No Fixed Abode: Bridge over the river KwaiL

Thu 14 Jul 2016 - Mobile Safari Day 4: Moremi to Savuti

With a long drive to Savuti today we packed up and were away early but before we left we went in search of phase prints from the lion that walked passed last night. They were very large and only 18m from where we had been sitting! Taking the long drive out of Moremi along the 4x4 trails we eventually reached the entrance gate to Chobe NP which leads to Savuti. Here we passed a local community with a couple of shops and their mixed housing of concrete squares, rondavels and corrugated iron shacks. We drove over a rickety log bridge with many of the logs split and broken yet Lets calmly got the truck and trailer over safely.

The 4x4 trail now became deep red sand and Lets was maneuvering us around in various gears and locking and releasing the diff lock nuts on the wheels and getting us through where others were having difficulties making way through the deep sand. We drove for a long way in this terrain with little to see as the bush had been cleared either side of the tracks or where it remained and not yet decimated by elephants hindered any potential viewings. We powered on until we reach a large floodplain that the river Kwai flows into and dries out in the winter. We stopped at the edge of the pan beneath one to two trees which had a dented sign nailed to it stating Savuti rest stop. Shaded from the heat and with lunch prepared we ate watching giraffe loping by and several warthogs trotting to the nearby water hole.

The 4x4 trail was endless for hours and hours but finally we made it to the park entrance gate where Lets did the formalities and we filled up all the water containers before heading off along more 4x4 sand tracks and now the heat of the day was cooling off. During the journey Lets spotted another safari jeep off the trail slightly and recognised the driver as the owner of Audi camp, Richard, who is also a movie maker. He had been watching a female leopard for 5 days and showed us where she was. We watched her for 30 mins while she sat perched on a dead log to look for prey, at one point setting off to stalk something but then returned to log empty mouthed. We needed to make our way as Lets wanted to show us some Bushman paintings on a rock wall and a small spring at the foot of a large rocky outcrop known locally as Leopards Rock. We climbed to a good height to see the paintings and it gave us impressive views over the landscape of endless bush and green trees. With the sun getting low we still had another long drive through bush passing many groups of elephants who were snap and crackling through the bush.

Lets hastily drove along the trails when finally we arrived at a large savanna grass land clearing with a dried up waterhole and a couple of trees and Lets declared this was our remote campsite for tonight. With about half an hour before sunset we all chipped in setting up camp, collecting firewood from around and about to light the campfire where KB provided a fantastic fillet of beef dinner. The sunset was stunning at this location and as night darkness fell the moon and stars were extremely bright tonight. After some more stories around the campfire we all had an early night with no background sounds to keep us alert.

Campfire tale: Lets recalled day when he was boy and he was out in the bush with his grandfather when they inadvertently stumbled in to a pride of lions. One attacked his grandfather who managed to throw his gun towards Lets who took aim and killed the lion.