Welcome to the Delta

Arrived in Maun at 12:30pm yesterday—after leaving at 4am on Wednesday (the day before) meaning the four us traveled for over 32 hours to get from Tofo Beach to Maun for our CIEE safari trip in the Okavango Delta. It was a lot of traveling, but the trip to Tofo was so worth it. One of the highlights there was an afternoon horseback ride on the beach and through the inland areas of Tofo. It was some of the most breathtaking and magnificent views I have EVER seen. The whole first hour I was sort of in shock at the fact that I was there and seeing what I was seeing—it was just absolutely amazing and so surreal. There was so much vegetation and really no signs of humans—except the small rural villages though which we passed. We even got to gallop a bit on the beach and up a sandy hill! So glad we chose to do that. Funny part was when Sophie bit into the shell of a cashew—which must be roasted out of their shells—and the acid dripped down her chin and left a brown burn mark. She had the acidic taste in her mouth until dinner…it was pretty hilarious.

The lion that welcomed us to our campsite

So yesterday we drove into our campsite—we are literally in the middle of the delta! No barriers around our campsite to protect us from possible trespassers (i.e. herds of elephants, prides of lions, families of baboons). We have two guides with us and three other helpers, including a cook! On our drive in, we didn’t waste any time spotting some neat wildlife. Giraffes, lions (a male was just lying in the middle of the road!), elephants, impala, zebras, cape buffalo, spotted hyenas, and some cool birds (Egyptian goose and king fisher). It was a bumpy, and long, four-hour drive to get to our campsite—but the wildlife we saw was really amazing. My favorite was the adult elephant and her three babies. The littlest one…termed ‘Nugget’…was so cute. The cow gave us a little warning sign to show she was serious about protecting her babies…it was exciting!

We ate dinner last night—had kudu meat, noodles, and potatoes—really good; then we went to bed. Sophie, Jen, and I are sharing a tent. We slept so well and woke up at 5:45 this morning for our first game drive. It is so much colder here than I expected—did NOT pack warm clothes! Our [very dark] program director, Batsi, said he got heat rash during past trips to the delta…so I did not expect temperatures below 90°F, let alone 50! It was a good thing I purchased some sarongs in Tofo—make nice scarves and blankets!!! We saw some neat animals this morning, too…but the weather isn’t the best for animal-spotting. We saw wildebeests, zebras, baboons, vervet monkeys, giraffes, elephants, impala, tsesebes, red lechwes, hippos, and crocodiles. Hoping to still see hyenas and a pride of lions.

Pictures of some the wonderful wildlife:

Mother cow protecting her little nuggets

Tsessebe in action

Nice profile of a zebra

African fish eagle perched in the top of the tree

Impala grazing just next to a termite mound

The beautiful papyrus grass

Rare spotting of a cheetah

These cute birds (carmine bee-eater) would fly next to our vehicles as we drove;

may have thought we were a large animal

A giraffe trying to remain inconspicuous

We made it back to camp—luckily without me going to bathroom in my pants—kudu (or something) did NOT settle with me…I struggled to make it back to camp, even after going twice during the drive…one at a bathroom stop and one out in the weeds of the delta!! (We stopped to fix something in our vehicle and I couldn’t pass up the chance to go again.) Once we got back I went a third time…yikes…and sorry, too much information…but it was not pleasant! Sam, however, gave me some meds and they certainly helped--I was very grateful.

I felt better after a nap and at 3:30 I felt okay enough to go on our second drive of the day. We saw many of the same animals as this morning. We saw a lot of hippos (one completely out of water), three crocodiles, an elephant eating right by the road, a big group of baboons with babies (and even one humping another…gross), kudu, reed buck, water buck, some more impala (of course), and some nice birds—my favorites being the lilac-breasted roller, white-breasted bee eater, spoon bills, guinea fowl, and really large and majestic-looking African fish eagles.

We saw a good variety of animals today—especially considering the weather. It felt so great to ake a warm shower before diner. It’s been since Tuesday night (three days), so it was even extra special and appreciated.

It’s weird to think I’m here right now—in Africa in the middle of the Okavango Delta, camping so secluded all on our own with wild animals all around and able to walk through our campsite at any time. It’s pretty amazing that we’re seeing all these animals in their natural habitat. However awesome this experience is, though, I do feel bad driving around in our vehicle—exposing the animals to humans and polluting the air with our exhaust. What does our presence do to their behavior? We make them exert extra energy to get out of our way when we come through, so how does that impact their lives? It’s sad to think about these populations’ fates…not that the Delta is an extremely touristy place, but there has definitely been an impact on the habitat because of humans. Although we didn’t stay in an area that had permanent buildings in it, there are several lodges, restroom facilities, and even a landing strip—all things that required construction equipment and materials to be brought in…and disturbance to the natural environment and all the plants and animals and ecosystems contained.

I’m definitely not ready to go back to class on Monday. I really just want to go back to Tofo! Our next trip is to Namibia over Easter break. We have a four-day weekend and are going to the coastal town of Swakopmund. We will hopefully fly…to save time that we would otherwise lose from bussing…but it depends on the airfare.

Tomorrow we wake at 6 and go on an all-day game drive which includes a boat ride…more specifically, a mekoro ride. It is the traditional boat they have here—long and narrow boats that seat 3-4 people, and are made of wood and driven by someone who stands on the back to balance and propel the boat with a long stick…should be a unique experience! The delta is so beautiful…I’m excited to see a different part of it tomorrow. I expected less trees and more water here—with greater areas of grassland…but I think I may see that tomorrow, seeing as how we are going to a wetter area.