Africa Journal - Hwange National Park

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Sunday, September 24, 1995

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Hwange National Park
We decide to sleep in but, as promised in Andrea’s itinerary, We are awakened at 6:00 by the sound of birds. I recorded the sounds on my camcorder and someday will include on this page as an .au file. No alarm clock could be more effective.

Off at 10:00 on an all day game drive with Ray as guide. It is Sigrid, myself, and a fellow named Herbert from Germany. We are riding in a Toyota Landcruiser that could seat 10. Hwange is the crown jewel of the Zimbabwe wildlife park system. It borders on the Kalahari Desert and the dry dusty heat pulls the moisture out of you. The landcruiser is well stocked with refreshments, and Ray insures we are comfortable all day.

This was a great day of game viewing. We have many opportunities to get close up video and photos of zebra, antelope, elephant, giraffe and more.

 I believe we saw most of the animals listed in Andrea’s itinerary, plus some exotic birds, including an African eagle owl.

Larry, I mean Ray, serving lunch.

Ray served us lunch in a hide overlooking a waterhole. There were more than 50 elephants directly below us, drinking, taking mud baths, taking dust baths, stomping around, trumpeting, and looking us over while we were watching them. 

Sable, Ostrich, and baboons also visited. Ray chased a baboon out of another tourists car, who had left the door open while running into the loo.

 

That afternoon, at another waterhole, we watched a hippo chase a crocodile away from the remains of a kudu carcass. I have some video of this sequence which I will include as an avi file on this page when we get home.

We finish the day at a waterhole on the Chokamella propery watching the sun set behind a small herd of elephant. The elephants look like they are walking through fire and red smoke, as the dust they stir up is lit by the setting sun.

For best results, view while drinking a cold Zambezi beer

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line journal/blogging effort - a journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted to an abandoned domain (NetSnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I am migrating the original posts to this blog. Links to the original journal Date Index or Africa Tour Home Page will likely eventually disappear. The images from the original post were graphics and screen caps from video which I am leaving in it's low-rez glory for historical integrity. My intent is to also add some of Sigrid's higher quality scanned photos to these blog back-posts.  The difference in images should be obvious.

 

Africa Journal - Chokamella Lodge

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Saturday, September 23, 1995

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Ray, could you bring me another Zambezi Beer, and make sure it is cold this time?
We fly to Hwange, and are greeted at the Chokamella lodge by Rob Clifford and his wife Shirley who manage the lodge. We heard many good things about Rob from guides in Victoria Falls and were very pleased to meet him.

We also meet Ray, who will be our guide for the game drives. I don't know if you can see it in these pictures, but Ray bears an uncanny resemblance to the CEO of a $5 billion dollar database software company we all know and love (If you need more hints, press here). Ray could be his little brother, it is really quite remarkable. I am sure he wonders why I keep asking him to do menial tasks and then start chuckling.

Eye-Eye, An African Eagle Owl
We take an afternoon game drive with Ray, and after dinner a night drive with Rob. On the night drive we park near a waterhole and turn off all lights. It is a moonless night and very dark. We hear a crashing in the wood behind the jeep. The sound gets progressively louder and continues for about a minute. Suddenly a big bull elephant walks out of the woods and passes within 10 feet of the jeep on the way to the waterhole.

We shine him with the spotlight as he drinks in the waterhole and Sigrid gets some great shots. A few minutes later, a hyena makes an appearance. We can smell the hyena before we see it.

Hyena & Elephant in the Spotlight
I am getting behind on the journal, just having too much fun.

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line journal/blogging effort - a journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted to an abandoned domain (NetSnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I am migrating the original posts to this blog. Links to the original journal Date Index or Africa Tour Home Page will likely eventually disappear. The images from the original post were graphics and screen caps from video which I am leaving in it's low-rez glory for historical integrity. My intent is to also add some of Sigrid's higher quality scanned photos to these blog back-posts.  The difference in images should be obvious.

Africa Journal - The Falls and the Fall

Africa Journal

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September 22, 1995

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The Falls and The Fall

We spend the morning touring Victoria Falls. First we take a spectacular tour by helicopter, then crossed the Victoria Falls bridge to see it from the Zambian side of the river. This is the end of the dry season, and after many years of drought, the water flow on the Zambian side is very low. The canyons and rock formations are impressive, and make up for the disappointing flow of water. From the bridge we can watch the whitewater rafts traversing the rapids hundreds of meters below us. The heat beats us down, and we retreat to the lodge to recover.

That afternoon we tour the Zimbabwe side with Jim and Julia from England. The water flow on this side is still very strong, and the lighting dramatic as the sun goes down. Sigrid takes too many pictures.

The view from the bridge.

You can walk from Zimbabwe to Zambia by crossing the Victoria Falls Bridge. At the center of the bridge is the "Africa Extreme" bungee jump operation. They claim to be the world’s highest commercial bungee jump at 111 meters... and yes, I did it.

I get strapped in by new best friend, Darrel.

Note the Excellent Form

Special Note to Chris Arisian - Thanks for the lucky t-shirt.

This is an AVI file of the jump. I can assure you the few seconds of postage-stamp video are not worth the 742K of download time, but hey ... knock yourself out:

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line effort - a Journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted on an abandoned domain (netsnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I cut and pasted the original entry for this post, keeping the original low-rez screencaps for historical integrity, and  substituting an updated YouTube upload of the videotape they made of my jump and a few of Sigrid's photos. 

Africa Journal - Canoeing the Zambezi

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Thursday, September 21, 1995

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Canoeing the Zambezi
Up at 5:00 AM to meet Mark for a early morning game walk. The night watchman saw lion at the waterhole earlier this morning. Mark finds their tracks and we follow them for quite a distance but never spot them. Little other game this morning, but a very enjoyable hike.

Then into town where we meet at the Shearwater Rafting office for an all day canoe trip on the upper (above the falls) Zambezi river. We had originally planned to go whitewater rafting on the lower Zambezi as stated in the itinerary, but when we looked at the travel vouchers, we found that we had been mistakenly booked on the canoe trip. We took this as an omen from the travel gods, and decide to forgo the whitewater. This decision made easier after we hearing a horror story about a recent drowning (not the outfit we had been booked with, which has an excellent safety record). The water is very low due to the drought, and the additional rock exposure may be creating additional risk for the class 4 and 5 rapids.


Our tamer canoe trip begins with a game drive through the Zambezi National Park where it parallels the banks of the Zambezi river. We pass a portion of the park that is fenced off with barbed wire and posted with signs warning of mines. This was near a shallow portion of the river that could be easily crossed. The Rhodesian Security Forces mined the area during the war. Over the years, most, if not all, of the mines have been detonated by wildlife. We stop to talk to another guide, who displays a dent in the fender of his tour vehicle caused by a charging elephant. "The clients found it exciting." He says.

Elephant Damage

The canoes are an inflatable type, which are very stable but too much work in the wind. Our group consists of three other canoes with British, German, and Australian couples, and Brian, our guide, in a kayak.

We go through a few class 1 and class 2 rapids which put a little stress on our marriage. The river is beautiful, and when we aren’t fighting the wind, it is a very relaxing trip. Highlights include: a seven foot crocodile splashing into the water as we round a bend of the river, and watching a herd of 20 to 30 elephants (including several babies) come down to river bank to drink.

Over dinner at the Masuwe Lodge, we trade stories with the other guests. We learn that on the morning game drive, Clever spotted a fresh kill. Hyenas were ripping apart a cape buffalo. Vivid descriptions of Hyenas with blood soaked heads and the sounds of crunching bones does not seem to affect anyone’s appetite. I drink too much wine and to the astonishment of all present, announce that I am intending to bungee jump off of the Victoria Falls Bridge the next day.

After dinner, Sigrid and I go on a night game drive with Mark. This consists of Mark driving the property while I sweep the area with a million candlepower spotlight, looking for the reflecting eyes of animals. I spot an antelope, a water buck, and 12 to 15 wolf spiders, which, interestingly enough, throw back a bright yellow/green reflection when hit with the light. Mark captures one of the spiders for detailed identification later, and promises to name it after me if it turns out to be a new species. I magnanimously offer a hyphenation since he did the capture.

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line journal/blogging effort - a journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted to an abandoned domain (NetSnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I am migrating the original posts to this blog. Links to the original journal Date Index or Africa Tour Home Page will likely eventually disappear. The images from the original post were graphics and screen caps from video which I am leaving in it's low-rez glory for historical integrity. My intent is to also add some of Sigrid's higher quality scanned photos to these blog back-posts.  The difference in images should be obvious.

Africa Journal - Masuwe Lodge

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Wednesday, September 20, 1995

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Out of Harare - Masuwe Lodge
Linda Law meets us at the Sheraton and takes us to the airport. Turns out that she is a very nice person, and was very upset about the mix-up. Apparently there was someone else with the surname Wallach who was on the flight we were supposed to be on, which produced the confusion. Understandable.

I suffer serious "sticker shock" when I see the cost for the phone calls to the US to e-mail the last few entries. Clearly a new strategy is in order. Until I can find a cheaper way to get connected (which may be when I get home), I will be limiting my postings. Probably no more frequent than every three days, and either all text or, at most, one image per day. I can backfill images into the journal after I return. I hope that once Harlan gets this web page on the net, I will get some helpful suggestions.

We are met at the Victoria Falls airport by Dayo from the Masuwe Lodge. Andrea’s description in the itinerary for the Chokamella Lodge (our next stop) accurately describes Masuwe, so I won’t repeat it here. Mark and Bridget manage the lodge and greet us with enthusiastic introductions and an overview of activities. We leave almost immediately on the first of two game drives. The first is on the Masuwe lodge property with Mark who is also a professional guide. The second was in the adjoining Zambezi National park.

This is our first real look at African wildlife. We see sable, water buck, giraffe, baboon, monkey, warthog, zebra, secretary bird as well as other beautiful and interesting birds (whose names I cannot remember but were identified with great enthusiasm by the Brits on the drive).

We also see and video elephant and cape buffalo, giving us a quick start on the Big Five (Elephant, Lion, Buffalo, Leopard, Rhino). Not bad for the first day.

Two sable square off in the Zambezi National Park
That evening we meet other guests from England, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. We are the only Americans. We eat, drink and talk in the lodge overlooking an artificially pumped and well-lit waterhole, where we watch baboon and cape buffalo drink.

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line journal/blogging effort - a journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted to an abandoned domain (NetSnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I am migrating the original posts to this blog. Links to the original journal Date Index or Africa Tour Home Page will likely eventually disappear. The images from the original post were graphics and screen caps from video which I am leaving in it's low-rez glory for historical integrity. My intent is to also add some of Sigrid's higher quality scanned photos to these blog back-posts.  The difference in images should be obvious.

Africa Tour - Shopping in Harare

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Tuesday, September 19, 1995

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Shopping in Harare & Elvis
We had decided to sleep in late, but get an unexpected wake-up call from Linda Law at 8:00 AM. I might have been a little grumpy with her as I had been up quite late the night before, in a futile and frustrating effort to get back on the net and send Harlan the latest entries. I was to finally succeed later this morning by paying the fare and dialing back into the US. Even so, it takes about ten tries to get through. I don't know what is going to happen when we check out of the Sheraton tomorrow. Anyway, Linda was quite apologetic and promises to take us to the airport for our flight to Victoria Falls tomorrow.

Harare has a population of over 1 million, almost double the population of our adopted home, San Francisco. We spend the day shopping in Harare. At the Mbare Market, Sigrid negotiates some tough deals on handcrafted items, and I make an astounding Elvis discovery (details later).

The Director of the Shona Designs Artist Cooperative takes us on a tour to watch the sculptors working, and we admire some of the finished work in the yard out front.

My favorite is the one at the top of this page, but we can't decide whether to buy it, so it is probably still there for you. We then head into the city where we visit the National handicraft center and lunch at the cafe next door. I again order sadza nyama and a Zambezi beer, which is fast becoming my favorite meal.

 Later we visit the Denabe Gallery in the city centre.  Then back to the hotel for the Italian Night buffet at the Sheraton. At the buffet I meet and congratulate members of the Egyptian tae-kwan-do team for their outstanding performance at the African Games. In the Lobby bar I have a drink with the National Director of Sports from Swaziland. He is fresh from a conference in Beijing and seems quite happy to be back in Africa.

Guinea knocked off Algeria in a game that required police intervention to protect the referees from the players. They will meet Zimbabwe in the semifinal round tomorrow. Egypt will take on Nigeria. I regret that I will not be here for the finals on Saturday.

Elvis Alert!

Take a look the following images recorded at the Mbare Market today:

Now consider the following:

• Elvis sightings at Burger Kings in the US have declined dramatically in recent years.
• Simultaneously, hand carved wooden masks bearing an uncanny resemblance to the "Old" Elvis are turning up in Harare, Zimbabwe.
• Searching the entire market, I could find NO "young" Elvis images!
• Coincidence? I don't think so.

I would advise any Elvis hunters to immediately buy a ticket to Zimbabwe before the trail gets cold.

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NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: This is a back-post / cross-post from my first on-line journal/blogging effort - a journal of our Southern Africa Tour in 1995. Originally posted to an abandoned domain (NetSnake.com), the term "blog" had not yet entered the parlance. I am migrating the original posts to this blog. Links to the original journal Date Index or Africa Tour Home Page will likely eventually disappear. The images from the original post were graphics and screen caps from video which I am leaving in it's low-rez glory for historical integrity. My intent is to also add some of Sigrid's higher quality scanned photos to these blog back-posts.  The difference in images should be obvious.