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Home -> Reviews & Tips -> Trip Reviews -> Khwai 2007
KHWAI TRIP 2007
In July 2007 13 of us went to Khwai for a short trip. Once again Khwai confirmed
its reputation as one of the best safari destinations in Botswana. With its vast
open floodplains bordered by mopane forests, Khwai is one of the most beautiful places
in Botswana as well as being very rewarding in terms of game viewing.
The public
campsite at Khwai is pleasantly situated among the tall trees along the banks of
the Khwai River and is frequently visited by animals coming down to the water to
drink as well as by the monkeys and baboons that sleep in the trees above the campsite.
Hyena and occasionally Lion visit the campsite at night so care must be taken and
all food items must be kept in the vehicle overnight.
During the trip we saw numerous
animals (including Lion, Elephant, Hippo and Zebra) as well as a wide variety of
birds such as Ground Hornbill, Saddlebilled Stork and Yellowbilled Duck.
Tuesday 17th July
Palapye - Nata - Maun
After leaving Palapye mid-morning and stopping
at Francistown and Nata Lodge along the way we didn't arrive in Maun until after
sunset. Our accommodation for the night was at Audi Camp where we had booked the
10 bed house with 3 extra mattresses. The house was simple but comfortable consisting
of 3 rooms with 2 beds and 1 room with 4 beds with a bathroom and kitchen joined
on.
The restaurant at Audi Camp is to be recommended and we enjoyed a tasty evening
meal there before retiring for the night.
Distance travelled: 654km
Wednesday 18th July
Maun - Khwai
The next morning we had breakfast in the restaurant
before going into Maun to do some shopping at Spar and Ron's Fresh Produce. The trip
to Khwai took about 3hrs and we arrived early afternoon setting up camp before leaving
for an evening drive east along the river.
The highlight of the day was the sequence
of photos below of a hippo which opened its mouth just as I was focused on it. The
whole thing was over in seconds however thanks to the 400D's 3fps I was able to capture
the whole thing on camera much to my delight!
After spending time watching elephants
coming down to drink we made our way back to camp, passing a herd of Wildebeest,
Kudu and Impala along the way, where we enjoyed a traditional beef stew before getting
into our tents and falling asleep to the sounds of the night - Hyenas sniffing round
the tent, Baboons squabbling in the trees above and Hippos feeding in the river!
Distance
travelled: 150km
Thursday 19th July
Khwai
The next morning we headed west along the river from the campsite
on our only full day in the Reserve and were rewarded with an excellent sighting
of lion - 1 male, 3 females and 3 cubs. The females and cubs crossed in front of
the vehicles before disappearing into the grass, however the male walked along the
road before eventually backtracking to join the females, posing majestically for
photos on the way!
Shortly after we headed back to camp for a late breakfast, taking
the main road through the mopane forest which yielded Zebra, Impala and Warthog along
with numerous birds such as Redbilled and Yellowbilled Hornbills, Redbilled Woodhoopoe
and Forktailed Drongo.
After breakfast we just stayed around the campsite until just after lunch with some deciding to go into Khwai village to buy soft drinks at the semausu. The tall trees along the river make it a very relaxing spot to rest as well as being a good place to watch birds - we saw Pearlspotted Owlet, African Fish Eagle, Saddlebilled Stork, Bearded Woodpecker, Kurrichane Thrush and Arrowmarked Babbler in the campsite to name a few. Vervet Monkeys and Baboons are regular visitors too and you have to be vigilant if you want to prevent them stealing food from off the tables or even out of boxes!
After lunch we decided to head to Dombo Hippo Pools taking the direct road through the mopane forest before making our way back to camp along the floodplain later on in the afternoon. Most of the hippos were resting in the sun when we arrived at Dombo however it wasn't long before they entered the water again with the usual grunts and snorts. One hippo took the performance a step further and rolled right over in the water with his legs sticking up in the air!
On the way back we passed a number of herds of Elephant which had come down to the
river to drink as well as numerous herds of Impala, Lechwe, Wildebeest and Zebra.
On one of the roads we came across an African Wild Cat sitting in the road whilst
further on 3 Ground Hornbills were foraging close enough to the road for photos.
As the sun set we headed back to camp with the prospect of a sumptuous braai drawing
us - spare ribs, chicken pieces and boerewors!!
Distance travelled: 50km
Friday 20th July
Khwai - Xwaraga Campsite
On our last day in Khwai we spent most of
the morning packing all the tents and equipment before heading back Maun, arriving
early in the afternoon. We had lunch at Riley's Hotel in Maun before heading further
south towards Xwaraga campsite our accommodation for the night. We arrived just after
dark after having some difficulty getting the trailer through the deep sand between
the tar road and the campsite! We had booked into the self-catering chalets for the
night however when we arrived we found that the chalets were in a state of disrepair
with both of them having leaking toilets, poorly kept bedding, beds propped up with
bricks and lights that didn't work not to mention the numerous holes and gaps in
the flyscreens! After complaining to the management we finally got them to agree
to allow some of our guests to stay the night in two A-frame tents at the main lodge
at a reduced rate.
Distance travelled: 250km
Saturday 21st July
Xwaraga Campsite - Palapye
Early the next morning we went on a walk
down to the river and found a waterhole where Impala, Wildebeest, Zebra and two Elephants
were drinking. On the way back we saw Kudu and Bushbuck just by the campsite as well
as numerous Vultures circling round.
After rejoining the tarred road we inflated the
tyres (we'd deflated them to navigate the sand) before driving back to Palapye, stopping
along the way at Last Chance Tuck Shop for drinks and Granny's Kitchen in Letlhakane
for a hearty meal!
Distance travelled: 470km
