AFRICA TOUR part 6

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Zie: http://gerardenpetraopreis.blogspot.com/2017/08/

Friday 17th of November 2017 TOP

Audi Camp, Maun, Botswana

Highlights:

Leopard with young and prey

5.15 a.m. We’re late, but it is cold again and an ice cap and double sweaters are used. Not an owl in the tree like last year. We take some time to enjoy a warm, semi-outdoor shower, do some shopping and continue our trip. My plan is to start driving at 9 a.m. towards the next campsite and we would have made it had it not been for the liquor store that only opens at 10 a.m. And He can’t go without beer! So in the end we leave at 12 noon from Maun with groceries from the Super Choppies and Spar, lashing straps from Rylies, steak from the Beefboys, 24 half litres of beer from Liquorama and a new bottom bed sheet for 4 euros, because there was no time for laundry service. We also get cash and I write an important letter. But it had to be sent to Els by e-mail so that she can print and send it. And for internet access we had to go to the Indian Restaurant at the airport. So we ordered an Indian meal at 11 a.m. eat half and doggy bagged the rest for tonight. At 12 noon we will drive to Magotho Campsite runned by the Community Trust. We decided this last night. This area borders Moremi on the north side and we loved it last year. Here we also had the incident with the 2 lions and the angry elephant. We were at the Trust Office in Maun at 7.40 a.m. but the staff were not there. The receptionist called ahead and we could just go and find a free spot.

The 1st part leaving Maun is still asphalt, but soon turns into a wide road of white sand. We have to deflate the tires. Luckily the road is better than last year. Nobody at the veterinary fence, so we keep going. Good momentum. At one point we even have lift off, 4 wheels of the ground. The bump was just a bit bigger than anticipated. We see a giraffe, zebras, hartebeest, drive through small water crossings and along pools with birds. Then suddenly there is an Olympic size pool on the road. Well, what next? Gerard takes off his pants and goes into the water. But it is getting too deep for his liking and the surface is too soft. We back up a bit and come to a fantastic detour along a pool of hippos and a stretch of river with beautiful dead trees. We are back on the right track, but now we can no longer see the road because of heavy smoke. The left side is on fire. Annie, help! (Our Dutch friend Anne is a voluntary fire fighter). We close all windows and quickly pass. Ahead the fire is already extinguished. We have to stop a few times for crossing elephants. It is crazy how quickly they dissolve between the trees. We come to the same road we took to the river last year. The Khwai River is beautiful again. We see 4 ospreys at the same time, hippos, 2 huge crocodiles and lots of deer. Elephants are everywhere. These dumbo’s are very relaxed and you can just drive past them. We first look at the camping spots. We meet the Germans from Makgadikgadi who also appear to be here. We pick location 02, with many trees that form a sun umbrella. Elephants are surrounding us.

No amenities at all here. We are just getting out the seats when the Germans drive by and tell us that there is a leopard with cub at spot 07. We immediately start looking, but can’t find them. A safari car arrives and effortless spots them behind the bushes. To get the best place for his customers, he demolishes half the forest. The guide repeatedly drives into the bushes to brake of branches and to get closer. We have an okay spot but can still see how the youngster downs half a springbok. We hear it even better! After an hour, when it has eaten enough, it starts playing and mother starts eating. We stay until the sun sets and drive to our campsite to find deer and an elephant there. Dumbo is not leaving. He wants the leaves from the tree. At one point we think he is about to stand on his hind legs, but doesn’t. Because Olie makes no move at all to leave and comes closer and closer, it’s time to start a fire in our self-dug fire pit. In the evening 2 gentlemen of the Trust indeed come to get their money, 300 pula p.p. That is only half the price you pay in Moremi on the other side of the river. The starry sky is fantastic, 360 degrees with silhouettes of African trees.

Saturday 18th of November 2017

Kwai Development Trust, Magotho 02, Botswana

At night we already wake up from the cold. It feels like 6 degrees. The sky turns a beautiful red and with the trees that is a fantastic sight. We wait until 5.15 a.m because with the possibility of 2 leopards close by, Gerard wants to be able to see things. In the distance we hear a baboon’s wahoe, but around us are wildebeest, springbok and waterbuck. The velvet monkeys are still in the tree. At 5.30 a.m. we drive to Moremi North Gate. We try to keep driving along the river as much as possible. We come across the same safari car we met yesterday and drive after him for a while. This is convenient because not all roads are on the map and when we have to cross water we can see how deep it is. A car with Dutch registration plates found a lion in the middle of the road. Guess the lion would have preferred a quiet morning but ends up taking a morning stroll with 4 cars following him. It’s smart and disappears into bushes. We end up chatting for at least an hour with Chris and Sascha, who have been traveling since March with their car Bonnie. Bonnie is named after an Dutch singer with a severe alcohol addiction. Bonnie has a high need for diesel. On their trip they drove through Greece, Egypt, Sudan and the rest. Liked Kenya better than Tanzania. (Currently Chris and Sascha are in Tofo Mozambique where they started Tofo Kite Surf). We continue but only see very little life.

We cross the bridge and drive into Moremi. We continue our game drive for a while. Elephants, all different kinds of deer, hippos and a huge crocodile. It is now very hot. We take the fast route, 30km of sand and potholes along autumn-coloured trees, to South Gate. There we have 2 nights at camping spot 02. After all the other most amazing places this is crap! The site is next to the (loud) staff village. Additionally, we have already heard from various other travellers that there are only few animals here this year. Last year there were a lot of lions and the wild dogs were there also. Gerard repairs his beloved windshield because it has now broken in two. Because of the bumps, the freezer appears to have opened. A water bottle popped out and kept it open. It probably happened not long ago so the damage is not too bad. Gerard is going to make backups and I will write. We are surrounded by cheeky birds, squirrels and weasels. A squirrel bites Gerard in the toe. After 2 birds want to check the car on the inside, we close the windows. After a boiling hot shower we go for a game drive at 4.30 p.m. We’re going to Black Pools. For the first time this trip we see a male kudu with an enormous antlers. More kudu and groups of bokkies all with young. 1 group is startled by the car and they give a warning sound that sounds like blowing through the nose. For a while we don’t see any animals until we get to the picnic spot. Here is a drop of water on an area of ​​8 football fields. It is very busy with baboons, zebras and all kinds of deer. Everything is mixed up. Very entertaining. In the bushes are elephants with young and giraffes. We drive 2 more km and find a huge pool with hippos and an elephant family with little ones. They’ll run when we get there. We drive back to the campsite and see 2 giraffes 500m before the entrance. The campsite is not full. We count 5 cars. Apart from the village, we have no immediate neighbours. There is a generator humming and it does not switch off until 9 pm. When the sun has set, a huge construction lamp is switched on. The starry sky fades with so much light pollution. You can see our shadows until the end of the campsite. It’s Saturday evening and that includes music. In town, fine. But in Moremi, at 50 usd p.p.p.n. this is not really what I imagined. We go to bed early because it is full of mosquitoes here and pull the blankets over our heads against light and noise.

Sunday 19th of November 2017 TOPPER 

South Gate, Moremi, Botswana

Highlights:

3 spotted hyenas

Wild dogs

Leopard

Lots of giraffes, even the smallest we’ve ever seen

Herds of elephants with young

Birds

Water buffalos

Around 5 a.m. we hear a few loud roars. Hyena? It is not cold but it doesn’t seem to get light. We’re therefore late and only start game driving at 6 a.m. The other camping guests sleep in. After 3km there is a hyena on the right site of the road, taking a dump. Of course we make an emergency stop, depriving the animal of its privacy. From an 1 meter distance we conclude that this hyena has a very cute head. But it doesn’t shit “flowers”. At the crossing we take a turn and continue towards Black Pools. After 500m we see a wild dog with a collar on the road. Happy Happy Joy Joy. The rest of the nosy family is there too, but the sun is wrong for good photos. At first we think they want to relax and lie down, but they just have too much energy and a few start running in circles around a tree. 1 by 1 they go into the woods.

The leader (with collar), who was the only one to stay on the right of the road at least 500m away, is the last to follow. I sit on the roof to see them better. A number of dogs scare away a hyena! All disappear in a large cloud of dust. Then the whole pack comes together again in the forest where they run in circles. It becomes quiet and the wild dogs are gone. I just said to Gerard that I’m quite comfortable on top when I see a big leopard walking towards the car from the right at 20m. As soon as possible (if you run you die) I slide down through the window back into my seat and close the window. The leopard walks right behind the car and starts sniffing the places where the wild dogs have lain. Then a jackal appears on the scene and starts yapping at the leopard very annoyingly. The leopard jumps into a dead tree but then thinks “fuck you” and goes full throttle after the jackal. A giraffe overlooks the whole scene, ‘early in the morning at a quarter to seven’ (Dutch children song). The leopard continues walking in circles, growling heavily, with a barking jackal chasing it. After a while we don’t see them anymore, but we still hear the jackal. A hyena comes out of the forest, and runs straight towards us with the leg of a springbok in its mouth. In the distance we see another hyena. What a morning. We drive back a bit to see if we can find the dog pack. But there is no road at all in that area. We continue to Black Pools. We stop at the same spot again and now out of the forest the 2nd hyena is also running towards the car.

Some years later we see in one of BBC’s beautiful nature documentaries a camera man in the back of a safari truck throwing his hat to distract a really annoyed leopard that is about to attack the camera team. The story probably similar to this one: Leopard catches springbok. Wild dogs chase of leopard and steal kill. Hyena’s go for the scraps. Leopard really pissed off ready to attack anything.

 At Black Pools we see deer, hippos in the water, 2 crocodiles on the banks. We drive to the picnic area but here the drop of water has become even smaller and there are no animals. Back to the big pool for yogurt and the malaria pill. There is a group of elephants.

We continue to Xini Lagoon. Have to stop a few times because there is an elephant on the road. We see the Mogogelo Hippo Pool but have to make a complete detour because the water crossing is much too big. Everywhere there are deer and zebras under the trees. There are no animals at the pool, but an big flock of bird flies above it. They look like pelicans. We continue towards Xini Lagoon and pass from one pool to the next. Lots of life everywhere, lots of giraffes also young ones, herds of elephants with little ones, lots of zebras and all kinds of deer; kudus, waterbuck, tsessebe (antelope), red lechwe impala and bokkies. All springbok seem to have young. Only the elephants with little ones are shy. We drive a great distance, full of amazement about the amount of water and life. Then we see a very small pool with a lot of birds. They are pelicans, but also storks and caribou. We have lunch under a tree and then drive back the same route along the Xini Lagoon to see more herds of elephants. A very relaxed group is now eating grass and we can stand right next to them. They pull the grass out with their trunk and then shake it a few times so that it is sand-free before it disappears in their mouths. The youngest specimen lacks the trunk control and is merely petting the grass without being able to pull out a single blade of grass. At another pool we see water buffalo for the first time this trip. Lions love them.

In the beginning we were still wondering if the scenic flight flew over this area, but during the day we see several planes fly over us, hence we think so. 

We park in the shade of a tree. I’m going to write and Gerard has a cup of coffee and looks at pictures. We hear the Fish Eagle screech again. A herd of elephants is bathing in front of us and in the pool behind us we hear the hippos grunting.

On the way back more elephants and again very little ones in their midst. The groups are just waiting for each other. When 1 group has finished drinking and bathing, they walk into the forest and the next group takes its turn. We just reverse again. Too many gigantic buttocks on the road.

We automatically drive back to camping spot 02. A velvet monkey is already waiting to steal something edible. When I go for the ablution to cut vegetables for the salad, he bumps after me. So Gerard comes along. It’s very clear the monkey has way more respect (fear) for a man. The monkey doesn’t even try to steal and walks away.

At the camping site there is now only 1 car, a Dutch couple who have not seen any elephants and hippos today! Plenty of space so I say we can simply pick out a spot. I don’t bother asking the park officials because I would really like a different place, far from the generator, the construction lamp and the screaming children. Gerard chooses place 08, all the way in the woods. That’s pretty close to camping in the wild.

Monday 20th of November 2017

South Gate, Moremi, Botswana

Last night we had visitors. We think hyena but to be sure we need to check the footage from the night camera. In any case, it wanted to get away with a bottle of ‘dirty’ water (water from the tab at the ablution block). The teeth made holes in the cap.

It is so warm that we can immediately put on our shorts. What a difference compared to 2 days ago. We are in the car at 5.59 and go to the Xini lagoon. We are less than 200m on the road when we see Mr and Mrs giraffe again. At the 1st pool of the Xini lagoon, 3 hyenas run around a couple of giraffes. But when we arrive the hyenas disappear into the bushes. We drive down all pools and stretches of river but no predators. A lot of deer, a football field full. The water buffaloes are also there. A quick count says 30. We park in the shade of a tree, watch fighting hippos and sunbathing crocodiles. We enjoy a freshly made instant coffee until a herd of elephants appears behind us that wants to pass. We only see 1 safari car. We drive up and down the pools a few times and at 10 a.m. decide to drive to Xakanaxa via the back road. That will be a long, varied ride over green meadows, along pools and stretches of river full of water lilies and dense forests. On the way we see giraffes, elephants, lots of deer, warthogs, hippos and the 1st ostrich. A few times we have to go in reverse because we encounter a water crossing. Finally we get to the main road to Xakanaxa. There we see the 1st car at 4th bridge. It is the Dutch couple from South Gate who drove the easy route via 3rd bridge. We are going to have a look at Mugwevhlana lagoon. Next we want to take a shortcut to Xakanaxa, but after a few muddy roads with puddles we return to the main road. At 2 p.m. we arrive at site 03 and Gerard is done with all the bends, branches, deep sand, potholes, mud puddles and bumps. First eat some food, shower and wait for the bottom sheet to dry. I washed it with probably ‘pure’ river water at the ablution block of  Xakanaxa. After the ‘clear’ water at South Gate I did not expect the water to be so brown here. With a handful of detergent, the sheet smells nice and fresh again and in the sun and the strong wind it is dry in 15 minutes. The wind has been blowing very hard all day. To our left the sky is very dark and we hear thunder. Luckily the storm doesn’t come our way. At 4 p.m. we drive to Paradise Pools. On the way we see deer, zebras and buffalo again. At the back of the pools there are 100 apparently dead trees that will sprout again. Everywhere deer and vervet monkeys. We also see the 1st young red deer. An elephant is standing between the trees. Back to the campsite. Pelicans and caribou sit at the water pool. Finally a sunset again. Beautiful red and all the clouds turn colour. We have no neighbours. Site 01 (we camped there last year) and 02 are empty. Both 01 and 02 are next to the river and better positioned. But now we have the whole area to ourselves. We also see very few cars in the park. When it is dark we turn out to be surrounded by young deer.

Tuesday 21st of November 2017 TOPPER

Xakanaxa campsite 03, Moremi, Botswana

Highlights:

Wild dogs

3 lions (one couple mating)

We forgot to take the phone into the tent, so no alarm today. It suddenly was a bit chaotic yesterday evening. I saw 2 pair of eyes light up in the flashlight and thought it were hyenas. Last year there were 2 here (see Trip Report Sabbatical 1 and read how our pot got stolen by a hyena). Turned out this time to be 2 hippos. Well I also have lots of respect for those large animals. So hop hop into the tent. Actually, the hyena did visit at night. His tracks run directly to the tap under the car.

We wake up when it’s light and take it easy. We will be the last to drive at 6.30 a.m. It is quiet at the water pool. We do see 7 storks in a tree. At the very last moment we choose to drive to Paradise Pools where a leopard with 2 cubs was seen on November 16th. The first 50 meters we see some zebras. We drive around the 2nd right-angle bend and suddenly a lot of wild dogs are running on the road towards us. Behind them are 3 safari cars and 5 tourists’ cars. So everybody is here! We turn the car and follow the large pack of wild dogs. Around 18+ dogs, counting is difficult. They go to the runway, play, running after each other through the water. What a fun. 30 minutes long. Then they calm down a bit and they also have more of an eye for the elephant that arrives. Meanwhile it has also become warmer. They disappear into the woods.

We drive to Hippo Pools, avoiding the main road as much as possible. Except for the Dutch and hippos it is quiet. Only 1 elephant far away on the other side nothing like the many elephants we saw last year. None on the way to the Pools either. But now there is so much water everywhere. About 25 pelicans fly over. We sit for a while on the new picnic bench next to the Hide Out. We notice investments have been made. The toilet is fixed and there are now also signposts in the park. The roads also seem much better.

We drive all the way along the Khwai River to North Gate. The road passes through tall grass and reeds, right next to the river. The water lilies grow next to the path. We see a baboon family. 2 times we have to go through the water, but it is not deep. The landscape is completely different from last year. Fields of high reddish reed alternated with grass where deer graze happily. Many trees seem to have autumn colours. We see a family elephant (10+ individuals) taking a bath in the river. There is a lot more water in the river and it actually flows. For the first time we see a group of hippos grazing on the shore. And it is still warm and sunny. It’s 40 degrees in the car and the wind feels like a warm hair dryer. Next to the hippos is a group of waterbucks. Further down the road a few cranes, a vulture and 2 fish eagles and of course zebras and giraffes.

When we arrive at the campsite at North Gate we are going to make a cheese tomato toastie and cook for 4 days in advance. Minced meat and a lot of vegetables that we freeze in bags so that later only sauce and macaroni are needed. All footage also has to be backed-up because we have a lot of photos and videos. It becomes more and more cloudy and every now and then a drop of rain falls. But we haven’t had much yet. On the way we saw on the sand that it must have rained here yesterday. A vervet monkey strolls by and settles under a tree to eat some old bread. His family soon arrives and snatches anything edible from the trash. There is a lid on the can, but the little hands just go through the chicken wire.

We take a shower with very greasy water and then go for another tour at 4 p.m. First we come through a burnt piece of land. You can still smell the smoke. We head towards the river. Lots of deer, red lechwe with also a single young. We chat with an Italian couple and a solo German. We drive straight across the pan and then around it towards Kwai Lodge. Lions were spotted here this morning. We thought our luck had already run out today but we have to hit the brakes again because a lion and a lioness are on the road in front of us. Just after a bend, 2m from the car. He gets up and dives on top of the female. He does this 3 times in 15 minutes. Mating ends with a growl and a claw each time. Sometimes the female will lie on her back with her legs up. The Italians arrive from the opposite direction and signal that there is another lion ahead. But we cannot move because the lions are now 50cm from the car. So close that we can’t even use the camera’s anymore. So we use just phone and tablet. Suddenly there are 3 safari cars, packed with Chinese, next to us. They all take pictures with their phones. There will be a 4th safari car. And what does the lion do after his 3rd go, right, he takes a huge dump. Next to our car. And that smells! Time to take a look at the other lion, but no action there except for major snoring. Back to the couple. Action in between snoozing. Now the female has had enough of it and she shows it clearly. We stay a little longer, but eventually drive to the other lion who looks like a huge teddy bear. He is on his back with his paws in the air.

The sky is completely overcast and we drive back so that we can put up the tent before dark and make a fire. North Gate is known for its hyenas. We want to cook macaroni but we can’t find it anywhere. Oops, maybe we’ve finished all of it when we cooked the sauce at Gecko Greek, Cederberg Mountains. So it will be rice tonight that Gerard knows how to cook perfectly dry freehand. We have just finished dinner, 8.20 p.m. when we see 2 cars driving across the campsite in the dark. It is as if we’ve experienced this before. (see Trip Report Sabbatical 1). Then it starts to rain.

Wednesday 22nd of November 2017 TOP   

Khwai / North Gate, Moremi, Botswana

Highlights:

4 lions

Hippos

Stupid tourists

It rained last night. At 4.45 a.m. it is still pitch dark and we have to wait to get up. We are the 1st to hit the road and decide to drive to the place where we saw the lions last night. We’re there in 45 minutes. It takes so long because the road is full of potholes and the average speed is 10 km per hour. Damn, they’re still there. First we run into the teddy bear which is still stretched out and ahead the male and female are still mating. She seems to be less interested today. We stop and the Italians arrive. They have taken the German in tow. He’s been on the road for 2 weeks and hasn’t seen a single lion yet, not even in Etosha National Park! But on the other hand he was still sleeping when we left the camp. The 2 lions walk right past his car, and yes, he closes his windows. We go for a drive but find nothing at all. Back to the campsite for coffee. The SKL guys tell us that there is a hippo in the bushes with us. Our strange neighbours go into the bushes with their cell phones to take pictures. They are really crazy!  More people are killed by hippos each year than by lions. We wait quietly and see the hippo walking to the river. We meet the nice Italians again. He has a huge lens of 8,000 euros. I am curious about his pictures. Our next game drive we are going in the other direction along the Khwai River towards Dombo Hippo Pools. Same stretch as last year where we saw 2 lionesses and 2 hyenas. We turn at the water crossing. No lions, leopards or hyenas. A hippo with its big mouth full of grass next to the car, 2 Cape Buffalos in the water with lots of birds on their backs, a family giraffe, a horde of springbok with young, red lechwe, waterbuck, some elephants, zebras and wildebeest with the 1st young wildebeest that we see. On the way we come across a small deer carcass on the Khwai plains. A jackal is eating fresh meat but runs away. We wait for a while but nothing shows. The 2nd jackal drips off. When we come back, the carcass is as good as bare. 2 vultures are pulling the last bits of meat off. 2 sit and watch. Lunch at the campsite at 2.30 p.m.

We have an ant invasion here. They’re everywhere in no time. On your legs, hands and face. Fortunately, they are only very small and not the 3 centimetre large specimen that we have already encountered. Every now and then a vervet monkey comes by to see if there’s something to score, but the SKL guys have emptied the trash. Squirrels are a constant factor. We’re going to take a shower because there is water. The sun has recently been shining for a while and that’s just enough for the solar pump to provide water. It was cloudy all morning and there was no water!

Cheered too soon. Sun is gone again, so no water, no shower. We ‘shower’ using Dettol wipes. At 4 p.m. we get back in the car. We calmly drive towards the lions. There are 2 huge crocodiles on the bank of the river. Lots of hippos in and a few out of the water. Beautiful, large and small birds. On the plain we have a look at all the deer, zebras and elephants. It is pleasantly busy with animals. The lions are still towards Belmond Lodge and he is still making frantic attempts to jump her. The other male has disappeared. The German is also back with our new neighbours. We continue down the path and have to slalom through dense forests. Then we come to a pan with deer, zebras and elephants. We drive along the river for a while until we pass a very expensive looking lodge, which is on the other side. Except for 1 elephant and some birds, we didn’t see any animals at the river. We have to slalom through even more dense forest and just wonder what we have gotten ourselves into when it opens up again and becomes very green. A while ago there must have been a fire here. We hear the springbok sniffing and yes there is a lioness lying there. We had already heard that 1 female ran away. Well we found her. The rest of the way is top, hard sand through open, green landscape full of animals, zebras, springbok with lots of offspring and elephants. Some more curves through dense forest and the lion and the lioness are back on the road in front of us again. So we did drive a circle?! And the lions do another quicky. We see the German and the new neighbours driving in the distance.

We return to the campsite via a better road with fewer potholes. About an hour later we are enjoying Mexican tortillas next to the camp fire when the German comes walking past with his flashlight. He asks if we know where spot 03 is? What? Are you crazy! Bist du verrückt geworden? Bescheuert? Spinsst du? One is not allowed to walk here after dark. You are not allowed to walk to the toilet in the evening, you have to take the car. Hyenas and hippos walk here. Last year we had 2 lionesses on site 01 at 8.15 p.m.! And that is across the little road because we now have site 02. He walks back to site 06 to get his car! What a joke. He closes his window when a lion passes, but goes for a walk alone in the dark. Just to be clear, the camping spots are far apart and there is forest in between. There are no fences here to protect you from the wild animals. Only possible in Botswana.