Had great conversation along the way. Drove through Chobe Park and saw elephants crossing the road...cool! The drive along the Caprivi Strip was nice, many villages along the side of the road. stopped in Katima Molilo for a rest break and soda and met Beaven our guide at the entrance to the National Park. It was about an hour drive through the park to the lodge, then a short 2 minute boat ride to Susuwe Island Lodge. We saw some kudus, impala and baboons on the way in.

Susuwe Island Lodge
The lodge is very beautiful with a three story observation deck to observe the birds which were plentiful around the lodge. There’s a big open area for seating around the fire, a bar, gift shop and a view of the river. The room was nice, nothing too fancy, beds, large shower, double sinks, private plunge pool and lounge chairs and windows all around to catch the breezes-it was hot here. The lodge is overlooking the Kwando River. Sean, the manager, is a young guy who had run the place for six years. The staff was very friendly and it was a comfortable place with lots of African touches.

Lights Out!
After a nice lunch of warm vegetable salad and cool fruit salad and a short siesta and dip in the pool we went for our first night drive. Beaven was a nice enough guy, knew his stuff but it was hard to get anything out of him other than “led rechwe” “kudu” “impala”. He did open up a bit at sundowners though. We saw a few wildebeests, red lechwe and some impala. Stopped at a hippo pool for sundowners and there was an albino hippo in the pool. This poor thing had to be the ugliest animal in all of Africa and how she got a boyfriend I’ll never know, but she was butt-ugly! Finally got some good sundowner finger food, chicken wings with chutney sauce...I was happy! The sunset was beautiful and we set out on our night drive. Ooops, the spotlight doesn’t work! What??? So it was straight back to the lodge seeing nothing. I was pissed but kept my mouth shut. Dinner was on the deck of our room and the table and deck was decorated with all these carved animals (which I didn’t notice at the time due to a few g & t’s and half a bottle of wine. Dinner was an excellent chicken breast stuffed with feta cheese and spinach, fried camembert cheese and sweet chili sauce and an apple custard for desert. I staggered to bed and slept well.

There’s a Crocodile In The Pool!
Got up early and went out on the deck to see if I could see any game across the river. The table and all the decorations were still on the deck and as I was about to put my feet in the pool I noticed a crocodile! I yelled for Tom, “there’s a croc in the pool” He came running out and said “it’s made of wood you ass” Oh, well no more wine for me and was glad I didn’t blow the whistle to alert the staff of the impending danger!

How Do You Hide 2,493 Elephants, 24 Lions, 2 Packs of Dogs and Everything Else?
After breakfast we took off on a game drive and saw 3 buffalo (more on these later), one had his face to us, the other two were turned the other way. The one with his face to us, lifted his head, looked at us for a minute then head went back down to graze. Also saw 12 red lechwe and a few impala. I asked Beaven where all the animals were, and this was the conversation:
“Beaven, where are all the animals?’
“They went to Angola”
“Why did they go to Angola”
“Because of the rains”
“When did it rain?”
“It rained last night”
“Can we go to Angola to see the animals?”
“No, we can not go to Angola”
“If it rained last night, they must have left this morning and could probaly catch up with them”
“We can not go to Angola”
“No, but if we catch the parade of elephants followed by the lions, followed by the dogs, followed by the giraffe, followed by the zebra, we should be able to see the slow ones”
“We can not go to Angola”
“I don’t want to go to Angola, but if we head towards Angola, we can see the line of animals....which way is Angola?”
“Angola is to the right”
“Then why are you turning left”
“We can not go to Angola”
“Next year I will go to Angola and wait for the parade”
“O.K., but we can not go to Angola today”
So that is how it went...

Dennis,

Loved the last segment of your report. Both the Croc in the pool and the Angola bits......if Seinfeld makes a come-back on "must see tv" i recommend you audition to write the episodes....or a different show or book based on everyday stuff...

Hari

OMG I just about wet my pants reading your last installment- between the croc in the pool, and Angola, you just got me laughing so hard that I couldn't stop!!! Please don't quit now!!!! I am loving your report, ad can't wait to hear about Somalisa!!!! You are a nut for sure (my favorite kind of people!!) Even without the wine!!
Suzi

Dennis,

Whilst in the Caprivi strip, did you notice a lot of farming areas and communities? Perhaps, not in their immediate game drive zones...but, around there i would guess....

Hari

Loving your report, Dennis...
The finger food obsession made me giggle (you could just express a preference on arrival or after one disappointing experience though) and the Croc in the pool and your Angola conversation made me laugh out loud!
Please keep it coming!

Just about had rice all over my keyboard on that one. Will have to remember not to eat when I read the rest of your report!

The whole thing just cracks me up, you are soo good at doing that, as you well know!

Looking forward to the rest. Love the way you are organizing this. Can't wait to hear more about the wildlife in Hwange, but also any conversations you had with the Zimbabwean people.

It's so annoying that I posted on this thread last night and of course it is not here now. Seems to happen a fair amount on this board -- must be going right into their books or something.

Dennis: I too actually laughed out loud about your croc in the pool and Tom's response. Great report format that is keeping me entertained. I'm sure you can relate to this: my daughter has a 3 foot plastic alligator that she left out on our front lawn. I had a pizza delivered and about 10 minutes later I get a call from the frantic delivery guy who was startled and hustled back to his car and wanted me to know that he thought we had an alligator in our yard and might need to call animal control. Of course I now keep our gatorgoyle by the front door.

I could also relate to your shirt for guiding services deal. I had a lot of fun in a small airport in Mozambique when a craft selling entreprenuer took an interest in a swimsuit that I had tied to my backpack. We had a lengthy negotiation over what crafts were a good trade for my apparel.

Looking forward to your next installment and can't wait to read about Hwange!

PB - don't you live out west somewhere? Didn't think you had flatdogs out there

Dennis - I'm trying to not be too obnoxious but I, as well, would like to hear about Zimb. - not to make you hussle but my trip planning is in limbo

glad you are all laughing! other than the croc in the pool, it wasn't funny at the time!
cybor- all I can say is book Zim now, and GO!

Sherry: yes, I'm in Colorado but a few years back there was a Caiman loose in a Denver pond for a couple of months before it was finally captured. With irresponsible pet owners you never know what animals can be found where anymore.

Yikes, the Nature Trail
On Susuwe Island there is a nature trail. After a lunch of a pizza type thing and being assured by Sean that the nature trail was perfectly safe, Tom and I took off on the hike. Snakes are my biggest fear, so I was looking everywhere for a snake. Tom said it’s an island and snakes don’t live on islands. I saw lizards, so if they are there, snakes must be there too but we didn’t see any snakes. Now since I barely know left from right, let alone North, South, East or West, we got lost. We were walking along what looked like the path, Tom said, we’re going the wrong way, I said no, this is the trail. Well, it was a hippo trail with fresh hippo tracks. We were in the middle of nowhere, hearing all sorts of noises and knowing there is a hippo behind the tree just up ahead, we froze. Now what? We stayed there for a bit then decided the noise behind the tree must be a lizard and made our way back to the lodge, walking in a stream as we never did find the path again. Took a dip in the pool and then off on another night drive.

Night of the Dead
We took off on the night drive and Beaven assured us that the spotlight was working tonight. We passed the same three buffalo doing the same thing as they did the night before. We saw an elephant! I asked Beaven to turn around so we can see the elephant but he said there was no place to turn around. We were in a fricking LandCruiser which can turn around anywhere, but it turned out, that would be considered “off roading” which wasn’t allowed in the park. I asked Beaven if he saw a pack of wild dogs, could he go off road, “No” how about a pride of lions? “No” a martian in a spacecraft? “No”
That is a big negative if you can’t even go off road to see an exciting sighting. Oh well, the only elephant in the whole park, and he was behind us. We drove for awhile, seeing nothing else except an Egyptian Cobra crossing the road. It was about 6 feet long and the way it slithered really creeped me out....nightmares for sure tonight! We came around a corner and saw a troop of baboons who are always fun to watch, so we stopped for awhile then continued on. Around the next bend there was a baby impala being strangled by a python snake. The poor thing was already dead and his mom was nearby giving that god-awful scream that impalas make. It was so sad. The snake let go of the impala and slithered away...now I know I’d be having nightmares and wouldn’t ever set foot out of the vehicle again. We decided to come back later and see if the hyenas (who hadn’t been informed of the mass exodus to Angola) would be eating the dead baby impala. Now, if that wasn’t sad enough, we got to the lagoon and saw a “hump” in the water. We got out of the vehicle and went to the water’s edge and it was a baby elephant who had drowned. So sad, you could see his ears flapping in the current of the river. Too sad to watch for long and I didn’t even take a picture. Farther up the road we came across a dead buffalo, which wasn’t nearly as sad as the dead impala or the elephant, but it was still dead.

Oops, I Think We Went 11 Kilometers Per Hour
We putt-putted along at no more than I swear, 10 kph through this dead, yellow grass for a half hour. Even I know, that this grass has no nutrients and animals do not eat it.
“Beaven, do animals like this grass?”
“No, nothing eats this grass”
“Then why have we been driving through this grass for thirty minutes?”
“We are looking for game”
“All the game went to Angola, and what is left do not eat this grass”
“I will turn around soon”
So after another fifteen minutes when we found a turn around spot, we putt-putted back on the same road for 45 minutes. What a waste of an hour and a half. We had sundowners on a bluff, though the sunset was nothing to write home about. The finger food was little potatoes wrapped with bacon, quite good! We got back to the dead impala and now the python had consumed the poor thing’s upper body. The mom impala was still bleating and the baboons were in the trees making quite a racket. It was amazing to see how much this snake could fit into it’s mouth. As you can tell, I like my food but there is a limit to how much I can eat at one time. Turned on the spotlight (it worked!) and only saw springhares (they weren’t invited to Angola) and came across six elephants.
“Beaven, Stop! There’s elephants”
“I can’t stop, we have a puncture”
So out of 2,500 “alleged” elephants in the park, we couldn’t stop and see them because of a puncture and no turn around place. Back to the lodge and had butternut squash soup (my favorite), pork filet and creme brulee for dessert. The lodge sets out a plate of food for a genet every night, and he came to eat. Very beautiful animal (also not invited to Angola) and at this point , him, the springhares, the red lechwe , the three buffalo and the hundreds of tree squirrels that live at the lodge were considered “The Big Five of the Caprivi Strip”

Dennis,

Had I been at home, I would have been howling at the croc story. It was hard to maintain my composure and keep an "office face."

Your Angola dialogue was an absolute hoot as well. At least your sundowner snacks have improved.

With your substantial list of sightings, you must have eventually found the parade to Angola or the animals marched back into Namibia. Or maybe the luck was later. Whatever it was, I can't wait to read more.

<<at this point , [the genet], the springhares, the red lechwe , the three buffalo and the hundreds of tree squirrels that live at the lodge were considered “The Big Five of the Caprivi Strip”>>

10

I have to say, this Beaven guy does NOT strike me as a very good guide - not very helpful, not very experienced (a good guide can reverse down a path even if it's not wide enough to actually turn around) and not very focused on providing a top notch experience to his customers - why waste an hour an a half, as you say, driving you through an area he admits is unlikely to reveal any game!!?

Dennis,
Your report is a real hoot! I've been laughing out loud. Your guide Beavan sounds like a real dud. Does he by chance have a pal whose name sounds like "Butthead?" (For those of you who might not be familiar with tacky American Tv shows, there was a cartoon several years ago called Beavis and Butthead.)
I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.
Lily

Take a Walk On The Not So Wild Side
This morning after breakfast we went on a walking safari. Surely we’d see some game when we got off the road. We saw some hippos, red lechwe and some kudu and thousands of milipedes which smelled when you stepped on them, which was hard not to do. It was hot (89F) but it was good to be out walking. After an hour, we went back to the truck and back to camp. What??? It’s only 9:30 and the afternoon game drive isn’t until 4:00, what a waste of a day this was. We had brunch-eggplant benedict and a huge chef’s salad, very refreshing. Tom went to take a nap, I watched some birds for awhile and tried to teach the squirrels how to eat the peanuts I had brought with me to feed the elephants, but since there were no elephants I still had the bag of peanuts. The squirrels in California love peanuts, but these guys didn’t know what to do. Finally one squirrel bit off the end of the shell and sucked the peanut out of the shell. (It’ll be in my pics when I post them) Anyway, thinking it would be better to be bitten by a snake or trampled by a hippo than to sit around the lodge doing nothing, I decided to take the Nature Trail again, this time solo and confront my fears. I made it about half the way on the correct trail before all the noises came around me, every stick was a snake and the plopping in the water must be crocs. I froze for a good while then forced myself back to the lodge, took a dip in the pool, washed some underwear and waited for four o’clock.

..and Through The Woods (Almost)
“Beaven, do you have bushbabies here? I’ve never seen a bushbaby”
“Yes, we have hundreds”
“Did they go to Angola?”
“No, bushbabies do not go to Angola”
“Then can we see some?”
“Yes, they live in the woodlands, and we will go there”
“O.k., but don’t go to Angola”
“No, we can not go to Angola”
So off we went to the woodlands, crossing through the same dead grass which is plentiful in the park. We drove for about an hour and a half, all of a sudden Beaven turns around and says:
“There is nothing here”
“Don’t bushbabies come out at dark?”
“Yes, but they are not here”
“But it’s not dark so how do you know?”
“I just know”
”Did they go to Angola after all?”
“No, bushbabies do not go to Angola”
We stopped at a sundowner spot which overlooked nothing. The finger food was cheese in pastry, very good, and I had a couple of double g & t’s as I was so pissed we wasted another 3 hours seeing nothing. There were some tracks of giraffe and zebra and Beaven pointed them out to us.
“When were they here?”
“Not long ago”
“Can we find them?”
“No, they have gone”
”To Angola?”
“Possibly”
On the way back to camp we did see an African wild-cat, which was just beautiful, looks just like a house cat! Other than that, nothing! Dinner was steak or pork filets and vegetables and chocolate pudding. If I had my own car, I would have left this place then (or two days ago) but thank God, tomorrow we’d be leaving!

Dennis, I've stopped laughing and started crying for you. I have had a couple of guides just about that bad but at least not in areas that were so devoid of game so I still got to see a fair amount. His lack of willingness to even try to pursue anything is unacceptable, I hope you are able to receive some kind of compensation. I know Islands of Africa does market some other camps that would be great for you in the future but is each camp individually owned? I'm guessing you won't want to return to either of these even if they gave you free nights.

Perhaps you can sell your testimony to the Angola tourism board, apparently they have lots of animals in the Caprivi region.

Welcome back, Dennis. Your report is great fun! I've had a rotten day and reading your report put a big smile back on my face.

Dennis, tsessebes are very closely related to topis, so you have to be able to identify them!
“Snakes don't live on islands” Tom's a very reassuring travel companion! He must have heard something about Ireland.
It seems like Angola is the place to be.
Bad guides make funny trip reports, but as I'm a nice Fodorite I'd not say that I'm glad you came across one.

Yes, D - I have to say that this is becoming sort of unfunny. I hope you made some sort of complaint or comment to the management about this!

I mean your situation is unfunny, not you - er, your storytelling!

As Julia Roberts exclaimed in Pretty Woman, "I almost peed my pants." Haven't laughed this hard that I thought to run out to the pharmacy for Depends before continuing.

Name the orafice, there's water. Having trouble typing this thru the glaze over my eyes.

Regardless what Beaven has to say I think we should clue Rocco into Angola; he'll sell the heck out of that country. Because that's where all the animals have gone. Grab your AK47 and onward to Angola!

Admittedly thought, please tell me Beaven wasn't the only guide here! Or was he and I missed it somewhere in you tome. Did you mention your disappointment to management? Of course game can't be guaranteed, but not even an attempt or trying to work with you. Something must have been lost in translation. I feel for you, Tom and "that darn croc."

... more, more, more, please!

Dennis,
The only thing missing from this unfortunate and well written report is a "trip quote" *(made famous by Lynn) Every trip should have one. Your quote would somehow seem to have "Angola" in it.
I do hope your not telling me to go to Zimb. because misery loves company.I also hope for your sake that your luck takes a better turn for the rest of your trip
Thanks for sharing this priceless memory with us.
Sherry

I think if you write an article about your trip it should be titled “Angola is to the right.”

I'm greatly enjoying your report, between laughing and almost crying at the absurdities.

CW

Very witty. Keep it comin'

Mahalo,

Kevin

Dennis, you've got me laughing. Weird trip, but if anyone can enjoy himself regardless...

And kudos to Sandi, who said,
"Regardless what Beaven has to say I think we should clue Rocco into Angola; he'll sell the heck out of that country. Because that's where all the animals have gone. Grab your AK47 and onward to Angola!"

Dennis,
Between your report, Beaven, and Sandi's comments about Rocco, we'll all need Depends.

Dennis:
Very funny (but as cooncat said--not too funny for you). At least we know it has a happy ending since you raved about Hwange--thank goodness you did not do this itinerary in reverse!

I was laughing so much I forget to mention what weird dynamics at this location. Either you have very little activity and a lackluster guide, or you are lost/scared on the nature trail, or you are seeing highly unusual and sadly disturbing sights. Unsettling as it may have been, the python eating the gazelle is quite a find.

The thing about Beaven and my not reporting him to the company is that he said that he has been working for Susuwe Lodge for (I think) 5 years and the last year without a contract and no pay raise. He wanted to go to work at another lodge and make more money, but in Namibia you need 2 things to switch lodges: a guide license (which he has) and a letter of recommendation from Susuwe (which the partners in South Africa would not give him as they didn't want to lose him) He had resigned until he could not get the letter and had to beg for his job back and it has been hell for him ever since. If he were to be fired because of my complaints, it could mean his family would not eat, his kids could not go to school, his wife just had a baby etc. etc. I know being in a public oriented job, you should do your best no matter what, but I don't want his firing on my shoulders. It was only three miserable nights out of my life, hopefully soon he can move on and be happy or someone else can complain.

Dennis, What a good sport you have been. I agree with the others, you should have a few free nights in Angola, with a new T shirt "I'm here for the parade." After the long days you had with Beavan, a few g & ts would definately be in order (sadly not the feeling one should have for such a lovely tradition as the sundowner...) I admire that you kept up a hopeful spirit, slithering sights and sounds and all.... Will bring the tissues next installment - have had to keep using my elbow to wipe the LOL off the screen! Deb

Dennis,

Obviously, i dont know Beaven but, it appears to me like his main problem is people/communication skills. To make matters worse, the no-off road rules and the lack of game didnt help his cause.

I just think the Caprivi in general is poor game-wise. I know that in 2005, the resident Lagoon pride of lions crossed over from Botswana into the Caprivi and a significant portion of the pride was shot down by farmers. The once mighty pride is only 6 now....

Hari

Dennis - funny stuff. Reminds of the old legend in the state of Maine where if you ask someone for directions you will inevitably get the reply: "You can't get theh (no r's allowed in the state of Maine) from heh...."

My bags are packed and ready for Angola - just hope they close that fence and don't let the animals back across the border.

Dennis

What led you to Susuwe in the first place?

Oh, Wait I Forgot the Best Part
Every night at sundowners, Beaven would pull out a folding wooden table, cover it with a brightly colored tablecloth and arrange a complete set of wooden animals on the table, then the food and drinks. I guess seeing wooden animals at sundowners were supposed to make up for no animals at game drives. We did get a good laugh at the care Beaven put into arranging the animals, beads and seed pods on the table.

I Think I Have Figured Out The Caprivi Strip
I don’t think there are actually any animals other than the ones with hooves and an occasional elephant on the Caprivi Strip.
The roads all have loads of elephant poop along side the roads, but on our walking safari, we saw no elephant poop. I think that they import the elephant poop from Chobe and they have this big truck that spreads the elephant poop along the roads so that the tourists think there are 2,500 elephants in the park. We actually saw a big truck on our way out and I thought “Aha, the elephant poop truck”, but it was the soldiers collecting firewood.
We saw the same three buffalo in the same spot on each game drive. I think they are made of wood and stuffing and there is a sensor in the road and when you hit the sensor the guide yells “buffalo” and the one buffalo raises his head, then puts it back down, kind of like the animatronics at Disneyland.
They have a person who goes to all the sundowner spots and stamps zebra and giraffe footprints into the sand so the guide can say “Zebra were here” “Giraffe were here”. It could be the same people that are spreading around the elephant poop, but it could also be a specialized job.
I also think, that if someone opens up a lodge on the Angolan border, they would make millions. No safari vehicles would be needed, just a large deck overlooking the trail that all the animals use to get to Angola.

Thoughts on Susuwe
If this were my first trip to Afica and I only stayed at the above two lodges, I don’t think I would have gotten the urge to keep returning to Africa. Susuwe Lodge itself is beautiful, I’d love to see a similarly built lodge on the Luangwa River, but there just wasn’t any game other than animals with hooves. Even at South Luangwa in the Emerald Season when the pans were flooded, there were animals to see, so I didn’t really buy the “rains drove them away” story. The lodge has been in operation for 6 years, so obviously there must be something to it, just didn’t happen for me. During the three nights/four days we were there, we only saw one other vehicle...says something for the location I think. (though at Hwange we only saw five vehicles in four days and that location is the best so far) The food was good but again we were put at tables by ourselves with no interaction with the host. (there were no other guests there until the last night, and they were from France) The game drives were short, most in the 3 hour range which left too much downtime. Even if there were no game, it would be nicer to be out on the barren plains than be confined to the island. Beaven could have been more enthusiastic and possibly sped up a bit on the return through the nothingness and gone elsewhere. It must be hard to be a guide with nothing to show, but put a little effort into it and make us think there is something around the next bend. Tom kept saying “At least we’re in Africa, I kept saying “what a waste of money this is, I’d rather be in the Mojave Desert, at least they have camels!” Obviously I would not return to this camp, and wouldn’t recommend it or any other lodge in this area. It is my fault for not doing any research on the area before bidding on Luxury Link, but the web-sites of course showed plenty of game. I think I’d be more pissed if I had paid full price and had the same experience.

Dennis,

Your explanation of the guide predicament and your reaction to it are enlightening. You are indeed a good sport and in tune with the situation you faced. NapaMatt asks a good question. Why the Caprivi Strip?

Hari, What a terrible fate for the Lagoon lions. Does their run in with guns make them more skittish when they return to the Lagoon area in Kwando?

GreenDrake, I just hope you can get to Angola from "theh." I actually have read where Angola is now hoping to capture some of the tourism and safari market. This thread may promote some of the first guests.

Nothing But Heat
We left Susuwe this morning, and it’s the only safari lodge I’ve ever been happy to leave. The ride to the airstrip was uneventful of course and I could have done cartwheels when I saw our plane approaching. Moremi Air picked us up in a 6 seater plane and the pilot was very nice. We had a short flight to Katima Molilo to go through Namibian immigration. When we got there, there was no immigration officer. Our pilot went to ask someone in the airport and was told his car broke down and we would have to wait. After another plane landed about a half hour later, the man in the control tower went to pick up the immigration officer. I decided to take a walk and when I got to the gate, the police officer said:
”There is nothing to see here, all we have is heat. Nothing but heat. This is a miserable place and there is nothing to see but heat.”
Not a good candidate for the Katima Molilo Tourism Board.
Well, he had that right, it was hot! (99F)

Your President George Bush
Finally after fourty-five minutes the rather large, brightly dressed immigration man made it to the airport and we walked into his office and called us in. He said:
“This is all your President George Bush’s fault. He did not send aid this month and my car will not go. If your President George Bush had sent aid, I would have a car that would go. You will give me aid to fix my car.”
I looked at Tom, Tom looked at the pilot, the pilot looked at the immigration officer who broke out in a belly shaking laugh and said “Just a joke, I like saying that to Americans.” We talked for a few minutes, he stamped our passports and said “well, I’m done for the day, I need a ride home. Please when you see your President George Bush, can you tell him to send aid so I can get my car fixed, this is not good.” We shook hands and the three of us in the plane laughed all the way to Kasane.

I'm hoping the gameviewing gets much, much better. I stayed in Chobe NP, which abuts the Caprivi strip, and I had some of my best gameviewing (enormous groups of elephants, hippos and buffalos, each numbering in the hundreds, plus lions, wild dog, dozens of sable, etc.). There must be a reason that Susuwe resorts to posting on Luxury Link.

I'm looking forward to your comments on Hwange -- that's on the top of my list -- or should I say that Angola is on the top of my list.

I know that Angola has a park with Giant Sable, but its very difficult to visit. Does anyone know if there are any Angolan parks north of Caprivi?

Michael

matt,
they (islands in africa) had an auction on Luxury Link and the package on their website made it sound like it would be worth going to called "the elephant migration package" so I bid and won. I didn't know the elephant migration had already migrated if there is such a thing there. My fault for not doing more research or at least running it by everyone on Fodor's.

Dennis
I have made 2 trips to Susuwe.October 2003 and August 2004.
The 2003 trip (3 days) was very good in terms of game. On some drives we saw more than a 1000 elephants. At one sundowner we saw between 400 an d 500 elephants at the same Lagoon. We also saw Selous Mongoose, Roan and Sable. In terms of predators we saw Lions, Hyena and a couple of Leopards.
The 2004 trip had less elephants but a couple of good Leopard sightings.
Michael

Michael, I'm glad you had such good sightings at Susuwe. It is a beautiful camp but no game while I was there, wish there were!

Dennis
apart from elephants I would say I saw good variety but not that many animals.
Beavans comments about Angola surprise me. To the south of Susuwe you have Kwando Lagoon where you will see all the game that you want. It would be nice though if more lodges looking like Susuwe would be built around Africa. I love the rooms.

Back To The Falls and Onwards to Somalisa
The flight from Katima Molilo was smooth and we arrived at Kasane Airport and were picked up by the transit company for the drive to Victoria Falls Airport. When we got to VF, the driver took us to Ilala Lodge and said our flight was delayed and someone from the tour company would meet us and explain. A very nice man from the company and a woman from the air company greeted us and said the flight would be delayed three hours, but they would buy us lunch at Ilala and send a driver when we were to depart. No problem, we had lunch, I walked around the craft market telling the hawkers I was from South Africa and had no use for their goods. We were picked up and taken to the airport and boarded our 6 seater (me in the co-pilots seat, pretty darn cool!) Sidney was our pilot and he was a very funny man. Told us he had 1 parachute and 1 vomit bag and they were his. I got a cramp in my leg, but was afraid to move and step on the pedals and cause the plane to crash. After a short 45 minute flight we were at Hwange Main Airport.

Willy and Heaven On Earth!
We were met at the airport by Foster, our guide at Somalisa in a World War Two Jeep Willys, which would be our safari vehicle for the next 3 days. This has to be the best of all cars to be on safari in. Small, low to the ground and powerful. Great fun and we enjoyed every minute in “Willy” the jeep. The drive to Hwange National Park from the airport is about a half hour. We checked in at the park and were on our way. Within 5 minutes from the gate we saw a herd of giraffes, kudu, impala, warthogs and some elephants-more than we had seen the first five days of our trip. I told Foster of our disappointing game sightings at Susuwe and the reason given, with a rip-roaring, belly shaking, deep African laugh and tears rolling down his cheeks he had to stop the car. “Angola....Angola.....HAHAHA...Angola, nothing goes to Angola, there’s too much poaching there and the elephants don’t go anywhere near Angola!” After composing himself, we continued on and stopped at one of the waterholes for sundowners and Foster said, “Just wait, Oh My God, you will see elephants!” Sure enough, within minutes we were surrounded by elephants on the way to the waterhole. They passed within 20 feet of Willy and us, standing near Willy’s bumper, and stuck out their trunks to sniff us on the way to drink. It was so exciting that I can’t remember what the finger food was, I was too focused on watching the elephants! On the way to camp we passed two more waterholes filled with all sorts of wildlife drinking water. A great start, but it only gets better.

I always believe in life that one has to go through the bad to really appreciate the good and it seems now things are getting really good!

Matt

I am so enjoying your report and that things got so much better. The elephants being so close sends shivers down my spine.

CW

I'm really enjoying your report, i don't know of any other report that has made me laugh this much. Glad to read today that the sightings were so much better, but did miss your food report.

You live in one of my favorite parts of Hawaii.

joyce

OMG, Dennis. You are too funny. Love the croc in the pool story. Angola - hilarious! And I'm betting Beaven believed his story.

Remind me never to go on a hike with you. We'd have to pack an overnight bag because I have no sense of direction either. I doubt I could even find my way back to camp.

And a new big 5 list - how exciting! I'm sorry the camps were such duds but look how many stamps you got in your passport.

PB, Perhaps you can sell your testimony to the Angola tourism board, apparently they have lots of animals in the Caprivi region.</> That cracked me up!


I'm happy to read that you saw so many elephants on the drive to your next camp and that things are starting to look like an African safari.

Cindy

Dennis,

You answered the question on how you chose Caprivi. The President Bush joke is a good one.

Hwange is looking up already.

Lynn,

Apparently that Lagoon pride incident occurred in 2005 and they seldom go back to Namibia. The females are ok with vehicles (4) and one youngish male is fine also. But there is a second youngish male that bolts the minute he hears a car. One thought is, he could be from a very remote area in either Namibia or Bots and finds it hard to relate to vehicles. I saw them in August while in Lagoon. Because of the change in pride dynamics, no cubs have survived over the past couple of years.

On the bright side, there was the chance that the entire pride could hv been wiped out. Glad these guys survived!!!

Hari

Dennis,

So you flew Moremi Air....they do all Kwando's transfers (they may be owned by them....not sure). Was your pilot, James by any chance? He does the Kasane route....

This is a funny story....travelling with an Indian passport, i need a Botswana visa. The immigration only accepts botswana pula for visa fees.....they didnt have enough pula in the airport, so James had to take our $$$ and drive to the bank himself to exchange it for the Pula. His car was parked at the Kasane airport. Fantastic guy....i still tell people this story.

Hari

Hi Dennis,

Haven't had time to read your trip report yet but I just wanted to say hello from Chiefs Camp before my afternoon game drive.

Bobby and Milena from Somalisa send their hellos to you and Tom. I was fortunate enough to spend all three nights with them at Linyanti Bushcamp, and Beks and Sophia were also present for two nights.

Don't want to hijack this thread so will write more later in a new thread but so far it has been great.

Somalisa, Somalisa, Smile
We arrived at Somalisa and were greeted by Bobby and Milena, the hosts at Somalisa. They’re a young couple, him Zimbabwean, her Australian-very nice and good company. They both used to work at Lion Encounter at Vic Falls, so we got some information about the place before going on that adventure at the end of the trip. We were given a cool towel and a drink by Naomi, a shy Zim woman with the most beautiful smile and shown around the camp. There’s a large sitting area with library and bar and comfortable couches and chairs, pipes and cigars if you’re into smoking, dining area, fire pit and swimming pool. There are six tents with nice beds, table, outdoor bucket shower and toilet. The trails leading from the lodge to the tents are made of elephant dung and the place is nicely decorated with a lot of African touches. When building the camp they incorporated many of the fallen trees into the design...very nice. This was my first experience with bucket showers and the boys filled them with warm water whenever we wanted a shower-I’d like to install one at my house, very cool! Dinner was served at a large dining table with the hosts and Foster eating with us at every meal. We had quite a few interesting, funny and happy conversations while eating. The first nights meal was ham and cheese crepes, pork roast, fresh green salad and the most amazing red pear in a brandy and cream sauce. Very good!

Turn Down The Lions, I’m Trying To Sleep
After a great dinner and conversation we were escorted to our rooms by Bobby carrying his rifle. “There’s lions in the area.” Just got into bed, lights out and heard the most bone chilling lions roar that shook the tent, followed by an elephants trumpeting and more roars of the lions coming from the front of the camp. It was still quite warm so we only had the screen part of our tent zipped and it was scary to say the least. The lions kept up the roaring all night long, making it hard to get a good nights sleep, but other than the hippos grunting, this was the coolest noise in all of Africa. Bobby woke us up at four thirty and said the lions are at the waterhole in front of the swimming pool. “Do you want to see them?” Of course we went and they shined the light and there were 7 lions all around 5 adults and 2 sub-adult cubs, followed by three hyenas. The lions would chase the hyenas then roll around on the ground playing. This was just too cool to watch! After the lions walked off into the brush, Foster said since we’re up we might as well get an early start. so after a quick change we were off.

Dennis - This has been the most entertaining trip report! What a morning treat for you with the lions and a morning treat for me to read about it. I can't wait for the next installment.

Hwange definitely is looking up. Lions at the waterhole and a very early start on what will probably be a productive game drive.

Thanks, Hari, for the lion pride info. There is a bright side there.

The lions kept up the roaring all night long, making it hard to get a good nights sleep,

Boohoo for you.

You can sleep on the plane home...

Really great report! I'll have to add Angola to my list of must sees!

Dennis,

Being woken up at 4 30 to see game in camp and possibly head out on the morning ride is my kind of experience....

Somalisa for that very reason would be very very high on my list....thanks.

Hari

Hari~that was one of the nice things about Somalisa. The game drives were for our enjoyment and convenience, not the lodges. If we were out having fun, meals could wait-no having to rush back because the soup was getting cold! The morning drives started at 6 and averaged 6 hours, then the evening drive started at 4 and averaged 5 hours. One day we were out 14 hours looking for rhino.

Thanks Dennis....sounds fantastic.

Hari

Yes Dennis, a 4:30 wakeup is a luxury. I can sleep at home.

Foster
Foster was our guide while at Somalisa. He has twenty six years guiding experience and is the first senior guide in all of Zimbabwe. I can honestly say that I don’t think I have ever met a nicer person in all my life. After twenty six years of guiding, he still has an enthusiasm that comes through his pores. His passion for all of the game is incredible. At each sighting it was “Oh My God, a roan” Oh My God, a giraffe” “Oh My God, look at the elephants”, like someone on their first safari, still full of excitement at all that he saw and showed us. He has a laugh that will not be forgotten and a spirit that can not be beat. I’ve never had a more enjoyable time in my life. He’s a friend and one that I will remember always and hope to see him again soon. Foster made sure that every minute of our time there was for us- what we wanted to see, what we wanted to do and not worrying about what time we have to get back for dinner-if we were having fun, no need to run off, dinner could wait, what we were doing couldn’t. If you could bottle his joy, experience, and love of life, the world would truly be a better place.
Foster and his family have a sesame seed farm in the Jerera region of Zimbabwe and is opening a cultural village where guests can stay in a small lodge, then go to the village during the day and live the life of a Zimbabwean villager. I will definitely be doing this once he gets it up and running sometime in December. With Foster and his family running this, it should be a first class, not to be missed experience. We met his brother and he’s just as fun, funny and passionate about life as Foster. His brother is also a guide but does private safaris and I think time spent with him as a guide would be most enjoyable.

Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe
Hwange is Zimbabwe’s largest park, covering 14,600 square kilometers. At the entrance to the park there is a campground with small chalets for camping for those doing a self drive. All you have to do is sit by one of the waterholes and the animals will come to you. At sundowners one night there were seven different animal species all around one waterhole. There are 64 boreholes in the park, 6 on the main roads and the rest scattered about. They are paid for by grants and donations to the Hwange Trust, no government involvement. Each borehole has three men/women manning them and their salary, lodging and food is paid for by the Trust. They are experimenting with solar panels to supply the power to run the pumps, but so far all the panels have been stolen. The park is very diverse in it’s landscape. Teak forests, mopani forests, dry plains, grasslands and granite outcrops and we didn’t go five minutes without seeing some type of animal. It is the most beautiful park I’ve been to, the only thing missing is the hippos, but there’s no river for them to live. During the time we were there we only saw a few vehicles from The Hide, another lodge in the area, and three self-drivers. It was so nice having the park to ourselves, a shame though, that more people don’t go there and support the game there
There is supposed to be one hundred and five different species including cheetah and leopard, but we didn’t see any of these.

Off We Go
After being woken up at four thirty, watching the lions in front of the camp and a quick change we were off! Drove about a minute to the top of the ridge near camp and saw three lionesses laying in the grass. The lions here were in great condition, not torn up and scratched like the lions in South Luangwa . Beautiful creatures! As we were in “Willy”, low to the ground and no doors, Foster didn’t want to get too close, but we were about twenty feet away and watched them for about an hour. Drove around the park and saw many elephants, zebra, giraffe, sable, kudu, a lot of black sided jackal and a bat-eared fox hole with two babies peeking out of the hole. Got back to camp and had cereal, fresh fruit and eggs benedict for brunch, then our first bucket shower, a short nap and we were off again. Went back on the hill and two of the lionesses were still there, so watched them for awhile the to one of the waterholes where there were seven different species all around the hole. It was incredible! Thirteen giraffe, scores of elephants coming from all directions, baboons, zebra, impala, kudu and Foster noticed something on the small hill which had attracted the giraffes attention, so we drove up to the hill and there was a lioness watching all the action. Foster said they had killed a giraffe a day or two before so weren’t too hungry. Had meatballs in a sweet mustard sauce, very good and a few g & t’s.

Add This To My “Top Ten Life Moment” List
When we returned to camp around nine, Melina said we would be eating out on the pool deck and were having some special guests joining us. I thought, “Cool” more people to talk to. We had a cocktail then to the candlelit table near the pool, sat down and within minutes an elephant came up to the swimming pool and started to drink not six feet from us. WOW! This was so cool, it doesn’t get any better than that. I was told we had butternut squash soup, beef strip and noodles and a date cake for dessert, but I was so transfixed on watching and listening to this elephant it could have been anything! Soon another elephant joined the first and we now had two elephants drinking out of the pool!
(If anyone has never heard an elephant drink, you can’t hear any sound while he is sucking up the water with his trunk but when he pours it down his throat, it sounds like one of those powerful toilets flushing that they have at Heathrow Airport.) After dessert the elephants walked off and it took days for the smile to come off my face. Truly a spectacular time and my favorite memory. Melina told us the next morning that we didn’t even blink, just stared at this magnificent creature so close to us. AWESOME!

An amazing elephant encounter!

Dennis,

Quick question about Hwange....what about off-roading? You said you only saw vehicles from one other lodge, so can you stay out all day if you wished?

You had plenty of lion action in the area and hence i'm assuming the cheetahs werent in the immediate area. Next time, Dennis....

Hari

Hari-Off-roading is not allowed, but if there was something interesting to see, I'm sure we'd have been off-road. The nice thing about Hwange is that you really don't have to go off-road, it's so open you can see far off and the animals all seemed to migrate to the water-holes anyway...except for the cheetah and leopard! Yes you can stay out all day, we did that one day from 7 am-9 pm (would have left at 6:00 but I needed some food in my stomach) and Foster would agree to anything to keep us happy! There will be a next time Hari!

Fantastic, Dennis....

The Hide in Hwange has always been on my list....but i guess from what you say, Somalisa sounds fantastic also...maybe in 2008 or 2009. Dennis, from what you say, it seems like i can combine it with one of my Botswana trips. Just the other side of the Caprivi strip from where you were....

Maybe, later in your trip report you can mention about what your guides/camp management had to say about the current state of affairs in Zimbabwe and their thoughts etc etc., also your thoughts.....

Thanks
Hari

I'll add a chapter on that Hari.
Though we never went to the Hide, the obvious disadvantage over Somalisa or Makolo is it is near the railway tracks and it seemed the trains run all day and night. The Rovos train stops there for a day trip in Hwange and there were 6-8 people in their vehicles, though I don't know if regular guests at the Hide have to "mingle" with the Rovos crowd. I'd be happy to stay in the campground, just to be back in Hwange! You can easily combine it with a trip to Bots. We could have flown from Kasane to Vic Falls and on to Hwange, but wanted to see the countryside and it was only about an hour drive from Kasane and a 38 minute flight to Hwange.

"Hari-Off-roading is not allowed, but if there was something interesting to see, I'm sure we'd have been off-road."-matnikstym

That certainly applies (legally) in the areas set aside for walking. I guess the Hwange walking areas still exist. We piled out of our vehicle in 1998 when we spotted a black rhino and successfully tracked it in quite thick bush. We also followed off-road tracks left by researchers, to find a wild dog den...got a brief glimpse of a few dogs before they spotted humans on foot and disappeared into the bush. A few of the animals we tried to track foiled us by going into areas where walking was not allowed, and our guide sensibly was not prepared to break the rules...his licence would have depended on it.

John

Thanks, Dennis. That's a good tip on the railtracks and Rovos's stops...

Hari

Ok Dennis,

I'm convinced! Hwange is definitely on my "to do" list! And Foster is my type of guide! I can eat and sleep at home...when in Africa I want to take advantage of evey moment in the bush! The cultural encounter sounds wonderful too. Let us know when it's up and running.
My travelling companion was horrified at the thought of Zimbabwe the 1st time I mentioned it several months ago. But she recently spoke in person with someone who manages the Penzo Pottery Company in Zimbabwe who told her how wonderful and safe it is. And she sounds almost convinced! I'm gonna keep working it! Besides, I get a kick out of going someplace other people think I shouldn't go!
Lily

Dennis,
When you get the details on Foster's sesame farm visits, please post them. That would be a fascinating addition to a Zimbabwe trip. Thanks.

Another Great Day in Hwange!
Got up at five and started our game drive at five thirty. Went to different areas of the park and more water holes and saw more game: eland, roan and slender mongoose, each time Foster saying, “Oh My God, there’s some eland” Oh My God there’s some roan” Every sighting was exciting and fun with Foster! I think even Susuwe would have been better if we had someone like Foster as a guide. Stopped at the waterhole on the way back to camp, and this time there were six different species: zebra, elephant, giraffe, wildebeeste, baboon and roan. Each game drive was better than the last! Foster took us into the bush to try to see more animals up close, one time too close (another chapter coming up) and it was exciting to be on foot! Saw a herd of fifty plus wildebeests on the way back, and stopped and watched the bat-eared foxes for awhile. Lunch was salad, sandwiches and a spinach casserole which was delicious. I stayed by the pool for siesta, hoping an elephant would come up, but no luck, just hundreds of dragonflies. Just soaked up the sun and sounds of Africa. Drove around checking on our favorite bat-eared foxes and herd of wildebeests and back to a waterhole to watch the animals come to drink. Had some g & t’s (they were free at this camp, as was beer, wine and rum and cokes) and a cheese and cracker platter for finger food. Three types of cheeses (brie, cheddar and feta) It started to rain so we cut the time at the waterhole short and went back to camp. Beks and Sophia, who own Somalisa, Linyati Camp and do private safaris stopped by for the night. Very interesting couple living a life I would love to lead! Had stuffed chicken breast, green salad and bananas foster for dinner, then I went to the pool as another elephant stopped by to drink. Had a couple of Amarulas by the fire, talked story and watched the elephant. Soon another elephant came to drink, but the first one wouldn’t let him in and they started “wrestling” and the sound of the tusks hitting together, the ears flapping wildly were such sweet music! Finally they ambled off and I did the same.

The Show-Off
This was one of the funniest elephant encounters I have ever seen. There was a young bull elephant along side of the road and we pulled up to watch him. He kicked dirt at us with his right foot, then kicked dirt at us with his left foot. When we didn’t move, he grabbed a tree about 10 feet tall and 3 inches in diameter and tried to pull it out of the ground. When that didn’t work, he leaned his whole body against the tree, the whole time staring at us, then the tree snapped and he picked it up with his trunk and threw it at us. We still didn’t move, just laughed and the elephant was so frustrated he kicked more dirt at us, trumpeted, flapped his ears and then backed off into the bush. Foster said “Did you get that on video?” “No, so can you tell him to do it again and I’ll video it this time.” Foster gave a big belly laugh and said “No encore performances from this bull.”

The All Day Hunt For Rhino
We agreed at dinner that we would stay out all day and hunt for the rhino. Tom also wanted to find an ostrich so we were on a quest. It rained most of the night and the temperature went from ninety-nine degrees to fifty eight overnight. To make matters worse, Bobby had to take “Willy” to pick up some guests and we’d be stuck doing an all day game drive in the Land Cruiser. After a breakfast of cereal, fruit and toast, we set off. It was cold and the most annoying rain I have ever seen. Not like rain, not like sprinkles, just drops of water falling from the sky at random. Strangest thing I’ve seen and after hours of being in this rain, we weren’t wet. We drove to the first waterhole in the park where the rhinos allegedly drank daily. We got there at eight and asked the pump boys if the rhino had come today. “Not today.” Foster decided if the rhino would not come to us, we’d go to the rhino, so we parked the car and went on a two hour rhino walk. I was thinking if a rhino charged and gored Foster, I’d never find my way out of this bush. No luck with the rhino though, so we headed up into the hills and met some researchers who hadn’t seen the rhino today either. We drove on and there to the right was Tom’s ostrich...one of us was happy, and it wasn’t me! And of course Foster said “Oh my God, an ostrich!” We pulled into another waterhole for lunch. The lodge made about twelve sandwiches and muffins to tide us over. Foster called to one of the pump boys who came over to the car and was talking to Foster about the rhino. I offered the kid a sandwich and muffin and he devoured them in one bite each. Next time I come here, I’m going to bring some granola bars or something for these poor kids to eat. Had a nice conversation and off to the first waterhole and wait for the rhino. By this time the rain had stopped and the sun was bright. Near the pond there was a Giant Kingfisher, the first Foster had seen in Zimbabwe and a crocodile. I went and tried to antagonize the croc but he just laid there and I was less than six feet from him and nothing! We all fell asleep by the pond and asked some researchers to wake us if rhino came down. After an hour, nothing so we continued our quest for the elusive rhino. As the sun was setting and I was getting hungry, we stopped by another waterhole to watch the animals come to drink and have sundowners. Tonights finger food was chocolate brownies and leftover date cake. The date cake was most excellent with dinner, even better at sundowners. We were having a lively conversation when all of a sudden Foster got the most serious look on his face and said:
“I have some very bad news for you Dennis”
Not knowing what was going on, I said “What?”
Foster, with a deadpan expression said “The rhinos have gone to Angola!”
We all laughed ourselves sick and went back to camp. We had two new guests, so the camp was no longer just ours. An interesting couple, she a travel agent who does specialized African safaris to places like Cameroon, Gabon and Angola(!) and had some interesting stories to tell. I think he was her boy-toy and just had fun while he could. Dinner was lamb chops, couscous, veggies and chocolate pudding. Had an amarula, watched the elephants drink from the pool and went to bed...it was freezing in the tent that night!

Dennis - Foster sounds wonderful - I love his Angola comment! Really enjoying your report - thanks!

Cyn

How wonderful - so many fantastic experiences and Foster does indeed sound like a GEM!

I've never before had so many laughs on the topic of Angola!

I doubt I'll be able to view wildlife again without at least thinking, "Oh my God!"

I'm glad Tom saw his "Oh my God" ostrich.

The Elephant Whisperer
On the way back to camp the day of the rhino hunt, Foster stopped the car near a big, old bull elephant and said “Do you want to get some good pictures?” “Sure.” Tom, being the smart one stayed in the car . Foster grabbed his rifle and off we went to see this old elephant. Foster knew him by name and pulled two sticks off a tree and now he was camoflaged and I wasn’t...hmmm, something wrong with this picture! We got about 20 feet from this thing and I stepped on a stick “SNAP!” and the elephant came at us. Foster raised his sticks and the elephant stopped. He said, “Take a picture, take a picture” So I was taking pictures and for some reason the flash went off and the elephant took three more steps towards us. Foster said “Take a picture, take a picture” I said “Foster, I’m trying not to crap my pants, I can’t take a picture!” The elephant came closer until he was I swear ten feet from Foster, I took some pictures, shaking and looking for an exit if the thing trampled Foster. Then Foster threw up his arms, shouted something in Zimbabwean and the elephant walked backwards twenty steps and disappeared into the bush. “Ah, that was exciting wasn’t it?” It really was, my heart was racing, I was bone white, yet we laughed all the way back to the car. Tom said he heard yelling and was about to drive off. When we got to the car Foster said, “I know that elephant and as long as you didn’t run, you were safe.” “I like to do that with Americans and Japanese, they appreciate being so close, but the French, that’s another story, the French really do crap their pants.”

Sad to Leave Somalisa
Got up this morning and had a good breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast and fruit and said our good-byes to Bobby and Melina. It was sad leaving here but knowing we’d be back. Our plane wasn’t until eleven, but Foster insisted we leave no later than seven so that we could continue our hunt for rhino, just in case they came back from Angola in the night. So our last day we still get a four hour game drive. Stopped at the ponds and said our good-byes to the giraffes, wildebeests, bat-eared foxes and anything else we saw along the way. We spent some time at the “rhino” pool, but still no rhinos. Foster said “Next time for sure, Oh my God, next time for sure!” There’s a Painted Dog Conservancy just outside of the airport at Hwange and I told Foster I’d like to visit there on our way since we didn’t see any wild dogs this time. “No problem, we’ll go there” Drove through the park gates and headed for the Conservancy and we saw some kudu on the side of the road. We stopped and watched them for awhile and I noticed something just ahead on the side of the road. I said “Oh My God, wild dogs” Foster looked and sure enough, there were eight dogs along the road. Five adults and three pups, one of the adults wearing a collar. We drove up and parked watching these fantastic animals. We were there about twenty minutes when some people walking on the road scared the dogs and off they went. We went to the Painted Dog Conservancy, met a nice man who was in charge, “Xmas” (Don’t you just love African names?) who told us all about the project, how they took in and released the dogs. Very interesting. They had eight dogs there in three seperate cages and two stages of release. A great project funded by a grant and donations.. The dogs were so beautiful up close, even seperated by a fence, they had that wild, far off look in their eyes. Another incredible experience!

Thoughts on Somalisa
Everything about Somalisa was magical, beautiful and an amazing place to stay! The hosts Bobby and Melina were a lot of fun. We talked about everything even filling them in on the latest Hollywood gossip that they missed living out in the bush. Such class for such young people, they will get whatever they wish for in life. Not enough good things can be said about Foster, he made the whole trip. Incredible guy! Willy the jeep, what a way to safari! We lucked out by being the only ones in camp, otherwise we may have been stuck in a Land Cruiser. The setting of the camp, the tents, the bucket showers and scoop water, Gossie’s cooking, Naomi’s smile, the elephants and lions....everything about Somalisa was exceptional and I miss being there already. I will go back...

Back To The Falls
After the Painted Dog Conservancy we went to the airport and waited for the plane. It was sad leaving Foster, but promised we’d be back to see him and his new project. With heavy hearts we boarded the plane and waved good-bye to Foster. Our pilot from Sefofane was a nice young guy who informed us that it would not be good to crash on the way to Vic Falls as there are only two villages on the way. I told him since I paid to fly, if we crashed, he’d have to carry me as I wasn’t walking. We didn’t crash and arrived in Vic Falls in about fourty five minutes. We were met at the airport and taken to the Victoria Falls Hotel. The Victoria Falls Hotel is very beautiful, old style colonial and pretty darn stuffy! We waited for our room to be prepared and had lunch in the restaurant. The staff all in their black jackets and ties, the A&K crowd in their Banana Republic matching outfits...too much for my taste! Lunch was o.k. Large rather tasteless Monte Cristo Sandwich. Got our room and since Tom didn’t go to the falls on our first stop, we went to see the falls again. We took the back way in and didn’t get hassled too much but on the way out we were bombarded by people selling elephants, wanting our shoes, our pants, our shirts, anything. I gave one guy a hat and told him the same as I told Handsome, but he didn’t do much to keep the others away. Finally I asked one if they take money from Finland. “Helsinki?” he asked. Crap, I wasn’t sure where Helsinki was but this Zimbabwean guy did so I said “Yes, all we have is Helsinki dollars.” Well, they are useless in Zimbabwe (if they even exist) so that got the majority of them off of us. We made it to the hotel and decided to just stay in for dinner. Too exhausted to get dressed for dinner so ordered room service. Nice steak, very well cooked and cheaper than ordering at the restaurant.

Tomorrow I’ll Be A Star
You could not go to a shop in the Victoria Falls Hotel and buy a coke and bring it back to your room, everything had to be by room service. This was getting old fast so I decided to go find a store and buy a bottle of rum and some cokes and just chill out in the room. I went down and asked the doorman at the hotel where I could find some rum.
He said, “the bottle shop at the market was closed.”
“How can it be closed, it’s not even time for sundowners yet?”
“The bottle shop closes at four thirty.”
“Where can I get some rum?”
“Room service”
“No, I want my own. Do you have another suggestion?”
“You can take a taxi farther than the market to the bottle shop that doesn’t close at four thirty”
“Fine, call me a cab.’
He called a cab and told the guy he was to charge me not more than five dollars each way, that I was to be brought back in one piece, with all my money and a bottle of rum or he would hunt him down.
The cabbie agreed and off we went. He was a very nice guy, interesting and fun to talk to and when the first bottle shop didn’t have rum, he said for five dollars more, he would take me to the bottle shop in his township. We pulled up to the bottle shop in the township and all the locals were drinking their beer in the parking lot. Everyone stared at me and the cab driver and we went into the shop and there was rum! Everyone in the shop shook my hand, told me hello, asked about America and if I loved Zimbabwe and please come back. Another nice experience. I asked for some Coke to go with the rum, but they didn’t sell their Coke as take out, but the lady would find a jar to put some in. I declined and said I’d get some Coke elsewhere. On the way back to the hotel, the cab driver (wish I remembered his name, he was great!) said:
“Tomorrow I will be a star!”
“How come?”
“I brought a white man to the township....all the way from America. I will be the star!”
“Cool”, I thought, helping someone by just searching for a bottle of rum. Got back to the hotel and the cabbie said:
“Fifteen dollars for the ride and fourty dollars for the rum” Fifty five dollars for a bottle of rum and we still had to get room service to bring the Cokes! It was the best fifty five dollars (plus tip) I’ve ever spent, got to see a piece of Zimbabwe that most people don’t...rum hunting in a township, most excellent!

Dennis,
This just keeps getting better and better!

I am loving your report Soooo much, I dont want it to end (I am sure that it is the way you felt about the trip)
!

What a fantastic report Dennis!!! Ellies drinking from the pool on MORE than one occasion AND wild dogs.... fantastic!!! AND no trip to Burundi OR ost luggage !! Sorry to hear about your bad guiding experience with Beaven though but I'm very glad that Foster made up for it - he sounds like quite a character .... gone to Angora indeed

Imelda

oops, that should have been 'lost' and 'Angola' not 'ost' and 'Angora' !!

Imelda

The elephant whisperer and rum hunting installments were hilarious.

Dennis,
I was sure you were going to say "all the rum was in Angola!"

Lily

That’s Why They Put Those Signs Out...
I had carried a bag of peanuts all the way from Hawaii, through California, London, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe and decided I wasn’t going to bring them back. When we woke up this morning, I saw a bunch of baboons on the lawn in front of our room and thought I’d give the peanuts to them. Tom said, “There’s a sign that says DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS” and of course I said “They don’t mean us” so threw some peanuts to the baboon nearest to the hotel. WHOOSH! Twenty more baboons were under our second story window waiting for peanuts. “Check this out, this is cool!” Tom grabbed some peanuts and he threw some out his window. Quicker than anything the baboons were on the balcony next to my window. I said “Oh, SH*T!” and ran into the bathroom. There were baboons trying to get into the room! Tom managed to dump the bag of peanuts on the lawn, shut the windows and we were stared at by all these baboons hanging on the ledge trying to get into the room. Quite a scary experience. Finally they jumped down and I came out of the bathroom and got ready to go on the Lion Encounter.

Walking With Lions
The van from Safari Par Excellence picked us up at six thirty to take us to the Lion Encounter. We were shown a short video, signed waivers and told of the dangers we would face, then off to see the lions! Some of you reading this think it’s politically incorrect or whatever to be doing this, I saw it as a chance of a lifetime, didn’t know all the answers as to right or wrong, but I wanted to do it and I did. It was an incredible time and I enjoyed every minute spent with the lions, don’t regret it and would do it again. There are four stages in this rehabilitation/release program. First stage is breeding and the Lion Encounter walks where they get the money for to support the program. Second stage is the lions go to an area with game and human contact and are taught to hunt. Third stage is the lions are put in a ten thousand acre area with game and no human contact. Fourth stage is the release. They currently have fourteen lions ready to be released. Seven into Zambia and seven into Zimbabwe are scheduled in the near future. CITES is watching the release program and if successful will offer grants to keep the program going. Any area or country that then needs lions will be offered them. The lions who don’t make it past stage two are sent back to the breeding program. They said they don’t sell to zoos or canned hunts, but I didn’t understand what happens if they have too many that don’t make it past stage one. Anyway, it was great! Came upon our first three lions aged twelve to fourteen months old. We all got to pet them, hug them and take our pictures with them. We spent about a half hour with them, then walked around (holding their tails) for awhile. Most of the time the lions were laying down trying to sleep as they do in the wild, and as most house cats do too. Then to the other part of the compound where there were two cubs four months old. They were the cutest things! Just like house kittens, playing with each other and full of mischief! We got to play with them, take pictures and enjoy watching their antics! Their fur is rougher than I thought it would be and they purr. Cute, cute, cute! They walked with us for a short time, then to the lodge for breakfast and back to the hotel. It was fun, exciting and I can say I petted lions, one of the highlights of this trip. Such beautiful animals, I hope the program is successful so more of these creatures can be released back into the wilds of Africa.

Dennis - Thank you for this trip report. About the lions (not to stir up anything) but somewhere in this report you said that the managers of Somalisa had worked with the program? Did they have anything further to add? I've booked the walk for March and your description has made me excited. I too hope that this is a well run breeding/reintroduction program. Can't wait to see photos of you and the lions.

Hi Dennis, what a wonderful trip report - full of humor, mystery, highs, lows - makes me want to visit another African country and we just got back last night from Zambia! Well done! Mandy

Dennis:
Glad that you had such a good time at Somalisa. I enjoyed your rum story.

Vee-yes we talked about the Lion Program while at Somalisa, and from what they said, it sounded on the up and up and a worthwhile project. Hopefully this is true. I did enjoy every minute spent with the lions, you will too! Shouldn't be too long before they release the 14 into the wild and see how effective the program is.
Mandy-Welcome back! Nice seeing you in London, i sent you an email, let me know how you liked LRL!!

It Can’t Be Over So Soon
We were picked up at the hotel, back through Zimbabwe immigration, into Zambia (three year visa stamp) and to Livingstone Airport. Had an hour and a half wait then boarded Nationwide for our flight back to Johannesburg. Another sandwich and juice on the plane and soon we were in Joburg. Checked in, got our boarding passes and had pizza in one of the shops, then souvenir shopping at Out of Africa, a great shop at the airport. I always wondered how come all the carved wooden animals always looked the same, and how they made so many of them. Tom saw an employee come out of the side door of the shop on the way to the trash bin carrying all these boxes marked “MADE IN CHINA” Hmmmm.....not hand carved in Africa after all!. Boarded our plane, took an Ambien, woke up in London, short layover and back to San Francisco. The worst part of the whole trip was the two hour commute from SFO to the East Bay! Take me back to Hwange! Spent a few days with family and then home to Hawaii. The dog and cats were glad I was home, I sure wasn’t!

Comments on the Present and Future of Zimbabwe
I am in no way political. I study the issues and vote, that’s all. But from comments from everyone I spoke to on the political and social status of Zimbabwe, this is what I learned. Don’t judge a country by it’s goverment. Zimbabwe is a beautiful country, the people were friendly, helpful and kind. Other than the hawkers hounding you to buy their souvenirs at Victoria Falls, I felt safe the whole time, even in the township. The people are hungry for tourism and go out of their way to ensure you have a good time and return. From talking to many people, from Handsome and boys on the street, to taxi drivers, lodge workers, security guards, shopowners to businessmen, all feel that their country will be right again and things are getting better and will continue to get better in the future. They say Mugabe will not be in power forever and when he is out, Zimbabwe will be reborn, even better than it was. Tourism is picking up, Ilala Lodge had a ninety-five percent occupancy rate while we were there. There are stores, lodges, camps and businesses opening up. Hwange National Park is run by grants and donations, not the government, and probably other game parks do the same. The markets and stores are continuing to have more and more food to sell, the main shortages are flour and rice. They do have gas supplies there, the problem is to buy gas, it has to be in foreign currency. All the companies have foreign currency accounts which when making purchases such as gas, has to be approved by the government. It used to take three or four days to get approved, it’s now taking ten to fourteen days, which is making a crunch on the people dependent on gas. Inflation is high, poverty is high but all the people I talked with had dreams of a better future. Hopefully, their dreams will come true.

The End
Well all good things must come to an end, wish this trip to Africa didn’t have to end...it was the best and the worst and now the bad is funny, and the good is great. I saw a lot, experienced a lot and learned a lot. This trip has only deepened my desire to keep returning to Africa and soaking in all it has to give. Some definite highlights in my life were done on this trip and that makes me want to go back for even more life moments. Foster will stay in my thoughts and heart for a long time to come. On the way to work the other day I saw a mongoose cross the road. I said to myself, “Oh My God, a mongoose!” Thanks for reading my report, hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Next trip will be back to Hwange, Mana Pools and Foster’s project in the Jerera district....and of course a few nights in Angola!
Aloha and a hui hou!
Dennis

Thanks Dennis, for incorporating a bit of info on the current situation in Zim. Lovely report that i enjoyed reading.

Kind regards,
Hari

Dennis,

Truly an interesting, informative and enjoyable report. Thanks. No doubt Africa's in your heart.

One thing I have deep reservations about, no matter how well it is done...releasing captive-bred or captive-raised lions back into the wild, especially in Zambia. I described it in another thread as akin to 'lambs to the slaughter' because of the hunting industry in that country, a shortage of mature males mentioned on one hunting website, and the talk we've heard of hunting concessions luring lions out of SLNP. On your trip, was there any discussion of where in Zambia such lions would be released (far from hunting concessions?) or why Botswana is not a destination? As you are probably aware, trophy hunting exists in Botswana but hunting of lions has been banned for some years. There doesn't appear to be a shortage of mature males there.

John

Dennis,
I'll miss this good read. You have such a wonderful way of making one feel like they're along for the ride.
You've made me excited about adding Zimb. to my Bots. trip.
Sherry

Bravo Dennis! Thanks for such a great report and taking us along for the journey! Sounds like Zimbabwe is a viable and safe destination. Glad things took a turn for the much better!

John, I agree. I don't have all the answers and didn't ask all the right questions. I just hope the program is successful and the lions will be released in safe areas with the purpose of increasing the lion population and not turning them over to the hunting concessions. Will have to wait and see when they do the release.
Thanks Sherry and Cooncat! Sherry, you're going to love Zim!

Loved your trip report Dennis! I remember asking our guide in Chobe NP where had all the 20,000+ elephants I have read about gone...all he did was point and say "way out there somewhere". Guess now the translation meant Angola!

Will be following the Lion Encounter situation..would love to do this!

Thanks for sharing! Can't wait to see your photos!!!!

Dennis: Great report with some tremendous experiences. No doubt something like your rum run can become such a special experience as you enter the daily lives of the community (even if only for a short time) as opposed to living in the tourist world.

It would be great if you would paste your Lion Encounter thoughts on that previous discussion thread since you have some first hand thoughts that would really add for those researching it.

John: my understanding from exchanging some emails with the Lion Encounter folks is they are totally dependent on finding parks/reserves that need to boost their lion numbers or even restore from a zero lion population and the one Zambia location is the first to be interested (and from Dennis it sounds like they have a second site now too). They did not tell me anything about the locations so I'm not sure what the hunting situation is. It seems to me that Botswana and South Africa are way ahead on modern wildlife management practices and they would be more likely to move nomads or prides from well managed high density areas rather than the very risky undertaking of introducing a captive population. I really hope their reintroduction efforts succeed and I just hope they don't over breed because I think finding suitable/sustainable habitat is the tough part and the big reason for lion decline. I believe it's more of a not enough good homes left with shrinking habitat leading to lions on the edge disappearing rather than lots of great lion habitat that is unoccupied, but hopefully the future will bring more land rehabilitation projects that lead to the need for stocking new wildlife populations as that is the role the Lion Encounter project could potentially fill.

Oh no, it's over. But what a trip and trip report it has been.

Sipping amarula with the elephants...
where else but Africa??

As Foster might say, "Oh my God what a fabulous trip report!" Enjoyed the read immensely, thanks, Deb

Dennis,
I'm sorry to see your trip report come to an end. Because of your engaging report I'm seriously considering Zimbabwe as part of my next trip. Tented camps like Somalisa are what I'm interested in. And Foster sounds like the kind of guide I'd follow anywhere! What is the average cost per nite per person at Somalisa? Please keep us posted on the cultural visit he is working on.
Lily

Lillipets~I will keep you posted on Foster's cultural village tour, mail is slow to/from Zimbabwe!
We paid around $1500. each for four nights at Somalisa and that included the charter flight to/from Victoria Falls/Hwange. Very reasonable considering all we got to see and do while there.
Pred~I can't find the original thread to post on.
Carla, Lynn, Deb~thanks, i'm sorry to see it end too...would have liked to write about 30 more nights there!

Dennis,
Here's the thread where the lion walk discussion originally started http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=4&tid=34862160

I'm happy you finished your trip report before I leave but at the same time sad that it has come to an end.

Do you know how much of that $1500 was for the Vic Falls/Hwange charter flights?

Thanks Patty! I don't know how much the flights were, it wasn't broken down on the invoice. Was Sefofane about 45 minutes each way if you have anything to compare to. nothing on sefofanes website with pricing.

My understanding is, Hwange is easy and safe for a drive transfer from Vic falls to any of the camps....maybe more economical and a good way to see the country side?

Hari

Hari~yes it's a two hour drive from Victoria Falls on a paved road and there is a campsite (no tents, just small huts) available to rent, would love to do this and just sit by the waterhole and have the animals come to me....thinking about it for next time!
the only problem is availability of fuel. you'd have to load up in Livingstone with enough to last your stay, unless the situation improves. Foster even offered his car to us if we want to do it next time.

True Dennis....but, i think travel agents can organize this type of transfer vs flying into Hwange. I say this because, originally i wanted to do the Hide for next June along with my trip to Kwando...however, i want to go to Hwange one of the years that i will be travelling to Southern Africa later in the dry season.

So, i think Hwange it will be for 2008!!! Your report certainly puts Somalisa in my list.....

Hari

you're right Hari, I was only thinking of the self-drive, not an organized transfer which would be fairly easy. we did one from kasane-suswe 3.5 hours, almost double from vic falls-hwange. it's nice to get there fast but i did enjoy the drive looking at the scenery.

"John, I agree. I don't have all the answers and didn't ask all the right questions. I just hope the program is successful and the lions will be released in safe areas"- Dennis

Dennis, I'm sure that had I chosen this experience, like you I would have been thrilled by it. I share your hopes, too. Sitting at home in front of the PC, though, my natural cynicism about human motives with wildlife emerges. The only people I'm never cynical about are those who work with wildlife with a great deal of sacrifice and no profit, either in cash, kind, PR or 'spin'. There are many such people (I know a couple). I don't apologise for my cynicism because I figure it does no harm to try to make people think a little more before they get a warm and fuzzy feeling.

John

John, I understand what you're saying and agree for the most part. I don't think that ALL for profit agencies are not worthwhile. The jury is still out on the Lion Encounter and won't decide the verdict until the actual release. It is a money making venture (20 people X $100 X 2 tours a day X 365 days a year + $3200 for volunteers X 10 volunteers while we were there = BIG BUCKS!) All I can say is I hope it works for the lions sake, and ours as well. This subject could be debated for eternity, and I'm still not sure what side of the fence I'm on, though I AM glad I did the encounter just for the sheer pleasure of touching lions.

"This trip has only deepened my desire to keep returning to Africa and soaking in all it has to give."

From the ridiculous to the sublime. Thank you, Dennis, for a fascinating and ultimately very touching, thought-provoking report. Who knew you had it in you???

Thanks Leely! Sometimes I even surprise myself!

What a thoroughly enjoyable trip report, Dennis. It sure makes me want to follow in your footsteps. (Except the beginning of your trip since all the animals are now in Angola.)

Great pics, too. I laughed when I saw Beaven's sundowner setup with the wooden animals. You sure have some stunning pictures.

I want to go on a game drive with Foster and meet his elephants!

Thanks for sharing your trip!

Reading about the lions reminded me of a camp where I spent 2 nights in South Africa (2003). They did have a group of lions that they were reintroducing to the wild. They were in a huge fenced area (I don't remember how many acres but really large) and there was plenty of game for them to kill and eat. They did feed them when they were first brought to the property but the lions had been surviving on their own for past two years (if I remember correctly). So it's entirely possible that the lions you saw will be successfully reintroduced into the wild.

Thanks Dennis - what an ammusing and enjoyable report. From now on, the word "Angola" will bring a smile to my face. I've been away and am slowly trying to catch up with the forum.

Regards

Gaurang

Dennis, You've driven into our psyches an urge to chuckle everytime we hear Angola, similar to the Queen of Diamonds in the Manchurian Candidate.

yes, Angola has creeped into my everyday life. When my dog is misbehaving (which is almost always) I now tell her, "Pack your toys, I'm sending you to Angola"

Hi Dennis-

What a wonderful report you have written! I read it pretty well in one bus-ride, when the snow hits Vancouver - wow, the traffic backs up! I laughed so much I think I was irritating everyone else on the bus!

And thanks so much for writing so eloquently about the Lion Walk, I definitly look forward to doing it myself one day. I have faith I am helping them by doing that.

LyndaS,

If you had shared the source of humor with your fellow bus riders, then Angola could become a hit in Vancouver.

WOW, it has just been pointed out to me that Foster is being chatted about on this Forum. I met Benson - Foster's youngest brother - a number of years ago when he was training guides at Kings Pool Camp in Botswana. He was such an outstanding guide and amazing person that I ended up abandoning my career in investment management to set up in business with him! I believe that we saw you Dennis when we were on a 3 week educational with Benson in November. We had a night at The Hide before coming to Somalisa and we crossed paths with you and Foster in our vehicles. Next day we had the treat of being guided by the two Siyawareva brothers - only to be charged by a rather large ele whilst on foot. Benson had realised something was going to happen and dropped back to take photos - and once the ele spotted that it was Foster he was charging he quickly backed off and retreated in a very embarrased manner! Anyway, Benson and Foster are meeting up this week and I am going to email your report to Benson so that Foster can read it. I know he will love it - and begin with a big laugh and "Oh My God...". If you ever need to get hold of Foster in the future (other than by snail-mail) then please get in touch as I can normally get a message to him.

Thanks for topping this. I think I read it before, but imagine I would have commented -- OH, I read it elsewhere. TOTALLY enjoyed reading it all over again. It is quite inspirational. Not that many of us need inspiration to return, but good laughs are always a blessing to find these days!

Diane

Your story made me remember that old cliche'-- travel is not about the destination--rather the journey. I'll be a little more laid back than I might have been had I not read your post. I hope we meet people like you and Omigod on our safari in two weeks.

I did learn something about that a few years back when an all-inclusive in Mexico did not even take us to the same AREA of Mexico we were promised. And it was NOT an upgrade, lacking, for example, a beach. All the managers I came in contact with in my day of trying to FIX the situation gave me DIRECT EYE CONTACT and said, "Enjoy your vacation, madam." After three of these stares, I decided to forget which part of the country we came to see and to ENJOY MY VACATION. We had a great time! (Also, I got a big chunk of money back when I got home!)

Marking to read this weekend...

How cool is that? My trip report got a mention on Fodor's News page!
http://www.fodors.com/news/story_3500.html

TTT...for my Dh to find more easily. We're going to Zim for 10 days in October. The last 4 nights in Hwange!