A forced break in Mpika

A forced break in Mpika

Not as bad as it sounds. We had intended overnighting here in northern Zambia, but we are staying a bit longer than expected at Bayama's Lodge in order for Chris to fix a broken anti-rollbar bracket which broke on rough roads a couple of days ago. Luckily he found that they do welding here at the Lodge and he has had it repaired, but not a quick job to fix it back in place. It is just one of a few jobs which need sorting: another is the headlamps which don't work on dipped, and as we are the only ones staying at the campsite this is a suitable place to stop before the border to Tanzania. With hot water on tap, if a little rusty, it also gives me the chance to catch up on clothes washing to hang out on the line in the sun and wind. Enough of the menial stuff.

Our last day/night in Botswana at Senyati Camp didn't disappoint. Fortunately we were able to occupy a site with its own facilities (in fact the same one we stayed at last year) and we witnessed a huge herd of buffalo at the water hole, besides many elephants. With less water they were not frolicking about as before but it is incredible to watch them from a few feet away.

Leaving Botswana the following day, Tuesday 8th May, was easy. Our fears about the paperwork were unfounded and we escaped without a question. The pontoon ferry across the fast flowing Zambezi was busy and we had to wait for the 4th one, which we shared with several trucks and a group of young Germans travelling from Namibia. The tourist passengers were asked to leave their vehicles and board the pontoon on foot. The ferries had to cross the river crab-like and head upstream to allow for the fast current, and just before reaching the opposite shore we were told we could get back in the vehicles. Unfortunately it was impossible to open the doors on the Enterprise as we were so closely packed and I had to wade through the river into Zambia with water up to my knees! It took nearly an hour before all the paperwork was completed and we were on our way to Livingston.

Last year we stayed at Jollyboys Campsite, which was having a lot of building work done. We checked again there for space and were pleasantly surprised to find great improvements and a warm welcome awaitied us. It had been high season in Botswana for tourism, but here in Zambia it is very quiet. As it was still early in the afternoon, we decided to revisit Victoria Falls as there was so much water in the Zambezi. It had been impressive last year, and we are glad we visited then as we had a good view of the entirety of the drop. This time, believing that we would just get a little damp from the spray, we passed up on hiring cagoules which were offered at the entrance. The spray was so dense it was difficult to actually see the falls, and by the time we reached the Knife-Edge footbridge, the spray was reaching such a great height it was falling as torrential rain and flooding the footway. We got soaked to the skin and our boots full of water, causing us to shiver. Returning to the top of the falls the sun was pleasant and the roaring of the river as it cascaded over the drop was deafening. We were pleased to get back to the Enterprise for a change of clothes, but it had been well worthwhile seeing Vic Falls in full flow. We celebrated crossing the border with a meal out at Olga's Italian Corner before an early night at Jollyboys.

Knowing that the road north to Lusaka had very bad patches and would take us a while, we set off early on Wednesday and reached the Wanderers Backpackers in the city just before dusk. Travelling at this time of year means that the temperature is cooler and more pleasant, but the days are much shorter which means it is dark by the time we start cooking in the evening and not so good to sit outside to eat. We are making the most of the lower temperatures now (around 25C in the middle of the day) as it is going to get considerably hotter the further north we go. At the Wanderers we met a middle-aged Dutch couple who spend 3 weeks each year in a different African country, travelling entirely on public transport. We joined them for a meal at the in-house restaurant so we could chat. The company was great, which is more than can be said about the food!

Next day, it was an easy drive back to the Forest Inn near Mkushi where we spent a couple of nights 6 months ago, researching the area for flying close to the DRC border. Chris had identified a farm on Google Earth before leaving home, which turned out to be the very same owner as we were given details of last year. What luck that he met a lady having breakfast at the Forest Inn who used to be a neighbour. Through another neighbour we were given details of how to get to the Great North Ranch, we would never have found it without. It was so far off the Great North Road that it took us 1hr 5mins to drive on a good dirt road to begin with until the turn off, across a river and another 40 mins til we reached the farm. Roger and Dawn Sherriff were expecting us and gave us a warm welcome. They invited us to eat with them that night, along with their elder daughter Celia who was home from school with malaria. We had a very interesting stay with them and learned a lot about farming in northern Zambia. The following day we spent driving around the area trying to find a possible place to launch the balloon from, but their farm was still 8 kms from the DRC border and there is a lot of dense bush. Having done our very best, we decided we would have to give up and admit defeat. Another enjoyable evening with the family, and their eldest son Adam as well, home from school for the weekend. We appreciate what a hard life it is to make a living on a farm in Zambia. Although we left without having made the balloon flight, it was lovely to spend time with the Sheriffs