Tag Archives: travel

Come along on a boat ride on the Chobe River

During our tour of Botswana in June we set off on an afternoon boat ride from the launch site in Kasane, following the Chobe River upstream into the Chobe National Park and later returning along the main channel – the border between Botswana and Namibia – around Sedudu Island by sunset. Game-viewing and photographic opportunities from the boat was excellent as we floated low to the water to almost within touching distance of Nile Crocodiles, Hippos, Buffaloes, Elephants and a wide array of other animals and birds which were all surprisingly unworried by our proximity. Certainly an experience to savour and never be forgotten!

The Chobe River at Kasane

Schalow’s Turaco

Guinea-fowl Butterfly

Spur-winged Goose

Big Red Lechwe ram

African Darter

Nile Crocodile

Nile Monitor

Nile Crocodile

Pied Kingfisher

White-crowned Lapwing

Banded Mongooses

Banded Mongoose

Nile Crocodile

Pied Wagtail

Game-viewing by boat on the Chobe River

Cape Buffalo

Serenity on the Chobe River

African Darter

African Fish Eagle

Cape Buffalo

Baboon of subspecies Papio ursinus griseipes

Baby Baboon of subspecies Papio ursinus griseipes

Baboon of subspecies Papio ursinus griseipes searching for seeds in elephant dung

Baby elephant

Elephant youngster

Hippos

Cape Buffalo

Cape Buffalo and cattle egret

African Spoonbills

Yellow-billed Storks

Red Lechwes

Great Egret

Black heron “canopy feeding” on shoals of small fish disturbed by the moving buffalo

Game-viewing by boat on the Chobe River

Resting hippos

Spur-winged Goose

Red Lechwes

Marabou Stork

Waterbuck family

Marabou Stork

Pink-backed Pelican

Water Thick-knee

Goliath Heron

Namibian fisherman in a traditional mokoro

Red Lechwes

Large flock of Black-winged Pratincoles settling down on an island for the night

Sunset over the Chobe River

Come along on a game drive through Botswana’s Chobe National Park

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We made an early departure from Senyati in order to be at the entrance gate into Chobe National Park by the time it opened at 6am. One of the first animals we saw was a leopard stalking a herd of impala, a good indication as to the quality of the game-viewing we enjoyed for the morning we spent exploring the park.

Leopard seen early morning in the Sedudu Valley

Sunrise over the Chobe River

Lechwes on the bank of the Chobe River

Red-billed Spurfowl

White-crowned Lapwing

Buffalo feeding in the Chobe River

Meyer’s parrot

Baboon of subspecies Papio ursinus griseipes

Puku

Red-billed Spurfowl

African Hawk-Eagle

Swamp Boubou

Tropical Boubou

Baboon of subspecies Papio ursinus griseipes

Impala

Bradfield’s Hornbill

Little Bee-eater

Neddicky

Warthog

Vervet Monkey of the race C. p. ngamiensis photographed in the Chobe National Park

Serene scene on the Chobe River

Plains Zebras

Plains Zebra

Giraffe

Puku

Nile Crocodile

Great Egret

Elephants making their way to the Chobe River

Nile Crocodile

Hippo

Elephants on the banks of the Chobe River

Elephants making their way to the Chobe River

Elephants drinking from the Chobe River

Squacco Heron

Kudu cows

Kudu cow

Impalas congregating next to the Chobe River

The highlight of the day was finding three lions strolling across the Puku Flats. At one point they flushed a roan antelope from a patch of long grass, but it made a safe retreat. Eventually the lions found a shady spot in which to rest and we moved along.

Lioness

Young lion male

Lioness

Roan Antelope

Young lion male

Lioness

Young lion male

Lioness

Young lion male

We made it as far west as the Kabulabula Peninsula before we had to turn around and head for the gate again, as we had another exciting excursion booked for the afternoon. More about that in the next post!

Senyati Safari Camp

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Following our amazing Gospel on Safari experience, colleague and friend Hannes Rossouw and I extended our stay in Botswana a little by heading further north to explore the Chobe National Park and surrounds, basing ourselves at Senyati Safari Camp. Senyati is located in the Lesoma Valley, just 15km from Kasane, gateway into Chobe, and offers accommodation, camping, a restaurant and a fabulous sunken hide from which you can get some terrific images of the animals and birds that come to drink at the camp’s waterhole day and night.

Sable Antelope just outside Senyati’s camping area

White-backed Vulture soaring over Senyati

Blue Wildebees walking away from Senyati’s waterhole

Egyptian Goose at Senyati’s waterhole

Three-banded Plover at Senyati’s waterhole

Red-billed Spurfowl

Arrow-marked babbler

Giraffe making its way around Senyati

Giraffes making their way around Senyati

Cape Turtle Dove

Warthog approaching Senyati’s waterhole

Campsite #19 at Senyati Safari Camp

Senyati’s sunken hide

Elephants at the waterhole seen from the deck above Senyati’s restaurant

Elephant from Senyati’s underground hide

Elephants from Senyati’s underground hide

Chobe Dwarf Gecko

Bradfield’s Hornbill

In upcoming posts I’ll share some more pictures taken on a drive through Chobe National Park, a boat ride on the Chobe River, and at Victoria Falls in neighbouring Zimbabwe.

Back from Manyeleti Magic

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I am fresh back from our Manyeleti Magic Photo-Safari & Workshop hosted in conjunction with Hannes Rossouw Photography out of Buffelshoek Tented Camp, and what a trip it was – without a question one of the best I have ever had, and with 40+ years of visiting South Africa’s wild places that takes some doing! Of course I will be telling you all about it in good time, but here’s a little taste of what you can look forward to.

Red-billed Oxpecker diving into a White Rhino’s ear

Spotted Hyena

Bateleur pair

Lilac-breasted Roller

Cheetah

Young male Lion

Magpie Shrike

One buffalo from a herd several hundred strong

Pearl-spotted Owlet

The head of a Southern African Rock Python encountered on our Manyeleti Magic Photographic Safari

Spotted Hyena

African Wild Dogs in playful mood before starting their hunt

A Buffalo standing on a dam wall gives an unusual perspective

White Rhino

Leopard

Hippo eyeing us from the waterhole

Cheetah

Lions after dark

One of the males from the Kambula Breakaway pride

Two of the Kambula Lions at Manyeleti

Buffalo taking a little longer to chew this prickly grasshead

Old Buffalo bull

Plains Zebras

Lilac-breasted Roller showing off its colours

Gospel on Safari: Sua Pan

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Early in June I had the enormous privilege of spending 9 days at and around Elephant Sands Lodge, located near Nata in north-eastern Botswana, participating in Gospel on Safari where I and eleven other believers spent time with our Creator and His Word in the most amazingly unspoiled natural surroundings. Without a question it was one of the most impactful experiences of my life and I am immensely grateful for and humbled by all that was revealed to us, both physically and spiritually.

One of our nights was spent sleeping out in the open under the stars on the enormously empty expanse of Sua (sometimes spelt Sowa) Pan. The next day we explored more of the pan and its surroundings, making it as far as Kubu Island, a rocky outcrop covered by baobab trees and surrounded by a sea of salty emptiness.

Camping under the stars on Sua Pan

On the horizon lies our campsite on Sua Pan, surrounded by emptiness

A little island of stingy grass and a lone thorn tree on the enormous expanse of Sua Pan

Baobab on the way to Kubu Island

Kubu Island

Herd of Red Hartbeest on the edge of Sua Pan

One of the biggest highlights of the trip was an encounter with an enigmatic animal that I’ve longed to see my whole life. More about that soon!

Back from another jaunt to Mokala National Park

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We’ve just returned from another trip to the wonderful Mokala National Park, and as I am off again on our Manyeleti Magic Photo-Safari & Workshop today I am just leaving you this quintessential postcard taken at Mokala as a little appetiser of what is to come when I have the chance in coming weeks to tell you all about the trip.

Watching Black Mambas at Domtshetshu Pan in Botswana

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While camping near Domtshetshu Pan in Botswana recently, as part of Gospel on Safari, I took a stroll towards a muddy part of the waterhole, where I found two Black Mambas – one of the deadliest species of snake on the planet – wallowing in the mud, drinking from little pools and being very coy with each other. The snakes paid me no notice at all, making me think that they probably have never seen a human before – what an amazing thought! Later, one of my fellow campers joined me at the sighting and still the snakes acted as if we weren’t even there.

Black Mamba

Black Mamba trail

Gospel on Safari: Domtshetshu Pan

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For three nights, with special permission granted by Botswana’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks, our group camped out in the wild at a waterhole called Domtshetshu Pan. The sense of freedom, space and wonderment was amazing!

The cutline leading to Domtshetshu

Camping at Domtshetshu Pan

Foxy Emperor Butterfly

Elephant from ground level

lephant from ground level

Elephant Silhouettes

Elephant Silhouette

Domtshetshu Pan

Domtshetshu Pan mud cracks

Elephant bulls after enjoying a muddy portion of the waterhole

Elephant bull after enjoying a muddy portion of the waterhole

Elephant bulls in procession

Elephant bull drinking

Joker Butterfly

African Migrant butterfly

Kudu cow and calf

Giraffes got a fright at my approach

Cape Turtle Doves gathering for a drink

Magpie Shrikes

Golden-breasted Bunting

Unidentified Pipit

Red-billed Spurfowl

White-browed Sparrow Weaver

Southern Pied Babbler

Camel Thorn

Domtshetshu Pan was the site of one of my most memorable wildlife encounters ever, and I will tell you more about it in the next installment!

Gospel on Safari: Elephant Sands

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Located just off the A33 main road linking Nata and Kasane, Elephant Sands offers accommodation and camping at the main lodge as well as a very comfortable bushcamp a few kilometers deeper into the bush. Both are unfenced and frequented by a wide range of wildlife day and night. The main lodge’s campsites and units, as well as the main building housing the swimming pool, restaurant, bar and curio shop, surrounds a waterhole that is supplied with pumped water and is a real magnet to elephants and a wide variety of birds. The bushcamp – Eco Lodge – has a plunge pool and 12 comfortable two-sleeper tents serviced from a large kitchen and open plan dining area that also overlooks a pump-fed waterhole.

Elephants drinking from the waterhole in Elephant Sands Lodge

Camping at Elephant Sands

Elephant Sands’ Eco Lodge

Elephant drinking from the pool at Elephant Sands’ Eco Lodge

Red-billed Spurfowl

Bradfield’s Hornbill

Immature Shikra

Cape Turtle Doves drinking from the waterhole at Elephant Sands

Burchell’s Sandgrouse

Flocks of Sandgrouse drinking from the waterhole at Elephant Sands

Pied Crows

African Red-eyed Bulbul

Speckled Pigeon

Sunrise over the waterhole at Elephant Sands’ Eco Lodge

Red-billed Teal

Blacksmith Lapwing

Cape Teal in flight

White-crowned Shrike

Crimson-breasted Shrike

Tsamma fruit

Elephant Sands serves as an excellent base from which to explore the immense wilderness that surrounds it in all directions, and wildlife viewing is especially rewarding at and around many of the waterholes that are currently being provided with pumped water, seeing as Botswana is being hard hit by one of the worst droughts ever recorded in the country.

Early morning at a waterhole near Elephant Sands

Elephant and Leadwood

Elephants abound in northern Botswana

Sandgrouse, doves and elephant sharing a waterhole

African Wild Cat

Black-backed Jackal

Kudus, impalas and ostriches sharing a waterhole

Mummified juvenile Boomslang found in a thorny shrub

Giraffe

Blacksmith Lapwing

Bradfield’s Hornbill

Cape Glossy Starling

Cape Teals

Fork-tailed Drongo

Impala

White-backed Vulture

White-crowned Shrike

Pied Crow

Red-billed Spurfowl

Red-crested Korhaan

Burchell’s Sandgrouse in flight

Burchell’s Sandgrouse in formation

Female Burchell’s Sandgrouse

Yellow-billed Hornbill

Our group spent three nights “wild camping” at one such waterhole, called Domtshetshu Pan, and I will tell you more about that experience in the next installment!

Back from the Wilderness – for now

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I’ve just returned from the most amazing two weeks in neighbouring Botswana, which included a day spent across the border at the Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. There are thousands of images to go through and lots of stories to tell, and I’ve just made a quick selection here. There’s still two more trips to the bush in the rest of this month; please bear with me if I am a bit slow in responding to your kind comments!