One of the items of my must-do list is rafting the Zambezi. Not that I am particularly into adrenaline sports, but this African adventure sounds amazing. I hear that Zambia is trying to market itself as the adrenaline-sports center of Africa, with rafting, bungee-jumping, climbing and such and it has become quite touristy. I wonder how Hemingway would feel about this “new Africa”. Since hunting for lions is no longer acceptable for Western tourists, I guess he would have to settle for white-water rafting.
The Zambezi River and the gorges below the Victoria Falls are classified as Grade 5, but a few portions are classified even higher – Grade 6: unrunnable. July-March are supposed to be the best months to go because the river is fairly low and more rapids can be done. Although Zambia does not publish a list of casualties, people who have done it say that it was, at times, a near-death experience. (Those might just be the people imagining the rare underwater encounters with hippos and crocodiles).
Any insights from anyone who has been?