The Lower Zambezi National Park is among Zambia’s 9 main functioning national parks, all with access and accommodation. It was declared a national Park in 1983. The Lower Zambezi National Park is in the Lusaka province of Zambia. On the opposite bank is Zimbabwe’s Mana Pools National Park. The two parks sit on the Zambezi flood plain ringed by mountains. The area is a world heritage site. The park itself is ringed by a much larger game management area (commonly referred to as the Game Management Area- GMA); there are no fences between the park and the GMA and both animals and people are free to roam across the whole area (Mount Hermon Safari Cottages like most lodges in the area is located in the GMA area). The attraction of the Lower Zambezi park and its surrounding GMA is its remote location. The lower Zambezi Game Park is 4092 square kilometers. The Lower Zambezi National Park stretches in a narrow swathe from the Chongwe River in the west to the Luangwa River in the east. The Lower Zambezi Game park is one of the prettiest National Parks in Zambia, with the Zambezi River forming a natural border to the park and the Zambezi Escarpment serving as a stunning backdrop.
Until 1983 when the area was declared a national park the area was the private game reserve of Zambia’s first president Dr. Kenneth Kaunda. This helped the park in being protected from the ravages of mass tourism and remains one of the few pristine wilderness areas left in Africa. The park gently slopes from the Zambezi Escarpment down to the river, straddling two main woodland savannah ecoregions distinguished by the dominant types of tree, Miombo and Mopane: Southern Miombo woodlands on higher ground in the north, and Zambezian and Mopane woodlands on lower slopes in the south. At the edge of the river is floodplain habitat. The Lower Zambezi National Park is home to all of the major species in the valley with excellent sightings of elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard wild dogs, hyena, waterbuck, zebra, impala, bushbuck and kudu to name a few.
Occasional sightings of the Cape wild dog occur throughout this park which is one of Zambia’s best strongholds for them. Birdlife in the area is also outstanding, making this a real hotspot for ornithologists. The River’s edge is overhung with a thick riverine fringe, including ebony and fig trees. Further inland is a floodplain fringed with mopane forest and interspersed with winterthorn trees and huge acacias. The hills which form the backdrop to the Park are covered in broadleaf woodland. Even though the Lower Zambezi National Park covers an area of 4092 square kilometers, most of the game is concentrated along the valley floor. The Zambezi escarpment along the northern end acts as a physical barrier to most of the Park’s animal species. Enormous herds of elephant, some up to 100 strong, are often seen at the river’s edge.Island hopping’ buffalo and waterbuck are common too. The Park also hosts good populations of lion and leopard, and the fish eagle.
There is a wide range of activities in the Lower Zambezi meaning that there is generally something for everyone to enjoy. Activities range from water based activities such as canoeing, river cruises and fishing to game drives, nights drives and walking. Combination activities are offered, as are full day activities with a delicious picnic lunch on the banks of the Zambezi River. Fishing is good in the lower Zambezi Game Park and GMA. Mount Hermon Safari Cottages offers fishing with rods and simple tackle. Healthy Tiger fish and bream catches are common as well as vundu, a member of the catfish family along the Zambezi river and one can find Tilapia, Bream, Sharptooth catfish, African Pike, Scaled Barbel and Yellow fish along the Kafue river.
Let Mount Hermon Safaris take you into the Lower Zambezi national park for a memorable tour.
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