Our Epic Trip Continues Into
Beautiful Botswana

We step back in time and technology to the land of the Land Rover!!

Botswana

Back in the place where Landrover rules! Tony hit the ground running by spotting tracks that lead us not just to a leopard, but a leopard with a kill! Phenomenal. We saw cheetah, leopard and lion all in one day, all with cubs and kills. It’s as if we can put our order in with our guide and he finds it. I’ve gone for Aardvark (rare nocturnal) so as to challenge him. Will keep you posted.

True to the African way, the immigration officers were not at the airport when we landed, so we had to wait for them to arrive before we were able to enter the country. How comforting that those with epaulets still dance to their own drum. Progress has changed Maun, and the people have exchanged their rondavels (round mud huts with thatched roofing) for wood and tin shanties. The Herero tribe now only wear their Victorian era dresses and petticoats on special occasions, and I have not seen one of the cattle-horn shaped headscarves. On the upside, it took three planes and three boats to reach our camp in the heart of the Okavango. Happily, many things still don’t work.

The delta is as seductive as ever. Flying low one can spot elephants foraging in the water, zebra, hippo and assorted gorgeous wildlife wading, eating, eating, eating. Barren islands, fringed with Acacia and palm trees, dot the surface. These dry islands are swimming in a green sea of floating reed and papyrus - desert oases in reverse. It takes two months for the water to reach from the beginning of the delta, to Maun at its end. Accordingly, everything swims here – including baboons, which walk through the shallows with their thin hairy arms extended above their heads. Hippos dive under the floating green islands and you can trace their path by the waving plants, disturbed by the enormous bulk below. The flooding and drying rhythms are the breathing in and breathing out of the ecosystem.

We are in the midst of an exhalation, and the delta is drier around the periphery, concentrating the fauna. (“Dad loves it when the lake is half full…says it concentrates the fish”… The Castle). The unpredictability of the flow mean that the boats make sudden lurching stops when the prop hits a sand bank, and they must be thrown into reverse often, to shed the water lilies and reeds that entangle the prop. Life is abundant and the air is filled with the sounds of insects, birds and frogs, and the splashes of larger wading animals. Ever present are the haunting cries of the fish eagle. Hippos and elephants are the engineers, forcing ever-changing pathways through the floating islands, obliging the locals to navigate by the taller, static trees. The locals now use fibre-glass makoros (dugout canoes) rather than the traditional wood, as they are lighter, last longer, and help to protect the few trees that grow large enough to be used.

One evening, at camp Pelo, we were entertained with local dancing and singing around a campfire. The manager was also vivaciously camp, and, to much laughter, proceeded to dress as a woman and shake his tassled booty with joyous abandon. The one Aussie visitor there with us was initially quite lovely, until the booze kicked in and he reverted to the “Up ya bum” type commentary. Still, the white teeth and song make the happiness infectious, and fireflies flicker in and out of view, adding to the party.

We use small planes to fly between our glorious camps, and on occasion must remove elephant dung from the airstrip to prevent anything untoward. It is not uncommon for flights to be held up by creatures on the runway. The pilots are both male and female, some with long and complex African braids tucked into US style baseball caps, emblazoned with the corporate logo.

Chitabe, our camp to the west of the main flooded area, has been astounding and everyone is loath to leave. We have been exceedingly fortunate with our group, and all get on so well that customs officers and camp staff assume we are a family. One of our group however, was worried about snakes, insects, heights, and peas in the food. Our charming guide responded to the inquiry “are there insects here?” without missing a beat. He suggested we move to another spot that had no insects. Tony inquired where in Africa that might be!

Baboons also got into the vehicle last night, so there are now hand sanitiser stains on the canvas roof. As I am writing, an elephant has wandered into camp, and is standing on its hind legs, trunk extended to reach some higher delicacy. We are supposed to be leaving, but the jolly creature has parked itself in front of our vehicle, so we can’t. Everything works on African Time, and we are richer for it.

Love S&T

P.S.
Turns out the Landrover engine and gearbox had been replaced with Ford!