Francistown, Gaborone and back to Jo'berg

Our road trip through Botswana continued from Planet Baobab down to Francistown.  We arrived in the city center and promptly got stuck in a traffic jam!  After a stroll through the local mall, a restock of reading material for me (and no postcards) we spent the afternoon lounging in our tent cabins at the Dumela Lodge (just outside of town, past the prison and down an isolated road).  Scott was the only brave one to jump in the unheated pool, while the rest of soaked in the bathtubs in our rooms and lounged on the lodge deck enjoying an afternoon beverage.

From Francistown we drove to Botswana's capital Gaborone.  After a few wrong turns we had lunch at a beer pub and later continued our quest to find me some postcards (no luck).  We strolled through a local market and braved a packed Spar supermarket before heading out of town.

We spent the night in a cabin in the Mokolodi Nature Reserve, literally next to a watering hole.  How amazing is it to have a bbq while wild animals are out and about less then 10 feet from where you're standing?

A quick cup of coffee and we were back on the road, heading south back to Jo'berg, South Africa.

And upon return to Jo'berg, Graham took care of some business and then promptly met us at his watering hole, the G&G.

Planet Baobab

I'm not even sure how to describe Planet Baobab, let's just start by saying that the sign on the highway (in the middle of nowhere) has a giant globe on top of huge fake ant mound and across the street there's a 15 or 20 foot pink aardvark.  So even before you get to the reception area you know you're in for something a little different.  Scott had originally reserved us tent cabins, but when we turned up they were out on safari so they upgraded us to traditional African mud hut with a thatched roof and separate hut for a bathroom (with very cool open air showers).  The grounds of the lodge are dotted with ancient baobab trees, with trails linking the huts, the swimming pool, the bar and the access to the local watering hole (that would be the animal watering hole, not the people kind).  But any place that has a chandelier made out of beer bottles, cow hide covered chairs and a concrete living room sofa set gets high marks in my book for originality.

We toasted the birthday crew (Joni and Graham) with a sunset stroll around the grounds.

Elephant Spotting and more kayaking

We rose early after our camp out in the Okavango Delta so we could take a bush walk around the island with our local guide (and also motor boat driver).  We wandered around for the better part of an hour before we finally spotted some wildlife, some birds, a few zebra, a wildebeeset and then finally we spotted 3 elephants.  The most amazing part about seeing these elephants is that we weren't in a game park or a nature reserve, this is their home and we were able to walk up, from a safe distance, and watch them.  

As you can see we weren't that far away, and not behind a gate or a fence like you would be at a zoo.

After a hearty breakfast back at camp we got back in our kayaks to continue our paddle downstream.

At the end of the trip we'd paddled 52 kilometers.  The group vote was that was a huge hit and next time we had to go for longer.  Upon return to the Old Bridge Backpacker the crew took up station at one of the many outdoor picnic tables and toasted our trip with a few beers.  John and Emily later took us upstream in their motorboat to another lodge where we dined on a local dish called "bunny chow" (beer stew with carrots in a bread bowl).

Kayaking in the Okavango Delta

One of the highlights of our trip was a 2 day kayak trip in the Okavango Delta.  It's hard to get a grasp of how large the delta is from the ground level, but it is the world's largest delta and covers an area of 250 kilometers by 150 kilometers and has up to 11 cubic kilometers of water (wow).  We covered a small sliver of the area, first by being taken upstream in a motor boat and then paddling our way downstream in a kayak.  

Here's where we stopped for lunch.  Our trip was through Kayaktive Adventure Safaris.  I liked the safety briefing from John before we started, "I'll go in front, if we have any issues that's usually where they are.  If we spot a croc or a hippo I will raise my paddle and the motor boat will go between me and the hippo before you proceed."  

After our day's worth of kayaking we went out on the motor boat to do some fishing.

 

And then we all slept under the African stars in our tents.

Road Tripping through Botswana

We continued our drive up through Botswana, passing through towns here and there, but mostly marveling at the flat nothingness out our windows.  We were the town's excitement when we stopped in Mopipi looking for leaded fuel, the uniformed school children all waved at us, a car full of white people in the middle of nowhere Botswana.

We stopped for a photo opportunity on the side of the road, because we were on the border of the Kalahari Desert.  

After some more driving we finally arrived in Maun, the town that services most people who are exploring the Okavanga Delta area.  After days of driving through small towns in isolated area we enjoyed a delightful lunch in the popular South African chain restaurant Nando's, got a cold beverage from Whimpy's and stopped in at a grocery store to refuel on snacks, beer and water.

We spent a leisurely afternoon chilling by the river and small paddling pool at the Maun Old Bridge Backpacker and later sat by the fire and watched the activity in the bar.  The open air bar and picnic tables were busy on the Saturday night, both with international travelers and locals.  Between the pool table, the bar and the televised rugby match there was plenty of people watching opportunity.

Martin's Drift to Letlhakane

We started our day off at the border of South Africa and Botswana and traveled northwest up through Botswana.  A few pit stops along the way, including the hours we spent at the Khama Rhino Sanctuarcy (click here for a video of the amazing wildlife we saw). 

The orange vendor was in Palapye, most of our day was spent driving along long stretches of open flat land, with mud huts tucked in off the side of the road or live stock crossing the road (see below).

When we finally got to Granny's Lodge in Letlhakane Scott cooked up an excellent bbq (or braai as the South Africans call it) and we sat around in the courtyard listening to the Friday night parties from the locals over the fence.

Khama Rhino Sanctuary

Here's a little video of some of the animals we saw at the Khama Rhino Sanctuary in Bostwana.