Sean – Botswana & Zimbabwe – August 2017

Day 1 to 4 – Duba Plains Camp, Okavango Delta

Rhinos Rhinos Everywhere.
Seeing rhinos back in the delta was incredible, and our first day saw rhinos and a palm trees together in the same view, which was amazing! Later that day, we spent the whole afternoon with a very relaxed young male leopard lying on a termite mound in perfect sun with not a blade of grass around him.

We then decided to do 3 full day trips where we sat with a pride of lions for pretty much the whole day. For 3 consecutive days we watched them attempt 10 different hunts, all unsuccessful, but amazing to see anyway.

We then did a helicopter trip over the Duba Plains area and saw giraffe crossing a channel of water, many herds of elephants and a medium size herd of buffalo. Everything looks different from the air and you get a real perspective of just how vast the Okavango Delta is. The Duba rooms are the ultimate in luxury accommodation! I tested it, and I could roll over 5 times in my bed before I fell out 🙂

Rhinos at Duba Plains.

Day 5 – Victoria Falls Hotel

The grand old lady of Victoria Falls is always a magical hotel to stay and has the best view of the falls mist spray.

Flying in a helicopter is without question, the best way to see the falls. They are huge and just spectacular from the air and it only takes 12 minutes! I always love to see how the Victoria Falls community has taken it upon themselves to thrive despite the government situation.

Day 6 to 9 – Little Ruckomechi Camp, Mana Pools National Park

Mana Pools is unlike anywhere in Africa! The scenery and terrain in the Zambezi valley is so different that it just makes every photo exceptional.

Having your own private and very productive concession in Mana Pools is amazing to say the least. Elephants are in camp 24/7, and getting to the main area from your room is always interesting, and sometimes our dinner courses would be delayed due to heavy elephant traffic between the kitchen and our table. 🙂

Little Ruckomechi is ideal for small groups and families, other than the elephants, you have it completely to yourself.

Boswell – the famous tusker – was on the concession at the time so we got to see him in all his glory. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see him standing up on his back legs and feeding on seed pods high up on the Ana Trees.
The absolute highlight though was the cruise on the zambezi and watching a small herd of elephants cross the river, with only the tips of their trunks being visible for
parts of it.

Boswell, Mana Pools, Zimbabwe

Day 10 to 12 – Linkwasha Camp, Hwange National Park

Linkwasha Camp has been newly revamped and looks fabulous, and the camp waterhole has elephants around it almost constantly.

The parks other waterholes in the afternoons were the place to be as 100s of elephants would come down to drink, as well as sable and eland herds. We also spent many hours looking for the cheetah coalition, but they always seemed to be one paw ahead of us. A massive highlight was when we visited the wild dog project in Hwange, and the researchers took us to where the dogs were denning just outside the park.

On our way to the airstrip on the last day, we came across several hyenas feeding on a carcass, a big bull elephant took exception to them and chased them around… what a perfect way to end off an incredible safari!

The Botswana and Zimbabwe Camps in one itinerary work very well together, the accommadation offering is so different in each camp and Victoria Falls in the middle is perfect.

Our major highlight, watching elephants cross the Zambezi river at sunset, at some points, only having the tips of their trunks visible.

Baobab Tree