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TO MOZAMBIQUE, VIA GONAREZHOU NP, AND MUTARE.

Saturday 19th March      316km to Gonarezhou

Gonarezhou National Park borders Mozambique and is the second biggest Park in Zimbabwe and the least visited.

Each campsite has a different rate and a lot were closed so our one at Chilojo Cliffs was $21 pppn, so decided on two days there and that came to $140 suddenly with all the other added fees !  Saw a few ellies and took a back track which was rather rough and difficult to follow and was happy after two hours of foundling in the bush that it came to an end. We had campsite 1 which o erlooks the river, but there is nothing there, no ablutions only a long drop and that's it.

It is a beautiful spot with a 500 feet river bed and the actual river running down it is maybe 60ft, so a lot of sand and the other side has these colorful rock cliffs rising from the river. If you've ever been to Utah and driven the White Rim Trail, you wouldn't even look twice at these cliffs, but everyone is really impressed with them and they are special.

I convinced C to go bathe in the river and assured her there were no cross around as it was a pig's willy little slow flowing river, cross and hippos don't  hang out in those kind of areas. She went down and I diligently sat with my binoculars and kept a watchful eye, for any disturbance in the water. She walked up and down looking in the water, for what I don't know. She finally got bathed and did some laundry and then told me there was something in the water. This is before she has had anything to drink. I then went down and washed up in the river, a few elephants upstream were drinking and a troop of baboons were also nearby drinking and scrounging for food. 

I then cracked a nice cold Zambezi and sat in my chair with my binoculars and scored the the area, and dosh garnet up on the sandbags there were two crocodiles,one was huge and then a bunch of hippos came out of the water to feed on the banks. Who would have ever thought !

Aah well it was all good, the next day C showered with a coffee cup and I didn't  shower at all. We had a nice braai with the Mapani wood I bought at the gate and burnt the chicken again, but since we only have one meal a day, it was still good so I thought.

In the middle of the night the wind picked up and for about two hours it was a gale force and just lay awake the entire time and then suddenly it was calm, and then managed to get a few more hours of sleep.

The long drop has never been my favorite place to go, just to any memories and horrible le stories keep me away from the long drop, so a shovel in the hand is the way to go when you gotta go. Enjoyed the day just sitting and watching the animals appear and disappear. 

GONAREZHOU TO CHIMANIMANI  328km 

We left the park early and it took 5hrs through some beautiful countryside to Chimanimani, and found our camp ,The Frog and Fern and got to rent a house for $40pp and it was cold and even made a fire inside. We went to see some lame waterfall and on the way back we were blocked for an hour and a half cause of a broken down grader and a truck that could not fit by, so theyhad to dig the hillside away. 

CHIMANIMANI TO MUTARE     180km

22nd March 2022

I took the shorter route on a dirt road through the mountains, was up high and a very remote, scenic but slow road, 64km took us 3 hours but well worth it, plus it was shorter.

While going along this crazy road we passed an ambulance with a guy yelling on a bullhorn ,just in the middle of nowhere. So I stopped and asked him what's  the deal and he wanted to know if  was vaccinated as he could do it for me for free. In Zimbabwe they all wear their masks, even when driving, it has really been notice to me how they all comply.

The road unfortunately ended and we were back on tar road to Mutare. We stayed in Vumba which is up in the mountains at a place called Seldomseen for $10pppn which had a great camping spot on grass and overlooking into Mozambique and it has a small cottage you use which has a bathroom and kitchen that you can use and two bedrooms , so you could camp inside if you wanted to. We first went to Leopard Rock Hotel which has some stunning gardens and a golf course,  we had some lunch there and sucked their wifi for a few hours. Princess Di stayed there way back when in room 11 and now the place has only one customer and it needs a little maintenance, with covid nobody is travelling it seems, well we entered Zimbabwe like a week after they opened their borders and the hotels etc are happy to have people back . 

Buluwesi who runs the camp is a bird guide so we did a two hour birding experience with him and the guy knows his birds, I could hardly see them in the trees, but it was fun and he gave us some history of the camp and it's surroundings, which are pretty sad. Nobody has work and there are no jobs so it's  awkward sometimes travelling amongst these poor people, the stories are so sad and it will take generations for it to change.

Stayed two nights and then went to Mutare , Hillside Golf Club which is only 30km away and they have a camp area on the old bowling green and then you use the clubhouse bathrooms.  Met Kevin on the way in who runs the place and was really helpful and would not let me pay for a round of golf I played. We ate at the clubhouse, nice chicken sosatie and chips.

I didn't  realize that the next day my visa expires and we had to leave for Mozambique. 

GONAREZHOU NP.

      Frog and Fern  Chimanimani. 

     

    LEOPARD ROCK HOTEL 

SELDOMSEEN   VUMBA CAMPSITE

HILLSIDE GOLF COURSE  MUTARE  

KARIBA TO HARARE 370km

SUNDAY 13th March 2022

The plan was to go to Mana Pools but all three bridges have been washed away so will head to Harare.

The traffic wasn't to bad and it took just over five hours, overtaking is difficult, plus the Troopy has no power so I putz along at 80kmph. Went to a country club to grab some lunch and get our bearings and then headed about 30 km outside of Harare to a lake to camp.

Following day went to Toyota to get a service and no luck ,have to bring it in tomorrow.  Found a nice place in Harare which is owned by Deon and Martha which has a pool and self catering rooms or they make you dinner ,which we opted for. They owned three farms and they were all taken away from them from 2000 to 2010, the first two was a violent take over and the third was done through the courts. They lost everything, he got quite emotional telling me about it. He was part of the documentary  Mugabe and the White Farmers  which I happened to see in Seattle years ago. I had asked him if he knew about the documentary and then he told me " the rest of the story". So sad, but the guy is amazing ,he holds no grudge and seeks no revenge but still has a court case going on about it to this day.

TO HWANGE AND DOWN TO KARIBA DAM

 To Hwange NP    210km.      2nd March 2022

Fred left for Cape Town today, so we departed after breakfast and said our good byes after three weeks on the road. 

Went to Robyn's camp the long way around, and the wrong way around, 210km and six hours of driving and didn't  see any animals and we are the only one's in the camp. ($70)

Left early in the morning for a camp just outside the east end of the park 180km away. Arrived at Tuskers campsite ($10pppn) and once again the only one's there and a real gem, with a lodge nearby with a swimming pool and a hide which we are allowed to use.

The narrow roads have been rough and the tar roads are a patchwork of potholes and donkeys and goats wondering around aimlessly, much like myself.

Meanwhile at the hide they throw down salt which the elephant's can't get enough of, at one stage there were over fifty milling about some playing in the water and others taking a mud bath. The days are very hot but luckily we have had some good cloud cover which helps tremendously. 

At around 6pm the camp guard told us of a lion kill nearby, so we all bailed into the Troopy and it was right next to the main tar road , twenty feet inside the bush. Two lioness killed a fully grown Kudu and the seven cubs were trying to eat it as the mothers watched there feeble attempt at trying to eat it. It had hardly been touched, then suddenly the one lioness went over and dragged it a metre more into the bush and then was joined by the other one and then started tearing into it and you could hear the teeth breaking into the skin and bones. It was getting dark but luckily had a torch and was able to watch for a little longer and then headed back to camp, where they had started a fire for me for the nightly braai.

The following morning after coffee we shot back to the kill only to find the entire Kudu devoured and someone attached a rope to it's horns and then on to an anchor like device.  

Spent time at the hide just watching the elephant's again as they come and go in huge families all day long. The swimming pool was nice and refreshing and with no guests I lounged around all afternoon. 

The camp gard made another nice fire for our steak braai, the Mopani wood is the best you can get ,the coals are still there in the morning.

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TO MAABWE CAMP   150KM   5TH MARCH 2022

I like to leave early in the morning in case of any misfortune along the way, cause over here I misjudge the distances and the time it takes to get there cause every kilometer of every road is different.

Leaving the camp we stopped at the Kudu again to find it had moved a few meters and the rope and anchor were gone but the horns still on the carcass. Stopped for diesel, but they had no fuel, so I continued on as I had a full spare tank. A dumb move. Took about five hours to get up to Maabwe camp which is near the beginning of the top of the dam.

Got there only to find the gate locked and bell not working ,so scaled the fence and surprised the owner, Richard who was most welcoming and took us to our camp spot and then brought over some nice Mopani wood  with some complimentary Breem which he catches in the lake and really hit the spot as we hadn't  eaten all day.

We decided to stay another day as it is such a nice camp and the ablutions are the best we have encountered so far , as they built it for themselves when they started the camp and now it is for the campers. Margot brought over some freshly baked scones for breakfast and then took us on a tour of the camp and another fishing camp over the hill.

They then invited us over for a braai at their house, which turned out to be a most enjoyable evening with lots of information being given for North eastward travel and Richard's life around the world, very inspiring. He cooked a mean steak and the Nederburg Duet and plenty of beer was consumed with lots of laughs.

MONDAY 7TH MARCH 2022

DEPART TO CHIZIRIRA NP    116km

The roads are bad and average 25kmph and then from the turn off up to the park is 9km and it took an hour going up the mountain. The campsite is bare bones , has a Lapa and is on the 500ft cliff edge, not a big deal over here, the edge of the Lapa roof is in line withe cliff edge. The grass is tall and on a short drive around the park weren't able to see anything, so just enjoyed the solitude of the campsite and the night stars after cooking up some pasta. 

Tuesday 8th March 2022

Depart for Matsudona NP.       250km

Going back down the mountain was even slower and passed all the school kids in their nice pale green uniforms walking to school . I am amazed at how many primary schools are along the roads in these rural areas, which is a good thing Mugabe did as you find their English and penmanship is rather good surprisingly.  The Zimbabwean's are really friendly and seem way better off than the South Africans in the rural areas and townships.

Had a 48km detour as the bridge had washed away and had to go back the long way around, which was 7 L of diesel as the Troopy is very thirsty in this heat, and now with only a half tank of diesel, it was a huge error as I won't  have enough to get to the next fuel stop, so am hoping I can get some from the national parks guys, if not I don't  know what I will do.

The road turned from bad to horrendous  and it took us an hour and a half to go 25km, but the Troopy eat it up, no problem unlike my passenger !  Got to camp after 9 hours and no lunch or water and no fuel to spare.

The offices were huge and lots of staff and vehicles, was really surprised as the camp is so hard to get to but they use the ferry to get to Kariba Town which is so much easier.

The campsite was on the edge of the dam all to ourselves with nice ablutions and elephants wandering around around us and a visit from a hyena. We stayed two nights ($ 102) and I begged for fuel and they sold me 29L at $1.71L. I guess the war in Ukraine has pushed up the prices, so they tell me, not having wifi since Vic Falls I have no idea what's going on out there, which is fine with me, I have my own problems,  like trying to keep up with this blog ! 

Made a beautiful Mopani fire , takes forever to get coles for my steak and some boerewors, which I cooked to perfection finally and chugged some almost frozen beers. Windhoek Lager are only 330ml so like three gulps and you onto the next one which thankfully I had and they are only 4% abv so it's like carbonated water, you can drink all day, like my old neighbor Bob, well he claimed he only had one at lunch time ! Sure Bob.

Thursday 10th March 2022

DEPART TO KARIBA TOWN     380km  9hrs

Heard rain so jumped out of the tent and it was only 5am and by the time I had my pants on it had stopped, so we packed up and left at 6:30am. One helluva ride out for 70km to the junction, well I enjoyed it, the Troopy once again lapped it up. I didn't  realize it was that faraway,  looking on Maps.me it looked a lot closer than 380kmbut once again I was wrong but after nine hours we arrived at Lomagundi Camp in Kariba Town, which is a private like boat club and they have a few camping spots on nice green grass and lots of shady trees for $24 a night.

Had to run into town and got a sim card and the to the grocery store for some beer and chips. Didn't  eat the whole day again so went to the restaurant at the camp and chowed down on some peri peri chicken and chips with a few Zambezi's to wash it down.

Did a dam tour with a guide for three hours and is sad to hear how the tourists have all dissappeared and resorts closed and the suffering it has caused.

The lake is 280km long with a shoreline of 2000 km and the widest part is 32km.  

A French company is doing a massive repair job to the wall which will take five years and is being funded by the world bank, almost take as long to fix it as long as it took to build it by the Italians in the late fifties.