Matusadona National Park

The Matusadona National Park is situated on the shores of Lake Kariba, between the Ume and the Sanyati rivers. The Park covers an area of 1407 km of which only one third is provided with roads for visitors, the other two thirds consists of very wild, rugged and inaccessible country.

Open woodlands on the plateau behind the escarpment are dominated by Julbernardia globiflora and have suffered considerable damage from an overpopulation of elephant. The mountain acacia, Brachystegia glaucescens, is also common on the slopes and ridges of the escarpment.

From the plateau the park falls abruptly to a flat, low-lying area covered mainly with mopane scrub and woodland and with dense patches of jesse bush. The entire northern boundary of the park is created by the lakeshore itself. This shoreline, which is subjected to irregular variations in water level caused by fluctuations in annual rainfall, is still in a state of rapid ecological change and development.

The Matusadona National Park is most easily accessible by boat from the town of Kariba, some 12.4 miles north. Several commercial tourist camps are located around the borders of the park. It is also possible to enter the Matusadona from the gravel Karoi-Kamativi road south of the escarpment.

Visitors are allowed to get out of their cars and view game on foot, but this is done at their own risk. Wild animals are dangerous and unpredictable. Elephant, buffalo, impala, kudu, and waterbuck are plentiful, whilst rhino, lion, sable, eland and zebra are frequently seen. Escorted walks with a Game Scout are possible, subject to availability of staff at the time.

Winters (May to September) are like luscious Mediterranean summers with warm, sunny days and cool, clear nights. There is never any snow, not even in the eastern highlands, but overnight frosts and freezing temperatures are not uncommon anywhere on the plateau.

Most of Zimbabwe's rain falls in brief afternoon deluges during electrical storms in the summer months (October to April) and bring little relief from the humidity.