Botswana

BOTSWANA SAFARIS: OF DESERTS AND FLOODPLAINS

Roughly a quarter of beautiful Botswana is reserved for conservation and tourism. You will literally have a field day on safari. Welcome to Botswana! This 581,730 km2 (224,607 mi2) Southern African gem is nestled between Namibia and Zimbabwe with South Africa to its south and Zambia its northern neighbor. Botswana is regarded as having one of Africa’s most stable democracies. Its infrastructure gets a decisive nod and the country, as a whole, is safe. Also, most of the locals speak fluent English. Its capital, Gaborone, is very modern, and you’ll want to have a chance to experience the inner-city excitement, but while you’re on safari, try not to think about it too much. Safari is the time to focus on the natural beauty of the country, not on a busy city. As for the ‘Big Five’? You can tick that box off your sight-seeing list. A great deal of the country is desert landscape – and therein lies the shimmering beauty. Variety is the operative word. YOU THINK YOU’VE SEEN IT ALL, THEN BOTSWANA HAPPENS… Safari-goers seem to favor the north of Botswana, most notably Chobe, Moremi and the exquisite waterways and lush beauty of the Okavango Delta. But, in the south, you’ll find awe-inspiring desert plain remoteness and the surreal landscapes of Kgalagadi, “Place of Thirst.” You can also make tracks for the salt pans of Makgadikgadi and the Nxai Pan. For dessert (once you’ve had your fill of the desert and delta), we’d just like to mention that the spectacular Victoria Falls is situated just across the border in Zimbabwe. Alexander McCall Smith, the author of the world-famous No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency books that are set in the country, said this of his beloved Botswana: “… every man has a map in his heart of his own country… the heart will never allow you to forget this map”. Just look up at the sky, studded with a million stars, while going on a night drive. Here, the evenings are a cosmic show of mind-blowing proportions. Okay, let’s get going! HOT, DRY, BUT ALWAYS VIBRANT The thing about Botswana is that there is less game than, for instance, South Africa’s Kruger National Park, but Botswana has less vegetation, therefore making its animals much more visible. Your guide is sure to mention that the key to appreciating the remoteness is an understanding of how creatures have adapted to their harsh surroundings to survive. OH, TO BE IN THE OKAVANGO… You, on safari, in the Okavango Delta wetlands and Moremi Game Reserve. Picture it. It’s an incredible space no matter when you go. Imagine a huge, untouched floodplain. In fact, it’s the largest inland delta in the world. Situated on the northwest corner of Botswana, it’s filled with a ridiculous amount of wildlife. This space was shaped by the mighty Okavango River, which floods down, annually, from Angola’s highlands and literally fans out in a series of papyrus-lined channels, mysterious pools, mesmerizing waterways, and natural lagoons. Wide-open and tranquil, it is best explored by boat. Palm-fringed islands are scattered throughout the delta, the biggest one being Chief’s Island at 70 km (43 mi) long and 15 km (9 mi) wide. There are land and water-based camps in the area (this, too, changes according to water levels/seasons with some camps becoming ‘land-based’ in the dry season and others becoming unreachable in the wet season). Get set for sightings of crocs, hippos splashing about, elephants, antelope and the roar of lions in Moremi. (NOTE: Is moremi in the Okavango Delta? If so, you should explain that. If not, then maybe this should be a new section.) This is a bird-watching mecca. You can drink it all in from a mokoro (canoe) while your poler (Botswana’s version of a gondolier) stands at the rear of your vessel, guiding you through the delta’s beautiful waterways. Peace like this can be found in very few places in the world. You’re not going to want to leave. There is a northern and a southern delta. Up north, the delta doesn’t dry up completely; the southern part does. Oddly, Okavango 'high water' time is not during the wet season, and here's why: the water that floods the huge plains of Okavango flow in from Angola in the north, gently, on African time. The water reaches the Okavango Delta between May and August, filling the floodplains. If you want to float gently through the delta's beautiful waterways on a mokoro, that's the time to go. This is wintertime in Botswana and is an ideal time to visit, temperature-wise, with mild days averaging around 25⁰C (77⁰F). Pack warm clothing, though, as evening temperatures certainly plummet to single digits. If land-based experiences are your thing, the dry season is just the time to book your safari. The drying of the delta occurs in the month of September (from the south) and intensifies with dry October heat. After that, November rains allow for some welcome respite. Moremi Game Reserve, which intersects the delta, boasts the ‘Big Five’ and more. GET SET FOR CHOBE NATIONAL PARK’S FOUR DIFFERENT ECOSYSTEMS Chobe is one of the world’s most well-known game parks, and it’s not hard to see why. Covering 12,000 km2 (4,633 mi2), the reserve plays host to a migratory population of 40,000 ellies! These giants roam along Serondela in the northwest with its abundance of plants and dense forests. Westwards is the drier Savuti Channel, and in the middle of it all is the Linyanti Swamps and a type of arid hinterland. Here, lions, leopards, hyenas, wild dogs, giraffes, warthogs, kudus, porcupines, and tiny scrub hares live side by side. Chobe is perfect if you’re looking for a 3-tier photographic safari – on the river, driving with a guide in a 4x4 or going on an intrepid bushwalk. Take your pick. DESERT ANYONE? Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (try saying that three times fast) is a huge national park that straddles the border of Botswana and South Africa. If you’re looking for vast desert plains dotted with the iconic African thorn tree, Kgalagadi is where you want to go. The park is located in the legendary Kalahari Desert, home to the San people and habitat for large migratory herds of wildebeest, a variety of antelope, and the predators that feed on them. Think lion, cheetah, and leopard. Distances are huge, temperatures are extreme (they hover in the 40⁰Cs/over 100⁰F in summer and drop to below freezing on winter nights) and the desert landscape is spectacular. Here, you can feel like you’re the only person on earth. EVER WANTED TO GO TO MARS? NO NEED! BOTSWANA HAS THE LANDSCAPE In the northeast, between Maun and Francistown, lay the shimmering salt pans of the Makgadikgadi, easily confused with what you’d expect to find on Mars. Basically, it’s breathtaking. When it rains, the pans fill up, attracting hundreds of thousands of birds. It has to be seen to be believed. Look out for the enormous, ancient baobabs here – they’re the stuff of legend. They look like something out of a Dr. Seuss book and are thought of as magical. We tend to agree. Moreover, NOW FOR TODAY’S WEATHER REPORT Botswana is a summer rainfall area (November to March). During this time of the year, temperatures soar, and the rains usually come in short, sharp and fabulously dramatic afternoon thunderstorms that are followed by blazing sunshine. The summer heat (which can start as early as August), however, can be unbearable if you're not used to it. Think temperatures reaching up into the 40C's (over 100F). Its prime bird-watching season, though. Pass the binoculars! The dry season (May to October) is the peak time for game viewing as the bush is sparse and the animals gather where the water is. LAST STOP? KHAMA RHINO SANCTUARY The ever-dwindling number of rhinoceros was, sure enough, a reason to get going on the restoration of this area near Serowe to its previous natural state – that is, one teeming with wildlife. Nowadays, it provides healthy economic benefits to the local Botswana community via safaris and the sustainable use of natural resources. Over 8,000 hectares of Kalahari Sandveld acts as prime habitat for white and black rhino, as well as over 30 other animal species and more than 230 species of birds. The animals here are free to roam, and glorious game viewing is possible from your vehicle. There are several roads in the sanctuary. The animals seem to be used to slow-moving vehicles (!) and will ‘pose’ for your camera if you are quiet and stay inside the vehicle. Obviously, you should always stay in the vehicle – no exceptions. These are wild animals. THE SURREAL SOUND OF SILENCE ON SAFARI Those who’ve already been on a safari in this wonderful country vouch that there is nothing like the African bush. What you hear is silence interspersed with birds tweeting, insects humming, the roar of a lion (hopefully way off!) or the “thunk” sound of an elephant’s foot hitting the ground – a daily and nightly wildlife chorus. Remoteness is the operative word, but you will have never felt so connected to nature for so long a stretch of time. There is an ancient Botswana proverb that goes as follows: “It is the one who lies by a fire who can feel how hot it is.” Botswana is a fire like no other. Don’t just let us describe it to you, feel its heat for yourself!