Kasaka River Lodge

A Memorable Bushveld Retreat on the shores of the Zambezi … open since March 2002, Kasaka River Lodge, is situated in the Lower Zambezi, about 70 km from Chirundu on the banks of the Zambezi River, opposite Zimbabwe's Mana Pools game reserve.

The Lower Zambezi has always held a fascination for me. The size of the tiger, the quantity of bream, the tricky little chessa, the variety of game, the river of course... and the road. A bit of a kidney-stone shaker but manageable in a good solid high clearance vehicle in the dry season which is between April and December. The alternative is taking a ride on a boat or flying. There's an airstrip a few minutes drive from Kasaka and a chartered flight from Lusaka International Airport takes only 30 minutes.

We decided to take our chances on the road and were expecting the worst. The thing is, it is pretty bad, but as long as you're aware of the pitfalls or rather pot holes, it's reasonable and the countryside is diverse enough totake one's mind off the really rough bits (if you're not driving). Firstly there's the pontoon over the Kafue River which is free and holds three vehicles. Then there're the acres of irrigated crops between the river and the road. Everything looks lush and productive for a few kilometres and then the road forks to the right and for 60 kms there're baobabs and bushveld and small villages with children on the lookout for tourists with sweets. From time to time, there are elephant, probably also looking for something sweet! We'd been pre-warned about the ele's and it's always a good idea to remember that this is their territory and it's fine for them to come up to you but don't even think of getting close to them. Rather wait for them to get right off the road.

When the hills, part of the Great African Rift, start getting closer, you know that you are pretty close to the Lower Zambezi National Park, and Kasaka River Lodge which is just outside the Park. Kasakasaka is the Tonga word for bush and the Lodge is an elegantly carved bushveld creation right on the banks of the Zambezi. We were delighted to be finally off the road, and were given a welcoming pre-lunch cocktail before being shown to our chalets.

The gardens around the Lodge are a blend of indigenous plants with paths weaving from the chalets to the pool, restaurant and bar area. There are eight chalets altogether, including a sumptuous honeymoon suite. Chalets are the luxury tented variety with en-suite bathrooms. Each is elegantly and comfortably furnished with a distinct African flavour. Sink down into the amazingly, blissfully soft pillows and you'll find it hard to get up again!!

After a refreshing, dust eliminating shower, we headed for the dining area and a delicious lunch of fresh salad, home baked bread and quiche. The dining and bar area nestle amongst huge tamarind trees, a great attraction for elephant. We watched a huge ele snacking off branches and leaves before ambling off to the river, which is where we were headed to try our luck at a spot of afternoon, possibly-leading-to-early-evening fishing with our boat driver and guide, Lewis.

The boats are fully equipped with everything from a variety of tackle to cold boxes brimming with a good selection of refreshments. We passed a herd of buffalo grazing quietly on one of the islands in front of the Lodge.

They're Zimbabwean residents but come over to the island on a regular basis to graze. We saw plenty of elephant on the shoreline while we fished, catching, on this occasion, two fair sized bream and a few of the tiny mouthed chessa. The Lodge has a "catch and release" policy which applies to all the lodges and camps in the area. Although we didn't attempt it, fly fishing for tiger has become very popular, and all the boatmen employed by Kasaka are au fait with this method of fishing. With the sky awash with the colours of the perfect African sunset, we headed back to the Lodge, trawling, hopefully, for tiger fish!

We had pre dinner drinks beside the crackling fireplace in the library, which is situated on the deck below the dining area overlooking the river, and met our hosts Esther and Hugo Fourie, and fellow guests who had either driven or flown in from as far a-field as Paris, and as near as Mazabuka. A pair of elephant and a hippo lingered in the shadows below the deck, totally oblivious, it seemed, to our presence.

Dinners at Kasaka can be as lively and social, or as intimate and secluded as you want them to be. There was a wonderfully convivial atmosphere at the candle lit dining table which had been extended to seat twelve. Conversation ranged from the lion kill spotted in the park on the early morning game drive, to bets on who was likely to win rugby's World Cup... and who was going to haul in the biggest fish the following day. Dinner which was served with a good choice of wines, consisted of smoked bream mousse subtly flavoured with lime and herbs, followed by a succulent fillet steak with a piquant sauce, served with a variety of baked vegetables and salad, and ending with a deliciously flavoured passion fruit pudding. It was a most satisfying end to the day. After making quite sure that the elephant spotted in the early evening had not ambled up to the chalets for some night time browsing, we drifted off to bed, and those lovely cloud like pillows!

The next morning we headed out on the river to keep our appointment with what we hoped would be the Lower Zambezi's record breaking, king-of-the-river, tiger fish. Unfortunately he missed the appointment but we did haul in a 6 kg Eastern Bottlenose. We caught him with a worm and a small bottom-set hook. Normally these fish are olive grey or brown, but this fellow had an amazing golden glow to his body.. Instead of a giant silver fish, we had snagged an enormous golden fish. We weren't complaining!. We also hooked, and threw back, a number of small chessa and the attractive, glossy dark nkupi, which gave us a nice fight.

A sensible concept at Kasaka is brunch. Rather than rushing back for breakfast before 9 am, guests are treated to a mouth watering selection of brunch type dishes later in the morning. Esther, who runs the accommodation and catering departments at Kasaka has a knack for concocting dishes that lead ones tastebuds on a merry and instructive dance, with dishes ranging from soft, warm onion and herb stuffed bread to the wonderfully aromatic apricot marinated pork strips fried with sesame seeds.

A drive in the game park was scheduled for the afternoon and early evening. We set out on the now fairly familiar road, in an open backed land rover with Hugo who acted as our guide, and Shadreck the driver, through the "kasakasaka" which consisted of mainly winter flowering acacia, broad leafed combretum and winterthorn trees. Low flying crowned hornbills, the stunningly colourful lilac breasted roller, and the little emerald green white fronted bee eater accompanied us on our journey to the Park gate. There is a charge of K32,000.00 per person for entry into the Park for Zambian Residents and $20.00 per person for non residents.

Although we didn't come across them all, The Lower Zambezi National Park is home to a large number of mammal species including elephant, hippo, buffalo, kudu, zebra, impala, bushbuck, duiker, klipspringer, lion leopard, hyena, jackal, African wild dog, serval, civet, genet, aardvark, baboon and vervet monkeys, to name a few. Over 400 bird species have also been counted in the area. Our approx. 15 km journey through the park took us to the foot of Chilapira Hill which is part of the Great African Rift Valley. Hugo was on the look out for the pride of lion that had been spotted on the early morning drive resting after a night kill. We didn't see them but were happy with sightings of the wild dog pack, a side striped jackal, herds of stotting impala and the dear, ubiquitous elephant plus a variety of other antelope and a small flock of ground hornbill.

I was interested in finding out more about Conservation Lower Zambezi, the organisation that, in partnership with the Zambia Wildlife Authority, has helped to keep the LZNP as free from poaching and other illegal activities as possible, and spent the following morning with CLZ's Operation Managers Ian Stevenson and Leanne Edwards. The CLZ was established by the Safari Tour Operators and Stakeholders within the LZNP and Chiawa Game Management Area when they saw the need for organised support of government activities in the area. Co-owner of Kasaka, Alan Watson, has been a member of CLZ since its inception in 1995 and the current CLZ site is on Kasaka property. Funding has come primarily from the Royal Danish Embassy and the "Humba Bush Foundation" and there are on-going fund raising events to help keep this very worthwhile conservation project going. Thanks to the hard work of volunteers like Leanne and the elected committee of the CLZ, the Lower Zambezi National Park is considered to be one of the best protected Parks in Zambia.

After another brief, but unsuccessful visit to our favourite fishing spot-the tiny island off which we had caught our Bottlenose, we bid farewell to our fellow guests-some of whom were planning a full day's canoe trip the following day, and wended our way home. The pot holes on the way out did not, for some reason, seem quite as daunting as they had on the way in!

Kasaka are planning to build a small conference centre in the next few months. This will also be available for hire by neighbouring lodges..

The 30 minute flight from Lusaka airport to Kasaka costs US$90 pp one way (Minimum 2 pax) For more information please contact Alan Watson or Silky van Deventer at Nyamangwe Safaris in Lusaka on 01 265-836 or take a look at their web page at www.kasakariverlodge.com