Botswana

On Wednesday afternoon, our Cessna 210 landed in the middle of nowhere. We were greeted by Russell, our guide for the next four days, and boarded our open air Land Rover for the drive to Kalahari Plains Camp. We were taken to our room which was a raised tent with a king size bed, salted water shower, and a view out forever over the vast Kalahari.

The people who arrived with us were the only other guests in the camp, Sam (female) and Steve (male) from Minnesota. She is a corporate headhunter and he an architect who designs playground equipment. Sam has been to Africa many times and is quite knowledgeable about the animals and birds. Steve was a first timer like us. Russell is a Afrikaner who has been a guide for about twenty-five years. He revealed his love of the area as he explained the land and the animals that roam there.

After settling in and enjoying welcome drink and appetizers, we took our first of five game drives. The Kalahari is a desert plain that covers 85% of Botswana. The flat land goes from seemingly barren to brush to grove. Stretching across the desert is Deception Valley, a now-dry river bed that is home to most of the animals we saw. Unlike the more populated north, animals here are fewer but still wonderful to behold. We drove through clouds of butterflies as this is brown veined white butterfly migration season. On our drives we saw herds of Springbok and Oryx, many of the big eared Steenbuck, a few hartebeest and wildebeest. We also had some dramatic views such as the cheetah who strolled in front and beside us, the pride of five lions, another cheetah with her three young cubs and a “delight” of ten giraffes grazing the tops of the acacia trees. We saw several honey badger, lovely to look at with their sleek fur but unbearable to smell.

The area has an abundance of birds. Several flocks of ostrich and their fluffy young. The Khoury Bustard is the largest flying bird in the world at over 40 pounds, though we primarily saw it walking through the grassland. Anna Lee’s favorite was the Korahn with its flat top and striking black, white and red plumage, its clacking noise when in flight, and its “helicopter” type landing. Our sightings are too many to list here.

Instead of a drive, one evening we took a bush walk with Xhanakwe of the Xukuri tribe. Wearing a springbok horn headpiece and loin cloth, he demonstrated his tools for hunting, trapping, fire making, and signaling. He is of the first generation to receive a western education and still practice his tribal customs when he is at home (he works at the camp as a waiter). After his bush walk, at night, Jerry was selected to lead us back to camp. It is a good thing that Xhankwe was with us or we would still be wandering the Kalahari.

Our daily routine consisted of a 4:30 am wake up call by Russell standing outside our tent and calling our names until we responded. Since guests are not allowed out in the dark because you don’t know who may be wandering through the camp, Russell returned at 5:00 a.m. to escort us to breakfast. After breakfast, it was on to the Land Rover for our game drive. Russell has a reputation for going out far and coming back last, so our morning run was about six hours long with a coffee/tea break in the middle. Our own “nature-calls” were met with the “men’s” in the front of the jeep, and “women’s” in the rear. On one occasion, we were honored by using a “George” bush and a “Laura” bush. Upon our return to the camp, we enjoyed a delicious buffet lunch consisting of lasagne, veggie torte, quiches or pasta. Then it was siesta time until we had tea in the late afternoon. Our evening drive was about two to three hours long, ending with the spectacular desert sunsets. Dinner included curried lamb, fish and beef followed by very tasty desserts.

Each evening, Russell again escorted us to our rooms. After spending the first night swatting bugs, we learned to keep the outside light off and minimize the interior lighting. The days were quite hot and the evenings only slightly cooler. The room was kept comfortable by opening the one wall covered by a screen and by a fan whirring on high overhead,.

These photos are but a tease of the many wonderful shots we have to remember this amazing experience.