Mana Pools on the southern bank of the Zambezi River is
one of southern Africa's top walking safari destinations, in addition
however, there isn't a river in the world that offers the big game,
wilderness location and adventure that you'll find here on the border
between Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Find out more about canoe
safaris on the lower Zambezi or the top walking
safari spots in southern Africa. Mana Pools itself is best
accessed via the lower Zambezi safari hub in Kariba - an easy air-hop
from Victoria Falls or morning's drive from Lusaka in Zambia.
From Lake Kariba, the Zambezi
River runs through the Kariba Gorge into the Zambezi Valley on its way
to the Indian Ocean. Here the Zambezi, so different from the one that
challenges the white water rafters at Victoria
Falls, that is home to the second of Zimbabwe's World Heritage
Sites, the Mana Pools (the place of four pools) National Park. The river
has left behind the remains of old channels forming small seasonal pools
scattered over 2 000 sq. kms surrounded by the valley escarpment. The
four main large pools are near the river, with further smaller pools
dotted here and there enabling a wide spectrum of animals to utilise the
area.
During our dry months of May to October, the Park
attracts a staggering profusion of big game, including elephant,
buffalo, kudu, eland, zebra and waterbuck. The Acacia albida tree, which
dominates both banks of the river, has a clearly visible browse line.
The protein rich pods are highly prized by numerous game species with
the elephants paying particular attention to them. Mana Pools abounds
with bird life - over 300 different species having been found there at
various times of the year.
What makes Mana Pools particularly special is it's
unique scenery coupled with the large variations of animal and bird life
created by its rich and wild heritage.
Mana Pools is the only game park in Zimbabwe holding
carnivores and the larger mammals in which visitors are allowed to walk
unaccompanied - this is of course done at your own risk. The option is
to make use of one of the camps or to access Mana Pools by canoe. If
you're planning a canoe safari, there is no place in Africa which can
compare with the lower Zambezi River - the wildside!
The best time of the year to visit this park is
May to early October during the dry season. Insects are respectfully
less active and the foliage is sparse enabling easy viewing.
Whilst the best game viewing time is certainly July to
early December as the internal water pans dry out and the animals come
down to the Zambezi River to drink, prospective visitors must bear in
mind that the valley gets exceptionally hot from October to about mid
November when we get our first rains. The roads generally become
impassable in the rainy season.
