Mana Pools National Park – Zimbabwe (Southern Africa)

The Mana Pools National Park is situated in Northern Zimbabwe, and it essentially constitutes a region of the lower Zambezi River in Zimbabwe, where the flood plain is transformed into a vast expanse of lakes, after each raining season. As the lakes gradually dwindle in volume, following the subsidence of the rainy season, it becomes a centre of attraction for numerous animals seeking to fulfill their fresh water needs. This offers one of the most marvelling wildlife viewing opportunities in Africa. Mana Pools National Park has been declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO); while in 2013, the Mana Pools were designated a Ramsar Wetland of international importance.

Mana denotes “four” in the local Shona Language, which essentially makes reference to the four massive permanent pools or ox-bow lakes formed at the meanders of the Zambezi River, when it altered its course thousands of years ago. The park thus comprises 2,500km² (965ml²) of river frontage, islands, sandbanks and pools, flanked by stunning forests of mahogany, wild figs, ebonies and baobabs. The park has the largest concentration of hippopotamus, crocodiles and massive seasonal land mammals such as elephants and buffalos.

Mana Pools constitute part of the 10,500km² (4,054ml²) Parks and wildlife Estate that stretches from Kariba Dam in the west to the Mozambican border in the east. This vast area is virtually devoid of physical boundaries, and the wildlife enjoys unrestricted mobility throughout the area, including northwards across the Zambezi River into Zambia, where there are also large wilderness areas set aside for wildlife conservation.

As one travels northwards from the forest on the Karoo sediments towards the Zambezi River, the vegetation takes an entirely different form, mostly comprising open Faidherbia albida woodlands on the old river terraces. This provides an exceptional look to the area, as a surreal light filters through the stunning trees, imbuing the atmosphere with an air of solemnity.

On the old river terraces, visitors can walk unaccompanied by guides, in the open Albida woodland, considering its excellent visibility and little danger of unexpectedly encountering dangerous animals. This possibility of walking in an area with dangerous wildlife is unique to Zimbabwe. Elephant, eland, buffalo, impala, waterbuck, baboon, monkey, zebra, warthog and hippopotamus; are some of the larger herbivores regularly present on the river terraces; as they emerge to consume the fallen Albida fruit. Lion, leopard, spotted hyena and cheetah also abound in the area; but their secretive nature mostly puts them out of sight to the visitor. Despite that, all in all, the probability of catching sight of these larger carnivores is considerably high.

There are a number of camps in Mana Pool National Park, where visitors can lodge.

Activities in the park include walking safaris, game drives, sight-seeing etc.

With its remote location in the extreme north of Zimbabwe on the Zambezi River, Mana Pools National Park is far from any human settlement. To travel there, one drives along the main Harare- Chirundu tarred road and at the bottom of the Zambezi Escarpment, gets off the tarred road onto a dirt road that takes one 70 km into unspoiled bush to Nyamepi Camp. There are a number of game-viewing roads that run along the Zambezi River and further inland; from which one can view a wide variety of wildlife. Visitors can obtain a free entry permit to access the Nyamautsi wilderness area and Kanga Pan, where vehicle entry is limited to two per day.