Mokoro Trails
I grew up in the Okvango Delta so it is always nice to bring people here and to get back to where I have come from. I really enjoy polling and strongly believe that it is a great way to see the Delta and get close to the wildlife. Our trip was guided by Alan Mcsmith who has a great love for this part of the world. I was to be the cook and the camp manager which I also enjoy when I bring people to this special place.
There was so much water here as a result of the floods that we had this year, while floods in other countries may be devastating, here they are welcomed by pretty much all people and animals that rely on this great river system.
We had some amazing sightings along the way of lion, hippo, elephants, impala, zebra, wildebeest and red Lechwe not to mention so many different types of waterbirds such as Saddle bill storks, Giant King fishers as well as the Fish eagle to mention a few. We camped on Islands and also did some walks on the islands which the clients enjoyed. On one of the walks we spotted white back vultures and followed them, we came across a lechwe which was being eaten by a crocodile out of the water. We awoke one crisp morning and came across two Hyaena’s eating a buffalo which we think had died of natural causes.
We had an elephant come through camp one night to visit us as we watched the night skies which were full of amazing stars. We set up camps on the islands and we can do activities on them but sometimes the clients were happy just to sit in camp by the river and watch an area that would have had over a 100 hippos in it. We named this area hippos paradise, not only because of the hippos but it is a beautiful spot. The clients enjoyed a sundowner drink and snack in their picnic chairs.
I believe that if you are going to come to Botswana that you must experience the Delta and there is no better way than seeing and experiencing this great expanse then by floating calmly along it in a mokoro.
Written by Joe Mosheti
Senior camp manger for Safari & Guide Services, Botswana.