Chobe Safari Game Drive

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Just the two of us woke up very early to get ready for our game drive. There were no lights in our chalet because the campsite's generator had not been turned on yet. We woke up the bus driver and he took us to the Chobe Safari Lodge. There were around 50 people waiting in the lobby to go on the game drive, and we met a group of Canadians who seemed like fun people. They said they had ridden with an excellent guide named Simon the night before, so we decided to hop in the truck with them and Simon today.

We were each given blankets as we boarded the truck, but we were still very cold as we drove into the park and the wind hit our faces. Once in the park, we saw some of the usual animals, like impalas, warthogs, and many birds. Simon pointed out some elephant tracks and said that a male elephant was probably nearby. A few minutes later, we saw a huge elephant walking in the road ahead of us. As we got closer, he walked off the road and watched us carefully as we drove past.

Later, Simon got a call on his radio that a female lioness was near. We headed in that direction and soon spotted her in the bush on the side of the road. She was walking alongside the truck, 20 feet away, and soon ran out into the road ahead of us. She was very large and very beautiful, and with the sun rising behind her, it was an amazing sight. We felt very lucky because we have talked to people who spent as long as 5 days on a safari without seeing a single lion.

We drove around some more and saw different species of birds, hippos and crocodiles from a distance. Then Simon got another radio call that more members of the lion pride had been spotted. We drove to the spot and saw 6 or 7 safari trucks surrounding a male and a female lion. We worked our way in so that we could see and take pictures. It was amazing how the lions just sat there without much reaction to all the trucks and people. Eventually, the male got a little spooked by some people who stood up to take pictures, so he roared in their direction. After a few more minutes, both lions stood up and walked into the bush.

Halfway through the game drive, all the safari trucks stopped in a central location for a tea and coffee break. Dena finally got a chance to use her "Go-Girl," a device that makes it much easier for a girl to pee outdoors. It was incredible, and the other guests were jealous. Google it for more info.

Dena's first Go-Girl use

After tea and coffee, we continued the drive and went closer to the river where we could see the hippos and crocodiles. We saw many hippos both in and out of the water, and we watched as a mother hippo pushed her two babies back towards the water. We also saw a few buffalo and many birds near the water. As we were finishing the drive, we saw one more female lioness sitting in the shade near the water, possibly waiting for some prey to come and get a drink. When we were ready to drive away, the truck wouldn't start. Another truck drove up and the driver tried to help us. It made us nervous for him to be out of the truck with a lion so close. He wanted to push the truck in order for us to get a rolling start, so he started pushing us backwards toward the river, making us even more nervous. The truck started and we drove off, and the lioness disappeared in the meantime.

We got back to the Lodge and had an amazing breakfast buffet at their restaurant, which overlooks the Chobe River. The food was delicious, and we could see elephants having their breakfast on the other side of the river. After breakfast, we did some souvenir shopping in their gift shop, walked around to see other parts of the lodge, and then got picked up by our bus driver.

If anyone ever wants an amazing safari experience at a nice, luxurious lodge, we definitely recommend the Chobe Safari Lodge in northern Botswana.