Botswana

sekororo · Post by **sekororo** » Fri May 27, 2011 2:31 pm

Can anyone give me ideas/advice ex. mokoro or boat trips we should do? Places we must see? Where are the best game viewing possibilities? etc
All help will be appreciated. Thanks

John54 · Post by **John54** » Sat May 28, 2011 11:51 am

Hi Sekororo,

Audi camp has had some theft issues in the past. Besides that it can be noisy, just like Crocodile camp.
http://www.maunselfdrive4x4.com/maun.htm
I would advice to camp at e.g. the Thamalakane lodge or the Island Safari lodge.
South gate: my advice would be to replace this with the Third Bridge and/or Xakanaxa campsites.
Linyanti: mawb one day here and one day at the Savute campsite.
Kasane: if possible include a night at the Ihaha campsite. And (private) boattrips along the Chobe riverfront are highly rewarding.

Have a nice safari! John

sekororo · Post by **sekororo** » Sat May 28, 2011 3:01 pm

Thanks John,

From these gates which will be good gameviewing roads into Moremi/ Savuti?

John54 · Post by **John54** » Sat May 28, 2011 5:44 pm

Check out the online map of Tracks4Africa (T4A) http://tracks4africa.co.za/ and zoom in to reveal all the tracks. From South gate you could do drives to the Santawani region in the south, and have lunch at the lodge. And you can drive into Moremi direction Third Bridge and back.
North gate (Khwai) is an excellent spot with lots of tracks to discover. Best road is the northside of the river heading east. And yes, this is outside the park, but that makes no difference at all! From Khwai village it is also possible to do a mekoro trip. http://www.selfdrive4x4.com/phpBB3/view ... ?f=4&t=376
Linyanti has limited tracking possibilities, but excellent birdlife.

Please note that there are no fuel stations between Maun and Kasane. Khwai village has a few small shops with some limited basic supplies, but in general you have to be self sufficient for this part of your safari regarding food, drinks and fuel. I would recommend the rental of a good fridge/freezer. Another very useful item is a converter from 12VDC to 230VAC, to charge batteries, phones, gps, torches and cameras from your car battery.

If possible, try to do a nightdrive: http://www.selfdrive4x4.com/phpBB3/view ... f=26&t=235

Regards, John

sekororo · Post by **sekororo** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 10:04 pm

Thanks John,

this is great advice! Taken.

John54 · Post by **John54** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:59 pm

Glad to be of help.
Since it is your first time in Botswana, you might want to buy some fieldguides to take with you:

Birds: Sasol birds of southern Africa, by Ian Sinclair & others
Mammals: The Kingdon field guide to African mammals, by Jonathan Kingdon http://www.selfdrive4x4.com/phpBB3/view ... f=26&t=248
General: The wildlife of southern Africa, by Vincent Carruthers http://www.selfdrive4x4.com/phpBB3/view ... f=26&t=245
Tracking: Tracks & signs, by Chris & Tilde Stuart
Mammal behaviour: The safari companion, by Richard D. Estes

A good place for stocking up foods in Maun is the Ngami shopping mall, with secured parking.
To find your way in Chobe & Moremi, a gps might come in handy. The T4A maps are excellent but only run on Garmins. A good alternative are the maps from Ndrive, available for TomToms, smartphones & tablets. Or use a smartphone or laptop with the Holux M1000C gps logger.
On your way to Kasane, stop at Ihaha and try to get a campsite there for an extra night in the wild.
Photo opportunities will be overwhelming! Consider taking a camcorder with you, e.g. the Kodak Playsport, full HD for just 110 euro. Set it to 720p.
It is no longer allowed to gather firewood in the parks, so get it before entering. I think also the campsites and Khwai village will sell it.

We are looking forward to your trip report!
John

John54 · Post by **John54** » Thu Jun 23, 2011 10:17 pm

In my last reply I wrote the following: "A good alternative [for T4A maps] are the maps from Ndrive".
This is not the case. The Ndrive map of southern Africa is a really bad product, virtually useless for selfdrivers. It lacks all kinds of information regarding landmarks, attractions, lakes, parks and so on. Apparently there are NO roads, campsites or anything else in Moremi NP. Apart from that the map presentation on e.g. a smartphone is unbelieveably bad. Do not buy.

sekororo · Post by **sekororo** » Wed Aug 10, 2011 7:44 pm

I hear the water levels are rising quick
By August 2 we want to go from south gate to Xakanaka, will that be possible?

come-along.nl · Post by **come-along.nl** » Sun Aug 28, 2011 11:19 pm

sekororo wrote:I hear the water levels are rising quick
By August 26 we want to go from south gate to Xakanaka, will that be possible?

Yes no problem what so ever cause this route is not along or near water!

Enjoy!

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