Chobe and the Okavango Delta
Trip Start
Dec 02, 2007
1
49
55
Trip End
Sep 01, 2008
Okavango Delta,
Botswana
Friday, August 1, 2008
Our first experience there was a game cruise in Chobe National Park, an area that is known for getting tourists up close and personal with the animals, which are less disturbed by boats than jeeps. Sure enough, we viewed a variety of animals from our boat, including a large herd of elephants, including babies, hippos, crocs and various monkeys and antelopes. For a short moment we thought we were about to see a fight between a hippo and a croc, but alas it wasn't to be...
We left the park the following morning, lamenting the fact we did not have another day there. A common feature of overlanding, which we had time to discuss on a long drive day to Maun, the gateway to the Okavango Delta.
The Okavango is the largest inland river delta in the world, and is one of the places Charlotte and I were most looking forward to visiting, even at the start of the trip. We stayed in a campsite nearby that night, before booking on to a two night trip into the Delta.
The chosen method of transport in the Delta is the makoro, a type of traditional dug out canoe that sits very low in the water, which is poled by the 'driver' standing at the back in a manner similar to punting. We were dropped at the pickup point, where Charlotte and I met our guide, KT.
Ready for a brawl?
This was lucky for us, as not only did he have the best English of the guides for our group, he was also the fastest as he eventually modestly admitted after much cajoling.The configuration of a makuro means that the most comfortable position within the boat is lying down on a sleeping mat, with a pillow and legs out in front. This was the position we adopted for the next couple of hours as we were gently guided through the water with reeds passing by at eye level. There is something almost dreamlike about the experience, and we arrived supremely relaxed and looking forward to our next trip in the boat.
The Oasis group was to camp on a large island in the Delta, and warned not to go wandering into the bush alone. The reason for this was soon apparent, as we were taken on a guided game walk in small groups, and warned about elephants and lions, in particular. The walk was through typical bushland, where we viewed two elephants butting each other at sunset, and the spectacular site of zebra galloping around us in a perfect circle as we approached. This was an amazing sight that is difficult to explain, but the photos may give an insight.
That night we returned to camp for dinner and some drinks and card playing. We have been successful in initiating a game we learnt in Asia, Yaneth, an Israeli game with Chinese (well, rules we invented there) rules, that gets everyone suitably competitive.
The following morning I went on another bushwalk while Charlotte slept in.
Delta view
Again, we spotted zebra and elephants (from a safe distance). Thankfully, the closest we got to lions was following some tracks from the previous night. An afternoon spent dozing and relaxing in the waters passed, before a sunset trip in the makoros to a hippo pool, where we were rather too close for comfort to the animal that kills more people in Africa than any other.After dinner, the guides offered to perform some traditional Botswanan songs, which were very impressive. Less impressive were our offerings when asked to reciprocate - think the 'Hokey Cokey' or 'Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes' sung somewhat self-consciously by a group who had had a couple of beers and you'd be close. This doesn't quite portray the hideousness of some of the girls thinking 'Saturday Night' would be a good idea though...
The following morning we returned to camp, where we had booked a scenic flight over the Delta. We split ourselves into groups and were led to our aircraft, a surprisingly small Cesna. The flight itself, piloted by a British guy from Devon who was just a bit too cool for school, provided some spectacular views of the scenery and wildlife, and was livened up considerably by swooping low over the water, climbing ridiculously and some heavy banking, all designed to part us from our lunch. No such troubles on our plane, but some weren't so lucky...
After catching up on the cricket and having some dinner, we retired to bed ready for the early departure into Namibia, the penultimate country of our trip.
