At the end of August I was very privileged to be one of 10 agents invited to an “Educational” at the newly renovated Fothergill Island on Lake Kariba. This is when agents get to have a proper stay and look at the lodge, so they can fully acquaint themselves to its unique features in order to better sell it to future guests.
The other 9 agents were flown in by charter plane from Harare, as I was the only agent based in Kariba I was transferred to the island on a very pleasant speedboat trip from Marineland Harbour which took only 40 minutes. Something special to note is that, unlike most lodges, when you book and pay to stay at Fothergill, your rates INCLUDE all boat transfers as well as National Parks fees, so you literally just arrive with your suitcase and jump on the boat – which saves some hassle. No need for extra payments or paperwork in harbour!
I had never been to Fothergill before, when it was previously operating, so I had no preconceptions. I gather it was a lot more rustic before, but it is now a high end lodge, exclusive and suitable for the international market, pity it wasn’t yet complete when Paris Hilton made her recent trip to Zimbabwe.
We were met by the ever smiling Dean, with nice cool face clothes and an ice cold welcome drink, before being shown to around the lodge. The main entertainment area is actually made up of not 1 or 2 areas, but 4 sections you can relax in, including the beautiful pool which overlooks the lake. Fothergill is charged out at an all-inclusive rate, which covers all of your activities, whether that’s game drives, walks, archery or fishing, they even provide all your fishing rods and bait! I think the men in our party were salivating over the equipment that they have, all top of the range, very neatly organised and well looked after. They even have branded golf buggies which can be used to bring guests up from the Island Suites if need be. Guests not coming to Fothergill Island, but using the airstrip are accommodated in a lovely little room adjacent to the airstrip, with a nice toilet and complimentary cold water while they wait for their respective lodges to collect them.
There are technically 3 different chalet sections. The first is the more intimate Island Suite Section – which is made up of 3 suites which have their own entertainment area and are located on the far left of the island away from the other suites. Then there are the 3 Bush Suites – which although overlooking the lake, are located in amongst the mopani trees and bush. Finally there are 4 Lake View Suites to the right of the island which have a more frontal view of the lake. I was sharing a lake view family suite with Heidi, we absolutely loved our room. Each room has a tea and coffee station with rusks and Dean’s roasted mixed nuts, a mini bar and their very own splash pool out on the front deck.
After a complete walk around the grounds we had all worked up an appetite and Dean didn’t disappoint with his cold buffet which was served on a deck off the main entertainment area. Something special about the lodge was that each of our meals was served in a different location, so we felt we really got a good feel of the lodge. After lunch we were free to either lounge by the pool or go back and relax by our own splash pools until the afternoon activity.
We were soon introduced to professional guide Dave, who has an interesting history with Fothergill Island in that he did his apprentice/training on it back in his youth – talk about coming full circle! Dave is extremely knowledgeable and we had a wonderful game drive, which ended with sundowners and champagne overlooking the lake – gosh what a stunning spot!
The organiser of the trip, Robyn, is known for her fun nature and she had asked that we all have a bit of a fancy dress ready for our first dinner, with the theme being ‘Dress Up/Dress Down.’ It was great to see everyone make an effort,a fun evening was had by all.
The following morning everyone was up early, for their activity which on this day was either a game walk or drive. Robyn is a keen runner and she chose to do a 7km run along the foot path which runs around the grounds and makes for a nice jogging circuit for avid exercise enthusiasts, or for those with kids as a “nature walk.” A group of us were with learner guide Lionel on a game drive and we had a nice long drive and learnt a lot. The icing on the cake was the surprise breakfast in the bush Lionel had managed to keep under wraps from us – what a gorgeous setting and again, the most divine meal prepared by Dean IN the bush!
Back to camp we went, completely full from our champagne breakfast. I most certainly needed a couple of hours to chill and digest it all. Lounging in my very own splash pool was where I spent the middle part of the day, before we all headed out with the 2 young fishing guides, Kyle and Michael (who have both fished for Zimbabwe by the way!) for our afternoon activity. A fishing competition had been called and my team was called Loudmouth Ladies and we had Marion as our very able (but non-fishing, gin pouring captain). Needless to say, we of course won the competition. After another tasty dinner and great company we all headed to bed for a much needed good night’s sleep.
All too soon it was our final morning, but there was just enough time for one more quick activity. Some went on a morning cruise to spot the seasonable and endangered skimmers (they found them!) while Heidi and I went on a game walk with Dave. We saw quite a few elephants and “elephant beds” which I had never seen before. It’s where they lie down on the ground, usually up against a termite mound, to sleep. The “bed” we saw was so fresh we could even see the indentations from the wrinkles of the elephants trunk! We also saw some very skittish impala after they let out a warning call. We never saw what they had been afraid of but when we got back to the entrance to the camp we saw fresh lion spoor – and the very next day Dave messaged to tell me 2 young male lions had killed a buffalo, so we presume that’s what we nearly bumped in to!
And then it was time for a quick breakfast before we all headed off to our various destinations. The others via charter flight to Harare and I was once more skimmed back across the lake to Marineland, what a lovely way to end a trip. Fothergill Island is most certainly a destination to add to your bucket list if planning a trip anywhere in Zim. You will be looked after like gold and leave feeling completely refreshed and spoilt with wonderful memories to last a lifetime.
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