Floating through the tranquil waters of the Okavango Delta, in Botswana, was one of my (Matt) favorite parts of our overland tour. It was the perfect remedy to the long hours riding around on the truck, and the weather couldn't have been better. The blue skies, occasional cloud and slow breeze reminded me why I love being out on the water so much. This was different though, we were in a giant sea of grass filled with never-ending canals which snaked this way and that.
I wasn't sure how the polers knew their way around, but after a 2 hour trip we had arrived at our campsite. It was basic, with no power, water, or toilets, but this was what I had been waiting for, real camping! The polers stayed with us that night and acted as our security and guides the following day. We went on two walks on a nearby grassy island, where we saw elephants (at a distance), heard hippos and saw tracks of almost every animal.
Our guide spotted the tracks almost immediately and explained what animal had left it. The only downer was leaving after one night. It was still amazing though and in my opinion, a “must see” for anyone who visits Botswana.
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| Hippo Prints |
Oh, and by the way moving a boat with a pole is more difficult than it looks. I was eager to get a friendly canoe race going, until I actually tried navigating the canoe on a straight path using the pole.
The polers made it look easy, like really easy, but I quickly came to realize that they were indeed masters of their craft, pun intended.
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