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.

Camp Okuti is a superb camp in an excellent game reserve.

After arriving in yet another tiny 4 seater plane, we stayed at Camp Okuti for 3 nights. It could not be a better camp to stay at. Attentive staff. Luxurious accommodation. Great food. Even some resident bushbuck. Like all camps in Botswana it is built to be semi-permanent, so it can be removed in the future to leave no trace of it having been there. Our guide was excellent. He had worked over most of Botswana and was very knowledgable indeed. We saw everything we had hoped to, including a Wild Dog pack on a hunt and at the kill. Lion, elephant, giraffe, leopard, buffalo herds, kudu, hippo, bushbuck, reedbuck, waterbuck, dwarf and banded mongooses, and of course the ubiquitous zebra and Impala. A relaxing boat trip on the delta rounded our stay off nicely. A photographer's paradise. There was wildlife around us right up until our guide (and us) had to move the huge bull elephant from the runway before our plane out could land!

Moremi had fewer animal sitings except that we had quite a good viewing of a mother and baby leopard enjoying a meal. Moremi was nice because it has both water and land activities and offers a good variety. We stayed at Baines Camp, which has some wonderful, romantic options. Weather permitting, they will move the bed out to the balcony so you can sleep under the stars (and mosquito netting). It's a remarkable experience and while you may feel like you prefer the safety of being indoors, it really is an experience not to miss. At one point we were wakened by an elephant casually eating grass next to our balcony. It was literally up against the railing and seeing that from your bed was among the most memorable experiences of the trip. They will also set up outdoor bubble baths on the balcony - very romantic! Getting to the camp requires a long boat ride snaking through paths cut through marsh. How the guides know which paths to take is beyond me. The water is crystal clear and if the guides spot a scrap of paper or other trash in the water they would stop and reverse to pick it up. Pristine beauty.

Was very dry!

We saw some nice heards of Red Lechwe and quite a few tsessebe, hippos, wildebeest, giraffe, zebra, warthogs, elephants, lots of bird life. We did not find the area teaming with game and we didn’t see any cats. It was a new area to us so we were excited about everything we saw, but it wasn’t as prolific as Chobe National Park.
The roads were really terrible and the grass really was as high as an elephants eye.

Same reason as above.

Great Place for Wildlife Viewing

Interesting combination of bush and water allows the viewing of a large variety of wildlife. Some of the tracks are "iffy" requiring a certain 4x4 driving skill. One very negative experience was the sightin of a leopard, when our guide reported it to his colleagues from our lodge on a supposedly "private frequency" a total of 14 vehicles, 12 of them either from other lodges or self-drive descended on the place jostling for the best view.

We just did one evening river trip into Moremi, out of Little Kwara lodge. The birding was good and the sense of wetland wilderness was very strong. We had a dramatic hippo encounter there.

Very low water levels in the Delta, but the wildlife more than made up for it

Our safari took in two lodges on opposite sides of Moremi; Sango Lodge, in the Kwai concession in the east, and Pom Pom Lodge in the west.

We only went into the Moremi Game Reserve proper on one occasion: the rest of the time was spent in the other concessions, which at the time of our visit was where the most accessible wildlife (and in particular, of course, the predators) was to be found.

Sango was impeccable. A wonderful low key lodge, with superb, friendly staff and with two packs of Wild Dogs nearby. A brilliant few days.

Pom Pom lacked some of the special character of Sango, and didn't feel quite so special. Our guide and the wildlife that he was able to show us were both brilliant, so perhaps this is more a comment on how great Sango was, rather than a negative review for Pom Pom.

So many cars in 2014. Except for the elephants, we did not see all the animals we saw in 2011.