Visit Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

On the middle reaches of the Zambezi River, a hundred kilometres below Lake Kariba is the Mana Pools National Park situated in the heart of the Zambezi Valley.

It is a remote, beautiful place with spectacular views of the broad flowing river, floodplains, the tree canopy and the mountains of the Rift Valley escarpment over the border in Zambia. The park covers 2,000 sq km and much of it is inaccessible, except on foot, making it a truly unspoilt habitat.

This stretch of the Zambezi River is famous for its four pools: Main, Chine, Long and Chisambuk, which are remnants of channels of the river which stopped flowing years ago. These and smaller seasonal pools dotted further inland hold water all year round, drawing a wide variety of wildlife and birdlife. Riverine forest fringes the river and pools and huge old acacia trees provide a shady canopy for the vegetation below. This beautiful area is Zimbabwe's second world heritage site.

The area is renowned for large numbers of elephant, buffalo, hippo and eland, especially in the dry season when they concentrate along the river. The protein rich seed pods of the ana trees provide vital sustenance for many species and are a favourite food for elephant. Predators are regularly sighted and the birdlife is superb, particularly for both mopane woodland and riverine species with numerous local specials like collared palm-thrush, racket-tailed roller, purple-banded sunbird and black-throated wattle-eyes.