The day of water

31/08/09

The day began early...a 6am start, with breakfast at 6.30 and an apparent departure with Jackson at 6.45. Jackson did not materialise until an hour later, by which time we were regretting waking up so early and contemplating the heat that was apparent at this young hour.

We took a boat across the beautiful lake (Tanganyka). Having watched Natalie fall on the rocks, we were very cautious on climbing in. The boat journey was amazing with a cool breeze catching us every so often. Seeing the islands and the mainland in the early sun and watching the fisherman out on the lake was so pictoresque. We made it to shore, with a slight detour on the way as the guides quizzed others for the best route to Kalambo Falls. We became dubious as to whether Jackson knew where he was going, especially as it was now 10am and very warm.

On the shore we were greeted by kids as is the norm all over Africa. As everyone wiped the sand from their shoes, we were eager to get going on the said "40 minute, slightly challenging hike". The beginning was challenging but manageable in the heat, fairly flat and step like. Then we began climbing. The climbing seemed to go on and on for ever. Scrambling up rocks that were clearly unsafe...what got me was the lack of waterfall in sight (at least with Wli we could see the waterfall) and the depressing fact that the locals were managing a balancing act whilst running up this assault course. How?!

We never lost hope as we believed that the end was over the top of the hill.
We still had miles to go. At this point I felt severley dehydtraed and we'd started walking in broad sunlight.
The episode in the sun continued for ages and I was running out of water...we then encountered another fairly steep climb, before more flat sunshine. Yet still no sign of the waterfall.

A while back we bumped into some other "Musungus" who indicated to us that we still had an hours worth of walking. So much for the 40mins...
We finally reached the waterfall at 12.30 and it was completely worth the walk. The falls were stunning. I braved the cold water and somehow clambered into the freezing water. I was not amused that the sharp rocks grazed my knee in the shallow waters, but significantly it was the border between Zambia and Tanzania...I've swum to Tanzania and back. Ha!

We began the epic journey back...the bit I was dreading. We took a short cut, but this didn't manage to avoid a treachorous clamber down the rocks. This was a petrifying encounter, especially as unlike Wli I had no guide to grab hold of. Ruth helped me down most of the way, although walking involved sliding on my ass!

I should also add that we drank some of the river water out of desperation as we'd run out of the pure water, so all of us were dreading cholera, bilhazia and typhoid.

The boat journey home never seemed so welcoming. The cool breeze, the occasional spray. But we quickly became aware of the ever decreasing amount of sunlight, which we'd enjoyed taking pictures of. Aided by the fact that we seemed to be running out of petrol...we were starting to get worried. Halfway across the lake, the boat did decide to break down and the sun had set in the sky. Jackson suddenly produced these oars and attempted to row home. Quite how, I know not and it kept seeming like we were moving nowhere. We kept asking if we should phone ashore for help...land anywhere? but the guts kept paddling and we were moving somewhere, slowly.

Finally we reached dry land. I'm so thankful to the Lord for keeping us safe.