Botswana, Makgadigadi, Okavango, Natural Selection, Wilderness

By: Emma Seaman

As I start writing this Blog I am filled with such wonderful memories of my time in Botswana – one of those stand out trips that will forever be with me! It was particularly special to me as my husband Dave joined me on the first four days. One of the stand outs for us was Makgadigadi Salt Pans – it was our first visit there, but this definitely won’t be the last. We flew to Botswana via Livingstone, and spent our first night at Wilderness Qorokwe. We were absolutely blown away by the wildlife on the Qorokwe Concession – on our drives with our Guide Mike some of the animals we saw include steenbok, tsessebe, kudu, red lechwe, common reedbuck, wildebeest, southern giraffe, hyena relaxing by a watering hole and elephant. We also had the most incredible sighting of a black backed jackal with her 3 pups and a leopard in a tree with her impala kill. We were very well looked after at the camp by Gladwell and Joel although our stay felt too short, as it always is on these trips.

After a delicious lunch Mike transferred us by road to Wilderness Chitabe, located on NG31, another game rich concession although quite a bit drier than Qorokwe due to the floods not reaching them this year. The camp has recently been refurbished and I have to say its absolutely blow away amazing. Every detail has been thought through in the rooms which are decorated in light wood and cream tones with a massive bathroom featuring indoor and outdoor showers. We had more incredible wildlife encounters with Ant our guide – another leopard up a tree with an impala kill, ground hornbill, southern giraffe, Birchall’s zebra, a giant eagle owl and our highlight was a pride of 21 lion who we sat and watched until we had to leave to head to the airstrip. Quite an experience being so close to this pride and watching them interact.

David and I flew with Wilderness Air to Maun where we were met by Mack Air and flown to Tsigaro Airstrip – about a 45-minute flight from Maun. This is probably a good time to mention how impressed we were by all the flights in Botswana – everything runs seamlessly, with the ground staff being very efficient with their Meet and Greets and handovers, and the pilots all very professional with their briefings and flying. One thing I love about the flights in Botswana is the opportunity to see the landscape particularly when flying over the Okavango and get an insight into how vast and varied it is between the different areas.

On arrival into Tsigaro, the airstrip for Jacks, San and Camp Kalahari, we were met by our guide for the next two days, Super. It was only towards the end of our trip that we realised how privileged and lucky we were to be guided by him – he is a true legend and has been with Unchartered Africa for 36 years with most of his time spent in the Makgadigadi. The first thing he asked us as we set off from the airstrip was whether we wanted to see cheetah…. uh sure we both said, very surprised, not something we expected to see here. Off we set on our drive and sure enough we found a cheetah mum with her two cubs sheltering from the sun under a shrub. We then set off for the camp, about a 45-minute drive. I was already amazed by how much wildlife we saw on the drive including hundreds of zebra and wildebeest. As we got closer to the camp where there is a watering hole these numbers increased, and throughout our stay at the camp there was an endless stream of wildlife quenching their thirst at the watering hole and getting some relief from the desert heat. Jack’s Camp is certainly one of those camps that stands out and is a place you will never forget. The décor is not necessarily to my taste but you can’t help but fall in love with the whole experience – the staff are endearingly wonderful, the food exceptional. I love how the tents flow into new spaces from the welcome reception and lounge area, to the dining tent and then through to the high tea tent where you enjoy afternoon tea curled up on an exotic carpet and cushion. All the dining here is communal, something I was initially a bit wary of as Dave and I had hoped for some private meals, but the warmth and flow of conversation at meals, led by Super our Guide, soon made me glad we weren’t dining alone! The room tents are massive – I was sad our sons weren’t there to enjoy the space and opulence with us – once again the spaces flow from your own private lounge, going out onto a deck with a plunge pool, through to a massive bedroom and then into a bathroom featuring a shower, bath and a throne toilet! The deck runs across the whole front of the room with incredible views over the watering hole and endless flow of wildlife passing through. On our first afternoon in the reserve we watched some black backed lions, with one of the lioness intent on making a kill, a failed attempt as her assistants did not give her the desired support! Aside from Wildebeest and zebra we saw many black backed jackal, yellow mongoose, bat eared foxes, steenbok, cape ground squirrel.  During our drive we came upon sundowners set up for us – something different that the staff had set this up for us and then left it for us to enjoy with Super. There we were in the middle of nowhere – just endless landscape and starry skies. During our drinks Super got out his map of Botswana and gave us a combined geography and history lesson on Botswana. After a good night’s rest in our 4-poster bed, we set off in the morning with Monty and Super to find the meerkat. Monty’s job is to stay with the meerkat throughout the day, moving with them, resting with them during the harsh midday heat and then heading back to camp when they burrow to sleep. This is an experience we have been dreaming of doing for so many years and we were not disappointed. How special to find yourself immersed in the life of a meerkat family – digging for food, racing off to the next area randomly, the little ones having the odd scuffle and game.  One minute they show great curiosity in us humans and the next minute they abandon us for something more interesting - food. They were not the only ones getting a good meal, Super produced an amazing breakfast for us! We had fresh fruit, homemade muesli, eggs and more. That afternoon after a well needed cool dip in our pool and siesta we set off on our quad bikes into the salt pans. Super was concerned about the weather and did warn us that we may need to turn back as he thought there might be a sand storm coming. Thankfully this held off and we were able to continue our exploration of this incredible, endless horizon of nothingness. At one point we got off our bikes and headed off on foot, each to our own area to take in the quietness and nothingness of the area. Food for the soul. On our drive back to camp we came across some activity in the pans and discovered the camp team had set up a dinner especially for us. Five Star food and service in the desert – quite incredible! And then a short walk away we were led to our beds set up under the stars – our homes for the night.  We have never slept so deeply – not a sound to disturb us and just the starry skies to serenade us. Sadly, we did not make it fully through the night – Super woke us in the middle of night as a storm was coming and the sky was full of the most spectacular lightening. We headed back to our cosy beds in camp – sad to leave our desert bed behind but happy to have experienced this. On our final morning, we set off for our bushman experience. This was an activity that we were the most sceptical about, wondering how it would unfold and how natural it would feel. We were not disappointed – the next hour was spent with the most entertaining group of people I have encountered in a long time – warm, full of humour and so very interesting as we learnt about the life of a bushman through their eyes and small skilful acts. Dave and I then said farewell to each other as he headed back to Livingstone and onward to Lusaka and I headed to Maun for my next adventure.

On arrival into Maun, I was met by Natural Selection and whisked away to the Duck Restaurant across the road where I met our host for the trip, Bessie, and some of the other agents on this Natural Selection hosted trip. Bessie warmly welcomed us all – always smiling, warm and hospitable and the perfect hostess on one of the best Fam trips I have been on. Once everyone arrived, we set off by road to Meno a Kwena with our guide Cell, a drive of about 2 hours. On arrival at Meno a Kwena we were warmly welcomed by the manageress Sega and her team and were settled into our rooms overlooking the Boteti River. At this time the river is quite dry but incredibly still frequented by large amounts of animals, mainly elephant and zebra.  The rooms at Meno are delightful – smaller and simpler that what I experienced at Jacks, but very comfortable. The rooms have charging stations and, on the verandah, there is a tea/coffee box where hot water is delivered to in the mornings – a very clever system to stop the curious and naughty monkeys from stealing your rusks and hot drink! Our first afternoon we went on a bushman experience, another surprise for me, equally as authentic, warm and fun as our experience at Jack’s camp showing us the richness of their past lives. After a good night’s rest, we set off with Cell on our full day trip into the Makgadigadi National Park. The park is roughly 5000km square the Boteti River runs through the park, the life blood of this area. I had never expected to see so much wildlife in this park – it has the feeling of being rather dry and barren particularly at this time of the year waiting for the rains to break. Aside from seeing thousands upon thousands of Birchall’s zebra queuing up to drink from the river, we also saw large herds of elephants, southern giraffe, impala, mongoose, Kudu, Wildebeest, ostrich, steenbok, hippos, white backed vultures, lappet faced vultures and black backed jackal during our drive. One of my highlights of the whole trip was an amazing lunch set up in the bush for us – a delicious treat of fresh salads, lasagne and fruit all whilst watching the wildlife around us. Later that afternoon a few of us walked down to the camp’s hide set up on the Boteti River and watched a lapwing family and various elephants passing through whilst enjoying our sundowners.

The following morning after a delicious breakfast we set off back to Maun Airport where we were handed over to Mack Air for our flight to Khwai Private Reserve and our next adventure back in the Okavango. We landed at Khwai Private Reserve and were met by our guide Matt who transferred us the short 15-minute drive to Sable Alley, our home for the next two nights. I loved everything about this camp. Christabel from our team has always said it is one of our favourite camps and the minute I got there I understood why. The main area is very light and open and looks out onto a beautiful area of water – wide open expanses welcoming you to this special place. The staff and food here were outstanding and I wouldn’t hesitate to send our clients here, knowing they will be exceptionally well taken care of. The rooms are lovely and have evening breeze units built into the beds. The outdoor shower is a definite must, helping keep you cool during the harsh heat of the day. Our wildlife encounters here were quite incredible – we saw leopard, lion and cheetah all in under 24 hours! During our stay at Khwai Private Reserve we also had the chance to visit Little Sable, an equally delightful camp, offering a smaller and more intimate experience, and Tuludi with a very luxurious, yet very unique and slightly quirky offering. Stand outs here were the bar (see the picture in my selection) and the slide which many of you will have seen in the camp images. This takes you back to your childhood, and you can’t help but take several attempts at a clean ride down!

With our time in the Khwai Private Reserve at an end we were then flown with Mack Air to Kadizora Airstrip for our final two nights on this trip, and wow what an incredible finale this was! I love this concession, and whilst less private due to there being more camps here (North Island Okavango, Dukes, Dukes East and Kadizora), NG12 is massive. We were staying in NG23a, which is 33 thousand square km and is quite frankly one of the most stunning areas and landscapes I have encountered. There is a lot of water here making it very lush and green, but also with some wide-open spaces and endless plains. We were met at the airstrip by our guide Costa and driven to the camp, going over several bridges, a 30-minute transfer time. We were warmly welcomed at North Island Okavango by Ednah, the camp General Manager, a humble, smiling and wonderful lady who leads by example. Mr T, the chef, introduced us to the style of eating and cooking at the camp – with an open kitchen, pizza oven and family style dining. A wonderful character who adds to the warmth of this camp. The rooms here are massive – and really WOW! Set under some very impressive Ebony trees each room has two bathrooms, a lounge area featuring a sleeper sofa, a large bedroom with dressing area and lovely outdoor deck with your own plunge pool. The camp does have a family room but with all the rooms having a sleeper sofa this adds more options and flexibility for families. The camp also has a star deck, a spa and a gym (which we sadly didn’t find time to try out 😊). In this area drives, boating and mokoro are all offered and we experience all during our stay. No walks are offered here due to the high level of grass. Fishing is also on offer although this stops December to March. During our drives with Costa, we saw so much including a surprise leopard encounter, some up close viewing of some beautiful male lions, many elephants and giraffe, lots of warthog (which surprisingly we didn’t see in Khwai private reserve although we know they were there as the cheetah we found had just killed one). The birdlife here was incredible and we saw malachite kingfisher, crowned and black winged lapwings, carmine bee eaters (a different experience to zambia as in the Okavango they nest in the ground). One of the highlights of our morning drive was coming across a hyena den and watching some really cute cubs with their mum Jackie. After lunch that day myself and two other agents took a helicopter transfer to go and look at Dukes and Dukes Camp East. Both of these camps fall under the Unchartered umbrella and are built in the same style as Jack’s camp with an Out of Africa, Moroccan theme. Later on that afternoon we all set off on a mokoro excursion and wow what a wonderful experience this was. So serene and peaceful as we glided through the waterways watching birds and elephants at a distance. Finishing up with sundowners on an island and watching the sun set. The perfect end to our perfect stay. On our final morning all of us but one adventurous soul treated ourselves to a lie in – turning down the offer of a final drive with Costa...something we regreted when Sma returned from her early morning drive having seen a pack of Wild Dogs! The only animal that had eluded us during our trip.  After a hearty final breakfast from Mr T we headed to the airstrip and said our farewells with myself and one other agent flying home via Kasane. A quick Victoria Falls stopover for lunch and a site inspection of the newly opened Waterfalls was the finale of my Botswana Adventure. Thank you Wilderness and thank you Natural Selection – I will be back!