Kayaking and Adventurous in Zambezi River 2018
Another Love it Live it trip is in the books! This time, the action was in Zambia on the world-renowned Zambezi River. For two weeks twelve adventurous kayakers from the UK, Ireland, South Africa, and Canada put their skills to the test on one of the world’s most incredible rivers. The group was led by Bartosz Czauderna – Whitewater Kayaker (2018 European Freestyle Men’s 2nd Place), Lowri Davies (2018 European Freestyle Women’s 6th Place) who’s company FlowFree co-organized the trip, and Robbie Mingay (2018 good guy and our big line specialist).
The trip began with three days of paddling on the Zambezi’s lower sections. These training days allowed the group to acclimatize to the Zambezi’s unique characteristics – boils, whirlpools, and powerful water flowing in the confines of the Batoka Gorge. Each day after paddling – and hiking out of the Gorge! – they returned to the beautiful WaterFront Resort, home of Safari Par Excellence Rafting. From here the group could rest and relax around the pools, enjoy the river views, or head to town for dinner and enjoy Livingstone’s electric nightlife.
Experience Zambezi
Once they were sufficiently warmed-up the group embarked on a 4-day trip starting at the base of Victoria Falls, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Along with an expert crew from Saf Par – who rowed the boats of gear and provided delicious food (and sun-downers!) – the team worked their way down the Batoka Gorge all the way to the seldomly run ‘Ghost Rider’ rapid. Along the way they paddled numerous incredible rapids such as Stairway to Heaven, Gulliver’s Travels, the Gnashing Jaws of Death, Oblivion, Chimumba, Upper Moemba, and Ghost Rider! Having rafts along for the journey meant that those who felt certain rapids were too much could hitch a ride with the raft and still enjoy the whitewater. To cap it all off, the entire trip received professional quality photos and video of their adventure.
A well-deserved rest day allowed the group to visit an elephant sanctuary along the shores of the Zambezi. The elephant interaction was another amazing highlight of a jam-packed two weeks in Zambia.
In the final days of the trip the team split into smaller groups so each member could work on their desired goals. Some spent the days mastering the many tricky rapids that lie from 11 to 25 while others worked on their freestyle moves at Rapid Number 2 and Rapid Number 8.
Thank you to all those who joined us on this incredible trip! The Zambezi River is the paddling trip of a lifetime and we are thrilled we could share this experience with others. We can’t wait for the next one! :hugging::heart:
#LoveItLiveIt #safparzambia #FlowFree #LivetheDream
Check out the video here
