The Okavango Delta is the world's largest delta whose headwaters start in Angola. If you have watched National Geographic or Discovery Channel documentaries, you have undoubtedly seen the Okavango Delta. What makes it fascinating is that the Delta is home to over 200,000 mammals who come to enjoy the water and grasslands...as the waters recede, the animals are compressed into smaller and smaller areas where prey and predator offer a view of nature not often seen. Since this is the wet season, water is plentiful and the wildlife scattered.
We are up early at our Maun campsite, break camp and wait for the truck to take us and our gear to the jumping-off point for the Delta bush camping. The truck arrives at 9 AM, we load our gear and off we go to our makoro canoes. Waiting for us is a group of 15 mokoros and polers who will will transport us and our gear to our camp site and remain with us.
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| Everything Loaded..Ready to Rock & Ro |
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| Mokoro Central Station - All Aboard |
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| Awesome...A Once in A life Time Experience |
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| Beauty in The Eyes of the Beholder |
The next 1 1/2 hours is awesome and surreal. There are 2 people in each mokoro with their gear plus the poler. About 6 mokoros carry our tents, groceries and other supplies. Each mokoro enters a world of grass and reeds using the Delta's small water channels as their by-ways....the world of grass closes around you while the grass reeds gently stoke your face...you slink down in order to avoid the reeds...after a while you enter large hippo pools which are covered with white water lilies which make a stunning water garden then back into the narrow waterways...it is a journey that needs to be experienced in order to convey its beauty.
We arrive and set-up our tents in a spartan camp ground (bush camping) which offers no facilities. Latrines are dug and instructions for their use conveyed; a shovel with toilet paper indicates availabilty; no shovel, no paper---facilities are occupied.We are hot and sweaty but there is a surprise in store; we can swim in the Delta water pool near our camp where our mokoros are docked. On with the swim suits and we all have a nice cooling off period before lunch.
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| Mitre Gives Instructions |
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| Chilling Out in the Delta |
We have free time until 5 PM because it is too hot to do a scenic walk through the "bush" to find wildlife. Some read, others complete their journals while others return to the pool At 5 PM we all assemble and break into 3 groups with 6 guides; off we go on an 1 1/2 hour trek. It is hot but exciting because we, hopefully, will meet some animals along the way. Wait....what is that ahead...a small group of zebra numbering about 15; snap, snap, snap go the cameras as we amateur shutter bugs attempt to get the best pictures possible. I finally get to use my telephoto lens for my new Sony SLR camera which bring the images closer for photo capture. We walk for 1 1/2 hours and see zebra, 2 large bull elephants, impala and numerous birds...as the sun begins to set, we arrive back at camp before the night is controlled by the animals.
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| Off We Go.. |
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| Animals Galore..Our 1st Sighting |
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| As the Sun Sets |
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| Goodnight Mr. Sun |
We are sweaty and dirty but can't use our "pool"; too dangerous if a leopard is near. We clean up as best we can and have dinner. Our guide leader informs us that tomorrow we arise at 5 AM, eat breakfast and begin a 4 hour hike to explore the bush...5 AM and a 4 hour trek and you call this a holiday...no it is an adventure that one will always remember. Exhausted we go to bed.
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