Traveling The World: Botswana, Kalahari Salt Pans

Our last camp in Botswana was San Camp. We departed for the Tsigaro Airstrip after three nights with the hippopotamus and elephants walking by our deck. The flight over the Okavango Delta was spectacular. This delta is the second-largest delta in the world. The animals in this area are very healthy due to the vast quantity of water and vegetation.

Okavango Delta

Jacks Camp Airstrip

San Camp is one of three camps in this private reserve. The camp is a temporary camp in Kalahari's Salt Pans and is only set up during the dry season. The edge of the camp is along the Ntwetwe Pan.

The theme of the camp is the Sahara Desert or Arabian Nights.

A Bed for a Queen or King

Morning Coffee

Our room was the furthest from the main camp. So we made sure that we took everything we needed for the morning activity when we went for breakfast. We enjoyed learning about the animal that lived in this area during the dry season. The salt pan floods in the rainy seasons so a lot of the animals leave the area. This is also a prime nesting area for birds when the water is present.

Quad Drive onto the pan

Bill drove the quad on the salt pan which was a new experience for him. Since I am not allowed to drive this type of vehicle anymore. We learned how to tie a traditional scarf so that our faces could be covered by the dust and salt from the pan. When you're on the pan there are no landmarks to determine where you are so people can easily get lost and just travel around in a circle. It is also extremely important to carry water and keep hydrated.

Sunset on the Pan

We had a wonderful meal out on the salt pan and then a relaxing night. The stars in this area are pheonominal as there is no light to affect their brightness.

Getting back to our tent we had a slight problem as the lights in the bathroom did not work. It is extremely dark. Thankfully we had our flashlights. Getting into bed was an even bigger challenge for "E" as she could not reach the bed even with the one-step stool by the side of the bed. Hopefully, we would not have to get up in the middle of the night.

The next day we were delighted to go see the Meerkats. This was the reason that Bill wanted to stay at this camp. To our delight, the Meerkats were out looking for larvae and we got to follow them as they searched for food.

Meerkats are constantly taking turns checking for predators. They want to climb on the highest rock or persons to be able to see further.

We also saw the remains of a Zebra that was killed by a group of lions the night before. When we arrived the lions had finished eating and the jackals were taking their turn.

Nature takes care of every animal and insect

Satisfied Lion

After the male lions eat it is the lioness's turn.

During our stay, the bush along the salt pan caught on fire. This is a problem in this area and can threaten the camps and their solar panels. One day all the camp staff from the three camps went out to fight the fire. Only a minimum amount of staff was left to take care of guests and prepare food. Not only did they have to feed the guests but they were also sending food to the groups fighting the fire. We remained at the camp for the day and had time to rest. Several guests helped out so the tables were set, and food and wine were served. Later we sat around a campfire and watched the glow from the fire in the distance. It took the staff 18 hours to put out the fire.

Tonight when we made it back to our tent there were four kerosene lanterns glowing in the bathroom area. This made for a very romantic ambiance. When I talked to the manager she said that she did not want us to have another problem with the lights so had the lanterns placed in our room. It's a good thing that Elaine knows how to turn them off or we would have had them on all night until the kerosene was gone.

The next day we had an opportunity to see the animals in the area. There were large herds of water buffalo and zebra, a small group of lions, and a large flock of ostrich probably around 100 birds in a single file crossing the pan.

Blue Wildebeest

Antelope - Springbok

Vultures come to drink

The waterhole is manmade and helps to draw the animals to the area. Since most of the animals must drink at least once a day. Zebra and wildebeest like to cohabitate on the plain as the wildebeest eat the tender grass shoots and the zebra eats the tall grasses.

There is a group of indigenous people from the northwest close to Namibia that live at Jacks Camp during the dry season to learn their traditional ways and share this with the tourists. We visited the San Bushmen and learned how they dig for scorpions, play traditional games, use the local plants for medicine, and how they make fire without flint or a match.