Lake Kariba, Zambia and Zimbabwe

Construction on Lake Kariba began in the early 1950's out of the necessity to generate hydroelectric energy for Zambia and Zimbabwe. Kariba was designed and conceptualised by a French engineer named André Coyne, who is a renowned “arch dam” specialist.
It's not safe to swim along Lake Kariba's shallow shoreline due to the waterborne parasite bilharzia, and the high numbers of crocodiles and hippos. (It's generally okay to swim further out in deeper water, so a quick dip from your houseboat is usually fine!)

The construction of the dam meant that the surrounding areas would be flooded. This would result in the loss of habitat for both humans and wildlife. As a precautionary measure, the Tongan tribes of the Gwembe valley were relocated. This relocation was negotiated on the basis of the economic benefit for both Zambia and Zimbabwe. The construction of Kariba was a very controversial topic, especially since the local people believed that: "The dam’s construction would anger the Zambezi River god, Nyaminyami. They believed that Nyaminyami would break down the bridge and cause catastrophic floods. -To this day, it is believed that Nyaminyami lives under a rock close to the Lake Kariba dam wall." The rock has been named “Kariwa“, which means to trap. The locals have warned that canoeing past this location can be fatal. This is where the name Kariba comes from.

The history of Lake Kariba is riddled with historic mythology and is described by locals as a spiritually powerful body of water that is revered and respected by the locals of Zambia and Zimbabwe! Not only did the Tongan tribe lose their land as a result of Kariba’s construction, but the wildlife in the surrounding areas lost their habitats as well. Thousands of wild animals fled, in search of higher ground away from the powerful body of water. Rangers and volunteers from national parks in both Zimbabwe and Zambia, rallied together to save animals stuck on islands and in trees. They were later called “Operation Noah” and succeeded in saving over 6,000 animals, including elephant, zebra, antelope, lion and rhino.

Today, Lake Kariba is the 4th largest man-made lake in the world and the 2nd largest in Africa! This Lake in Zambia is one of those undiscovered Riviera! It offers spectacular views, stunning sunsets, great fishing, boating opportunities, water sports, safari on the shoreline and wonderful relaxing holidays just soaking up the sunshine.

The weather is mostly sunny and fine. It can get quite hot in mid-summer (about January and February), but even mid-winter days (about July) are warm and the nights are balmy.

This is the planet’s largest man-made dam: 226km / 140mi long and in places up to 40km / 25mi wide. It is also the world’s largest water reservoir by volume. It provides considerable, hydro-electric power to both Zambia and Zimbabwe and supports a thriving commercial fishing industry.

The sheer size of it makes you forget it’s a dam and in certain places it almost feels like an ocean! There are islands with wildlife sprinkled around (Chete and Chinanka are among the largest) and access from the Zambian side is fairly limited – the Zimbabwean side offers more facilities. (Chinanka is privately owned and open to guests of the fishing lodge only.)

The major towns are Sinazongwe and Siavonga, with the latter being more developed and offering more ways of accessing the dam. The main focus of Kariba is houseboating and fishing, which is permitted year-round rather than seasonally like other lakes and rivers in Zambia.