To wrap up our time in Zambia we took advantage of a last minute deal for a discounted 4 day/3 night canoe trip down the Zambezi River camping on islands.

Overall, the trip was a nice way to enjoy the outdoors and enjoy a different perspective of Zambia. It was interesting to paddle past small villages allowing brief glimpses into the local life tasks of washing clothing in the river and fishing from the bank.

Evenings spent on the islands were tranquil. Amazing sunsets followed by the rising of a brilliant orange moon were observed as we ate dinner cooked over the camp fire (later found out that the orange color is actually due to air pollution from dust and bush fires / the moon actually looses the orange color as it rises further in the sky).

Although wildlife was not nearly as plentiful as in South Luangwa, it was nice to relax in a canoe and ride the swift current past the occasional family of hippos swimming by, elephants on the riverbank, an occasional spotting of crocs, and of course birds. However, one morning we did awake to find about 50 elephants eating breakfast about 500 ft from our tent site. Thankfully our camp site was idyllically situated next to the bank of the river, so get away would have been easy.

The grand finale of our time here was the opportunity to catch a lift back to the capitol city, Lusaka, with a couple that had been with us on the canoe trip (there were only 5 people total including us!). The unique thing about Josh and Anna is their mode of transportation (inaddittion to being a couple we thoroughly enjoyed spending time with and who actually laughed at Mike's humor). Attempting to beat the world record for longest distance rode on 4 wheelers (or quads), their trip is taking them through 20 African countries in 7 months ( www.quadsacrossafrica.com). And we were blessed to catch a lift for about 3 hours of that time. It was not only the thrill of speeding down the road on the back, but also the instant fame received from the locals that made this such a memorable experience. Most Zambians had never seen a quad and their intrigue was obvious by the countless thumbs ups, whistles, and the small, inquisitive crowd that surrounded the vehicles any time we stopped. Needless to say that throughout our time as typical travelers we never received this type of reception.

September 16th - 23rd
South Luangwa National Park

September 24th - 25th
Victoria Falls, Zambian side

September 27th - 30th
Canoeing Safari near Lower Zambezi National Park

Zambia country summary