What are the roads like in Zambia? The short answer – shocking. The potholes are out of this world. They come in all shapes and sizes – miniature, jagged edged pockmarks that look like the lunar surface; road-width trenches that sneak up on you; corrugated fill-in jobs. Journeys in Zambia often take twice as long … More Zambia’s insane potholes: a survival guide
Spitting gravel, our 4×4 raced down the dirt road. Kapishya Hot Springs Lodge was nearby. Well, we hoped so, anyway – the blood orange Zambian sun was setting quickly, we had already lost our map, and we did not fancy driving at night. A branch smashed off the windshield as the forest leaned across the … More Kapishya Hot Springs – The Secluded Oasis Lodge in Zambia
Africa might be the continent with the world’s best road signs. With so much incredible big game living across the vastness of the continent, it’s no surprise that motorists should be warned of a giraffe crossing the road, or elephants ahead. On a road trip through many of Southern African countries, we encountered a lot … More Discovering Amazing African Animal Crossing Signs
A self-drive journey through the country of Zambia is an experience unto itself, and not a trip for the faint of heart. The condition of the roads is downright disastrous at times, the landscape is dry and rugged, and towns are few and far between. Navigation and phone signals often fail, road signs that indicate … More The Ultimate Zambia Road Trip
This epic road trip through Africa, in a high-clearance 4×4, took myself and two companions six weeks to travel through seven African countries. The objective was to drive from Cape Town to Zanzibar island off the coast of Tanzania, and back again, an epic distance of more than 12,000kms (7,500 miles). It was a daunting … More Africa Overland – An Epic Road Trip from Cape Town to Zanzibar (and Back)
Blue skies, wide sandy beaches, soaring palms and fishing boats bobbing in sparkling waters. This is Vilankulos, Mozambique’s paradise beach getaway. So far, Mozambique had not been comfortable on our self-drive. Sand and offroad, potholes and camping. It was time to relax with gin and tonics.
Wessel was complaining that he thought he had malaria. He felt feverish and nauseous. I said that that was highly unlikely; like all of us, he had been taking his daily Doxycycline, and we were in winter, not prime mosquito season. Besides, I imagined someone with malaria would probably feel significantly worse than Wessel.
It only took us about four days to pass through Zambia. What was originally just a transit through ended up being awesome fun. We loved the challenge of the insane potholes, the offroad highways to nowhere, the beers and the zombie antelope. One challenge remained. To exit the country by road.
Zambia was zooming past at great speed as we crossed it’s great arterial highway. Golden brown scrubland, dry skeletal trees, yellow-tinged earth, low rolling hills. Small villages clustered by the highway, clusters of tiny thatch huts with people and livestock standing around, sweeping leaves or carrying bales of wood. This truly felt like wild Africa.
This African highway was never ending, and we had no chance of finding a place to sleep. The sun was setting and long, cool shadows were mingling with the last intense rays of a crimson golden hour. We had been driving down this gravel road all afternoon, and we were exhausted. The closest hotel was … More Enjoying the company of lions on an African road trip
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