My private passion is to photograph animals in they natural environment. In 2017 and 2019 I had the opportunity to visit several camps from Wilderness Safaris in Zimbabwe and Botswana. I learned that there is no better place to have a safari and photograph any kind of African wild animals. The experience to see those animals close and observe their behavior in their natural environment was so intense that I always wished to bring also my wife and son to Africa to give them the opportunity to experience this by themself. Finally this year I became 50 years and decided to invest my money for a trip to Botswana, instead of having a party with friends and family. Therefore we booked a lovely trip to the Okavango Delta and the Linyanti region.
What is different when on a safari with your family?
Traveling with family is different to the experience I had on my first two trips. I was a bit nervous how my 13 year old son response that the day starts quite early. In addition in camps you have only limited access to the internet, which is nowadays essential for teenagers. Anyhow we had an unbelievable nice week in camps. My son was not complaining at all. Getting up early and having no access to the world wide web was not a problem at all. Real life experience you are getting in Africa on a Safari has incomparable more value. Also for a teenager. Let me share briefly our experience.
Camp Pelo
Pelo means heart. The name is related to the shape of the island which is located in the Jao concession. After a long 20 hour trip from Germany we finally arrived around 3 p.m. On the air strip and a guide picked us up bring us to the camp. The way to the camp was already mind blowing. We met some giraffes and buffalos. Shortly before we arrived the boat station we also saw painted dogs, one endangered animal. This happened only 15 minutes after we landed in the bush. What could you wish more, when you are on a safari? On our short boat drive to Pelo we already saw a lot of different birds.
Arrival in Camp Pelo
Finally we arrived in the camp, where we were welcomed by Abo the camp manager. After a delicious welcome drink and a short camp rule introduction we went to our rooms. There we had a short time to refresh and relax before a delicious dinner has been served. My son and my wide have been more than impressed about the location. Accommodation and the kindness o the camp stuff was mind blowing.
Even though this is already my third time that I have been in Botswana the sunsets are still unbelievable beautiful. The colors you see when the sun is settings are so different to what you see in Europe. This alone is already worth the trip. But it doesn’t end here. Even the nights are so different. No light pollution, means that you also can see much more stars than in a country like Germany. In addition the sound at night is also an experience by itself. Frogs and hippos are quite active at night. My wife liked the frog sound so much, that we have recorded it. We use it now as ring tone on our phones. Anytime someone is calling us, we remember the lovely time we had here in Pelo.
The second day in Pelo
The next day was a mixture between a game drives and a boat cruises. Unbelievable how many different species you see in this environment. As Pelo is a camp surrounded by water, it is a paradise for bird, hippos and crocodiles. In Germany you are lucky when you see a sea eagle once in your lifetime, but here in the Okavango delta we saw 5 African fish eagles within an hour. Not to forget my favorite bird the kingfisher. This species is of course also present in the Okavango delta. Beside the pied, striped and great kingfisher I have been lucky to photograph the malachite kingfisher as he was taking off from a reed branch.
As we were already leaving Pelo the morning after, the camp prepared a surprise for us at dinner. Instead of having it at the common dinner space, we had it on a fire place with a traditional African barbecue and a lovely goodbye song presented by the camp employees. A very special time came to an end, but we had two more camps to experience.
Camp Tube Tree
Our second camp was Tuba Tree, which is in the Wilderness Safaris classification a classic camp and therefore the camp and also the rooms are bigger. Flight time from Pelo to Tubu Tree is only 5 minutes.
However as water hasn’t reached the camp yet the vegetation was dryer. Tubu Tree is famous for its Leopards and we were looking forward to meet them. However on the first day we haven’t been lucky. Anyhow we had great sightings like elephants, bataleur eagles, zebras and a group of young male lions, who were relaxing in the shadow. The view from our rooms has been also fantastic as the balcony was directed in western direction and the wildlife was just passing the camp directly in front of you. Means we in the lunch breaks we were also able to watch the wildlife directly from our rooms. In case a refreshment is needed also from our outdoor shower.
Finally a leopard
At the second day in Tubu Tree we have been a bit luckier. As our guide Delta found some fresh leopard tracks and in addition other animals made a lot of warning signal to their companions, that we were sure a leopard must be somewhere. Even though it is not easy to find them. At this time of the year the gras is high and the animals camouflage is hiding them perfectly. After a while we have been successful and finally saw our first leopard on this trip.
Then it was time for the sundowner, which is the ending of each afternoon game drive. Means you are getting your favorite drink in the middle of nowhere to enjoy the African sunset. After a busy day with a lot of interesting sights we were heading back to the camp already in the dark and got a surprise as we were approaching our camp. We just passed the electric fence which should keep the elephants away from camp, as we met the mother of the leopard we met in the afternoon. She obviously was leaving the camp. We learned that she actually gave birth to the leopard we met in the afternoon in the public bathroom of Tubu Tree. My son, my wife and myself were very exited as she just past our vehicle so close that it would have been possible to touch her.
Camp Duma Tau
Last stop of our week in Botswana was Duma Tau. This camp is classified as premium camp. Compared to the other two camps this is a complete different level. Not only in terms of rooms and available space, but also in terms of service. Anything is top level and unexpected in a location like this. However we missed the lu with a view, which was for us the highlight in the other camps. This is the toilet in the public area which gives you a direct view into the wild while being on the toilet. Never had such a relaxing time on a toilet before.
Taking care about my son
Our guide See immediately caught our son, by asking him to be his assistant and sit beside him in the first row. Not that the other guide doesn’t cared about our son, but I immediately recognized that See has a special connection to children and especially our son. Maybe this come due to life experience he had so far. Grown up in a community in the bush, he was in a so called „Eco camp“ as he was 7 years old and decided to be a guide due to the experience he made in that camp. During our stay we always felt this passion and as said the special connection to children. He always involved my son in the thinks happening and even though my son had only three years English lessons in school he was motivated to communicate with See.
Wildlife in Duma Tau
In terms of nature Duma Tau, which is in the Linyanti regions, is quite different to what you see in the Okavango Delta. The landscape is totally different and therefore wildlife behaviour is also different. Even though the types of wildlife you can see is very similar to what we have seen in Tubu Tree. Lions, leopards and elephants are the big one, but also bird life is tremendously impressive.
Highlight in Duma Tau is that this camp is located directly on an elephant trail, which is used to cross the river. Therefore it is very likely that you can observe from your room elephants crossing the river and if you are lucky you can experience how those elegant animals are going through the camp.
Conclusion
We had an unforgettable week, which we can remember our whole life. Everything went, thanks to the perfect organization from Wilderness Safaris, without any problem. Experiencing wildlife in their natural environment is only interesting for me as photographer, but also for my wife and my son. We learn so much about the wildlife and nature in Africa and will miss the friendly stuff and guide in camps. We recommend everybody to have this experience once in a lifetime.
My experience on my first trip
As said this was already my third trip to Botswana. In case you would like to know how it felt the first time you can read this in my Blogpost “Shot trip to the big five”.