Gaurang's Trip Report - 28 days in Botswana
 

INTRODUCTION

We returned from Botswana five days ago and as this report will be very long, I thought that I had better start it soon. Before I start this marathon, I would like to give special thanks and gratitude to the Fodorites whose knowledge and experiences helped me to put this trip together, especially every Botswana trip report during the last 18 months (you know who you are ;) ). It was meant to be a 2-week trip but thanks to Fodors, it expanded to 4 weeks!!!! My wife, Jayna, made accurate records of all sightings made during the 28 days (including animals seen around camp, during day drives and during night drives).

Jayna and I are not new to safaris this was my 9th safari and Jayna’s 5th, but this was our first trip to Botswana. It was also our longest ever trip with 28 consecutive days in the bush and not a single night spent in any African city or town. I am probably what most people would describe as a hardcore safari enthusiast and treasure every moment spent out in the bush. Depending on the availability of flights, I always try to plan my itineraries so that I can maximize my time out in the bush and avoid spending time in cities and towns. This is not always possible but living in London increases your chances of accomplishing this. For example you can jump on an overnight flight from London to Nairobi, Lusaka, or Johannesburg (9-11 hours) arriving in Africa early the next morning to reach your first camp by lunchtime. Also if possible I try to spend at least 3 or more nights in each area as this allows me to explore and learn more about my surroundings. This also helps to build a better relationship with the guide - a very important factor.

For me, luxurious rooms and camps are not necessary (I would be happy in a sleeping bag and dome tent) but good guiding, location and the amount of time spent out in the bush are paramount. I don’t know why but when I am on safari even things like food and sleep seem to come in the way of what I have come to Africa for. But spending such a long time in private concessions in Botswana was not going to come cheap and considering amount of unavoidable luxury that we were going to face – we decided that this was going to be our second honeymoon (4 years after the first one). We thought we might as well get our money’s worth!!!!

My favourite animals are snakes, particularly the venomous ones. This is an animal that is very hard to see and even more difficult to find (also try telling a guide that you want to find snakes and take a photo of the unsettling look on his face!!!!). This trip was no different, where almost every guide I met had a serious phobia of snakes and thought that I was absolutely crazy. Many of the guides hate all snakes and even the harmless ones are regarded as evil. Jayna can not even look at them. I have total respect for these creatures and I am not stupid enough to try to touch them or track them but I really enjoy seeing them from a safe distance. Africa’s most feared and my favourite snake is the black mamba. All I wanted was one good sighting of this magnificent animal that has eluded me for so long. My second favourite animal is the honey badger, another animal that most guides try to avoid getting close to. Funnily enough, honey badgers enjoy eating venomous snakes!!!! The trip was also planned with an emphasis on potential wild dog sightings. Although I had seen wild dogs before in a fenced reserve in South Africa, deep in my heart I could not class them as true “wild” dogs. I needed to see the real thing where no fences hinder the expansive movement of these wonderful animals. I am too experienced to expect to see certain animals and I know that luck plays a major part in many sightings. I am also experienced enough to know that if you spend more time in your room or sitting by the pool, the odds of having great sightings are stacking up against you. You will also notice from this report that we spent most of our activity time on game drives and did not do too many alternative activities. This was our choice primarily because it increases the chances for better photography and video of game. I also enjoy night game drives they are not to everyone’s liking but I love them, where sleeping lions during the day become feared hunters during the night. Jayna was on photography duty and I was on video duty. We are not experts with the cameras but we really love and enjoy what we do.

Our itinerary was:

4 nights Chitabe Trails Camp (NG31, Chitabe)
3 nights Duba Plains Camp (NG23, Duba Plains)
4 nights Savuti Camp (NG15, Linyanti)
4 nights Lebala Camp (NG14, Kwando)
2 nights Lagoon Camp (NG14, Kwando)
3 nights Lebala Camp (NG14, Kwando)
4 nights Little Kwara Camp (NG20, Kwara)
3 nights Kwetsani Camp (NG25, Jao)

We witnessed some amazing spectacles in Botswana. We took 5000 photos and have 17 hours of video footage. This is our story…..

Gaurang,

I can see this is going to be a brilliant report. 28 consecutive days in the bush...for me, something to dream about! And not a care about luxury! I am also envious that you were able to reach the bush without an overnight stay in a city...unfortunately, airline schedules from Australia do not permit that privilege.

John

This is going to be a good one. I can just tell.

Gaurang,

I am looking forward to read your trip report. And you had a superb itinerary.

This year, I was lucky to see Johannesburg first because the dentist had to pull out a tooth there before I flew out to Lebala.

Best regards,

Johan

I totally agree on the sleep and staying in the room thing. When in Africa, my thinking is I can sleep plenty when I'm home.
And in between game drives (which I always push to the max time limit possible) I try and do bush walks.

And I'm glad to see another snake/black mamba fan. They are such cunning, fascinating creatures.

Waiting, with anticipation, for the rest of the story (and photos!)

Gaurang: your style sounds a lot like mine but I've never had that many days out -- I don't think I have been this excited for a trip report before.

Hey Gaurang!
Looking forward to the trip report proper! Sounds like it was a great trip! I too am what you call a hardcore safari enthusiast and on our last trip we had a LOT of safari time - there were some non-safari punctuations but our total safari nights on the trip came to over 30! I could have happily spent another 30 immediately afterwards but the finances and diary ruled it out!!!

I expect to savor this report. 28 nights, no cities?!? I'm exhausted--but exhilarated--for you. Can't wait to read more.

Gaurang,

A marathon (standard on) is 26 miles....with 28 days worth of report, sounds like you need to take a couple of additional steps.....and look forward to every bit of it, as i'm sure is going to be brilliant.

Thanks,
Hari

Have not had a chance to read it but wanted to let you know that I am looking forward to it with great anticipation.

Cant wait to hear matey. This must have been awesome...

"I don’t know why but when I am on safari even things like food and sleep seem to come in the way of what I have come to Africa for. "

Guarang - now those two pleasures in life (sleep and food) are truly treasured in my "normal" day life, but like you when in Africa they are secondary to me. I am still a safari rookie only having been on 2 safaris, but on those 2 trips I never napped, as I did not want to miss one moment of viewing the wildlife all around the camps I stayed at.

You are truly blessed to have had 28 days in the bush and I look forward to reading about your experience.

Well? Let's get on with it!! ;-)

DAY 1 – MEETING A LEGEND

After an uneventful 10.5 hour overnight flight from London Heathrow (with Virgin Atlantic), we arrived in Johannesburg at 7:00am. We went through passport control, waited ages for our luggage to come out of hold (that will teach us to put fragile stickers on our duffle bags – which apparently come out last!!!) and went upstairs to departures to pick up our Air Botswana tickets. Our flight to Maun was at 10:00am so we still had plenty of time. In the departure lounge of Jo’burg airport, there is a very useful pharmacy where you can pick up any items that you may have forgotten to pack (as we did because we packed the same morning that we left). But they only supply antimalarials such as Malarone and Lariam on the presentation of a prescription from a South African registered doctor. Pharmacies outside of the airport may be more relaxed about such rules. The flight to Maun left about 20 minutes late (which was meant to be quite good for Air Botswana) and took 80-90 minutes. On landing in Maun, we were met by a Sefofane representative who whisked our luggage away from us and gave us a posh Wilderness Safaris itinerary pack. Before long we were boarding a Cesna 206 (5 seater) for our short flight to the Chitabe/Sandibe airstrip.

The flight from Maun was only 15 minutes but during that journey we saw 3 breeding herds of elephants (about 70 elephants in total), a small herd of buffalo and a herd of tsessebe – I was back!!!!! Despite only 2 hours sleep during the last 30 hours, I was now wide awake. We were met at the airstrip by Andrea – a new young guide based at Chitabe Trails. Andrea explained that our guide during the stay would be Newman who we would meet later before our first game drive. Little did we know then, that poor Andrea would be subjected to a very strange and scary experience during our stay. The drive to the camp was about 20 minutes, during which we encountered some magnificent male greater kudus, southern giraffes and impala.

Earlier this year northern Botswana experienced excessive rains and the “November” rains had started earlier during the first week of October – so there was plenty of water around and the big herds of elephants had already moved (but even during the driest times, the numbers were small compared to the gatherings of 2005). During September, Chitabe had a huge fire where 20% of the concession was burnt and the fire almost reached the camps necessitating the evacuation of all guests from both Chitabe camps. It was a very scary event for all involved but newly burnt areas combined with early rains are great ingredients for good game viewing – we would have to wait and see.

On arrival at Chitabe Trails we were greeted by Josephine who was managing the camp with Kenny. We were the only guests there but were to be joined by more guests later in the afternoon. The camp only accommodates 10 guests and had been recently refurbished – it was beautiful, very spacious and in a great setting but still had a strong African character about it. All rooms, lounge and dining areas overlook a small channel which still had small amounts of water in it. After a brief introduction, we were shown to Room 1 (Honeymoon room) via a network of raised walkways. The honeymoon room was furthest away from the main area – this was something we got used to during our trip but it at least it was a poor excuse for exercise. As we walked along the walkways, we were followed by a huge bull elephant parallel to us on the other side of the narrow channel. When we reached our room, he also stopped in clear view of our verandah and started to feed. What a wonderful greeting!!!! But we also needed to feed, so after freshening up we had a light meal before unpacking and preparing for the afternoon game drive.

At 4pm we met for some drinks and nibbles and then we met Newman – our guide for the next four days. Let me introduce Newman for those that do not know him. Newman has been a guide for 28 years and has legendary status throughout Botswana. Every other guide that we met during this trip had either heard of Newman or had met him. As well as guiding in Botswana, he has worked in Zimbabwe and South Africa (Sabi Sands). He took a small break in his guiding career to work as a camera assistant for National Geographic, but his love for the bush made him return to guiding. Newman is from a bushman tribe but does not drink, smoke and, surprisingly, is a strict vegetarian (his family think there is something wrong with him!!!!). He is the head guide for the Chitabe camps and was actually involved in the building of the original camp. The Chitabe camps are owned by Dave and Hélène Hamman and Newman was one of the first people they contacted when starting the Chitabe camp project, following previous work with him. The owners also co-produced the book “Running Wild – Dispelling the Myths of the African Wild Dog” and are still heavily involved in wild dog research. Jayna and I have never met a guide who is so in-tune with the bush and he is also the best bush driver we have ever experienced. In a spooky way, it’s almost as if he understands the different sounds of the bush and what they actually mean – you have to see him in action to understand. Newman is a very calm and modest man with a good sense of humour. When he talks on the radio, you can not hear him speak even when sitting right behind him – we were always wondering if the other guides could hear him? Newman is the type of guide that will suddenly stop unexpectedly and be completely silent. If it is important he will explain why he stopped, otherwise he will silently move on. It’s as though it would be an insult to even question such actions – this is a master at work. During night drives, he even notices the spotlight reflections from the eyes of spiders....yes spiders!!!!! He has had some amazing experiences from his earlier years before Chitabe, including being surrounded by a pride of lions during an unarmed walking safari. He had two guests with him that day that were hiding behind him when one of the females with cubs charged him twice during that situation. The second charge only stopped 2 meters short of him but he had to stand his ground to have any chance of saving the lives of his guests and himself. He has also had his vehicle turned on to its side by a bull elephant in musth also with 2 guests in the vehicle. He has many more amazing stories to tell. There are many good guides and even some great guides but I would class Newman as a phenomenal guide. He was amazing and fortunately, he was testing out a specially modified Land Rover during our time with him (I think it was designed to destroy mopane).....lucky us!!!!!!!

Newman gave us an update regarding the Chitabe pack of wild dogs. They had not been seen for 2 weeks and even leave the concession during their travels. For those that are familiar with the BBC’s Planet Earth series, it was the Chitabe pack that were filmed from the air during hunts. These sequences were filmed during June 2005 when the dogs were denning. Strangely, all of the dogs filmed during those scenes have now left the concession and the alpha male and female were last seen in the area of Stanley’s Camp. Fortunately, the surviving pups that were in the den during the filming have remained in the concession and are now 18 months old. The good news was that 5 pups grew to be strong, healthy adults BUT they were all females. Luckily, 2 male dogs (probably from Moremi) have joined these females to form a strong pack of 7 dogs. There is great hope that breeding will occur to cement the status of this new Chitabe pack. The researchers have already identified and collared the potential alpha male and female from this group. But it was fascinating to learn that the adults had moved out to leave the land to their offspring.

(to be continued.......)

WOW! How lucky for you have had Newman for your guide. He sounds just like my kind of guide!

Loved your description of Newman. I was privileged to have him on as my walking trails gude.

Thanks for the update on the dogs. I am glad that 5 of them have survived.

Wow! Sounding <i>marvellous</i> so far

As if I wasn't already anticipating Chitabe trails :)! Keep those exc. details coming. I may have to request Newman, now.
Loving this report so far.
Sherry

how great you had such a legend for your guide.

DAY 1 (CONTINUED)

The BBC seemed to have a permanent camp set up within the concession. When no filming is taking place, the camp is looked after by a man who stays there by himself. He does have radio contact with Chitabe camp but we did feel sorry for him being all on his own for weeks and weeks. The guides had no sympathy for him stating that he enjoys living there and spends most of his time sleeping. Even the BBC specifically requested for Newman to assist the ground team during the wild dog filming but he was already booked for a private vehicle safari by guests which took priority.

The schedule at Chitabe Trails was a 5:00am wake-up call followed by a quick breakfast at 5:30am (choices included cereals, toast, muffins, fruit, hot drinks and juices), leaving the camp between 5:45-6:00am. The return to camp was between 10:00 and 11:00am for a cooked brunch, followed by siesta time (if you need to sleep). At 4:00pm, it’s time for iced tea and another quick snack with the aim of leaving the camp between 4:15-4:30pm for the afternoon drive. After your return dinner is served between 8:00 and 9:00pm. You also get fed during the morning tea/coffee stop and during sundowners. I was expecting a 5kg increase during these 4 weeks!!!!

We headed off for our first game drive and were joined by another very nice couple from the UK (for the duration of our stay at Chitabe Trails, there were never more than 4 people in our vehicle). This concession was action-packed and we were being spoilt – during our first drive the highlights included zebra, blue wildebeest, giraffes, a few elephant bulls, wattled cranes, hyenas, impala, warthog, a secretary bird, ground hornbills, several slender mongooses, and a congregation of over one hundred great white and pink-backed pelicans . But the star of the show was a very relaxed female leopard. Newman received radio communication that she had been spotted and wanted to find her while there was still good light (it’s always a good sign when your guide is concerned about the quality of light at a sighting). We eventually found her with one other vehicle near the sighting but she was very mobile and was taking a stroll through mopane woodland. But this didn’t stop Newman from following her and it was nice to do some real off-road driving. This girl looked quite young but she was actually 6-7 years old and just small for an adult female leopard. She eventually settled down and gave us a wonderful display by rolling around on the ground close to the vehicle. The light was fading so we decided to leave her to avoid hindering any potential hunting (following an animal through mopane woodland is very noisy, so the stealthy approach of a leopard would be easily blown). We travelled a short and safe distance away from her to enjoy some sundowners. It was now time to head back to camp in the dark where Newman drove and controlled the spotlight. We encountered more hyena, a large spotted genet, African wild cat, giraffes, spring hares, scrub hares and a breeding herd of elephants (for me it’s always a heart-stopping moment when you’re suddenly surprised by elephants during a night drive – but highly enjoyable). All in all, not bad for a first game drive – let’s hope this continues!!!! This camp looks fantastic with its mellow lighting at night, especially the lounge and dining area with a fire burning close by. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner and spent time getting to know our hosts, guides and fellow guests.

Surprisingly we had no problems with insects at night-time during our stay here, which can be a problem during dinner time. Even the mosquitoes in Chitabe were well behaved. During our stay here Jayna only got 3 or 4 bites and I was ignored completely. But little did I know that this smile would be wiped off my face with a vengeance at some of our other camps =-O

More, more, more!!!

Not bad, indeed, for a first day. Looking forward to the tale of vengeance.

<font color="red">Photos of Chitabe Trails Camp with some highlights from Day 1<font color="red">

http://www.kodakgallery.co.uk/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=31ailg45.9pclvby5&amp;Uy=-pdxlgf&amp;Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfro mshare&amp;Ux=0&amp;localeid=en_GB&amp;mode=fromsh are&amp;conn_speed=1</font></font>

Brilliant start to the trip report and wonderful photos -- I especially love the first leopard pic and the secretary bird. Camp looks outstanding as well.

Looking forward to more! We loved Chitabe Trails but unfortunately, did not have Newman as our guide.

great start Gaurang! Keep it coming!

We're loving it! Keep it up! Pics are great too.

You got some nice photos of the female leopard before it got too dark. A great beginning to Chitabe.

Thank you to all for your kind comments. I'm sorry it's a bit slow but please be patient and we'll get there in the end. At the end of each day's report I will post a link to the photographic highlights for that day, so it will be easier for the readers to follow and the photos will make more sense.

Many thanks

Gaurang

Hey Gaurang,

Nice trip report so far. Yes, like your style and format (different and original)....liked your pics from your first set.

Rgds,
H

DAY 2 – THE ELEPHANT MIGRATION (and not to Angola ;) )

By 5:55am we were on the move and immediately received news that a lioness had made a zebra kill very early this morning. She was part of the Chitabe pride that consisted of 4 males and 6 females, but she was on her own and being very secretive. When we caught up with her, she had already had her fill and had done quite a good job of hiding the rest. The kill was a young zebra – not a baby but still young. Surprisingly there were no vultures in sight as the kill was so well hidden out of aerial view. But there were two hyenas in attendance but they weren’t brave enough to challenge this girl and kept a safe distance. While we were watching the lioness and hyenas, Newman was engrossed studying a herd of zebra in the far distance. He singled out a female zebra by her behaviour and calls and stated that she was the mother of the dead zebra, still hoping to find her young one. This gave us a very different perspective on the situation, where most guides usually only focus on the predators and the kill. The lioness was very relaxed and it looked as though she would be there a long time, so we continued our journey thinking that other members of her pride will join her later.

We soon had our first close-up of tsessebes (this was a first for us). We had seen hundreds of topi before in east Africa but never a tsessebe. We also encountered more zebra, wildebeest, black-backed jackals, elephants, impala and many raptors. We then went to take some photos of the pelicans that we ignored on the previous day in our haste for the leopard. Close to the pelicans there were some more wattled cranes and saddle-billed storks. Then Newman saw some WILD DOG tracks but these were old and we continued our drive. We then found some fresh buffalo tracks and Newman explained that it was quite a large herd, so off we went looking for them. By the time we caught up with them they had already crossed the “channel” and were in the Moremi Game Reserve so our pursuit came to an end but we could still see this healthy herd of about 200 members. The Chitabe concession borders the Moremi Game Reserve and the two are separated by a “channel” (only 3 meters wide in some places). When we were there, it was possible to walk across the “channel” without barely getting your feet wet – but rules are rules. Even a troop of baboons were running backwards and forwards across the channel feeding on water lilies. Newman told us that he enjoys driving along the border with Moremi because sometimes he sees members of the Stix pride of lions who reside in Moremi but like to patrol this border. But Newman’s most enjoyable border sighting was a pair of white rhinos that were very close to the border. All guests and staff at Chitabe rushed to the sighting as fast as they could. For many members of staff it was the first rhino that they had ever seen!!!!!! Those rhinos on Chief’s Island do like to move around a bit. We then made our way back to camp.

Afternoon siesta time at Chitabe Trails was always interesting as there were always animals wandering around the camp. During our stay we saw elephant, zebra, wildebeest, impala, bushbuck, reedbuck, baboons, ground hornbills, wattled cranes and lots of other bird life – most of these sightings were from our verandah!!! We even saw a rock monitor lizard which was another “first” for us and a very strange and mysterious cat that you will hear more about later.

As we were leaving the camp for the afternoon game drive, we saw a lioness making her way to the channel for a drink. She was only 250m from the camp and then Newman explained that she was the same female that we saw this morning and that the kill was made very close to the camp!!!! We didn’t realize how close because our different route to the sighting in the morning made us lose our bearings. The kill had now been hidden in a different spot and she was still on her own. No vultures or hyenas in sight – this girl was good at keeping a secret. The zebra carcass had hardly been touched since we last saw it. There were some giraffes near by but they seemed to be aware of her. Other animals encountered included yellow mongoose, warthogs, female greater kudus and an interesting group of ground hornbills. One in particular, was carrying a mouse and frog in its mouth as though it was saving them for later (see photos). When it came across a tasty looking insect, it would put down the frog and mouse, gobble up the insect and then move on again carrying the frog and mouse. We also encountered another big herd of buffalo (about 300). Apart from the buffalo in Duba Plains, all of the herds we encountered during this trip were quite skittish. It only took one buffalo to start running and this would be followed by a stampede in clouds of dust. This herd did not disappoint and it was great to capture this thunderous stampede on video. We noticed a small breeding herd of elephants, so we left the buffalo to follow them. The elephants headed through some bushes, so we followed them. When we came out on the other side of the bushes, the enormous scale of the situation started to unfold. There were elephants all around us (Newman estimated about 250). Then we drove a bit further ahead and there were another few hundred elephants. In the space of one square kilometer, Newman estimated a total of 600-700 elephants. It was an extraordinary sight and something that the still and video cameras were really struggling to capture (even at their widest angles) – you really needed to capture this scene from the air. They were everywhere and concentrated along the tree lines of the small islands. But where were they all coming from and what were they all doing in Chitabe??? Newman explained that the elephants were migrating south from Chobe but taking a different route by cutting out Linyanti. The last time I witnessed an elephant migration on a similar scale, I was in Amboseli during April when 300-400 elephants were heading towards Mount Kilimanjaro – and this was in open plains, so probably more spectacular. But the Chitabe migration was awe-inspiring and after passing another herd of buffalo (about 50), we stopped for sundowners. We stopped in a safe spot but could still see elephants moving and feeding in all directions around us – this was great!!! Under spotlight we passed many more elephants and went to check on our lioness but she was still on her own. That night after dinner, we were walking back to our room, escorted by Andrea, when we heard a male lion calling. Then Andrea shone his torch on to the channel right outside our room and there were many eyes looking back at us. The large herd of 300 buffalo had decided to spend the night outside Chitabe Trails camp but they were very well behaved and quiet during the night.

<font color="red">Photographic highlights from Day 2:<font color="red">

http://www.kodakgallery.co.uk/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=31ailg45.9e5wor6l&amp;Uy=l5mlcl&a mp;Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&a mp;Ux=0&amp;localeid=en_GB&amp;mode=fromshare&amp; conn_speed=1</font></font>

&quot;Afternoon siesta time at Chitabe Trails was always interesting as there were always animals wandering around the camp.&quot;

Game viewing from camp is always high on my camp evaluation check sheet. This sounds great!!!

That hornbill shot with the 2 course meal is a classic. A true gormet! You also have some outstanding buffalo and leapard shots!!

Gaurang: we have lots to look forward to with each day of your trip getting unique coverage, thanks!

The hornbill shot is a classic. I would guess he has a female who has sealed herself inside the nesting cavity of a tree and he is saving the big groceries for her.

That first zebra photo was jolting. The ground hornbill and scorpion is exceptional. I think that's the sort of thing Predator is looking for in his request (posted today) for interesting animal behavior pics. I felt like I was walking into the buffalo herd!

The mother zebra, spotted by Newman, is a reminder of the whole circle of life thing.

Gaurang,

The elephant migration from Chobe....were they passing thru Chitabe to go someplace else? Until now, i assumed they all go into the mopane around the chobe/linyanti and hide there until the dry season. But, some fantastic sights....

Hair

Thanks GreenDrake, PB, Lynn and Hari. Many of the guides told me that once the first rains start to fall, thousands of elephants will start to head south towards the central Kalahari. It was late October when we saw this but earlier that month they saw a group of over 1000 elephants!!! (I think they mention it in the Chitabe newsletter) Again, they were just passing through and heading south. That is just one of the migration routes from Chobe/Linyanti, but there are others too. I was told that if all the elephants remained in northern Botswana, the damage and lack of food would be devastating for them. Many head south, giving the north some relief and time to recover.

Absolutely amazing. Reminds me of some pictures taken from the Chobe river that I must share.

Gaurang,

Thanks....once again, another strong reason to take a long mobile safari trip deep into the Kalahari during the greeen season months. Besides the cheetah there :d

Hari

wrong smiley.......i just cant use that feature well!!!