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Expedition description:

The walk began in Luambe National Park about three hours drive North from Mfuwe. From there we cross the Luangwa River by boat, leaving the river behind we set out heading westwards towards the Muchinga Escarpment, a good 8 days walk ahead of us. 
The trail would take us between North and South Luangwa Reserves following the perennial Munyamadzi River towards the Escarpment. There are GMA's (Game Management Areas) on both sides of the Munyamadzi, but hardly anyone living on the Northern bank where we where, compared to the South. The GMA we were traversing was called Luawata, which is a remote buffer zone between the North and South National Parks that extends from the Luangwa River to the escarpment. It is said to have over 8,000 buffalo, lots of lion, and plenty other game too...plus angry elephants, it is also said to have the largest hot springs in the whole of the Luangwa Valley, which we were fortunate to overnight at.
The going was tough, hardened mud flats pockmarked by last seasons elephant and buffalo footprints seemed to go on forever in the 45 degree heat. We soon learnt that following the the Munyamadzi river was easy in principle but like all rivers meandered its way through the region it added kms to our route, so it was’nt long before we change our strategy to follow a more direct path.  As we approached the escarpment the tributaries and valleys depend and we found ourselves climbing hill after hill with no end in sight, with the escarpment seemingly always out of reach. 
Finally we reached the escarpment, having branched off on the Mutinondo River, that formed a 2,5km long series of cascading waterfalls that was to be our gateway to the Miombo highlands above. Spectacular as it was it was somewhat surprising that it was so remote, seemingly hidden. In fact very few pictures exist on the internet of this natural wonder. 
Our 800m ascent took a full day and we took time to enjoy the many rock pools and waterfalls, truly a spectacular sight overlooking the Luangwa Valley. On the highlands the miombo woodland was broken by large granite domes with open grassy wetland areas, known as dambos’ that marked out the upper catchment area that formed part of the greater Luangwa River system. Our expedition drew to a close as we moved deeper into the miombo highlands leaving the valley behind, ultimately ending our journey at Mutinondo Wilderness Lodge.
As It turned out it we followed in the footsteps of some early European explorers; as in 1866 David Livingstone crossed the Luangwa River, before fording the Mupamadzi and Munyamadzi Rivers to get to the Luawata area. In 1894 E.J. Glave found fossil trees close to the Munyamadzi River and the escarpment. In 1896 Cyril Hoade visited the same area and reported masses of fossil trees, running for many miles south, along the foot of the Muchinga Escarpment. He also described the hot springs across the Munyamadzi River...