Overlanding Zambia - a country waiting to be discovered

Rarely do we have a moment of reflection, where each memory that is conjured up is a positive one. Zambia is one of those countries that was seriously special. We did play 12 golf courses, which meant we could explore the country as we drove around from one course to the next. 

So what is on offer for two exploring adventurous golfers in their prime? Arriving into Katima Mulilo Zambia didn’t shout, come and stay here. Just the usual dirt road, clogged up with heavy lorries ether side and people milling about. In fact our first foray in Zambia was to a campsite just on the other side - which was closed and offered African style room - the campsite was non-existent with the owners suggesting we park in the carpark, by the main road, and use the guards toilet - no thanks. We decided to head due North to Ngonye Sioma Falls. Being lone campers was really nice. A riverside site with round straw huts for the facilities, which were fairly basic, no lights but reasonably clean - sometimes, lack of light works in your favour! A perfect base for some hiking to Ngonye Sioma Falls. The second biggest drop on the Zambezi River. A horseshoe waterfall with lots of jets of water forging their own way with the water crashing down deafeningly. We heard the waterfalls before we saw them, and because of the dry season we did have to hike into what would normally be underwater. Across sand and rock banks. But worth the hike on the beautiful Zambezi River. The

Zambezi was fast becoming the pulsing vein in our trip.  Doubling back to get back on track to Livingstone, and expecting it to be very similar to Victoria Falls on the Zimbabwe side, it really wasn't. It is less touristy, and probably a little more basic as a result, but then you could argue it is more authentic too?

We camped for a few nights in Livingstone Waterfront Lodge, a great spot for exploring. Large sharing facilities with the static tents and the roving campers like ourselves. Clean and decent, we stayed for a few nights, camping and in one of their lodges.    Riverside dining was wonderful as we watched the sunset each evening and rose to a good breakfast too.

You can arrange excursions through Livingstone Waterfront Lodge, so we hopped onto a game drive in Mosi-O-Tunya - with the guide proudly announcing it as the second smallest game park in Zambia. Small in size didn’t mean fewer sightings.  Watching and enjoying a selection of wild animals before being asked, by the guide, did we wanted to go rhino walking? Sharing the vehicle with some lovely Japanese tourists, there was a resounding, yes. A short drive away, we met with rangers who follow the rhino. We get out of the vehicle and get lead to a mud bath where the water once flowed, to watch a family of white Rhino from babies to adults wallowing and snorting as they basked in the cool mud.

Watching these rhino, knowing they were safe under the watchful eye of the rangers was fantastic, even as the Rhino wander by, they weren’t interested in us, just an overwhelming desire to cool down as they ungracefully slump down with a splash. The tiny baby was often hidden from sight, but glimpses of this huge pachyderm, did melt the heart.  

We can’t be in Livingstone and not re-visit Victoria Falls. We have already seen the falls from the Zimbabwe side, so did think, well its just water gushing down, but when we arrived, again we were blown away by their splendour, and we were quite taken aback by the actual sighting itself even onto Zambia side.   We were told it was better on Zimbabwe side, but it wasn’t - and much cheaper entry fee on the Zambia side too.  We did get soaked through by the spray, but it was a hot day the water spray was actually quite welcome. Also arranged through Livingstone Waterfront Lodge, we embark onto a speed boat to head up river to the elephant cafe. Having white water rafted on this very same River (and nearly died!), the rapids did bring back some hairy memories of being tossed out onto the fast flowing crocodile infected water. Thankfully the skipper was well versed on this river and took us slalom style left and right to avoid any nasty bits; rapids, hippo or crocodile.  

Crossing the rapids on a speed boat was a
much more enjoyable than being thrown out of the boat on them! Arriving at the Elephant cafe, there were five elephant lined up patiently awaiting their dinner, well probably a snack looking at the small bags of food and the large animals!   Hand feeding nuts - not to dissimilar to the ones a farmer might use for livestock.   Mostly we fed from the front of the line with the cheeky

elephant tugging at the shoulder bags full of nuts - small handful's were an insult, so we ended up tipping the bag into their cavernous triangle mouths as they lifted their trunks out of the way and open up ready to be fed.  Having never fed an elephant before, this was so exciting for both of us, and it was sad when we’d emptied all the nuts into the elephants as that meant, all too quickly it was the end. But we did get to feed each one of those gentle grey giants.

But the evening was far from over as we were guided into a covered lodge overlooking the

Zambezi River for a gastronomical treat. Course after course of locally sourced food was bought to us, pretty and delicious as each course wowed us and left us feeling satisfied. 

Back to Livingstone Waterfront Lodge for one final night then a sad goodbye to the wonderful staff here as we head North to Lusaka. Stopping at a few golf courses on route, as already written about, we arrive into Lusaka at an AirBnb we’d booked on-line. We didn’t stay long as it was small, and very uncomfortable so we made our way to Ceila Hotel, with the amazing Bonanza golf course on site. Taken aback at the quality of the hotel and the surrounding area, it was, dare I say it, like being back in Europe or the US, exceptional quality. We’ve discovered a whole new category of hotel, forget 3, 4 or 5 star, we’re talking about African style and European/American style - and just occasionally, we find a decent European/American style - in Africa. 

Ceila is one such place, and we were going to capitalise on our home from home comfort - starting with the dining experience. In truth we tried both restaurants at the hotel, one was a varied buffet of all things nice, the other, Botanics - well let's just say my denim shorts would look out of place! We even took a short stroll to the Brewery, a lively on-site place for a bite to eat too. Being in a hotel complex, you can just wander around at night knowing that you are safe, and as everything was within walking distance, it was nice to get out into the night air too. The rooms were nicely decorated and the showers, well - oh my, they were brilliant - enough hot water gushing out certainly helped us wash some of the rubbish Africa shower thoughts away. Our room overlooked the pool, but it wasn’t right on top of the pool, instead set a little way back - The pool at

Ciela also has a bar with snacks too.  Dining at Botanics, was, as mentioned special. Course after course came out skilfully and artfully presented, then the fresh taste followed . It was great to see the portions weren’t too big, but not designer small either, and as there were so many courses, it worked very well as we cherished each mouthful. Basing ourselves at Ceila we got to play 3 golf courses - with the main one being their own onsite Bonanza course. 

We also got out for dinner for a night at Prime Joint in Lusaka a fun friendly place with amazing food which was clearly popular with the locals too.  great choices and nice and tasty.

 More about this in the Golf in Zambia blog and video, so check that out? On our quest to discover and share more of Zambia, we head up to the Copperbelt. Not real known for tourists to visit, but we had an ulterior motive, to play Trident at Kalumbila. And as a happy coincidence, we get to explore more of the country too. Camping on route, we can really embrace the best of Zambia, and we did. Some camp sites were pretty grotty - even one was a delightful location overlooking the Kafue River, but the facilities were just so awful. Mostly we were the only once camping so we often got to chose our own spot. Calling off at Chimfunshi, we camped in their lone field, but first we got to meet the chimps at the orphanage. In huge paddocks they were sorted out into ‘families’ and seeing the babies was such ahh moment. The chimps are rescues, some from private houses, others from zoo's, often from the DRC,

they are bought to Chimfunshi for a new life. That night we camped in the middle of a swaying grass filed, completely alone, no facilities and just the African sounds for company, right up until sunset - which I’ve got to say, seems to happen quickly in Africa! Then we clamber up into our roof top tent, and sleep. We do tend to go to sleep early when camping, because we also wake up early, and we can really enjoy the most of the bright African skies during daylight. The one thing about camping isn’t necessarily the camp site, its the facilities, and one has to be prepared to get a bit grubby some days knowing there isn’t a hot shower at the end of the day .  Chimfunshi facilities were pretty dire, so we took the wild camping on the chin and just enjoyed the scenery.

A quick night stop at the Royal Solweizi Hotel - pretty much the only hotel around, slightly in need of some TLC, but otherwise quite comfortable. A couple more road fines and we find ourselves back in Lusaka all too quickly - so of course we go back to Ceila Hotel

Leaving Lusaka a second time was tough, we have loved our time at the hotel and the golf is really great, but we need to move on and make our way over to Chipata to play the oldest course in Zambia - read about or watch what happened at this unique course on previous blogs/videos. 

On leaving Chapati, we camped on our way  to

South Luangwa National Park - we’d heard lots of good things about this national park, with it being the most prolific and best for sightings of wild game. So we were keen to see what we could, well, see… Met at the entrance gate by our hosts from Chikunto Luxury Safari Lodge, we gave Andi a rest and journeyed into the park on their much more up to date Land Rover. With Andi looking on as we left him for dust and took on the role of the intrepid adventures that we are, and set off into the throat of the South Luwanga National Park. It wasn’t long until we saw a couple of giraffe wandering across the road. Dark and delicately patterned, they were not at all perturbed by our presence as they lumbered along in their ungainly gait until they just happen to turn off the road so we could get past. Reaching the murky, muddy Luwange River we get on board a little speed boat to get to the lodge. All done in style and all done with ease. At the time of visiting, the park was partially closed, so our only way to the lodge was via the river. But it wasn’t until you were on the river that you realised how many hippo were lounging around in huge rafts. Some break away groups were curious to see what all the noise was about, as they lifted their eyes above water to take in the scene, before sliding back down again probably disgusted at the noise we were making and disturbing them in their watery bed. And I can tell you, of all the animals, the hippo is not one to make angry! The captain was super efficient and avoided the hippo as he zig zag against the flow to reach a muddy bank with make-shift steps cut out. We’d arrived at Chikunto Lodge, well almost - after a short walk we were greeted by a welcome committee who were as happy to see us as we were to see the cold drinks they were offering. And the scene is set.

A central area made in a traditional style with a thatch roof spanning over the expanse to accommodate various seating areas and stretch almost as far down as the pool. The decked pool area was a stark contrast of the blue to the murky brown water of the river which was in full view from the raised decked. By the pool is a large stocked bar. Taking a walk along the elevated boarded walkways, sometimes ducking back down to the sandy ground level, we reach our luxury lodge.   Elephants wander freely around the site, as do other wild animals so we were escorted every time we wanted to leave the confines of our luxury tented lodge to go to the main dining and bar area. 

Chikunto is not a closed site, so waking up the next morning to the sound of branches being crushed and leaves rustling, a quick sneak peak revealed a Mum and baby elephant enjoying the greenery - right outside our lodge. Noisy eaters, without a care in the world - why would you when you’re that size! We sneakily watched from the balcony as they, without any rush, moved away onto greener pastures. A

fairly relaxing day, we weren’t due on a game drive until later, so popped into the shower, with its window overlooking the river. Busily going about my shower, and lo and behold another pair of elephant wander by.  Oblivious to my human presence as they too enjoyed their breakfast of leaves barging their way through anything that was in their way. Bearing in mind the elephant activity was fairly prolific we called for an escort back to the main area for breakfast and were escorted, flanked by two staff. More than one time we were asked to stop and keep still, we didn’t even see the elephant one time! 

Food at Chikunto Lodge is an art. And to appreciate it, you first feast with your eyes. Colourful and tasty food the set menu satisfied us every meal. They even had afternoon drinks and cakes - just in case you needed to eat some more food! Dining at night was a whole new experience with the mosquitoes on the first night enjoying their dining experience too. Learning from this, rubbing anti-mosquito all over did the trick for subsequent nights so we could enjoy our dining experience listening to the sounds of Africa. The game drives around South Luangwa Park were as good as we were promised with our return to the park and the road directly off the river is a lady lion - I say lady lion as she was not to be moved, adopting a regal stance. Basking in the sunshine and quite happy laid on the sandy road. When you come across one female lion, it is likely she isn’t alone, but as masters of disguise, it took us some time to spot her buddies in the long grass, just at the side of the road. It never ceases to amaze us how

large lions actually are, even the females are not to be messed with, despite them looking lazy and lounging around. Pure bred killers which one can certainly admire - from afar. After a long wait she did move over and we could drive around the game park taking in water covered with weeds it was unbelievable that this wasn’t land until you see the tell tale signs of those eyes popping up, sometimes with a pink tinge, the hippo were out taking a look at us as we spied them. Cheeky young monkeys jump around and play in the sunshine, chasing each other and revelling in the joy of their game, which is actually a way of learning their pecking order.  Monitor Lizards skulk into the muddy pools, which you can only see as they slip along

leaving a slight wake behind them.  Zebra, elephant and back to the same two giraffe as we circle back round the same route back passing skittish impala whose beautiful big dark brown eyes are like being mesmerised into a watery blackness. Back on the boat and we’re heading upstream to Chikunto Lodge whereupon we disembark our small speed boat to be told to wait a while as a fully grown elephant wanders past us. The elephant seem to like Chikunto Lodge as much as we do! 

On the late afternoon game drive and we see Wild Dog - Ok we’ve seen them before, and we’ve talked about them being endangered, so to see them again - wow.  In truth we didn’t see the dogs first, we saw a small brown cob (buck) on a ledge below the raised river bank but not quite in the water. Wondering what on earth it was doing there we first thought it had fallen off and started to make our way towards it,

but keeping our distance. Then we spotted the dogs on the top bank who had clearly chased the cob and were encircling it on the upper bank, not allowing it to escape. That poor cob had a choice, go up and let the dogs get him or go in the water and let the crocodile get him - that’s not much of a choice and we spent a long time watching it play out, yet mindful to not interfere with mother nature yet secretly willing the cob to escape. After some time we left the cob and the dogs and disembarked at our chosen bank not too far away.  Quickly jumping into the safari vehicle we make a bee line to the place where the cob was, to watch, very closely the beautiful wild dogs hovering around the ledge. Not knowing if the cob had escaped or had a horrible end, eventually the dogs wandered off.  A short while afterwards, up jumps the cob. Skittish and wary of any dogs before bounding off into the bush. The dogs weren’t in sight now and a little cheer escaped our lips as we watched that one lonesome little cob find his was back to his mates with a story to tell of how he cheated the dogs and the crocodiles. 

Back to the lodge with our own story to tell and a wonderful dinner and lovely nights sleep. Next morning and in no particular rush to leave this luxury resort on the river, we amble along the boardwalk to breakfast and just enjoy the comfort on offer before returning back to our nomadic life on the road as we make our way to Malawi, our seventh African country to visit.

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