The Devil's Pool

Stepping off the little tin boat, that had just taken us from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia across the Zambezi River to Livingstone Island, it hit me for the first time that this swim was not going to be as easy as I had imagined. For some silly reason I thought that you would simply step into the Devil’s Pool from the safety and security of the island, like stepping into a rock pool from the sand of a beach – but I was wrong.
It takes a rocky walk and a swim across the current of the Zambezi River to reach the Devil’s Pool. From the edge of the island bank it looked like quite a feat. The river’s current was rushing over the edge and crashing down to the base of the falls at great speed.
We joined hands and slowly edged our way into the river. Carefully watching our step as we navigated our way across the slippery rocks, stepping over logs and watching out for anything moving, hoping we wouldn’t come across an angry hippo this close to the falls edge. Then one by one we took the leap into the deep waters of the Zambezi and swam as fast as we could across the length of the current and to the safety of higher rocks.
Finally we could see the pool that we had all come to swim in. A tiny pocket of still water, beautifully located at the very brink of the waterfall, surrounded by rocks. We sat on the edge of the 108 meter waterfall, surrounded by a bright rainbow and the mist of the falls. It was the most exciting and exhilarating feeling I have ever felt. The challenging trek to cross the waters of the Zambezi made this moment even sweeter. We lay on the edge of the falls, our hands and faces peeking over the ledge, watching the mighty power of the water smashing into the river bed below and feeling the tiny nips of baby crabs on our legs and feet.
We made the swim back to Livingstone Island, where beautiful locals served us breakfast on the island bank. Never has breakfast been as delicious as the Eggs Benedict and Orange Juice that was served atop this amazing place. With a magnificent view of the falls from our table and the sounds of nature around us, we fell in love with Africa.
The Devil’s pool is the ultimate infinity pool. Due to the strength of the Zambezi current the Devil’s Pool is only open between late August and early January as swimming when the current is any stronger would send you over the edge of the falls. We were so lucky to have had this experience as the pool closed for the season one day after our adventure.