Spectacular Botswana Ride – 8 Nights Okavango Delta & Kalahari Desert

Day 1: Arrival

You land at the small airport of Maun. From here it is only a 30 minute drive to the southern end of the Okavango where the safari begins. The actual delta is marked off by the “buffalo fence” and here the horses are waiting for you.

Your luggage will be transported to the camp by mokoros or pack mules while you mount up and venture into the unknown on horseback!

Day 2 - 5: Experience the Okavango Delta

A typical day begins with an early wake-up call and a light breakfast around the campfire as dawn breaks.

Then it’s off to the horses for the first ride of the day, which will last all morning. You will follow old elephant trails, keep an eye out for the unimaginable variety of wildlife, enjoy the abundant birdlife and gallop through the recently flooded plains.
There may be herds of buffalo nearby, giraffes strolling by, and red lechwe grazing in the water beside you while kudus hide in the thickets.

Towards noon you return to camp where you can relax in the cool shade of the huge jackalberry or leadwood trees during the hottest part of the day and enjoy a delicious lunch.

On the afternoon you will depart for the second ride of the day, during which you can take in the tranquility of the Okavango Delta and admire a fantastic sunset.
Dinner will be under the stars.

Occasionally you or the horses may wish to rest, in which case a quiet ride in a mokoro awaits, the traditional way to observe this wonderful waterscape.

Or you may venture out on foot in search of the smaller animals that inhabit the bush and get some interesting insights into the art of tracking before enjoying the African sunset.

Day 6: Journey to the Kalahari

This day starts leisurely. After breakfast you will be driven back to the edge of the Delta, from where a safari vehicle will take you back to Maun. From here you have the choice of flying by light aircraft to the Makgadikgadi salt pans (50 minutes) or traveling by vehicle (3 hours) to the beautiful Camp Kalahari.

Once at the camp, you will have time to cool off in the swimming pool or enjoy a siesta in the thatched pavilion.

After tea in the beautiful afternoon light, you will set out on an introductory ride – primarily to match horse and rider, but also to learn about the beauty of this magical area.
At sunset you return to camp, have dinner and bring the horses back to the nearby kraal before the lions of the Kalahari begin their nightly forays.

Day 7: Ride through the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans

After rising with the dawn and having a light breakfast, a long morning ride through the “land of a thousand islands” follows. These palm-covered sand dunes lie on what was once a lake bed and are one of the most beautiful and fascinating areas in the Botswana wilderness. At the height of migration, the islands and adjacent grasslands are awash with zebra, wildebeest, springbok and ostrich – and of course the predators that go with them!

Return to the cam for lunch and recover from the heat of the day in the shade of the camel thorn trees or cool off in the camp’s swimming pool.

After tea, head out by vehicle in search of the elusive brown hyena. These consummate desert specialists survive in arid areas where both food and water are scarce. Enjoy a night game drive back to camp, using a spotlight to keep an eye out for nocturnal desert creatures such as aardvarks, bat-eared foxes, aardwolves, porcupines, honey badgers, and perhaps even a black-maned Kalahari lion.

Return to Camp Kalahari in time for dinner.

Day 8: Visit the meerkats

After waking up with a steaming cup of coffee and a light breakfast, we will set out to find the Kalahari’s most fascinating inhabitants, the meerkats, and make our way on foot to the center of the group. Thanks to an ongoing acclimation program by Uncharted Africa Safari Co, we are able to get up close and personal with these fascinating animals.
By spending lots of time with these incredibly social, superbly adapted animals, you can see how they interact with each other and their environment. As the day gets warmer, let the meerkats forage for food.

You will return to camp again for lunch.

In the late afternoon, you set out on a quad bike for one of the greatest adventures imaginable – a ride into the middle of the old lakebed (you can’t do this on horseback). At the end, all you can see is the vast plain stretching in all directions. Watch the sun set and the stars rise.

This is one of the few places in the world where the silence is so perfect that you can hear the blood circulating in your ears. Far and wide, apart from the ground and the sky, there is no visual stimulus whatsoever, and you quickly lose yourself in the vastness of the 16,000 square kilometers.

Day 9: Zu/'hoasi people

Uncharted Africa Safari Co has worked closely with the Zu/’hoasi people of the Western Kalahari for many years and has the privilege of working with Bushmen, women, men and children spanning four generations.
Through this initiative, the community is able to work together and share their knowledge with each other and with guests, allowing the older generation to pass on their knowledge to the next generation.

After breakfast, you will ride through the bush to a traditionally built Bushman village where the community gathers during the day. The huts provide shelter from the harsh Kalahari environment, but are not the community’s permanent home.
A two-hour walk with these extraordinary people will provide a gentle introduction to the Kalahari and the Bushman way of life. The group will point out the special ecological features of this area and its animal and bird species. At the end of the walk, mount up and ride back to camp in time for your road or air transfer back to Maun.