Safari Around Victoria Falls

You can add a safari in Hwange National Park to your Victoria Falls holiday

Victoria Falls, being a natural wonder of the world is on the bucket list of many travelers. Not only is it a spectacular waterfall, but there is also a large array of activities available, from sedate sunset cruises to bungee jumping, making it the Adventure Capital of Africa.

It also lies in the centre of some the best wildlife parks in Africa, so it makes sense to add on at least an extra few days for a wildlife Safari, for that holiday of a lifetime!

The dilemma now comes as to which national park to choose. The three big ones normally in question, because they are the closest to Victoria Falls are; Chobe National Park, Hwange National Park and Zambezi National Park.

Each one has its pros and cons, so making a decision can be quite difficult, especially if you have not been to this part of Africa before.

In this article Chobe, Hwange, Zambezi National Park comparison, I have tried to explain in-depth the differences between each of them, with specific regards to the game viewing, the accommodation, the guiding, the seasons and the logistics of getting to each one from Victoria Falls.

I trust after reading the article you will have a clearer understanding of how they compare with each other, which should make your decision a little easier.

Also touched on in the article in brief detail are the two smaller parks; Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park and the Victoria Falls Private Game Reserve, which are just outside the towns of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and Livingstone, Zambia.

Although these don’t really compete with the 3 bigger parks when it comes to an authentic Safari Experience, they have their rightful place for a quick game viewing experience.

Please also take a look at this interesting article – “Things to consider before booking an African safari”. Which covers essential information that will enhance your overall Safari Experience and ensure that you don’t make costly mistakes.

The Aftermath of Cecil

Interview with lion researcher Brent Stapelkamp

The hunting of Cecil the lion on the eastern border of Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe has triggered hysteria from the public, and it’s been difficult to sift fact from fiction.

While I was recently in the 14 650 square kilometre park, I interviewed lion researcher Brent Stapelkamp, who has worked for nine years on the Hwange Lion Research Project, which was started in 1996 by Dr. Andy Loveridge as part of an Oxford University study on the dynamics of hunting on lion populations. (Click here to download the research paper).

Brent lives on the border of Hwange, and is responsible for collaring, tracking and studying the lions that live in the east and south of Hwange, part of which formed Cecil’s territory.

Cecil was collared in 2008 with a GPS satellite collar, and at the time of his death, he was one of 30 collared lions in Hwange. The data of his movements was uploaded every two hours to a database. Together with hundreds of hours of direct observation of Cecil, the data gave Brent a better understanding of Cecil’s movements and behaviour than anyone else.

According to Brent’s data and information, Cecil was initially shot and wounded with a bow arrow at about 10pm on 1st July 2015, on a private farm in the Gwaai Intensive Conservation Area, about a kilometre east of the national park’s unfenced boundary. An elephant carcass was the bait. From subsequent data on Cecil’s collar, the research team could tell that Cecil had been killed by a second shot, about 11 hours after the initial arrow was shot into him. He died around 9am on 2nd July.