In the far south of Malawi the Shire River winds it's way from Lake Malawi through gorges and mountains, waterfalls and plains to reach the southern Lower Shire Valley, part of Africa's Great Rift Valley and Malawi's lowest region at 50 metres or more below sea level. Eventually, the river leaves Malawi into Mozambique where it winds it's way into the Zambezi and on into the Indian Ocean.
Driving from Blantyre, down into the valley, the road takes you down the Thyolo escarpment with dramatic twists and turns and stunning view points. There is accommodation on the escarpment just out of the city and various lodges in and around the parks on the valley floor.
There are three main parks or reserves here, all of which have been subject to major conservation projects in recent years with wildlife numbers increasing all the time. Traditional ways of life and culture are important in this region and The Lower Shire Valley Heritage Trust has set up a visitor centre which has a small museum, a craft shop, library, education and managers office and a meeting area and ablution block. Many ethnographic items which were collected in local villages along with archeological findings are exhibited there. There are many worthwhile community projects in the region and another fascinating attraction for visitors is to see the Gulu Wamkulu dancers, which are dressed in ragged costumes, usually wearing masks and on stilts. The valley is also home to many sugar estates, providing an important industry to Malawi. In colonial days, cotton products were woven in the valley and provided an important industry, in recent years local craftsmen have introduced weaving projects again and these can be witnessed in various locations.
The main wildlife areas in the Lower Shire Valley are Majete, Mbwavi, Lengwe and the Elephant Marsh. Majete Wildlife Reserve in recent years has been the centre of a major push by African Parks to re-introduce large mammals and will hopefully revert to being a big five reserve in the next few years. Mwabvi Wildlife Reserve is the country's smallest and least visited reserve but has a lovely wilderness feel to it and has very interesting scenery and topography, low hills being covered by mixed woodlands and has many rocky gorges and large boulders and rock formations. Wildlife is also being reintroduced here too. Lengwe National Park is Malawi's most southerly park and is the most northern distribution limit of the striking Nyala Antelope. The area around the park has been used for sugarcane but the natural vegetation is protected now. The vegetation is fairly thick so mammal sightings are difficult but it's an excellent birding destination. Elephant Marsh sits near Lengwe and is the flood plain where the Shire River meets the Ruo River, which forms the border between Malawi and Mozambique. No longer are there the masses of elephants which David Livingstone described, but it's an interesting area and a hot spot for birding. The biggest mammals here now are hippos and crocodiles. The marsh can become very flooded in years of high rainfall.
During October - December, the heat in the valley rises to boiling point and the lands can be very dry, the Shire River giving a vital year round life line to the people and animals of the region. Temperatures vary dramatically from the cool hills around Blantyre to the heat of the valley floor.
