Victoria Falls
Project Location: On the outskirts of Victoria Falls town, Zimbabwe. A stone’s throw away from the magnificent thundering waters of the Falls themselves.
Project Summary: This programme is a combination of work on our lion breeding and rehabilitation programme that is an extension of our Antelope Park programme, along with National Parks conservation work and community development initiatives. The lion programme entails hands-on experience with our lion cubs as they prepare for their eventual release into the wild.
Coupled with the lion programme is the Victoria Falls National Park conservation initiative. African Impact has been granted special and exclusive permission to assist the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management in their conservation and research work in three of Zimbabwe’s most famous National Parks. Included in these three are Hwange National Park (the same size as Belgium and home to staggering numbers of the Big 5 including over 50,000 elephants); the Matobo National Park (Double World Heritage Site) and the Victoria Falls National Park, where this particular project is located.
We are working alongside experienced ecologists and zoologists to gather essential data on various wildlife species and their habitats that will be used by National Parks rangers to add to the effectiveness of their conservation and wildlife management procedures and policies.
Volunteers’ time will be divided between the lion rehabilitation programme, conservation and research activities in the Victoria Falls National Park and local community development initiatives e.g. Conservation Education in local schools.
- Project Highlights:
- Walk alongside lions as part of the pride and enjoy the exhilaration of being part of a hunt as the young cubs learn to stalk their prey
- Bottle feed and help take care of younger lion cubs, should there be any at the time Work on the world’s leading programme for the release of lions back into the wild
- Experience the African bush in a very special way as you spend time out in the Zambezi National Park and Masuwe Big 5 areas
- Conservation work in the Victoria Falls rain forest – overlooking the thundering waters of the Victoria Falls
- Immerse yourself in local Zimbabwean culture
- Make friends for life with the other international volunteers on the programme
- Conservation Education in local schools gives you a wonderful insight into the local community
- Project Travel Highlights:
- During your stay at Victoria Falls you will have the opportunity to enjoy an excursion to some of the other spectacular spots that Zimbabwe has to offer. These trips are also a great time for volunteers to interact and get to know each other better. An optional extra excursion such as the one outlined below will cost you approximately US$310 (this includes the National Parks fees), which is payable in cash on arrival at the project.
- Day 1: Leave after breakfast from Victoria Falls for Granite Ridge Lodge (Matobo National Park). Enjoy a half-day Rhino Walk & Game Drive as well as a Cave Painting tour. You will also have the chance to visit Cecil Rhodes’ resting place at ‘worlds’ view’
- Day 2-4: Leave after breakfast from Granite Ridge for Antelope Park. Here you will have the chance to visit the headquarters of our lion rehabilitation programme, horse ride through the savannah plains of the game reserve on horseback or African elephant and stay at our safari camp on the banks of a beautiful river
- Day 5: Leave Antelope Park for Miombo Safari Lodge (Hwange National Park); the largest national park in Zimbabwe, and the same size as Belgium! You will get the opportunity to go on a game drive where you could get up close and personal with a herd of elephant, buffalo, a pride of lion, pack of hyena and many more
- Day 6: Leave after breakfast from Miombo for Victoria Falls Whilst at Victoria Falls, ‘the Adrenalin capital of Africa’ you will have the chance to take on the worlds’ premier white water rafting; bungee jump off the bridge over the gorge below the Falls; sunset cruises on the Zambezi River