Hi all,

I've got what is probably a goofy question, but I'm still hoping someone has an answer. We are looking at doing the swim into Devil's Pool in Zambia at Victoria Falls, but I am wondering if there is any safety concerns about swimming in the water. It looks like you have to swim through some water to get there and then of course once you jump in the pool. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I'm guessing I'm overthinking this but since lots of crazy things can exist in the water, I thought I would get some input! Thanks in advance.

Also, if anyone has any info on where I can find out when Devil's Pool "opens up" that would be great. We will be trying to do the swim on September 11th and it looks like that is right at the start of when it's ok to do it safely.

- based on the high water level this year you might have the chance to just flow over the rim ;-)
Elephants don't survive that jump!

- 09/11....I am toooo superstitious to even think of that date to do anything which might interfere with my ongoing being.

hah, strangely enough I never even thought of the date that way. That certainly wouldn't stop me, but flowing over the edge would!

I'd love to hear from anyone else on this one because I'm really hoping I get the opportunity to do this!

Anyone have any thoughts on the safety of swimming in the water and/or availability of the pool yet?

Get in touch with Tongabezi. They run tours. Sept is the beginning of the "safe" season. I saw people in Sept 2006 - it looks insane, but we had no idea what it was. Ask about water levels this year as well as water-born (sp?) diseases.

I did it this past December. I really thought the water was running too fast to worry about what was in it. I figured with all of the white water rafting etc on the Zambezi it must be ok or I would have read warnings about it. Probably naive of me, but I did it. I did make sure to keep my mouth closed as much as possible to avoid swallowing any of that water. There are these little fish that nibble on your feet while you are in the pool, so it does keep you from staying too long. I am glad I did it - but nothing is 100% safe and you must weigh it out and decide. I do remember thinking I had lost my mind while swimming across to get there.

Oh - forgot to add that even if you don't want to go into devil's pool, it is pretty cool to go out to the island anyway. I thought it was cool to stand on the island and look over the edge. A very different perspective than you will get anywhere else.

LOL Bluesphee,

I thought you were going in wet season. Have you changed you mind, or have I lost track?

I think that September should be OK for Devil's Pool,but you can play it by ear. The trip to Livingstone Island is still one of the most memorable experiences you can have, IMO. It simply is fantastic. Enjoy (and don't sweat the small stuff).

FYI I did get word from Tongabezi / SafPar that they are allowing people to swim in Devil's Pool now.

Hi there!

I did the Devil's pool swim last year in early September and it was the most memorable thing I did during my 2 weeks in Africa! It was AMAZING and definitely unforgettable!! I would this is NOT for the faint of heart (I almost chickened out!) It is a very intimidating swim (b/c of its location at the edge of the falls), not difficult though. You need to bear in mind that you will be in Africa- the land of unpaved roads and no side walks; this means no safety harness etc. Once you are on the rock about to jump into the pool, you forget all of this and feel as free as you ever will..on top of the world! I felt like I could conquer anything after swimming in the Devil’s Pool. Good luck with your planning and I hope you get the chance to do it!

Best wishes,
Emily

Hi there,

I'm finally following up on this post. My wife and I did the devil's pool swim in September and it was absolutely amazing. 2getupandgo's summary is exactly the same way that both of us felt. Especially the "conquer anything" part.

We took a boat to Livingstone island from the Royal Livingstone Lodge (which is an amazing thing to see as well!). Once we landed the guide gave us a little bit of a tour and then he took us to one edge of the falls and it was absolutely breathtaking (I don't ever use that word but it truly fits!). We even saw a double rainbow! After a little background info he had us get into our swimming suits by a bush. Then he had us put our cameras into a plastic garbage bag. This felt weird, but we just went along with it. They really DID know what they were doing because they somehow managed to use the right camera! Then he took us to the edge and I was seriously really nervous. We were pretty damn close to the edge and he explained that we had to swim through the rushing water in an angled fashion (against the current). I'm an ok swimmer and so is my wife, but the adrenaline made you swim faster! haha. If you don't keep swimming there isn't a net or cable to stop you from going over!!! You would swim for about 30-50 feet or so and then you could stand up. We had Keane sandals on while swimming which helped because the rocks were sharp and slimy. Those that were barefoot were fine, but for us it was even easier. Once we got to the pool we jumped in and it was crazy! Being that close to the edge of those falls was not the smartest thing I've done but I would recommend it to everyone! Keep in mind that there is a lot of mist, so your camera might get a bit of water on it. Nothing damaging, but something to consider when choosing what camera to bring with on this.

On the swim back the last leg was tiring and I did envision myself falling over the edge (haha), but I'm just a wuss . It was the most thrilling adventure experience of my life...until we got chased on foot by an elephant in the Okavango Delta, but that is another story!

Even though we were staying at the Maramba River Lodge, later that day we came back to the Royal Livingstone and had drinks on the large deck and talked about one of the craziest days we've ever had. I highly recommend doing this as well.

We are in the middle of planning our first trip to Africa. It will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. Though Kruger safari is the priority, I really want to visit Victoria Falls specifically to go to Devil's Pool. Thank you so much for your update. I hope we can get our trip planned (we're back to 2nd guessing, again) and get to Devil's Pool.
Glad you had such a fun, memorable time.