Overland Cape to Vic Falls - Baobab Land

Day 17 - Gweta

Left Okavango Delta in the morning and after 5 hours of driving we arrived at the absolute paradise in the middle of nowhere. Baobab Planet is the best and stunning campsite of the trip starting from the pool, the bar, the showers and of course BAOBABS. These trees are insane, humongous, gorgeous.

Overland Cape to Vic Falls - Okavango Delta

Day 13

We leave Namibia behind and cross into Botswana, the country of which 85% of land is taken up by Kalahari and another 3% is covered by wetlands of Okavango Delta. Despite that the country is quite rich thanks to discovered in 1967 diamonds that were put to good use (free education, free health care, infrastructure).

At the end of the first day we camp at Ghanzi where we meet local Bushmen community that perform Tribal Dancing for us. Bushman or rather San people is indigenous population of southern Africa with 60% of them left living in Botswana.

Day 14

The next day we drive to Maun, a gateway to Okavango Delta, the world's largest inland delta. In late afternoon I go on a scenic flight in a 7 seat jet. As we glide over the maze of islands and water we see elephants, buffalo, giraffes, termite mountains. I have never seen anything remotely similar to Okavango. I am still puzzled over what I see exactly below. Is the water deep? Is it a swamp? How do animals migrate from on island to another? What is it?



Day 15/16/17

Over the next two days we experience Delta up and close. We are taken to an island for bush camping by makoros (traditional canoes). The experience of sitting in makoro and being poled through the grass and waters of Okavango is amazing and relaxing. Still water makes picture perfect reflections as well as major sun reflector. By the time we reach our island I am sun burnt despite the sun protection.



We spend the mornings hiking, the afternoons hiding in the shade and evenings at the hippo "pool".





We also evidence something I have never seen before. At the sunrise we see the full moon and red sun in the sky at the same time.



More Okavango pictures

Overland Cape to Vic Falls

overland pictures

Starting overland tomorrow!

I am getting ready to go on my big overland tour to Zambia through Namibia and Botswana. I am going to see the real Africa – as real as it will get for me this time. Preparation includes shopping for anti-malaria medicine and adaptors, making copies of my passport, visas, insurance; repacking, laundry, and arranging post-departure flights, accommodation and activities.

Since I did not get Zimbabwe visa, I am leaving my group on the last day of the overland to catch a local transfer from Botswana to the Zambian side of the Victoria falls. I spend fours night in Livingstone, fly back to Johannesburg, maybe visit Drankesberg Mountains (cannot enter Lesotho – visas again!) and head to Mozambique on my second 14-day overland through Swaziland and back to South Africa through Kruger National Park. The day after I fly to India.

A special thanks goes to Rob and Shawn from Detour Africa, a travel agency here in Cape Town. Without them none of this would have been possible. I would have still been arranging my visas and what not. The guys are absolutely charming, extremely helpful and knowledgeable. To my surprise I found that travel agencies here can offer you cheaper prices on tours than the tour operators themselves. Arranging everything with Detour has been definitely one of the highlights so far and I know how cheesy it sounds.

We were told to expect the unexpected along with no connection to the outside world for the next 20 days. I expect to get some kind of internet connection in Namibia and in the end of my overland in Livingstone. Internet in Africa is expensive; and you are charged for volume.

Mapping it all out: