Upper Zambezi Fishing

Your flight will touch down on the hot African tarmac of The Livingstone Airport around midday, where a Shackletons representative will be waiting to meet and escort you to Shackletons Tiger Fishing Lodge.

Tiger Country’ is a small part of the upper Zambezi River that stretches approximately 100km from Katima Mulilo to Impalila Island (where Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe all meet). Shackletons Tiger Fishing Lodge is located half-way between these two points, right in the heart of ‘Tiger Country’.

This very special part of the upper Zambezi is ‘Tiger Country’ because of the floodplains. The river rises for 6 months of the year (December – May) to form the floodplains and recedes for the other 6 months of the year (June to November). The annual floods rejuvenate the river system around Shackletons Tiger Fishing Lodge. The river re-stocks itself with everything from crustaceans, to insects, to fish that go to the flood plains to feed and breed.

The annual variation in water level is up to 7-8 m in Caprivi, with an annual average of 5 m. The water level usually rises sharply in January, with one or more peaks in February-April, before a decline in May-June. Thus, the floodplains are annually inundated from February to June.

The flood plains are vast expanses of water that prevent humans from building permanent structures and damaging the environment. This is what makes the upper Zambezi such a pristine part of the mighty Zambezi River.

The tiger fish stay in the upper Zambezi River all year around. They do not go into the flood plains. The upper Zambezi tiger fish must adapt their feeding habits according to ever-changing river levels, water clarity, water temperature, and food sources. This means that we must change our preferred tiger fishing methods and tackle throughout the year.

Fishing!

The Livingstone experience ends with a leisurely breakfast followed by a transfer to the Livingstone Airport for your early afternoon departure.