Into the wild Botswana 2012

Into the wild

Hi, this is your captain Toni from the flight deck. Let me welcome you aboard Safari Air. Before reaching our final destination, we will stop at a place to deliver some medicines and at another point to pick up a passenger. The total duration of our flight is about 50 minutes, but the landing sometimes requires two or three attempts because quite often, the runway is occupied by elephants, lions or even members of the ostrich family — waiting for you, right in the middle of the runway.”

Our captain made it sound quite jovial, though I was certain that ensuring a safe and smooth landing under such circumstances was indeed an unenviable task.

Flying in these four or five-seater, single-engine “bush” aircraft itself required strong nerves and to top it all, we had this announcement from the captain.

What a start to our trip, I told myself. Welcome to Botswana.

Botswana: a land that prides itself for being home to the largest elephant population in the world; a land that possesses the largest salt flats; the richest diamond mine; the world’s largest inland delta and the second largest game reserve on the planet. It is home to some of the best, virgin wilderness and wildlife expanse in the African continent. Given this rich repertoire of natural beauty and wild splendour, it was extremely difficult for me to decide where to go and where not to while planning this week-long trip. And I must admit here that travel consultant Suzaan Nel of Uyaphi.com did a very good job at helping me plan my itinerary.

I started my trip from Kasane, the town at the north end of Botswana, situated on the banks of the famous Chobe River and very close to the four-country border-crossing of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Apart from the unparalleled Chobe river safari, you can also visit the world famous “Mosi-oa-Tunya” — the Smoke that thunders — the Victoria Falls at the Zambia-Zimbabwe border. Even during landing and takeoff from Kasane airport, you can see the towering columns of water-spray rising from the spectacular falls.

Coming back to our flight, after about 50 minutes of breathtaking views of the heart of the Okavango Delta, we landed — and luckily, at the very first attempt — at the Xugana (pronounced as “Kugana”) airstrip, privately owned by Desert & Delta Safaris.

Xugana Island Lodge

We were transferred by a motorboat to Xugana Island Lodge, built on the edge of a permanent water body of the delta, called Xugana Lagoon. Due to the remoteness and topography of the delta, most camps and lodges are only accessible by air or boat. The eight chalets of the lodge are all built on the edge of the lagoon, on a raised wooden platform, and the front of the rooms is almost open, covered with insect nets, reed and thatch, facing the lagoon. This helps ensure tourists do not miss any of the action in the wild.

At night, we heard some strange noises right under the platform — more precisely, under our bed. Having visited Africa a few times earlier, I told my wife that it must be a hippopotamus. Next morning, our lodge manager, John Jr, confirmed that apart from the 16 guests and the support staff at the lodge, there was one other resident — a hippo called Fred, who visited the lagoon each night and ventured around the lodge.

You can explore the delta by motorboat or take a walking safari. However, the most interesting one is the mokoro (canoe) ride on the shallow waters of the lagoon. The delta is also a good place for bird watching. Apart from the wildlife, the landscape of the world’s largest inland delta — created by the Okavango River and Kalahari Desert — offers some superlative scenic beauty. Sunset behind the papyrus and its reflection on the crystal clear water are just awesome.

From serene Xugana to mysterious Savuti, the setting changed dramatically. Deep into the evening hours, it was like watching a movie that changed in tone and verve “post-interval”, as rightly describe by Michelle and M.C. Odumetse, our hosts at the lodge. It was pure IMAX stuff. We were at the dinner table and keeping us company at the other end was a 35-member elephant family — barely 10 metres away. It probably can’t get any better and closer than this.

Savute Safari Lodge

That is the uniqueness of Savute Safari Lodge, located on the edge of the mysterious Savuti Channel (some call it the river that flows in both directions). In 1851, when David Livingstone first visited the area, it was in full flow. In 1879, it had receded. Again, from the 1950s to 1980, it was back to normal. Since January 2010, the channel has been following its usual course, though no one is certain for how long it will continue.

The lodge accommodates only 24 guests in 12 chalets. All the chalets are overlooking the channel and are equipped with a viewing deck. To ensure an uninterrupted view of wildlife, the facades of the chalets comprise expansive glass sliding doors. Even the ensuite facilities are similarly equipped. The room deck or the dining area is just a stone’s throw away from the channel. Round the clock, elephants and other animals come to the channel and if you are really interested in getting up-close with one of them, look no further.

There are very good game drives available around this lodge with some fine guides such as Metal, Gee or Baba.

Botswana is one of the best places for leopard-sighting too. Our guide, Metal, was a super spotter and he used to compete with Baba in spotting leopards. We were lucky to spot as many as four leopards in a single day. The concentration of wildlife is very good around Savuti Marsh.

Botswana is one of the more expensive safari destinations due to its low-impact tourism policy. And it is precisely because of this reason that the safari experience Botswana offers is topnotch.

If you want to know the real meaning of the words tranquility and serenity, put that dictionary away. Simply pack your bags and head to Botswana and its famous Okavango Delta.--
By Sankha Kar
Published in
http://gulfnews.com/about-gulf-news/al-nisr-portfolio/tabloid-on-saturday/into-the-wild-1.1130895

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