Hidden Paradise – Chobe Safaris
If you are passionate about elephants, then Chobe National Park would be your Garden of Eden. A very close friend Guillaume is a French wildlife photographer who specializes in photographing elephants.
The rainy season
Every year, Guillaume arrives in Botswana when migratory elephants travel through Chobe National Park, from rivers to marshes, which fill with rain during the rainy season. It is during this season that not only herds of elephants flock to this area, but also wildlife photographers in great profusion. The number of herds of elephants seen is a miracle of nature and I have never seen so many before! There are an estimated 120,000 elephants in Chobe National Park, the highest concentration in the world today.
Sunsets in Botswana are always beautiful, with brilliant colors of orange, yellow and pink in the sky set against the beauty of the land. I was going to be in Chobe National Park for two weeks, joining Guillaume for his month-long stay and catching up and relaxing during my annual vacation.
Lodge in Elephant Valley
During our stay, we booked into the Elephant Valley Lodge, which is about a half hour drive from Chobe National Park. I found it quite amusing that in the hostel there is a tent built in front of a water well, aptly named “Discovery Channel”. The watering holes offer all kinds of wonderful entertainment when animals, especially elephants, come to quench their thirst.
On our first day we took a relaxing boat cruise on the Chobe River. This gives you the opportunity to enjoy a different view of the Botswana wildlife as you travel downstream. We saw quite a few hippos, which is pretty scary considering they can flip the canoe we were in without much difficulty. Hippos are well known for their temper, but so far there have not been many attacks on any canoe that our guide can remember.
Some memories …
In our play units, Guillaume had very good photo opportunities. We saw four of the Big Five: buffalos, elephants, lions, and leopards, but unfortunately not the rhino. Although there are rhinos in Chobe, seeing one is very rare. We also had the rare fortune to see Sable antelopes. The sable antelope is quite large with a shaggy mane and ringed horns that can grow over a meter and a half in males.
The remainder of my stay was enjoyed with more game drives and we even had the pleasure of a night safari, bird watching, the occasional attempt at fishing, and a walking safari. On our walking safari I came back with cuts and bruises, which I would like to say was not my fault, but in all honesty, if you don’t watch where you are walking you are likely to trip over something and get close. to mother earth than you would like. Guillaume was the perfect gentleman and helped me up without laughing, but I couldn’t help but burst out laughing as I sat up straight.
A Chobe safari is definitely one that I would add to my itinerary when planning the next vacation. Botswana is definitely one of my favorite African countries and your chances of seeing the Big Five are much higher, especially during migration season when animals flock to this beautiful part of the world.