Our final night in the Kwando Lagoon Camp was one where at around 03:00 a very grumpy hippo decided to exit the river directly in front of our cabin. The growls and grunts were sufficient to make our room shake.
As we had to leave at 11:00 we had a considerably shorter morning safari between 06:00 and 09:00.
The first point of interest was with baboons squabbling in the pre-dawn light. The call that they make and shout at each other sounds like “George” and hence these comical acrobats are often referred to by this name.
Our safari travels are typically along sandy and/or bumpy tracks and such travels are euphemistically called “African Massages”.
We were fortunate enough to encounter a roan antelope. These rare and elegant animals are similar in appearance to sables but are even more endangered. A visitor from the U.S. said that she’d never seen a roan antelope and she’d visited Botswana eight times.
Roan antelope
We then spent about ten minutes watching a herd of sixteen giraffes as they foraged for leaves from the high bushes and trees nearby. There was one very large male giraffe which had a much darker colouring than the others. Within the herd there were some calves that were tiny in comparison with the male leader.
Tsessebe and calf
Tsessebe
Giraffes
Giraffes
There were the usual sightings of common birds such as lilac breasted rollers, lapwings, spur-fowls, coucals, babblers and hornbills but a moment of excitement arose when we managed to photograph the rare striped kingfisher. Unlike the two other striped kingfishers we’d seen at Kwando, this one stayed fixed, sitting atop a stump and seemed happy even when we were quite close.
White-rumped babbler
White-rumped babbler
Copper-tailed coucal
Lilac-breasted roller
Long-toed lapwing
Brown snake eagle
A brown snake eagle was next to be located. This bird’s brilliant yellow eye is a key identifying feature.
At 08:30, with time running out we had to start our return to camp but G took a short diversion into a small pond area where a saddle-billed stork was feeding. This tall handsome bird with its bright red beak with a yellow saddle stood out dramatically in the early morning sunlight.
Saddle-billed stork
Blue waxbill
Blue waxbil
We were just about to leave this pond area when G sighted two tiny birds fossicking in amongst the reeds near the truck. One was the female red-billed fire-finch and the other was the blue waxbill.
For several days we’d been trying to get shots of this blue waxbill bird which we’d seen around the camp but it always evaded us. Now we had success as this delightful wren-sized bird wasn’t worried by our presence.
Back at camp we showered, did a final packing of bags and had brunch before saying goodbye to the staff at Kwando Lagoon.
G and James drove us to the airstrip where part of their routine was to ensure the airstrip was free of large animals that would surely cause a problem for landing. We asked if the planes were required to stop if there was a zebra crossing!
Farewelling James and G at Kwando airstrip
Departure ‘lounge’ at Kwando airstrip
Our Cessna Grand Caravan duly arrived at 11:10. We said farewell to our Guide and Spotter and thanked them for their great efforts in making our Kwando Safari so enjoyable.
Our flight to Maun took about 50 minutes and a fair proportion of the flight was over the complex network of rivers, streams and ox-bow lakes that comprise the Okavango Delta. The lush green vegetation associated with the Okavango was in sharp contrast to the arid semi-desert areas seen outside the delta zone.
Kwando Lagoon area from the plane
Kwando Lagoon area from the plane
Kwando Lagoon area from the plane
Flight from Kwando Lagoon to Maun
Our plane, Kwando Lagoon to Maun at Maun Airport
As we landed at Maun, we were surprised to see the hundreds of light aircraft lined up along the area adjacent to the runway. In terms of planes, Maun is one of the busiest airports in Africa!
We had a ninety-minute wait before boarding our international flight to Johannesburg. The plane was an Air Botswana ATR 42/72 and the flight to Jo’burg took just on two hours.
Our plane, Maun to Johannesburg
In Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Terminal we passed through the ‘incoming’ immigration and customs sections quite quickly but then found it difficult to locate the international departure section. The signs were not very clear but we were in no rush as we had five hours to wait anyway. During this period, we relaxed in the departure area and had drinks and snacks. As it was already March 14th in Australia, we took the opportunity to have an early celebration of Rae’s birthday!
We boarded our Airbus 340 – 300e at 20:45 South African time and prepared ourselves mentally for a nine and a half hour flight to Perth.
Having arrived in Perth at mid-day, Western Australian time we collected bags, checked through customs and duly headed for the Virgin Domestic check-in area. We seemed to adjust quickly to the new time zone and aspects of ‘jet-lag’ were not apparent as we’d managed to get quite a deal of sleep in the flight from Jo’burg.
It was at this time that we had to say farewell to Rae and Malcolm as they are staying on for a few days in Perth, whereas we are heading to Melbourne to stay with our son Marcus and family.
We then encountered a small problem as our intended flight to Melbourne didn’t have us listed as passengers but instead there was a booking for us to fly to Sydney. This was a suggested itinerary with South African Airways which we had altered some months ago.
The very helpful Virgin staff subsequently contacted South African Airways with whom we’d booked the Virgin flight (they are a ‘co-share company’) and corrections were duly implemented.
We spent three hours relaxing in the Virgin Lounge and left Perth at 17:15 with an expected time of arrival in Melbourne of 23:30. With a big day at the F1 Australian GP tomorrow it will be a test of mental fortitude and physical resilience to keep wide awake. Fun!!
At this point, mid-way across the Nullarbor at 10 000 m, we’ll wrap up the African Blog and attempt to get some (possibly) deserved sleep.
This two week safari through Namibia and Botswana has been a superb experience with an opportunity to learn a little more about the people and the wildlife of this fascinating continent. The many hundreds (indeed thousands) of photographs taken throughout our journey when culled and sorted will hopefully provide testament to the spectacular sights we’ve seen in this fortnight.
Our travels with Malcolm and Rae have been full of excitement, joy and wonderment. Our very close friendship extends to now over fifty years and is a treasure to cherish. We are very lucky to have such good friends and we look forward to further adventures together.