Kariba - Kanyemba (10 Days/9 Nights)
Day 1 (18 KM)
Natureways Safaris will collect you on the morning of your safari at 7:30am, in good time for a check-in at Natureways office, handing in extra luggage and valuables. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE YOUR PASSPORT ON THE RIVER. There will be a short briefing to summarise what the safari entails and questions may be asked. Guests will be required to sign an indemnity form before leaving on the safari.
After the briefing, a visit to the shops will be made, purchasing any extra drinks wanted for the trip before setting off for the river. Please note that credit cards are not a recommended payment option in Zimbabwe.
After arriving at the start point, luggage will be portered into the gorge and your group will walk the 1.5kms down to the river – quite a long, steep descent. All canoes and camping equipment will have already been carried into the gorge and packed. A safety talk and demonstration on how to paddle a canoe will be given, after which you will be launched, then paddling until a stop is made for lunch.
After a picnic-style lunch, there will be time for a siesta to avoid the worst heat of the day, then paddling recommences. At approximately 5pm the group reaches Crocodile Rocks Island and sets up camp. There will be time to have a bucket bath, relax and have dinner after a brief safety talk on camping.
Day 2 (27 KM)
Waking at sunrise for tea, coffee and biscuits, followed by a couple of hours’ canoeing and a stop for a leisurely breakfast. After breakfast, you will set off once again, enjoying the incredible scenery of the Zambezi Valley. A lunch stop will be made at the first suitable spot – with time once again, for a siesta. In the early evening you will reach your second campsite at Twin Logs Island.
Day 3 (28 KM)
The group will be woken at sunrise for tea, coffee and biscuits and breakfast before canoeing starts. Between 10:30 and 11am you will reach the re-supply point at Chirundu where fresh supplies of fruit and vegetables for the second leg of the journey are obtained. Paddling resumes after a light packed lunch, continuing to the night stop at Kakomarara Island.
Day 4 (27 KM)
Up at sunrise for tea, coffee and biscuits and breakfast before you start canoeing.
Canoeing continues until midday and a well-earned lunch and siesta, time to catch up on reference books until mid-afternoon (depending on the weather). The group will continue to paddle until approximately 5pm, spending the night camped on Lone Acacia Island.
Day 5 (23 KM)
The programme is as per day four. The night’s campsite will be at Trichelia Island.
Day 6 (20 KM)
Again, today’s programme is very similar to days four and five. Lunch will be at about midday after which there is a chance to relax, take in your surroundings or siesta. The group will paddle until early evening where camp will be made on Chikwenya Island.
Day 7 (25 KM)
Up at dawn for tea, coffee and biscuits before a short early morning paddle. Breakfast will be served either on the banks of the river or on an island. Afterwards you will resume canoeing until lunchtime after which a brief siesta can be taken on the banks of the river. Once the heat subsides, canoeing will continue to False Gorge.
Day 8 (20 KM)
The programme is as per day seven. The day will be spent exploring the shoreline of Chewore (home of the Great Elephant). Camp will be made at Mupata Gorge.
Day 9 (35 KM)
The schedule for this day will be as per day six and seven, with the day spent mainly in the austere Mupata Gorge, viewing its many endemic species of wildlife and taking in its spectacular geographical features. This night’s campsite will be established at the base of the towering Red Cliffs.
Day 10 (7 KM)
After an early wake-up and breakfast, you will paddle down to the take-out point at Kanyemba. Equipment will then be loaded onto the vehicle and the group transferred back to Kariba. Arrival time in Kariba is approximately 4pm.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS AN EXPLORER CANOE SAFARI AND THERE ARE NO FIXED ABLUTION FACILITIES ALONG THE WAY.
ALL TIMINGS GIVEN IN THIS TRIP DESCRIPTION ARE AN APPROXIMATION AND WILL VARY FROM TRIP TO TRIP.
THIS ITINERARY IS A GUIDELINE AND MAY CHANGE DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES i.e. WEATHER CONDITIONS.
PLEASE NOTE THAT COSTS DO NOT INCLUDE NATIONAL PARKS FEES WHICH ARE PAYABLE DIRECTLY TO PARKS EN-ROUTE. PLEASE CONTACT US FOR THE FEE BEFORE TRAVEL.
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