Island safaris inside a land locked country the size of France

Botswana shares its border with no less than three South African provinces – Northern Cape, North West and Limpopo, and is in easy reach of Johannesburg by air and road.

John Chase from John Chase Safaris calls Botswana the “ultimate safari destination”. This is because it has two very outstanding natural environments that together offer beautiful scenery, amazing wildlife and an unforgettable African experience.

One is one you will most likely recognise, the Kalahari Desert. The other is possibly not as well known, it is the Okavango Delta.  What is unusual about this delta is that it is the largest inland delta in the world.

We all usually learn about the Nile Delta in school, and this tends to sway you into thinking that river deltas are always where rivers empty into the sea. Not so! The Okavango River empties instead directly into the sand ocean of the Kalahari and never reaches the sea.

This has created a huge maze of channels, islands and lagoons, as tonnes of sand and sediment are dropped each year, creating the characteristic fan shape of a delta in the middle of a desert, and possibly Africa’s biggest waterhole for animals.

John says this has produced incredible wildlife, where water-based animals are effectively in the middle of a desert! Picture thousands of hectares of Savannah, forest and swamp and its no wonder nearly everything is there – from thousands of fish & birds, to the big guys, the predators and game of every sort – desert dwellers and swamp dwellers!

So your choices are swamp areas, seasonally swamped areas or dry areas, there is a dry and a wet season, and roads can be closed according to conditions.  The water channels move around as well so it is a constantly changing scene.

John says it is not unusual to see seven different Cheetah in one day and that you really are “inside the zoo” as opposed to just game driving through it.

John Chase Safaris offers both ‘luxury mobile trips’ and ‘budget trips’ throughout Botswana and has a reputation for ensuring a “True Safari”.  Basically, there is no fixed itinerary, just depends on the time of year and what you would like to see.

The Mole just loved the way John divided his trips into ‘categories’ according to the affordability of the guest!

On the luxury end of the scale, he has two ‘mobile rigs’ that can accommodate up to 40 people and a number of exclusive private sites.  From the photos that John showed me the accommodation looks fabulous, and probably the closest you could get to feeling like you are wearing a pith helmet in a tarzan movie.

John described the ‘luxury’ category as having all those finishing touches you would expect from 5 Star accommodation, even though you are ultimately in a large tent in a remote area. Big beds, en suite etc.

The next level down is ‘semi-luxury’. Pretty much the same as luxury, but better described as ‘comfortable’. And of course the real point of difference for an Aussie or Kiwi – luxury class means ‘alcohol’ and semi-luxury is beer and wine!!

Now we move to ‘mid-luxury’. Still tented, but it’s a stretcher and linen, and outside dunny.  Then to ‘budget’ (real camping), a bed roll… 

Whatever the category, most meals are served in a spacious dining tent and sometimes under the stars, however this is not guaranteed, as on one occasion a hyena pinched a chicken off the table and dinner had to be relocated!

No electrical power, so plenty of batteries required (some re-charging can be done in camp).  John has a number of guides so he can match the right one to particular special interest groups.

John stressed that all his safaris are very eco-focused, ie when they leave a campsite, it is as if they had never been there, and they are fully committed to preservation of culture and conservation and respect of wildlife.

Also on offer is a two night ‘Island Safari’, where you travel one of the many channels in the delta by ‘makoros’, traditional dug out canoes, to reach an island in the delta – where you overnight.

John can also organise to take you to Victoria Falls as part of your trip (two days) and to other national parks outside the delta (still in Botswana) such as Nxai Pan or the Central Kalahari Game Reserve for a 3 day interaction with the Kalahari Bushman. Hot air ballooning and scenic flights over the delta can also be included in an itinerary.

John & Tina Chase, the owners of the company, come from a long line of African adventurers and it is plain that they love what they do.  During January to March, they call their neck of the woods the “Garden of Eden”.

All sounds wonderful to the Mole, and Aussies and Kiwis are very welcome, John loves sharing a ‘Sundowner’ (which I’ve discovered is South African for getting out the director’s chair, pointing yourself at a sunset view and knocking the froth off a couple) with us and loves the fact that we are down to earth with no airs and graces.

He fondly recalled a luxury trip where one of the vehicles became bogged.  Though guests are not expected to help with any ‘duties’, the Aussies immediately jumped up, rolled up the sleeves and said “Right mate, where do you want us to start?”.  Not casting aspersions on me fellow antipodeans, but I just wonder if they thought this might have elevated them to the full luxury category when it was time for a sundowner…?!!!

You can contact John on [email protected] for a trip into the heart of Botswana.

Report by The Mole