The Zambezi Blast rafting

This trip is four days of rafting on one of the most exciting rivers in the world. I’ve been on many and I’m glad to have experienced the Zambezi before the new dam is built and most of the rapids disappear. My son and I arrived a day early an took advantage of the optional trip to Livingston Island and a close peek over the edge of Victoria Falls. We enjoyed our pre-raft trip stay at the Livingston Safari Lodge and the evening meet-and-greet dinner cruise on the Zambezi above the falls. The trip proved to be four days of class 4 and 5 excitement in the company of experienced guides. The gorge is a place of stark beauty and isolation, and our guide, a Zimbabwean with many years of experience, provided great insight into the geology, flora and fauna. Camping along the banks was quite enjoyable, in part due to the abundance of good food and evening campfire fellowship. Being the dry season with no significant chance of rain or insects, my son and I elected to sleep sans tent under the stars. The skies were wonderful with the dry and ground light-free air. The ride back up the gorge in a helicopter was a particularly nice touch as was the post trip safari in Botswana. Again, do it while you can!

I loved Zambia and rafting on the greatest whitewater in the world! The guides were expert boatmen and took us safely through exciting rapids like I had never seen before. We slept on pristine beaches along the river and stayed in lovely hotels once we were off. One hotel had a watering hole near a deck so we were able to watch wildlife gather to drink.

Being in Zambia and Botswana were cultural experiences I would not trade. I actually petted LIONS! The safari after the river trip was extremely fascinating and we were close enough to almost touch giraffes, elephants, crocodiles, hippos. I loved this trip.

I”ve been on this trip twice now; the first time with my wife and the second time with my father-in-law who was 75 at the time.

In my opinion its the trip that gives the best ‘bang for your buck’ over a week. The adventure starts on day one, hour one, when you head off from underneath Victoria Falls – from then on, in its a roller coaster of epic class 4 and 5 rapids for the rest of the week.

During the evenings, the WBN Team have scouted out the best beaches and the evenings are spent on the river bank, eating good food prepared by the WBN crew, having a drink with your fellow guests around a beach fire and sharing a story or two. No need for ipads or iPhones, this is back to basics, human communication.

When youre ready, you go to bed under a canopy of stars – with little to zero light pollution, the stars are amazing. You don’t really need to sleep in a tent (I never have) as its comfortable enough with just your sleeping bag.

To cap it all off, after the last rapid, you fly out of the gorge on a helicopter, flying back over the rapids you’ve just ridden – epic…!!

Overall this is one of the best rafting trips you can do and I would highly recommend Water by Nature to do this trip with – safety and fun being their mantra.