Eclipses 2001      Africa

 

Text Box: TSE 2001 Zimbabwe In June of 2001, I led a group of 13 travelers on an expedition to view the June 21 total solar eclipse. It was an honor conferred on me by Civilized Adventures and the Calgary RASC. Our first destination in Zimbabwe was Lake Kariba, a manmade lake 220 km long and up to 40 km wide. The dam was completed in 1960 and is a major hydroelectric producer. As you can see from the photo, their mid winter weather was more pleasant than or summers! After a days rest, our trip took us across the Zambia border to a place where we started our 3 day canoe trip down the Zambezi river to a remote site in Mana Pools National park. This is where we would see the eclipse. The Zambezi river is a huge river, up to 3 km wide at points. We were constantly aware of Hippos near shore and the occasional crocodile. We also saw a few fishermen in dugout canoes and many incredible birds. We stayed overnight in our camp in Mana Pools on the day before the eclipse. It was a restless night and I stepped out of the tent a few times to view the southern sky in a pristine black sky. There was one of Linear’s comets passing through south of Pegasus that I caught. When Morning broke, the weather was fantastic, not a cloud in the sky. It was pleasantly cool and we went for a walk where we saw lion paw prints among other signs of animals in the area. We set up our equipment in a “soccer” field used by the support staff for the local lodge. We were staying in tents just ½ km up river from the lodge. The eclipse occurred at around 1:12 pm local time and the photo to the left shows the view above the Zambezi escarpment. We saw shadow bands and an exquisite 3 minutes and 15 seconds of totality. The week following the eclipse we visited a game park, an Elephant camp, Hwange National park and Victoria falls. Two crazies on our trip had the nerve to do the bungee jump off the bridge over the Zambezi gorge. This bridge is 111 meters above the water. You are in free fall for 6 seconds before the bungee looses it’s slack and then it takes another 6 seconds before you the bungee is taught. Yikes! At the time the Zimbabwean dollar had an exchange rate of $136 per US dollar, and as a guide I was responsible for the tipping. The largest currency note was the $100 bill, and at times I was carrying $65,000 to $70,000 Zimbabwean dollars on my person. Makes you think twice when walking about a very poor third world country with a backpack full of money! The exchange rate has only worsened in the time since. Our group was comprised of 4 people from Lethbridge Alberta, 2 from Edmonton area, 1 from Ottawa and another from the east coast plus a number from the USA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Nikkor 300 f 4.5 and Nikon  2 x extender

 

 

 

 

 

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Copyright © 2006 Murray D. Paulson