Botswana - March 2007

Days 1/2: JHB - Rakops

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La traversée de la frontière fut rapide et sans soucis

Last stop for diesel in the bustling, cosmopolitan hub of Mopipi (Population: human [550], goat [2,314 - four of which can be seen grazing in the forecourt], donkey [549].

Some exceptional tie-down activity was witnessed atop the roof. L'eau et le bois pour 4 jours de Rakops, sur la frontière orientale du Kalahari Central.

The vehicle is ready...

... a final pit stop

Ref for B8/9: 3 veterinary barriers between Khama Rhino Sanctuary & Mopipi.

Days 2/3: Deception Valley

Arrival in Deception Valley. The roads were neither wet nor slippery.
It was very dry, depite still being the rainy season.

Middle-aged men need rest.
Thank goodness for the water bottles.

L'Anglais aimait beaucoup photographier les arbres.

This wonderful road went south for 300kms
(but we decided to head off to the west instead).

Some grumpy old farts...

Landrovers apparently roll quite easily.
This one didn't, which was good.

Une tasse de café très importante. Pourquoi le Français porte-t-il des gants ? 100m de notre camp (CKK2) est la partie principale de Déception - not bad?

An even more important brunch.

Conditions for multiple simultaneous anecdote issuance were ideal.

...what more can be said?

Westward bound. Were these men discussing the Yen carry-trade?
No, of course not, they are on holiday.
Every now and then the road almost disappeared. But we were ok because the biltong supply, a very small part of which was drying on the dashboard, was as bottomless as Mary Poppins' handbag.

Il y avait un peu de sable...

After a long dry drive, the cohort of middle aged men arrive at last. They need to rest. Luckily they have camping chairs, and vehiculated shade. This is the southbound cutline, a 5-lane firebreak that runs due south for a few hundred kms down the entire western border of the Central Kalahari.

This man seems to be repairing a coffee pot.
He is brave and strong and wise.

A traditional Lion-attracting Botswana ritual...

Days 5/6/7/8: 3rd Bridge

Un léopard à Moremi, une grande première

Repairs to the bridge before crossing.
Luckily we have a Bulgarian wood aficionado on board.

...et voila.

Car monkey.

Contemplation.

On our first night at Moremi we heard lions very close. The next morning, we were very happy to find one of them, this beautiful lioness, probably 500m from our campsite. She stayed 2 nights and then disappeared.

Sarkozy ? Segolène ? Bayrou ?...
[editorial note from London Office - if you click on this photo to see the enlarged version, you will notice a hippo, just in front of Roland's lips...]

Moremi est un endroit raisonnablement plaisant. Étonnamment, nous l'avons eu à nous-mêmes pendant 4 jours (apart from des couples suisses que nous believe were eaten at Xakanaka).

Petite water elf 1.

Petite water elf 2.

Petite water elf 3.

Petite water elf 4.

We'd come to Moremi expecting rest, but instead our campsite beneath the sausage tree was chaotic: Hyenas and baboons constantly inquisitive, a massive elephant casually cruising by, hippos doing their thing all around us, and Lions never far.