That was towards the end of 2004 and as the result of a challenge from Ken Gibson, motoring correspondent of The Sun. Much red tape had to be overcome to achieve the feat, and once that was taken care of, it was all down to planning – scouting the route and sourcing the right equipment. All that was helped by Wildtrackers’ man-on-the-spot Rob Clifford being fluent in the local language.
The mile-wide river approaching the Falls splits Zambia and Zimbabwe, but the Wildtrackers’ team stayed towards the Zambian side. Having spent three hours wading the river to establish best routes fro crossing, the team took two vehicles across with the help of winch work, sand track and bridging ladders.
It sounds simple but the water and deep fissures in the riverbed made this a treacherous mission – just right for the Wildtrackers’ boys. In simple terms, it took nearly five hours to put the Jeep in place and about three and a half hours to get it back on shore.
Help from Mark Selby of Foley 4×4 in Livingston and Russel Young of the Maramba River Lodge was much appreciated by all at Wildtrackers.
