Botswana's Okavango Delta
There was never any doubt that I would do Okavango Delta while in Botswana. It was one of the things that I'd actually had time to read about and I was very much looking forward to it. I'd heard such great things from anyone who had been so the decision wasn't hard.
I decided to splash out and instead of doing the $140 trip which entailed taking all our own gear, cooking equipment, food and then of course cooking it all ourselves, Do and I decided to splurge and do the $280 trip. That meant all we had to take was our personal clothes and everything else was provided.
Great Decision!
Excellent decision actually. It was one of the best three days I've ever had.
Starting the trip via fast boat & then Mokoro
We got picked up from our campsite in Maun and taken to a local riverside bar and restaurant where we paid our money and got on a fast boat to take us up the river.
We had a 40 min journey up the river and then pulled up on the banks alongside the local village. At that point we met our head guide Kandi and his team.
They proceeded to load up Mokoro's (traditional timber canoes) with all the camping and cooking gear, added the food and the staff and off we went. We all had our own Mokoro with our own poler and spent the next hour and a half gliding through the delta on the way to our camp. We floated by water lillies, birds, bugs, spiders, reeds and fish. A supremely relaxing way to settle into the Okavango.
3 Days In The Okavango Delta
Over the course of the next few days we spent hours with Kandi walking on islands, following elephants, giraffes and zebra. Each day we would head off in the morning early after breakfast and do a few hours walking safari in different parts of the delta each day.
It is so surreal walking through the grasses, looking up and watching an Elephant stroll by in the distance. The animal life is diverse but dense. We saw so many Zebra's, Elephants, Water Buffalo and especially Giraffe herds. After we got back to the truck we found out that because we had paid the extra money we went much further into the delta than the other group who had chosen the budget version and that was why we saw so much wildlife.
Swimming in the Okavango Delta!
We swam in the “Kandi approved” water hole, fluctuating between terror at the fact that we were swimming in the crocodile infested Okavango and bliss at the fact we were swimming in the Okavango Delta!
Kandi insisted we were safe but that was overshadowed by the fact that he also came in to swim in a way that didn't feel like a vote of confidence and felt more like an “omg I better make sure these tourists don't get eaten” type of thing…
Regardless I swam in the Okavango Delta!
The Camp
Our tent and bedding were like luxury for us after sleeping on roll matts for months on end. Real foam mattresses and a tent we could stand up in. Even a toilet seat over our latrine hole. Like I said, luxury to us after bush camping around West Africa for over 6 months.
The three days passed in no time and it wasn't long before we were poling back through the delta to the village.
Kandi very generously gave us a personal tour of the village which proved to be a very fun way to spend a few hours. The local football team was playing another village and the locals were enthralled with the fact that Do and I were actively supporting their team. We were quite the draw card. It was very refreshing to see a local village that was clean, tidy and very well kept.
The day after we got back we did an Arial flight over the delta for an hour. It was stunning seeing the delta from the air and one of the best flights I've ever done. The pilot very kindly did a low swoop over the inland part of the delta past hippo's, elephants and giraffes.
Overall Okavango Delta is a stunning example of an inland delta with an incredible amount of flora and fauna. It will remain one of the best national parks I've ever been in and I tell everyone I've ever met to go. You won't regret it.
Going to Botswana?
Please consider Kandi and his team for your delta experience. I cannot fault them in any way and it was an amazing couple of days.
