Botswana 2010

This is the website for our trip to Botswana in February 2010. We drove over 3,500 km in a counterclockwise circuit from Joburg to the Mgadigadi, up to Kasane on the border with Zim, Zambia & Namibia, then SW down to Maun via Ihaha and Savuti. We restocked in Maun an then returned home via the Central Kalahari and Khama.

Click on thumbnail images to enlarge.

Breakfast on the northern shore of Sowa Pan, Magadigadi.

The waterline started 2-3km south of us, and the horizon was a thick pink line.

Hundreds of thousands of flamingos fly down in their annual migration from Kenya.

We got surprisingly close to them.

Pit stop for cold drinks at Pandematenga.

Heading northwards towards Kasane where 4 countries meet: Bots, Zim, Zambia and Namibia. As one gets further north, there are more and more ellies on the road as they move between Hwange in the Zim side and Chobe on the Bots side. Driving up here at night is accordingly extremely dangerous.

Photo-stop at Chobe entrance gate. A family tradition.

Hammerkop on a hippo.

Hello mister Marabou.

Norther Chobe, if you get the timing right, is paradise on this earth. Beautiful impala everywhere...

Elephant at Serondella...

5 legged grasshopper who befriended Bea & Mila.

Ox pecker on a Buffalo.

Bea looking for Lions.

Lovely lady kudu.

Brown snake eagle.

Large herds of buffalo everywhere.

Time for marshmallows.

We had Ihaha to ourselves. Across the river is the Caprivi Strip, Namibia.

Good morning.

An unknown caterpillar...

Mila: member of the Bug Spotting Club showing her Level 2 badges.

As ever, northern Chobe is the land of the giants.

...and lots of Weasleys too.

Not safe to swim...

...but don't go on the white-and beaches. Notice the lovely ellie prints in this shot.

The flat area near Serdondella was the Garden of Eden...

Happy hour.

Black backed jackal.

Brown-hooded Kingfisher.

A healthy herd of Lechwe.

Mila.

A Weasley on the waterfront. Nice baobabs in the background.

Sunset Boulevard.

Bed-time.

resupplying in Kasane. Curiously, one never has enough biltong..

At last we arrived in Savuti. A welcoming committee of ellies was there to greet us.

Cooling off...

I wonder why the taps in Savuti are elephant-proof?

Lunchtime. This is CV04, the best campsite in Savuti when the river is flowing. Kind of Club Med. For those who have visited Savuti since 1982, click on this photo and you'll notice a lovely flowing stream between us and the elephant. Amazing.

Serious mud-pie activity is standard practice in any respectable Botswana campsite.

The Savuti channel has started flowing again after 28 years. We specially flew down from London to witness it and it felt a privilege to be there.

Savuti Marsh. Deserted paradise.

On the rooftop.

On the lookout.

Firewood collection.

This road is known as the Elephant Highway.

The only road into the campsite.

Wild-dogs at dusk.

They came right into the campsite. As one of them reached the ablution block, what looked like a honey badger emerged to chase it away. We then realised it was not a honey badger, but a pack of banded mongeese, clustering to form a single body. They successfully repelled the invader. This was one of the most extraordinary things we have ever seen in the bush.

Our kitchen.

A cold wet Savuti morning. Nothing that hot-chocolate can't solve...

The Grass Collecting Club.

Bird-spotter in chief.

A gorgeous pride of lions all to ourselves. Marabou Pan. 2 females, one male, 3 cubs

Super-cute.

We were constantly dive-bombed by Carmine Bea-eaters.

Family tradition: Trapping (and of course releasing) Yellow Billed Hornbills. They are not the smartest birds on the planet.

Waterworld for ants.

Mila the bonnet-gymnast.

Bye-bye Savuti.

A boat ride on the okavango.

We resupplied and headed down to Maun. At Xhana we turned off the tar road and at the Makalamabedi Disease control barrier we took the cut-line due south to the Matswere gate on an excellent road which was covered in tens of thousands of butterflies.