Hello all, it’s been three weeks since our last post, and we’ve been pootling around Botswana (mostly in 4×4 through deep sand!). We started in Kasane where there were some very friendly birds in the campsite (they liked our muesli)…
We had a great wedding pressie from Carol – a sunset river safari on the Chobe River – saw loads of animals coming down to the water to drink and cross (millions of elephants) and the most beautiful sunset. Thank you very much Carol – it was great!…
Next morning we began our journey through Chobe National Park. We spent two nights at Savuti Camp, smack bang in the middle, a hard 8 hour drive through sand for Mr Staggy. Knackered when we arrived and needed to see something spectacular there to make it worth the trip… which we did… (Chobe is known for it’s abundance of elephants, and Savuti is renowned to have the only pride of lions that eat them). We had a great time, made great friends (Toby, Alex and Olly) and defended our tents against an intruder…
Next stop was Mankwe Bush Camp, where we treated ourselves to a meal out… in the open air restaurant – it was freezing – but at least the trifle kept cold!…
We had a few days in Maun to stock up (nothing exciting to photograph), before heading north to Shakawe Fishing Lodge in the Okavango Delta (guess why we chose that place?). First night we met Elena and Matt who run the campsite, after a few beers and a few more we headed out on Matt’s boat for a full moon croc hunt – check out the size of the brute we caught… (promise he wasn’t hurt and was returned safely to his mum)…
Matt caught his first Tigerfish – what a whopper! It’s the angle that makes it look small…
Went out fishing on Okavango River a few times with Matt during our stay. Staggy had great fun and landed 11 Bream…
We set off next across the Makhadikhadi Pans – massive salt pans in the Kalahari where there used to be a huge lake. Crazy landscape, random sprouts of grass, floating ostriches and masses of nothing…
We spent a night at Kubu Island, a rock outcrop in the middle of the Pans, with loads of baobabs and history. It was a really beautiful, peaceful, isolated place, a fave spot of the trip…
From one extreme to the next, Leroo La Tau Camp is on the edge of Makhadikhadi Pans National Park, and is infested with elephants, zebra and wildebeast – very noisy! We didn’t get much sleep while the elephant was shaking nearby trees. Matt had a go at repairing the damage…
Another great wedding pressie in Botswana from the lovely Chloella. We stayed at Dqae Qare game farm in the Kalahari – owned and run by San bushmen. We went on a great foraging bushwalk with Dina, her husband and her sister, and struck gold with a set of massive tubers…they were pretty delicious…if you’re really hungry… Thanks so much Chloe, your gift has given us the skills to survive in the Kalahari (at least for an afternoon)…
Now in Windhoek, Namibia (an awesome city) waiting for Little Dave and Super Sue (Matt’s folks) to arrive on Thursday morning. Then we head off for a month around Namibia, we’re very excited!
Love from us honeymooners
posted Tuesday June 2007