Botswana Safari Journal
by James Weis

James Weis, a professional photographer and co-owner of Eyes on Africa, a travel company specializing in African safari travel, shares his report on a recent photo safari to Botswana.  All images © 2006 James Weis.

I have just returned from leading an 18-day Digital Photography safari through some of Botswana’s prime safari locations. In this and future installments, I’ll share details of the safari and why I think Botswana is Africa’s top wildlife safari destination.

Our safari stayed at private camps in the wildlife-rich Okavango Delta and the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve, both areas renowned for big game such as elephant, lion, leopard, giraffe, zebra and buffalo.

The Okavango Delta is a dynamic ecosystem, created by a large river, which empties not into the sea, but onto the vast and deep sands of the Kalahari Desert of Botswana. For most Americans, the closest comparison would be Florida’s Everglades. It is a remarkably beautiful place and one of the last true wilderness areas on earth.

The rains this year in northern Botswana were higher than usual and the surplus of water on the ground has created isolated animal paradises throughout the region. Botswana’s rains fall between November and March and the waterholes usually dry up in May. This year however, the water holes are still full and new channels of water are still flowing in, creating oases of life everywhere you look. I’ve never seen anything like it in my 12 years of traveling to Botswana.

For wildlife viewing, the Okavango and Linyanti areas are superb. Some of the highlights on this trip were a pride of lions numbering 22, cheetahs, a mother leopard with 3 tiny cubs, and hyena pups at the den with their mother. We also saw herd after herd of elephant, giraffes, zebras and wildebeests. Maybe most special of all, we were lucky enough to see Africa’s Painted Wolves (or Wild Dogs) on 7 of the 18 days; my guests were thrilled.

Botswana also offers excellent birding; we tallied 208 species during our adventure including eagles, falcons, bee-eaters, and flocks of Red-billed queleas (small seed-eaters) numbering in the tens of thousands – quite a spectacle.

For anyone who has considered a trip to Africa but hasn’t done so, I urge you to plan a visit to the wilds of Botswana. There really is nothing like it. It’s a life-changing experience for many and unforgettable for all.

My next installment will cover the camps we visited and more details on the specific wildlife we photographed.

White-faced Ducks enjoying the water in the Savuti Channel

Like most areas in southern Africa, Botswana has a rainy season and a dry season.  As I mentioned in Installment #1, Botswana received far above average rainfall during this year's rainy season (November to March). 

For the animals and birds that live there, the rain is a blessing and it typically makes their lives easier.  For the animal-lovers on a Botswana safari this year, the rains meant seeing a spectacle seldom seen. Areas which are typically dry were transformed into water paradises and havens for myriad ducks, storks, herons, pelicans, and other birds in the thousands. 

The "new" water also attracted herds of plains game and with them, the predators. Long-dormant seeds sprouted flowers and plants not known to modern-day botanists and the plentiful grasses and their seeds caused a population "explosion" for seed-eating birds and rodents, which in turn makes this a boom year for reptiles, owls, eagles and other raptors.

One safari area that was positively affected by the rain is the Savuti Channel in the Linyanti region of far northern Botswana.  The Savuti Channel has flowed on and off over the centuries and last flowed from 1967 to 1981.  It has been dry since 1982.  Today the channel bed is a wide grassland and home to numerous herds of zebra, wildebeest, impala and also to an abundance of predators, such as cheetah, lion, wild dog and leopard.  The Savuti Channel is a spectacular safari destination on a "normal" year -- this year, it is just about unbelievable.

Brief History of the Savuti Channel

Images of the Savuti Channel with water flowing over 6 kilometers down the channel.
The rains have transformed the normally dry channel into a paradise for birds and animals.

Please check back soon for Installment #3, where I will describe some of the interesting animal species we saw on our safari.

AFRICA DYNAMICS URGES YOU TO MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS EARLY TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT - THE BOTSWANA CAMPS ARE IN HIGH DEMAND AND MANY BOOK OUT A YEAR IN ADVANCE