Africa 2006 Botswana, Notes: Duma Tau means "roar of the lion". We sure hope that we see lions here. So far we have seen four of the big 5. The lion is the last on that list. What we saw:
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We left Livingstone by van. After about 40 minutes we reached the border crossing. It looked a lot like a truck stop. Lots of trucks, some vendors and people milling all over the place. The road ends at a parking lot on the edge of the river. Our driver was able to take all of our passports through immigration without us having to get out of the van. This saved some time and kept us clear of some of the vendors. When he came back, our driver got us and our bags situated by the water's edge. A water taxi showed up to take us across to Botswana. Again, we were totally impressed with how smoothly transfers work here, especially between the combination of van, boat, plane and border crossings. |
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Left, while we were heading out a large flat barge pulled up right next to us. It was filled with tractor trailers making the crossing from Botswana to Zambia. Right, the border runs down the middle of the river. We are looking at Botswana on the horizon. After immigration we had to walk over a chemical sponge to clean our shoes of an hoof and mouth disease we might have been carrying. Then it was a short ride to the airport, two plane flights and then we were there! Below, we saw elephants as we got close to Duma Tau. |
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From the air we could see several dirt roads and animal paths that crisscrossed the landscape. Most of the animal paths lead to watering holes and faded out as them got further away, like tree branches growing away from the water. |
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Our driver, Ruben, took us back to Duma Tau in "safari mode". We started learning about the local flora and fauna right away. It was nice to relax like that after a half a day of traveling. |
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Above, southern red-billed hornbill . Left and below, lilac-breasted roller. After lunch and unpacking we were off again on the evening safari.
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| Above, helmeted guineafowl. Right, I forget the name of the birds that build these nests, but they like to nest in communities like this one. | |
Above, impala Right, southern yellow-billed hornbill. |
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This female leopard was much larger than the females that we had seen in South Africa. I continue to be fascinated by how well some of these animals, with the bolder prints, can hide. Below, this cat is only behind a thin covering of bushes, and it was easy to lose sight of her. |
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| This video shows how we sneak up on the cats as we follow them through the woods. | |
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Above, a baby crocodile quickly swims off as we pass. The lilac-breasted roller is even more colorful in flight. Left, a lone wildebeest grazes by the waters edge. Below, an African fish eagle hunts for prey along the shore.
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| Below, a hippo grazes and our first sunset at Duma Tau. | |
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