At Victoria Falls, between Zambia and Zimbabwe, jumpers plummet 111 metres, making it one of the most exhilarating bungee experiences in the world. Photo by Vic Falls Bungi

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, has long been referred to as the adventure capital of the world, a place where adrenaline is served right alongside an ice-cold Zambezi lager. Fittingly, in addition to the classic sampling of active stunts like whitewater rafting and the adrenaline high-wire thrills, this playground for daredevils also lays claim to one of the most heart-pounding bungee jumps in the world.

A Brief History of Victoria Falls Bungee

Bungee jumping in Victoria Falls began as a business in 1994 and has successfully launched around 150,000 adventurers off the infamous and historic Vic Falls Bridge. What makes this jump the best bungee in the world? Perhaps it’s the unimaginably unique setting, the awesome jump staff or the quirkiness of being in a no-man’s-land between two the countries of Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Imagine this: A 105-year-old iron bridge constructed in England and then shipped to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) to form part of the great Cape-to-Cairo railway envisaged by Cecil John Rhodes. The bridge crosses the full expanse of the Batoka Gorge, 120 metres above the Zambezi River, a legendary African river that cuts and hurtles its way through the steep, black rock faces of the rugged gorge on its journey to the Indian Ocean.

What might Rhodes have thought if he knew that one day his bridge would become the stage for the best bungee-jump setting in the world? The bungee platform itself is anchored to the side of the bridge, exactly halfway between Zimbabwe and Zambia. Better than any movie set creation, the waters of Victoria Falls form the incredible backdrop. These falls are where the 1.7-kilometre-wide Zambezi River is channelled over a 90-metre drop into a narrow, 100-metre-wide gorge, creating fast and furious torrents and rapids racing beneath the bridge.

Don’t Just Watch. Jump!

Bungee jumping is a fascinating spectator sport. Crowds gather to watch people fling themselves into a gorge with nothing but a sophisticated rubber band to catch them. Will you be among the next to take the leap? Here’s an exercise of the imagination to help you visualise yourself on the bungee platform getting ready to jump:

In 1905, Cecil Rhodes ordered that an iron bridge be shipped from England and assembled over the gorge separating today's Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is now an ideal bungee platform. Photo by Vic Falls Bungi

The mist of the falls cools the onlooking crowds from the heat of the African sun. As you step into a harness, mixed emotions kick in. The initial excitement following your decision to jump begins to fade as you are suddenly aware what the harness symbolises; to all those watching, you are an adrenaline seeker, ready to take on the challenge! Is it too late to turn back and lose face? Only you can decide that.

Stepping through the platform gate, you are now even closer to a moment of truth. Hosiah and the bungee team seat you on a bench; they wrap padding towels around your ankles, talking in soft reassuring tones as they attach the cord and safety gear to your harness and ankles. Your mouth begins to dry up; you lick your lips in a vain attempt to find a speck of moisture to soothe the dryness stress has brought on. Your smile diminishes but the cheers, jeers and chatter of the crowd continue.

This is the moment of truth. On the platform, before you leap, the staff tells you "Don't look down!" Photo by Vic Falls Bungi

Almost oblivious to all around you, you try and focus on everything the crew tells you. ‘Don’t look down.’ ‘Keep you hands out wide.’ ‘Jump forward.’ ‘Smile for the camera!’

It’s time. You’re encouraged to stand and hop to the edge of the platform, ankles bound together, camera men at the ready. Your toes grip the surface as you face outward to the Victoria Falls Hotel ahead, aware of the vastness that surrounds you, the yawning chasm below. Hosiah begins the countdown: 5… 4…  3… 2… 1… BUNGEE!

Vic Falls Free Fall

Nothing has prepared you for the free fall; you hurtle 111 metres toward the Zambezi River, screaming all the way. Then, just before all hope is lost, the cord kicks in and you recoil upward toward the bridge. Just when that seems too close, you drop for a second time. Don’t forget to smile for the camera!

Hands out wide, you jump forward and smile for the camera! The free fall begins as you wait for the bungee effect to kick in. Photo by Vic Falls Bungi

By now you begin to relax and take in your surroundings. You see the majestic falls thundering into a boiling pot, the rapids beneath. You recoil again and again, slowly losing the bounce with each rise and fall.

A crewman has lowered himself from the bridge, descending adjacent to the bungee line in order to recover you. He grabs your hands and turns you toward himself. You smile and thank him as the blood rushes through your veins, adrenaline pumping. The feelings of exhilaration are beyond compare. Grinning and waving to all your mates, you set your feet once again on the solid iron bridge, alive! You made it! How many more will dare to jump today, take the plunge, face the fear?

Don’t be a spectator. Try it for yourself. Just jump! I dare you.

The spectacular 'Lunar Rainbow' cuts through the mist given off by Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

In Zimbabwe, troubles have surfaced in the area surrounding the majestic Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. The enveloping Victoria Falls National Park and its neighbouring Zambezi National Park both boast incredible biodiversity. Within the dense rainforests and riverine jungles are rare plants and animals like mahogany trees, elephants, kudu, hippos, herons, crocodiles, cormorants and kingfishers. In recent years, however, many native species have suffered from an increase in poaching.

Fortunately, one group has worked tirelessly to confront the growing crisis.

A Need for Action

In January 1999, having observed the increased threat to the parks surrounding Victoria Falls, a local safari operator named Charles Brightman joined forces with the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge to establish the non-profit Victoria Falls Anti-Poaching Unit (VFAPU). Working in conjunction with the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, local police and the Forestry Commission, the VFAPU combats the destruction caused by environmental, subsistence and commercial poaching.

Environmental poaching is the removal of plants, trees, soil and other local species and habitat. Examples include the pilfering of sand for use in making bricks, quarry stone for construction or plants for food. The biggest threat of all, however, is the unsustainable removal of indigenous hardwoods for firewood (for cooking and warmth), carvings and structural supports. Over the last decade, due to the deteriorating economic situation, local residents have devastated Zimbabwe’s forestry zones. There are an estimated 5,000 curio vendors in Victoria Falls alone and the indigenous hardwoods harvested as raw materials are African ebony, pod mahogany and the mukwa. Research conducted by the Forestry Commission indicates that in certain areas, 80% of the mukwa trees have already been destroyed.

The Victoria Falls Anti-Poaching Unit (VFAPU) started with three scouts, but now has 12 full-time members who patrol the Victoria Falls area of Zimbabwe seven days a week

To counter this, VFAPU spends time in local communities reinforcing the importance of preserving the environment, while also identifying sustainable alternatives for, for example, cooking and heating. The VFAPU delivers its conservation message through song and dance with the aid of drama groups, and gives demonstrations on the use of stoves that use alternative fuels like sawdust (available free from local mills). Working with the Forestry Commission, commercial carvers are provided free transport to and from the forestry headquarters, where they can purchase wood.

Scourge of the Snares

Subsistence poaching poses a deadly threat to wildlife in the national park areas surrounding Victoria Falls. Gangs of poachers set traps along animal migration trails used to reach food and water sources. Trapped in wire snares, animals can suffer for several days before they die. The poachers then butcher the animal on site, hang the meat up to dry for several days and then send it to local communities to sell. As ‘bushmeat’ is sold at a cheaper rate than meat available at the butcher, there is a huge demand for the poached produce.

Mammals regularly targeted for their meat include buffalo, kudu, eland and impala. The snares, however, do not discriminate and larger, stronger animals are sometimes caught. Their attempts to pull free often result in the broken snares embedded in their limbs, snouts, trunks and tails resulting in mutilations and serious or life-threatening infections. To date this year (2010), 99 snares have been removed from the area and 18 mammals have been removed from snares: one eland, four impalas, three warthogs, six buffaloes, one sable, one spotted hyena, one elephant and one kudu.

After butchering animals caught in their snares, poachers hang the meat up to dry for several days before taking it to the markets to be sold as bushmeat, a popular and relatively inexpensive delicacy

In conjunction with the National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority – together with local veterinarians and wildlife experts who volunteer their time – VFAPU has been successful at darting and treating animals found alive in snares, removing the snares and treating the infection. Unfortunately, many animals are discovered dead, do not survive their injuries or, due to the severity of their wounds, must be put down.

Conservation in Crisis

Commercial poaching – the sale of plant and animal products such as ivory, horns, feet and skins – is also prevalent in Zambezi National Park. The most common victims of commercial poachers are rhinos and elephants, the coveted ivory tusks of the latter the most frequently poached product, sold to traders in the Middle East and Far East and carved into artefacts. Elephant feet are also used as footstools and umbrella stands, while their hair is used for bangles and their skin cured for leather.

Driven by a consumer appetite for their distinctive horns – prized for their translucency when carved and their supposed health properties – all five of the world’s rhinoceros species have been brought to the edge of extinction. While we can report on a successful breeding program for black rhino in Zambezi National Park, the survival of the species is still in doubt due to an increase in poaching of both white and black rhino in Zimbabwe.

VFAPU scouts catch a poacher red-handed. The wire snares cause trapped animals inestimable suffering and result in a slow, agonising death.

Sustainability through Education

As with all conservation and environmental recovery efforts, educating the local communities is one key to success. When subsistence communities have been pressed by financial crisis and are fighting for their survival, finding reasonable alternative practices and resources is the biggest challenge. To help with this process and provide new sources of income, training programs now teach skills such as weaving and embroidery. Wood is also made available through the forestry commissions.

Educating travellers is also vital to the success of conservation efforts in Zimbabwe. Through his travel company, Discover Safaris, Charles Brightman has launched a new activity: the Wildlife Conservation and Awareness Safari. Participants learn about VFAPU’s operations and the challenges it faces before being taken into Zambezi National Park to record game sightings, identify spoor, patrol and sweep for wire snares and investigate for signs of poaching. An anti-poaching horseback patrol has also been introduced; experienced riders are invited to search for snares as a step in learning about conservation efforts in the park.

Volunteers and local companies continue to give time and money in support of the Victoria Falls Anti-Poaching Unit’s proven success in protecting Victoria Falls National Park and Zambezi National Park. From a starting full-time staff of only three people, VFAPU has grown to include 12 active scouts charged with patrolling the 50-square-kilometre area surrounding Victoria Falls. Committed to the recovery of snares, authorised to capture and arrest hardened poachers and armed with a determination to educate the local communities on the importance of sustaining the local environment, the Victoria Falls Anti-Poaching Unit presses on, playing its part in protecting the parks and resources of Zimbabwe for generations to come.