The minute you cross the border between Namibia and Botswana at Ngoma, you enter the vast National Park known as Chobe after the river along its northern border. The Chobe is a tributary to the Zambezi River but is unique in that it can flow in both directions depending upon the level of water in the river. When the water is high the Chobe flows north-easterly into the Zambezi. During the rainy season the much of the flood plain in covered in water to make the river expand into a vast expanse of water, protected for many, many species of birds and animals.
To enter the park you pay a fee and then turn off the tar, main road under a thatched archway and begin the off-road trek. A four-wheel drive vehicle is essential.
The bush is thick and very green and it takes a while for your eyes to adjust to the many shades and tangled undergrowth to begin to make sense of it at all and spot the animals grazing or moving about. Grasses and shrubs are abundant with taller trees at intervals.
The beginning of the drive is very rocky under wheel, although this breaks down so the tracks are really sand. The overall feeling is quite enclosed and lush.
After a short drive the track heads downhill and runs along the bank of the huge river flood plain. In the dry season there are driving tracks much lower and nearer to the water but for us we need to use a higher track due to flooding. Every so often, there is a dead end track to explore leading down to the water’s edge. Here you can really appreciate the calm stillness of the place and how the water attracts so many species of bird and provides drinking and playing space for even the big animals. The sun sparkled on the water and the sky was forever changing. Sometimes very dark storm clouds far away provided a photogenic backdrop and contrast to the water, sky and grass.
Animal groups seemed to appear a species at a time so there was time to concentrate and work out the differences and similarities between various antelopes or birds before the next appeared (various species of antelope appeared first - impala (so dainty), lechwe and kudu. Travel was slow speed and the windows were open – about as good an experience as you could wish for.
We turned off the main track to the right, away from the river, and up a small rise. Here the bush opened out into small hills and dips which were covered in shorter grass. Bushes were further apart and tall trees grew. Here we came across a group of eleven giraffes moving to a shallow waterhole. The open bush spread for miles and the animals were not bothered by our presence at all. This was true of the whole park – we just had to be quiet, stay still and watch everything.
Upon re-joining the main track we headed further into the park, making visits from time to time to the water’s edge. We were fortunate to come across a large group of hippos playing in the water but they were lying so low it was difficult to gain a good impression of their size for any photograph. Crocodiles were basking on the opposite bank – better to stay at least six feet from the bank just in case you don’t see one!
There is always something to spot and your eyes are quickly tired from staring into the surroundings, up and down. A group of four zebras was an exciting discovery as these are rare near the water at this time. They were smaller than you might imagine but the pattern on their skin was fascinating.
Then- just before lunch break we came across the first elephants! Just like a picture, a family group was arranged under a single tree! From then on many, many groups were observed. If they were moving across the track we waited. It’s not good advice to drive, even slowly, between groups of walking elephants. You should wait for the whole group to move across first and then move on.
The landscape changed only slightly, mostly flat ground but the rocky terrain changed to more of sand which the elephants prefer. Sometimes the scrub opened out to more open areas dotted with trees, sometimes it felt very enclosed. It was difficult to imagine how different this would be in the Namibian winter (our summer) when all the grass would be burnt dry, the flood plain would be dry and the river shrunk back to its proper banks and all the leaves would be off the trees, for they are not evergreens.
Bird life was prolific and the sight of a pied kingfisher hovering and then diving vertically to reappear with a fish, which it then killed by whipping it onto its fallen-tree perch, was a highlight.
We entered the park at 7.30am and left around 4pm – with around 800 photographs between us! The temperature was 34 degrees, no rain on us (although thunder storms around us by the afternoon) so bright sunshine all the way.
Animals seen included:
- impala
- lechwe
- kudu
- water buck
- puku
- giraffe
- zebra
- elephant
- hippo
- buffalo
- warthog
- crocodile
- jackal
- baboon
- water lizard
- meerkat
- mongoose
Birds seen included:
- kori bustard
- openbilled stork
- maribou stork
- fish eagle
- hornbill
- grey lourie
- lilacbreasted roller
- sacred ibis
- egyptian geese
- cormorants
- bee eaters (various including the carmine bee eater)
- kingfisher
- bataleurs
- tawny eagle
- knob-billed ducks
- african flycatcher
- blacksmith plover
- crowned plovers
- african jacanas
Have a great time looking them all up – believe me they are wonderful in real life – it was a paradise!
