Day 22 – Khwai back to Maun
The lack of hot showers at Magoltho and recent fairly long stint in the bush prompted us to head down to Maun for a bit of R&R and to get some overdue chores done (work emails, car oil change and clothes washing). We would then head back up to Khwai.
The drive there was down a really badly-maintained gravel road, with patches of sand, ruts and dips all thrown in. It was fairly slow going, the car rattling along at 50kmh on the faster stretches. Nowhere near as fun and interesting as the Ngoma to Madabe sand track. We got into Maun by lunchtime, stopping for a delicious steak just north of Maun, and stocking up at Shoprite.
We headed for Sitatunga campsite, recommended by the Youtuber Edward Bath. The site is fantastic. Decent-sized pitches, excellent private ablutions (which we paid a little extra for – 200 Pula per night total v 160 Pula per night for the pitch with shared toilets).
They have a bar, restaurant, WiFi, and even an on-site mechanic. The staff and visitors are all really friendly (something we had been experiencing everywhere on our trip so far). It has a really nice feel to the place. When heading over to the bar, it must have taken us over 40 minutes to get there – people stopping us to say hi, have a chat and swap notes on where each other have been. We made friends with a very likeable young couple from Cape Town. The site (as with all campsites in Botswana) is full of convoys of South Africans towing luxury off-road caravans filled with meat, beer and biltong (beef jerky in the UK). These guys know how to camp in style!
With this fairly rough and remote part of Botswana (and even more so in Namibia), fellow travellers are always happy to swap notes on road conditions, good campsites etc. We have been getting some great up-to-date knowledge passed to us from people heading from where we were going. This information really helps in making decisions on route planning, even giving reassurance on stretches of road that you may previously think undriveable.
Day 23 – Chill out in Maun
We needed to get the oil changed, and the campsite mechanic offered to do it for me. I just had to pop into town to get the parts needed. He then spent a good few hours trying to get the old oil filter off. It had seized on pretty well, and he didn’t have the correct socket-type tool to remove it. I got some work emails done, using the campsite WiFi. The BTC SIM-card & data plan we had purchased in Kasane upon arrival was totally useless.
Day 24 – Hippo Pools Campsite near Khwai
After saying farewell to our new mates, we resupplied with food, booze and fuel in Maun. We left town at 10.10am, which is 10 minutes after the liquor store opens. The drive north on the shit road back up to Khwai was the same car-shaking corrugated cack that we had on the way down. Approaching the road feeling fresher meant that it didnt feel as bad as before. I have noticed this a few times now; if im really tired after a long days drive, then finding a badly corrugated road as the final stretch wears my patience. It becomes a bit arduous.
After getting through the 3 or so hours of endless corrugations we were in the Khwai area, not far from Magoltho campsite. The iOverlander app on the Garmin showed a couple of campsites nearby, so we stopped in at Mbudi campsite on the river of the same name (which flows into or out of the Khwai). Rivers in the Okavango Delta seem to flow backwards. The big Okavango flows in, then splits into a delta, fanning out over large flat area. It never reaches the sea.
At Mbudi, our pleas with the guy to let us stay by the river were met with the usual happy helpfulness. He found us a pitch, which wasnt really a pitch but was just in a bush clearing next to the river. Perfect. His boss came by shortly afterwards and told us we couldnt stay there, gave us our money back and we left. He explained that both he and us would be fined if the government found us camping in the bush around here. Understandable, but i felt bad for the kind fellow who originally helped us, as he had a right bollocking from his boss. Mbudi looks to be an amazing campsite.
We had chatted to an Afrikaaner we had met at Sitatunga the previous day. He was staying here for 3 nights and not going into the Moremi Game Reserve – in his valued opinion, the Khwai area is better as it is wilder. He had seen a Leopard on the drive into camp. It seems to be a recurring theme, us being somewhere where there was something cool seen just hours previously. Such is the nature of game.
We left Mbudi and looked for the next campsite on our list: Hippo Pools. The satnav wanted to take us on an odd route there. We had plenty of time so we took it, to see where it went. It turned out to be quite a nice game drive, with a close encounter with a family of Elephants. The whole area is criss-crossed with bush roads, so you could spend weeks here.
When we eventually found Hippo Pools campsite (it is a short drive from Khwai Village), we were delighted to find they had a pitch available beside the Khwai River. Awesome. We had plenty of time to set up camp and lounge around. There were a few Elephants drinking, Buffalo and true to the campsites name – Hippos.
We were very close to the river, and those Hippos like to leave the river at night and graze. Hippos are extremely dangerous, being responsible for more human deaths than all the other animals combined (average over 500 deaths per year). They are permanently grumpy, and charge with no warning. They can run faster than a Jamaican sprinter, and command the utmost respect.
I discussed with Suma what we would do if faced with a Hippo. Since we would be close to the (unlocked) car, then we would run to the opposite side and jump inside as quick as possible. If that wasnt an option, then we would run around one of the wide trees or bushes that we picked out as being fairly sturdy. The logic being that while I might not be able to outrun it, I might just be able to dodge it long enough until it got bored.
We lit the customary fire then kicked back and relaxed. When it was pitch black we could hear something eating grass nearby. I scanned in front of us with the torch, but couldn’t see anything. Our neighbours, about 50m away, must have seen something silhouetted against our fire. They pointed their torch in our direction, and it illuminated an enormous Hippo, casually grazing just a 5 metres from us. We both jumped out of our seats, and prepared to leg it in the direction of the car. The Hippo just carried on eating grass, and slowly ambled back towards the river, so we sat back down.
We kept a more vigilant watch from then on. The Hippo went downstream for a few metres, got out of the river and reappeared behind the car, just next to the tailgate. We watched as he ambled off into the thick bush and disappeared. Not knowing if he would reappear directly behind us, we decided to finish our drinks and head to bed.
It really is a beautuful area here. Unlike many Botswana rivers, the Khwai river is not seasonal. It has water in it year round. As a result, the area is a lot more lush and green than elsewhere in the parched Kalahari. The trees grow taller, and it just looks more like paradise. Permanent water means abundant wildlife, and is the reason why the Okavango Delta is a world-famous safari destination. We don’t have the funds to visit the luxury camps inside the delta that are only accessible by light aircraft.
Day 25 – Long drive towards Makgadikgadi Pans
We left Hippo Pools and entered the Moremi Game Reserve at North Gate. We drove around for a bit, enjoying the lovely scenery. The decision made to head out to Khubu due to time constraints, so we diverted to South Gate down a dull Mopane-lined road then back onto the shit road to Maun, stopping for a delicious steak at a restaurant.
We had a dull drive south-east towards Camelthorn Campsite. The gates were locked, the buzzer was disconnected & we couldnt ring them due to shit SIM cards. So we headed to next campsite. They had no pitches available but wanted $90 USD for a small canvas tent.
We moved onto the community campsite inside the MK NP, which turned out to be more far more expensive, and based on previous experience, probably a bit shite. So we bit the bullet and went back to option 2 and forked out $90 USD for a bed in a canvas tent at Boteti River Camp. It was nice for a stopover, despite the very high price. The Boteti River does not flow in the dry season.
Day 26 – Khubu Island
I had heard that getting to the very remote Khubu Island could be a bit of a mission, so we checked with the campsite manager as to the best route in. Both he, and an Afrikaaner family who had just come from there, advised us to head in from the south as it was a short way in, and a fairly easy track. The way out north back towards Nata would be fine too. They advised that other tracks in the area were in terrible shape and should be avoided. I reciprocated with some advice on their proposed route north through Moremi, Savuti and Chobe.
On the way we saw a sign to the Central Kalahari Game Reserve 45km down a side road, so we gave it a try. After a couple of km it turned into a deeply rutted sand track, full of holes and about 6″ deep of fine talcum powder which exploded into huge clouds when driven through. It was really slow going, and although the car would handle it, I didn’t really fancy plowing through another 40km of it, risking it filling up my air filter and potentially damaging the engine. We hadn’t planned on visiting the CKGR anyway, so we turned around and went back to the original plan: Lekhubu Island.
The drive in was fine; sandy & twisty, the track splitting into multiple routes in places. You for sure need a satnav here to keep you heading on the correct bearing. After a while going through dense stunted Mopane, it opens out for the last stretch onto some lovely pans. The trail crosses and skirts them. Its very pretty.
Day 27 – Khubu to Livingstone (Zambia)
We had another long drive planned; we were hoping to make it to Zambia today. It was about 80km sandy & dusty drive to get us from Khubu Island to the tar road. A section was very pretty along a sand ridge, with views to the left a lot like the Serengeti, and to the right across a beautiful salt pan. A lot of the 80kms were through stunted Mopane, typical Kalahari scenery and not altogether pretty to look at.
We stopped in the small town of Nata for some delicious food, to refuel and inflate the tyres back up to road pressures. The garage attendant inflated the tyres for us, and this is where a problem started. The TyrePal tyre pressure management system (TPMS) I had fitted before the trip had been gradually failing us. Over the last month, three of the sensors had been giving false readings. The fourth one I had lost somewhere in the Caprivi. The TMPS display was therefore switched off as it kept beeping false readings. The garage attendant didn’t screw the sensors back onto the valve, and I made the fatal error of not checking. Not screwing the sensors back on properly causes air to leak out of the valve.
About 150kms down the tar road from Nata towards the Zambian border at Kazangula, I felt the front right tyre fail at about 100kmh. I braked gently to try to keep the car going straight, and the tyre came rolling past us. After what seemed like forever, I brought the car to a standstill on the wide flat dirt & dried grass verge.
We changed the wheel and were back up and running in just over half an hour, and made it to the border post by 4pm. It took us about 1 1/2 hours to get through the border. Its all very nice and new and a fairly easy process by African standards, although in trying to make things easy it all ends up being a bit of a faff. There was a lot of paperwork on the Zambian side: Insurance, carbon tax, Local tax, bridge charge. All which had to be paid for. Then there was a gate pass, some form to fill in where they measure how efficient they are, and a health check done by an infrared camera. Also some stickers for the front & rear of the car, required by Zambian law. Then money changing and finally getting SIM cards so we have data. All fairly easy to negotiate and much easier than I expected.
We found Glorias BnB in Livingstone on the Garmin. She has a very nice small house on the grounds for £40 per night. Hot shower, big kitchen, lounge, comfy bed. Suma kept purring like a cat in a cream factory.
Day 28 – Victoria Falls
Wheel repair & car clean took us up to lunchtime. Drive to Vic Falls in the afternoon. We paid 100 Zambian Kwatcha (£3.20) for someone to guard the car from baboons in the Vic Falls car park. We returned to find the recently cleaned car covered in baboon shit & piss and the front bonnet stone guard half chewed and hanging off. All baboons should be rounded up and shot.
The falls were predictably spectacular, rightly being the number one tourist destination in this part of Africa. It’s for sure one of many trip highlights so far, and surprisingly not overly touristy. There are plenty of stalls selling wood carvings, bracelets, fabrics and all of the tourist tat that you’d expect, but no hard sellers pestering you to buy stuff. It was nice to see so many Zambians visiting the falls – we were far outnumbered by people travelling down from the larger Zambian cities for the weekend to see the falls, helped by the dual pricing system for locals and international tourists. Surprisingly it wasn’t overrun with hoards of Chinese tourists or overland groups.
We booked a 3 hour sunset cruise which was lovely. It took us upstream, then across to the Zimbabwean side of the river and back downstream to view a lovely sunset. It was very nice, we saw some elephants and crocs, one of the crocs was pretty huge. We got chatting to a Zambian couple. The guy was a safari guide working out of South Luangwa NP, and we had some drinks and a chat.
He was lamenting the issue of (mostly) American tourists getting themselves killed by elephants in the area, and how the reporting in the international press was seeming to tar the reputation of Zambia as a tourist destination. These elephants are not ‘Zambian elephants’. They migrate across 4 countries, so don’t belong to any one country. The problem is caused by people not reading their behaviour, and refusing to get out of the way when an elephant is agitated. The results are a sad loss of life, and a damaged tourist industry.
