Highlights of our recent Ultimate Africa photo shoot
In Africa, a continent of natural superlatives, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe stand out for their wild and untouched places. This part of Africa is truly a “last frontier” for the adventure traveler: Improvements in infrastructure notwithstanding, it’s unlikely you’ll encounter many tourists … but you are likely to experience thrilling, up-close encounters with iconic wildlife in a game-viewing paradise. On a recent photo shoot for our Ultimate Africa: Botswana, Namibia & Zimbabwe Safari, OAT’s own Meredith Gausch, Photo Manager, served as art director; a talented photographer in her own right, she shares some personal photos from her sojourn in Southern Africa with us here …
Chobe National Park, the first national park created in Botswana, is home to one of the world’s largest elephant populations: Current estimates place the size of the herd at 45,000 animals.
Explorer Dr. David Livingstone once likened the baobab tree to a “giant upturned carrot.” But many Africans call it the “Tree of Life”—and with good reason: Its soft, spongy trunk can absorb an impressive amount of water to sustain the tree throughout Africa’s long dry season. Although its wood cannot be used for building or firewood (it’s naturally flame retardant), the baobab’s fibrous bark is used to make ropes, baskets, nets, and cloth.
Another famous Chobe denizen is the hippopotamus—an animal whose name translates, in Greek, as “water horse.” These semi-aquatic animals stay cool during the hot, sunny days by immersing themselves in water and mud, emerging only at dusk to graze the savannah.
Namibia’s Caprivi Strip is a narrow panhandle of land bordered by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. A sunset cruise along the Caprivi’s Kwando River in the wet season offers a scenic, and surprising, portrait of Africa as a watery wonderland.
The easiest way to travel between Africa’s remote wildlife parks is aboard small prop planes like these, which take off from and land on simple dirt airstrips. Such flights also provide breathtaking, bird’s-eye-views of the African bush.
As the largest freshwater wetland in Africa, Botswana’s Okavango Delta attracts a vast array of wildlife, which can be viewed from both land and water. On game-viewing drives, you may come across a pride of lions; these kings (and queens) of the animal kingdom have a reputation for being lazy, remaining inactive for as much as 20 hours a day.
The best time to see lions on the prowl is at dusk, when the creatures arise to stalk their prey. Lionesses typically do most of the hunting, working in groups to find antelope, zebra, wildebeest, and other mammals on which to feast.
Dugout canoes called mokoro, traditionally carved from local trees but now made from fiberglass to prevent deforestation, were designed especially for navigating the Okavango Delta during the flood season. An eagle-eyed guide expertly poles the mokoro through the delta’s reed-lined waterways, treating travelers to up-close views of plants and wildlife.
Learn more about our Ultimate Africa: Botswana, Namibia & Zimbabwe Safari adventure.