Moremi Game Reserve

Arriving at the gate we were warned that it was very wet in the reserve and that certain tracks were impassable, one of which was the track into the Khwai reserve that we were due to take a few days later. Undaunted we set off and although we did encounter some very large and deep puddles our initial impression was that the situation wasn't too bad.

The drive was fairly uneventful as far as animals were concerned, apart from a first ever sighting of a Lesser Spotted Eagle and the first Red Lechwe of the trip.

We were entertained for quite a while by a couple of Yellow-billed Storks expertly fishing and also by a Monitor Lizard basking in the late afternoon sun on a termite mound.

Our first full day in Moremi dawned dry and overcast after another night of rain and thunder. Little did we realize how quickly a significant sighting would be made and within 5 minutes of leaving camp we were parked and watching a male Leopard in a tree. We spent almost two hours watching him before he finally came down the tree and moved away.

We headed off to see what else was on offer, but very soon it became apparent that there was even more standing water after the overnight rain. This fact was later born out when we spotted a crocodile actually swimming in the flooded wheel tracks. OK, it was a young one, but even so, it’s not a very common sight. The day was mainly one of spotting and photographing birds, including a couple more to add to our all time list.

Our second full day in Moremi was much the same as our first, although the weather was drier and there was no early surprise Leopard sighting. A couple more new bird species, but perhaps the highlight was our first encounter with a Rock Monitor Lizard. We witnessed a rather serious disagreement in a Baboon troop as an alpha-male chased an interloper round and around a lake at speed until he had been seen off and found another tree.

The remainder of the day was again mainly bird photography, punctuated by Wildebeest, Impala, Giraffe, Red Lechwe, Kudu and Leopard sightings.

Probably the highlight was the Southern Carmine Bee-eaters. We had spotted them the day before, but this time it appeared we were disturbing potential food sources for them as we drove along. We were being accompanied by up to four birds flying alongside us, it really was a beautiful sight.

We finished the day with another visit to the Yellow-billed Storks fishing and then back to camp for dinner. What greeted us when we got there was one of the best sunsets we were to witness during the whole trip.

All that remained in Moremi was the following day’s game drive to the gate and then the transfer into Khwai. Three memorable sightings were in store for us between the camp and the gate, which strangely happened at the same location. We were watching a large group of Red Lechwe, the most we had seen all trip, as overhead was flying a majestic African Marsh Harrier. As we were concentrating on these, there was a commotion behind and to our right hand side and what was probably the largest pod of Hippos we have ever seen were running down a track to a new flooded area. Magical to watch.

Walking in Moremi Game reserve is one of Africa's most incredible and natural experiences

Getting out of the fabulous Oddballs Camp before the African sun rises is an essential part of any experience in Moremi Game Reserve. It allows you to be in the vast plains as dawn breaks and the colours begin to come to life, to hear the incredible sounds of bird chorus mixed with the lions roar and the hyenas laughter.
My guide (armed with only his bird book as guns are not encouraged in Moremi) took me for 9 days into the reserve on foot. I had no idea the difference between a walking safari and jeep safari. No motor or engine to clash with natures sounds, just your own footprints. We spent hours walking through long grasses, vast plains and dense forests. We came across so much wildlife, birdlife and insect life I came away with a completely different experience to anything I had enjoyed in the Serengeti, Namibia or South Africa. We seemed to spend most of our time watching the wildlife that's trying to move away from you or moving away from the wildlife that's definitely got its eye on you.
Standing still and staring at a growling lioness, running to the termite mound to avoid the water buffalo or mavourering past 3 bull elephants on foot is exhilarating and you never have this on a jeep. I don't know anywhere you see this outside Moremi.

We have seen leopards, cheetahs, lions, buffaloes (quite large herds), lots (!) of elephants, warthogs, herds of antelopes (different species), hippos in the water and grazing, crocodiles, wild dogs and many, many more animals; wild nature.

Amazing even in winter

We are a family of travelers (as a family we've been to 29 countries on 5 continents together and our daughter is only 8!) and have seen much of the world but Moremi Game Reserve absolutely blew us away. We spent several days in the park during our trip to Africa for the FIFA World Cup and saw everything from bull elephants (one which walked right in front of our tent!), to hippos, to two male lions who put on quite the show for us. We had tracked them for about 45 minutes but when we finally found them we were able to just sit and soak in their presence for over an hour. We saw them two other times that day and discovered that lions are very lazy most of the time :) My daughter fell in love with the wandering flocks of guinea fowl while I was over the moon about getting to see several giraffes. We even had a hyena make a visit to our campsite. The animals were absolutely everywhere and there was always an opportunity to watch nature in action. In the evenings, when all the creatures were sleeping, the space geek in me was mesmerized by the amazing skywatching opportunities as it was crystal clear and, thanks to there being no ambient light for miles, you could see what seemed like a thousand times more stars that what you can see being in the suburbs of America. I felt like I could see whole galaxies at night. We loved the fact that even though the campsite was a game reserve designated one and cleared of brush it still felt like the bush and not like a campsite. Definitely spend the extra money to have a licensed guide take you into the reserve overnight as opposed to staying in the public campgrounds. It is so worth it.

Moremi had it all

We were a group with Naga Safaris and went for a few days to Moremi before hitting up some other places in Northern Botswana. With exception to baby animals, Moremi had it all (all the moms with babies were at Chobe where there was lots of water). We saw all animals we were to continue to see, while at Moremi. Before we even got to our campsite (which was just a clearing) we saw elephants right on the side of the road, springbok and a pride of lions within an arms reach. Our site had passing animals in the night and lots of great insects (entomology student).

Our group (chemist, physicist..) was pretty specific in our interests and we weren't let down at all. None of us were interested in birds upon arrival, but due to our guide's knowledge pointing out birds to us, we left with a new interest in them. Tons of up close encounters with birds on all drives.