Travel Photos - Adrenaline Day, Vic Falls, Zimbabwe

We all woke up the next morning raring to go – this was the day many of us had been looking forward to in Vic Falls, some had been dreading. This was our adrenaline day. We were bussed over to the gorge were it all happened. Our base for the day was on top of a cliff that had a 60 metre drop to the valley below. We were split into teams so that we all took turns on the various activities that were on offer. We started off with abseiling.





We hadn’t done this before, but basically you get strapped into a harness which is roped in and tied to a tree or rock and then using the device on the harness to let out the rope, you walk backwards over the side of the cliff. If you’ve never done it before, its very scary but once you’ve walked over the edge and got the feel of the rope travelling through the device on the harness, its very easy, watch out for rope burn, and only grip with the hand behind your body, the other hand is useless. It was great fun. The trick is also to lean out so that your body is as horizontal as possible and your feet are flat against the cliff face.





We had several goes at this as both Helen and I felt as though we wanted to improve on our technique. After we’d got down to the valley floor, we had to run around up the valley and back up the cliff to have another go – the trek out of the valley must have been about ½ mile. We were so keen we were running out of the gorge to get another go!




After a few goes of this, the guides then encouraged us to do the same but walking forwards! Whilst this might sound easier than going backwards, trust me, its not! Just think about it, walking over the edge of the cliff until you’re horizontal and then walk (or if you’re very skilled, run) down the cliff wall. We both did that once and that was enough. It took me some time attached to the rope to drum up the courage to do it, but with a dozen 20 somethings screaming encouragement, you soon do it.




Our next activity was the flying fox – again we’d never done this before. There was a steel rope across the top of the gorge – you got into a harness and then this was attached to a pulley system to the steel rope across the gorge. You then got on a 20 metre long platform at the top of the cliff and ran towards the edge of the cliff trying for as big a launch as possible so that you “flew” across the gorge. The first few times were pretty scary, but after about 3 or 4 goes, you got pretty casual about it and on my 5th or 6th go, as I launched myself off the platform I just had to have a quick think to make sure the guide had strapped me in before I launched myself off a cliff – the day was all pretty casual, (health and safety appeared to take a back seat), but just lots of great fun.







Finally we got to have a go on the gorge swing. This was very similar to a bungee except that there was another steel wire across the gorge with a bungee rope attached to the steel rope in the middle of the gorge. When we launched ourselves off the platform into the gorge, you had about 5 seconds of freefall before the bungee stretched and you just swung across the gorge bouncing up and down. It took Helen and I a lot of convincing to do this, I wanted to but with a fear of heights I knew I had to just do it and not think about it. We watched a couple of others do it and they walked up and out of the gorge with smiles and all looked fine. I went first, jumping off forwards. I was seriously scared when I stepped up to the platform and the guide was saying a little nearer, a little nearer … he meant towards the edge. Everyone was shouting encouragement from a lookout nearby. I willed myself just to do it, not to think about it, I knew if I bottled it and didn’t jump the first time, that would be it. The guide told me to just look ahead, don’t look down, he counted me down, 3, 2, 1, goooooo……. “holy sh$$$tt, bo$$ox, aaaarghh, sh$$$t”….. what a thrill, it was such an adrenalin rush, it was amazing.




I waited down the bottom for Helen, she jumped but backwards, she screamed, no swearing though. She got down and had a buzz aswell, amazing! We both rushed back out of the valley to have another go, we both wanted to try what the other had done, I wanted to go backwards and she forwards. We both had another go. Backwards was weird, you watched the sky, the cliff just disappearing past you, a great buzz still.





The next time, we had the option of going together… tied together on the same bit of rope, so we’d have to jump together. We did this one backwards. When we went off, I just screamed, no swearing. Helen wasn’t expecting this and she spent the entire swing (all 30 seconds of falling and then 3 minutes of bouncing before they lowered you down to the valley floor) thinking that I’d spotted something wrong with the harness! I hadn’t of course, but that was a blast and all the better for doing it together.

What a fabulous day and if it wasn't for our 20 something compatriates on the Oasis overland truck, we probably wouldn't have done any of this, so thanks guys, what an amzing day, it'll stay with us for a long time!

Travel Photos - Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

After breakfast, we popped down to see the falls – we couldn’t believe that we’d been in Victoria Falls for 3 days and hadn’t seen them yet. The falls have been hyped up since 1855 when Dr Livingstone first set eyes on them. As we got nearer the gentle rumble reminded us that this is one of the finest natural spectacles on earth. It’s a World Heritage Site and one of the seven Natural Wonders of the World – it’s the largest curtain of falling water on the planet! We weren’t disappointed – the spray covers you from head to toe – it’s actually really refreshing. The noise is amazing, the volume of water and the shear power is incredible – 9 million litres of water per second come over the falls in its height - it’s just such a fantastic site, just awesome!

The falls are located on the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Victoria Falls is the name in use in Zimbabwe. The older, indigenous name of Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke that Thunders) is the name in official use in Zambia. The World Heritage List recognises both names. While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is claimed to be the largest. This claim is based on a width of 1,708 metres (5,600 ft) and height of 108 meters (360 ft), forming the largest sheet of falling water in the world. The falls' maximum flow rate compares well with that of other major waterfalls.

After a heavy night on a river cruise, aka booze cruise, we had fortunately not planned anything too demanding the next day. Helen and I went down to the border crossing and paid our $10 to go over to Zambia and see the falls from the Zambian side – they are supposed to be better from this side. They were, although with hangovers we didn’t completely appreciate them apart from the spray that we got – that really refreshed us temporarily. So we had seen the falls now from both the “Zim” and “Zam” sides.





The Victoria Falls Bridge crosses the Zambezi River just below the Victoria Falls and is built over the Second Gorge of the falls. As the river is the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, the bridge links the two countries and has border posts on the approaches to both ends, at the towns of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and Livingstone, Zambia.

That afternoon we took the Flight of Angels! This is a helicopter ride over the falls – the falls were called the “Smoke that Thunders” long before Dr Livingstone came around the corner. You can see why when you’re up in the air – you can see the mist or spray of the falls from over 30km away. It was our first time in a Helicopter, it was just amazing. The flight was incredible, you got to realise exactly were we’d walked in the morning and it made us realise the enormity of the falls. It’s just like a huge gash in the land that water just seems to be falling into at a huge rate – absolutely stunning.

After our flight over the falls the helicopter swooped down and flew down the mighty Zambezi over all the rapids that we’d rafted down a few days before – the rapids didn’t look as bad 50 feet off the river. It wasn’t until we saw a raft in the river that it made you realise what we had done – this put some perspective on the river and made us appreciate how huge some of the rapids were.

If you're going to Zimbabwe, you've got to do Victoria Falls (aswell as Antelope Park) and if you're coming all the way to Vic Falls, you've got to see them by Helicopter, a real must!

Travel Photos - White Water Rafting, Zambezi, Zimbabwe

One of our days in Vic Falls we went off in the morning for our White Water Rafting adventure. We had a large agricultural truck that we all had to clamber in and sit on the make shift seats that someone had put in the back of this truck – this was our transfer to the mighty Zambezi River. Helen was pretty calm I have to say, unusually so actually – she hates being dunked under water and yet here she was going white water rafting – I thought that she must know what she’s doing. They showed us a video of what may happen when we get thrown out of the raft. This detailed being sucked under by eddies, raft flipping over on top of us and the technique of getting back in the raft which involves someone dunking you under so that the life vest will pop you back up and give you enough momentum to pull us back in the raft. I turned to Helen thinking, excellent adventure, to see her crying – and she hadn’t even reached the river yet! She hadn’t thought that she may be thrown from the raft, let alone sucked under by eddie currents! I managed to calm her down a little but she was a little anxious to say the least.





We got to the river, or should I say the cliff above the river. The river looked quit calm and peaceful from up here. We had to walk, in our flip flops, down a wooden ladder built out of tree branches, to the river, 300 metres below where we were standing. A bit hectic. We reached the Zambezi river to meet our raft guides. We proceeded to have a practice of jumping out of the raft and getting back in, all in calm water, not much of a realistic practice I thought.


We setoff – some of the rapids are scary enough to have names – Washing Machine, Terminator 1 and 2, Double Trouble, Oblivion etc. Others were just numbers like Rapid # 14. The first “rapid” we came to wasn’t even named and wasn’t really a rapid, just a ripple in the water but it flipped about 5 of us out nevertheless including Helen and I. We got Helen back in but she looked petrified. I asked her whether she wanted to go in the safety raft (which still had to shoot the rapids) and she later said that she just wanted to be with me as she knew I would look after her. It turns out that this was probably the best thing for her.





We went down all the rapids, some of the better rapids I've uploaded videos of - Rapid 11 (no name) is above.






Above here is Rapid 13, named "The Mother". It was an odd thing, the rapids that looked really bad from a distance, we just floated over and the rapids that looked like we'd just float over gave us a really hard time, or threw us out of the raft or just simply flipped us, very weird.








Rapid 16B (above) flipped the raft completely so that Helen and I were just flipped 6 foot in the air over the top of the raft and plonked in the water which was just sucking you under and throwing you further down the river – all pretty amazing and adrenalin pumping stuff – I loved it. Helen was getting used to it but couldn’t really say that she was liking any of it really. The other boat in our group wanting to emulate our flip but couldn't, so they just dived into the Zambezi - Mad!







Rapid 18 - Oblivion (video above, photo below) was an interesting one.





We got down it having gone over 2 grade 5 rapids, these are the largest grade rapid that you can go over in a commercial trip, it was amazing. You could tell when there was a good rapid coming up, you could hear it before you could see it, that just added to the moment. One of the rapids, The Washing Machine I think, just kept the boat stationery but still it was riding the waves, just like a bucking broncho, it seemed like ages we were in it but we eventually got out and continued on our way.





Some of the highlights are shown in the video above.





Later on down the river, they let us just jump in the river and float down the rapids, they were only grade 2’s, this was quite exhilarating – Helen stayed in the boat and was worried for me but it was all fine. One of our guides in the kayak went for a surf - see video above.

It was such a fantastic adventure, I’d definitely do it all over again but don’t think I can say the same for Helen but I was still so proud of her for completing it. What a day!