The Moremi Wildlife Reserve |
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Spurred by huge subtropical storms the Okavango River rises in central Angola, flows through the Caprivi Strip into Namibia and finally enters Botswana in the north. Here, billions of liters of water pour into one of the world’s largest inland deltas and transforms an age-old desert into a paradise of palms, papyrus and sparkling clear water. This water drains away through a maze of lagoons, channels and islands before disappearing into the Kalahari Desert in the south. Almost one third of the entire Okavango Delta is covered by the Moremi Wildlife Reserve, a diverse ecosystem consisting of riverine woodland, flood plains, wetlands and reed beds, mopane forest and dry savannah woodland. The reserve is best seen from a 4X4 safari vehicle or on boat trips.
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Rest at one of the numberless water holes for some hours and watch what’s going on. Or have a look on the sandy riverbanks and wetlands where hippos and crocodiles are commonplace. Especially on boat trips you will have the opportunity to watch some of the around 550 bird species.
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Back in your luxury lodge in the late afternoon you should order a gin and tonic, sit down on the wooden deck of the main building and watch the magnificent sunset. While it’s getting dark, billions of insects, the true masters of the bush, start a concert you will never forget. In this moment you will think there is no place in the whole wide world that is better than the African bush.
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Best time to visit Moremi are the cool and dry winter months from March to September. Then you have almost a guaranteed sighting of lion, elephant, leopard, hyena, eland, kudu, giraffe, zebra, impala and buffalo. Visited Moremi, you have discovered one of the last great haevens for African wildlife. Even in the busiest time of the year you are likely to be the only spectator at the most dramatic animal sighting because the park administration holds the number of visitors down.
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There are three serviced unfenced campsites in the reserve. As the animals frequently look for prey in the night, staying here will defenitly make you feel that you are in the heart of wildest Africa. The less adventurous should stay in one of the luxury lodges within the reserve. But even here it can happen that an elephant looks into your topless bathroom.
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Moremi can be accessed either by air or road via Maun, Botswana’s tourism capital. But it’s not easy to find the right way in this maze of sandy roads, varying from deep sandbanks to potholed detours. A self-drive through Moremi is really only advisable for experienced
4x4 drivers and in the dry months.
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Published on Sunday January 5th, 2003 by cycleboy
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