The Drysdales
We have made it back to Katima, after an unexpected trip to the UK and a whirlwind tour of Namibia, Botswana and Zambia with my parents (The Drysdales). So, it is time to update all you lovely people who told us when we were home how much you are enjoying reading about our adventures.
When we got back to Windhoek we had a relaxing weekend at “The Roof of Africa”, a lovely guesthouse/restaurant in the city centre, before my parents flew up from Cape Town to meet us.
Our first night with the Drysdales was at Waterberg Plateau about 3 hours north of Windhoek. We planned to stay there mainly as a convenient stopover, but we were all very impressed by the location. The Plateau rises up about 200m from the surrounding savannah and the red cliffs glow in the sunlight to give a magnificent backdrop to the leafy accommodation nestled at their base. In the morning we climbed up to the top of the cliffs, a majestic start to the trip.
The next stop was the much anticipated Africat Foundation at Okonjima Lodge. You may have seen Africat on TV lately, they rehabilitate and release leopards and cheetah, which have been injured or orphaned. It was great to see these rare cats, and also 3 lions which are looked after there too. It was also great to stay at a real luxury lodge for once (and not in the campsite alongside!). We were treated like royalty here, delicious meals, homemade cakes, lovely rooms, even a hot water bottle put into our beds before we turned in for the night!
From Okonjima we went north to Etosha for a couple of nights. We arrived in time to swim and see the sunset, but the animals waited until late the next day to really put on a show for us. The morning yielded impala, gemsbok, springbok and zebra, and just the glimpse of a few giraffes in the distance. However, on the afternoon drive around Fisher’s Pan we firstly came across about 20 giraffe, all around the pan, bending to drink and strolling in and out of the trees like giant creatures from a lost age. Very pleased with this sighting we headed on to a small waterhole and were enjoying watching a lone giraffe drinking from close up, when I spotted a grey rounded shape among the trees, then another, then another - elephant, about 30 of them, all walking straight towards us! As a matter of fact, we seemed to have parked bang in the middle of their preferred path. Despite a hasty debate on the right course of action when elephants approach your vehicle, when it came down to it, and we could see the whites of its eyes looking in our side window, we moved! We still got to spend a while following these gentle giants as they continued on their path, drank and played in the mud.
From Etosha we had a long drive up to the Caprivi, where we spent a night at Ngepi Camp again, this time the Drysdales stayed in the Treehouse, and we camped. Luckily it didn’t rain this time and we saw a beautiful sunrise over the Kavango River.
Our first Botswanan destination was the Okavango Delta, where we stayed at the remote and idyllic Guma Lagoon Camp. My dad did not think much of the 15km sand track down to the Lagoon, but Fearghal and Jack Jack certainly enjoyed the challenge. At Guma we went on a mokoro trip in the Delta, another amazing experience. Apart from the heat, we very much enjoyed floating through another world - one of water lilies, fish eagles, crocodiles, and hippo channels.
After the Okavango, it was back to Namibia and back, at last, to Katima! We got my dad there just in time to take him to the doctor for a nasty stomach bug which he had picked up en route, so he didn’t see much of our town. My mum had a relaxing few days, and shared our usual pastimes - a swim at the Zambezi Lodge, a sundowner at the floating bar and a braai in the garden.
After that, with dad on the road to recovery, we headed back to Botswana, to Chobe. The river cruise which we loved in September was just as good again, with plenty of hippos, elephants and fish eagles, and also this time, lots of crocs and water monitors. We also enjoyed the buffet dinner at Chobe Safari Lodge that we had previously only eyed enviously from across the bar.
The final part of our holiday was a return to Vic Falls, this time with more water going over and much more spray - it really was a total emersion experience! After spending a day walking around (and through) the falls, we topped off our holiday with a helicopter ride over the falls. The view of the falls from the air was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.
Wow - a packed holiday! So now we are back in Katima, trying to get back into work mode, trying to get through a HUGE pile of washing and trying to find ways to stay warm as winter approaches!
Check out our photos on flickr >
When we got back to Windhoek we had a relaxing weekend at “The Roof of Africa”, a lovely guesthouse/restaurant in the city centre, before my parents flew up from Cape Town to meet us.
Our first night with the Drysdales was at Waterberg Plateau about 3 hours north of Windhoek. We planned to stay there mainly as a convenient stopover, but we were all very impressed by the location. The Plateau rises up about 200m from the surrounding savannah and the red cliffs glow in the sunlight to give a magnificent backdrop to the leafy accommodation nestled at their base. In the morning we climbed up to the top of the cliffs, a majestic start to the trip.
The next stop was the much anticipated Africat Foundation at Okonjima Lodge. You may have seen Africat on TV lately, they rehabilitate and release leopards and cheetah, which have been injured or orphaned. It was great to see these rare cats, and also 3 lions which are looked after there too. It was also great to stay at a real luxury lodge for once (and not in the campsite alongside!). We were treated like royalty here, delicious meals, homemade cakes, lovely rooms, even a hot water bottle put into our beds before we turned in for the night!
From Okonjima we went north to Etosha for a couple of nights. We arrived in time to swim and see the sunset, but the animals waited until late the next day to really put on a show for us. The morning yielded impala, gemsbok, springbok and zebra, and just the glimpse of a few giraffes in the distance. However, on the afternoon drive around Fisher’s Pan we firstly came across about 20 giraffe, all around the pan, bending to drink and strolling in and out of the trees like giant creatures from a lost age. Very pleased with this sighting we headed on to a small waterhole and were enjoying watching a lone giraffe drinking from close up, when I spotted a grey rounded shape among the trees, then another, then another - elephant, about 30 of them, all walking straight towards us! As a matter of fact, we seemed to have parked bang in the middle of their preferred path. Despite a hasty debate on the right course of action when elephants approach your vehicle, when it came down to it, and we could see the whites of its eyes looking in our side window, we moved! We still got to spend a while following these gentle giants as they continued on their path, drank and played in the mud.
From Etosha we had a long drive up to the Caprivi, where we spent a night at Ngepi Camp again, this time the Drysdales stayed in the Treehouse, and we camped. Luckily it didn’t rain this time and we saw a beautiful sunrise over the Kavango River.
Our first Botswanan destination was the Okavango Delta, where we stayed at the remote and idyllic Guma Lagoon Camp. My dad did not think much of the 15km sand track down to the Lagoon, but Fearghal and Jack Jack certainly enjoyed the challenge. At Guma we went on a mokoro trip in the Delta, another amazing experience. Apart from the heat, we very much enjoyed floating through another world - one of water lilies, fish eagles, crocodiles, and hippo channels.
After the Okavango, it was back to Namibia and back, at last, to Katima! We got my dad there just in time to take him to the doctor for a nasty stomach bug which he had picked up en route, so he didn’t see much of our town. My mum had a relaxing few days, and shared our usual pastimes - a swim at the Zambezi Lodge, a sundowner at the floating bar and a braai in the garden.
After that, with dad on the road to recovery, we headed back to Botswana, to Chobe. The river cruise which we loved in September was just as good again, with plenty of hippos, elephants and fish eagles, and also this time, lots of crocs and water monitors. We also enjoyed the buffet dinner at Chobe Safari Lodge that we had previously only eyed enviously from across the bar.
The final part of our holiday was a return to Vic Falls, this time with more water going over and much more spray - it really was a total emersion experience! After spending a day walking around (and through) the falls, we topped off our holiday with a helicopter ride over the falls. The view of the falls from the air was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.
Wow - a packed holiday! So now we are back in Katima, trying to get back into work mode, trying to get through a HUGE pile of washing and trying to find ways to stay warm as winter approaches!
Check out our photos on flickr >
posted by Aileen & Fearghal at
7:56 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home