Wildlife Bonanza!

Unfortunately we weren’t able to secure a flight to Kasane – the gateway city to Chobe National Park so we decided to go overland on public transport – more adventures!

Our bus from Kasane to Nata was 3hrs and uneventful. We then needed to change buses in Nata, however all buses going to Kasane were full. The only other option was to hitch a ride so we approached a local who had a pick-up truck and agreed to take us. Going 140km in the bed of a pickup truck was not my idea of comfort.  Then, half way along, when the driver started chucking bottles he was finishing out the window, we definitely got a bit nervous … but we arrived safely! (The driver bought another six-pack in Kasane and still had about 180km to go to his destination!)

We arranged a two night camping trip into Chobe with a local Botswanan guide. So far we’ve had amazing wildlife encounters so we were eager to see what Chobe had in store for us. We were not disappointed. After only 30 minutes in the park we were inundated with giraffes, elephants and a pride of lions cooling themselves under a tree.

After watching the lions we decided to head off, but hit a slight snag. The battery in our 4x4 had died!  Fortunately there was another vehicle nearby who offered us a jump start, the catch was that there was a pride of lions only 5 meters away!! We stood watch while Moebi – our brave guide - connected the cables and we were off again! (Mike also had to get out, of course, to get 'The Shot').

Up next was a pair of young, male giraffes who were behaving strangely. Moebi told us that they practice their fighting skills with each other by trying to knock the horns on their heads. It looked to us as though they were doing the one tile dance. We also learned that the colour of the spots on a giraffe provide an indication of age - the darker the older, like sun spots! There were dozens of giraffes everywhere. We lost count after 150!

Again, it was time to head off and the car wouldn’t start!  I stared anxiously at Mike as I was not in the mood to have my Chobe experience ruined by a neglected battery!  Mike later figured out at camp that the battery for the fridge was run in series with the car battery - so the fridge was draining both down completely and had to be disconnected so that we could have a car that worked!  All part of 'going local'.

Chobe– known for its huge population of elephants (the last census in 2005 was 66,000) with herds of 50 or more was a real thrill. They were EVERYHWHERE and not shy about getting close either. Many young ones were still nursing from and fiercely protected by mum.

The northern part of the park is bordered by the Chobe River, which provides a natural area for the animals to congregate. We watched the daily ritual as many animals headed for the river to drink, bathe and graze.

 

 

Finishing the day watching the sunset alongside hippos was truly memorable.

Our campsite, like in the Okavango, was not a ‘fenced’ site – just a spot in the landscape where we decided to stop for the night.  The Botswana government provides many opportunities for locals to compete against foreign tour operators – partly through allocating specific sites that only the local guides are allowed to use.  Megan did find it somewhat disturbing to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night – especially when she spotted eyes in the darkness with her headlamp!  (Thankfully, it was only a honey badger). 

Moebi didn’t believe in sleeping bags, so Megan took advantage of the one good one we’ve carried with us while Mike wrapped up in multiple blankets – the mornings were quite cold.  On our last day, he woke at 5am and, freezing, decided to start the fire again.  Picking some small kindling from the edge of the site, with a fading headlamp, was nerve-wracking with lions calling in the distance.  He was very relieved when fanning the coals finally ignited the timber and he built a solid morning fire!

On our way out of the park that morning, we were treated to our most exciting wildlife encounter so far.  We came across a pack of painted wild dogs down by the river.  These endangered animals are rare to see, and this large pack was nervously drinking from the river while eyeing a crocodile that was only meters away.

We watched these dogs for almost twenty minutes, oblivious – like the dogs were – to a 3-4 year old male lion that was in the bushline just behind us!  Suddenly, he made a run for one of the dogs, which had a limp.  The pack split, and the targeted dog had nowhere to go but into the river.  Clearly panicked, it swam and hopped across the river and managed to make it to the far shore unscathed.  The lion gave chase for only a meter or two into the water, then thought better of it and stared up and down the shore at the two smaller groups of dogs.

 

Finally, he gave up and made his way back to the tree line, where he sniffed through the bones that remained from an impala the dogs had killed the night before.  With nothing left on the bones, he was clearly hungry and, likely, excited from the adrenalin of his first attempt, made an inexperienced decision and tried to have a go at a large old male buffalo only 100m further down the shore.

The gasps of the toursists in the other trucks (who unfortunately blocked our view of the direct encounter) must have alerted the buffalo, who turned and charged the lion, and chased him back into the trees!

 

Knowing he was out-gunned, the lion retreated and cruised along the tree-line looking for other prey – with the baboons overhead shouting out and keeping us appraised of his presence so we were able to follow along and catch glimpses of him through openings in the bush.

What a way to end our time driving in the park!

To close out our Chobe experience we took a river cruise, which was awesome. While we were impressed with the game drives, the activity from the water was intense and we were finally able to get up close and personal with some hippos and crocodiles!

Overall our time in Chobe was sensational and has rivaled our other wildlife experiences. After camping for a few weeks, we both feel ready for more creature comforts, including hot showers and sleep-ins. Tomorrow morning we catch a bus to Zimbabwe for the next leg of our trip!