Zambia and the Smoke that Thunders

Today might be termed our adrenaline day as we engaged in all manner of pulse-pounding activities. Our day started off early as I had an appointment to take a microlight flight on the Zambian side of the river. We met our van at the no-mans land on the other side of the Zimbabwean border station and were driven to the other side of the bridge. The sun was finally out after two days of high, thick clouds so we had a lovely view of the mist generated from the falls. We bought a single entry visa to Zambia for $30; African passports do not need a visa (another reason I need to get in on my clever Swaziland passport scheme). 

We were driven through Livingstone, Zambia to the airfield which is outside of town and upriver a ways. We had a lovely view of the back of the falls with a rainbow above. I expected Zambia to look much more prosperous than Zimbabwe but it looked much the same. The roads had many potholes and the road signs were faded.

The airfield offered microlight and helicopter flights. A microlight is basically like a hang glider with a small motor. The aircraft is controlled by a horizontal bar held by the pilot. To turn, one pushes the bar right or left and the wings dip accordingly. I was given a quilted unisuit to put on to keep me warm, as the pilot and passenger just sit on open seats with no wind break or other protection. Sadly, the uni was much less Top Gun as more of a giant, baggy snow suit type thing. 

The microlight is quite efficient, one pilot lands and the passenger gets out, and then the next passenger is assisted in. I was given a pair of headphones and a helmet so I could communicate with the pilot. I was strapped in with a seatbelt and off we went! To take off, the pilot lifted the bar and the ascent was quite swift. As we flew off, I could see some elephants feeding on some trees just past the end of the runway.

We headed over the Zambezi above the falls and saw elephants swimming across the river. They looked like whales to me as I could see their wide backs and little puffs of water as the breathed through their trunks. We came over the falls from the Zambian side and I saw a rainbow that arced from one side to the other--all 1.7km long! The pilot asked me who I would describe the sight to my friends and I said it was indescribable but I will try to do so here. The span of the falls in incredible, at least a mile wide. The water cascades over the edge in enormous frothy sheets and mists billow up from the chasm. After the falls, the gorges head south in a fantastic zigzag pattern. The mist also forms sparkling rainbows that sprung out in the early morning sunlight. We had a perfect view of the border station and the hotel. My pilot pointed out Livingstone Island in the middle of the falls, which is where Devil's Pool is located. In the dry season, the river shrinks to the island and you can hike over and swim in the pool overlooking the drop off. Thebwater level is definitely too high right now for that!

We banked back to get one more view of the falls and did a spiral over it. We then headed back upriver and I got to steer the plane! I put my hands on the bar and turned us left and right. The force required to turn was surprisingly strong. I saw the elephants in the river below again as well as a pod of hippos and an enormous crocodile, at least 5m long, sunning himself on an island in the middle. We came in for a landing and I hopped off, thrilled. I had so much fun that Jimmy decided to go up himself. He is also a commercial pilot so he was quite excited to try it out. When he got back, he was similarly exhilarated and thrilled.

As to the microlight vs the helicopter, I was glad I did the microlight. You have a 360 degree view of everything and you are just up there with the pilot. The downside, however, is that you can't take your camera. It's too windy to take photos anyway and you could drop your camera. They do take photos for you with a camera mounted on the wing and purchasing the photo cd is $20. I did buy it because of the rainbow photos and the elephants. The helicopter allows you to take your camera but you can only take photos out a small window and for the time the falls are on your side. Additionally, there is a helicopter with three seats across so you could end up in the middle with no way to take photos. There are definitely advantages and disadvantages to each. Both are the same price, however.

After we were all safely back on the ground we had the van drop us off at the Victoria Falls park on the Zambian side, which is just next to the border post. My parents had recommended it because of it's superior view of the falls, the knife edge bridge and access to the boiling pot whirlpool. Entry for non locals is $20. We walked along the gorge wall back in the direction of the bridge and had fabulous views of the falls when the mist occasionally cleared. We then headed back and walked down into the gorge to the boiling pot. The first half of the hike is stone steps but when you reach the floor of the gorge it follows a pretty stream past palm trees and small waterfalls. The trail comes out next to the giant whirlpool visible from the bridge. We had a spectacular view of the falls and the bridge. We could see bungee jumpers swinging in the breeze and my stomach clenched a bit to think of myself up there soon enough. We clambered over some rocks to touch the water and found that it was chilly! We also spotted a small crocodile, only three feet long, sunning himself by the edge. Nick tried to get a closer look but the croc spotted him and jumped into the water. We also saw a little monitor lizard who had literally flattened himself on a rock to get more sun. He seemed to have collapsed his ribs to put more surface area in the sun's rays.

We walked back and found it quite warm at the base of the gorge. The hike up the stairs was pretty sweaty. Just below the top we ran into some baboons, one of whom perched on a vine just above the trail. He stared unconcernedly at us as we scampered beneath him, and even flashed some hikers heading down the trail.

We then decided to brave the knife edge bridge that is just behind the falls. I knew that it would be extremely wet so I had brought flip flops and a rain coat in preparation. Nick and Jimmy did not, and try ended up getting crazily soaked. The park cleverly has ponchos for hire so I would recommend it as you will be thoroughly wet by the end.

The knife edge bridge connects the Zambian bank with a rocky promontory that overlooks the falls. It is very narrow and about 25m long and is absolutely bathed in mist and what feels like heavy rain drops. I was incredibly glad for the raincoat! On the other side, the mist and water droplets form a mini tropical rainforest. One can walk on the falls side and all we could see in either direction was thundering white water. The noise of the falls was so loud it made it hard to talk. The mist was so thick that we couldn't use our cameras. We walked all the way to the end and were awed by the incredible view. You could barely see the bridge through the mist and we had brief glimpses of the Zimbabwean side of the falls view as well (it appeared similarly wet also!). 

When we emerged back onto dry ground, we were soaking wet. Jimmy and Nick looked like bedraggled cats and I had to use my scarf to towel off. Luckily my coat had kept everything dry, but Jimmy's money and passport, which he had kept in his pockets, were wet through. We must have looked a sight to the Zambian border guard who stamped us out. He teased Jimmy about his wet passport, holding it up like a dead rat and asking, "what happened to this!?" Jimmy answered with, "Victoria Falls happened to it!" which made the guy laugh.

As soon as we hit the no-mans land on the Zambian side of the bridge, the hawkers came out in full force. Jimmy got some copper bracelets for his nieces, but I didn't need any $1 trillion bills or carvings so I passed. I went up to the bungee registration and heard they were closing jumps as the bridge was getting busy (not sure what that really meant, as in people busy or traffic busy) so I piped up that I had prepaid already. Good thing, as I was the last person let on for the afternoon. They weighed me (64kg) and wrote the number on my arm in magic marker. I then walked to the middle of the bridge where a crowd of interested locals and foreigners were watching the fools flinging themselves off the bridge towards the rushing water below.

I had to wait for two people doing the gorge swing to go, plus one more bungee jumper, and then it was my turn. I did inspect the equipment and it was well maintained, in good condition and new. They use a foot harness and a chest/waist harness as backup. The safety briefing was comprehensive and matched what I had been told the last time I jumped back in the US. As sketchy as it sounds to jump off a bridge spanning two developing African countries, I can say that overall the crew did a great job and I was impressed.

I was led up to the edge, which really is right on the side of the bridge, and the handler counted down from five very quickly, not giving me time to back out or falter. He also gave me a helpful push at the back but I was already moving of my own volition. I flung myself out towards the center of the canyon in a swan dive. The Zambezi rushed towards me and I could see a rainbow in the spray with the roar of the falls in my ears. As locations go for a bungee, this was pretty damn amazing. I bounced up and down and swung around and eventually was caught by a staff member and hauled back up to the arc at the bottom of the bridge. I then walked on the walkway underneath back to the Zimbabwean bank and climbed up a short ladder to get back onto the road. It was really interesting to see the underside of this historic landmark. The good news is that it looks to be in decent shape.

I met Jimmy and Nick back at the bungee hut, I was excited and in a good mood. I returned the harness and we walked back to the hotel. After a quick shower and change, we snarfed down some high tea and watched the Germans smash Argentina. Definitely a good day so far! For dinner we will likely go back to Mama Africa and then watch the game in the hotel again.