7 September

When we woke at sunrise, it was freezing cold. There was dew on the ground, the first we have seen since we landed in Africa. We drove around Rundu and refilled the car, then drove in circles for a while; it turns out nobody here needs to buy food as they all grow their own. Bad news for us as it took a while to find something for breakfast.

Afterwards we drive east parallel with the river for about 3 hours, through endless villages, conservancies and bush. The Kavango river eventually turns south, and we reach a town called Divundu, where we also turn south. The tarmac road now becomes gravel and dirt, and we pass more villages, this time the river is in sight next to us - a beautiful blue/green oasis besides all the brown dirt. We stop at a place called Popa Falls, a short series of rapids marking the start of the spread of the river into its delta much further south in Botswana. It is pretty but underwhelming, and we look at some hippo tracks in the mud.

Eventually a sign tells us to turn off to our campsite; Ngepi. Now it’s 4km of sand tracks going through forests and grasslands and passing many villages. The campsite is on the river bank, and our pitch has a fantastic view across to the other side. There is a herd of elephants there and they have spent the afternoon bathing. Occasionally we hear a trumpet.

After a nice lunch we go back to the main road and head to the Mahango Game Reserve, a part of the greater Bwabwata National Park. The warden (whom my dad mistook for a man, luckily she laughed it off) tells us to follow the road along the river as we will see most animals there; the inland roads are barren and the waterhole is dry. We decide to do both. Along the river we immediately see a small herd of zebra moving to a grassy field filled with baboons, warthogs, impala and an elephant bull. As we drive further we see many more animals. At one point we get out and stretch our legs, there are some Americans here and we share what we’ve seen. They saw roan, one of the park’s specialties and I help them identify a far-off antelope as a red lechwe – another specialty. The lechwe is adapted to the swamp with long legs for running through water, further across the swamp we see a large herd of buffalo – the first Ive ever seen and it’s impressive.  There are gigantic Baobab trees and somehow someone has climbed up 20 meters to carve their name in its thick trunk.

The inland road is strictly 4x4 and is deep sand. We have fun learning how to navigate the vehicle in 4x4 and a branch slaps through my window and just touches my head. We feel that we are finally in a true wilderness, away from any tourists and infrastructure such as a decent road. Initially we prove the warden wrong and we see plenty of animals; I spot a herd of sable and finally get some pictures of my favourite antelope. I get out of the car to approach closer and eventually end up with some shots of the running away. Later I do the same with a giraffe and it stands there staring at me. I feel it may run at me and trample and I wonder whether I’ll make it back to the car in time; I’m that close.

Eventually it turns and walks off calmly. Soon we find the warden may be right and drive through the difficult terrain for hours without seeing anything move.

When we return to the campsite we find that it has a secluded toilet with a view over the river. As I sit there a boat passes by closely. We exchange waves. There is an outdoor shower too, with the shower head made to look like a bucket and the taps inset into the log.

Dad is making pancakes as I write this. The elephant herd, which has just disappeared into the forest, must be in some kind of trouble as we just heard a shrill trumpet that filled the air from a few hundred meters away. A hippo occasionally laughs from the river, so loudly that it sounds 5 meters away. The rest of silence is filled with insects and birds.

We are now being pestered by mosquitoes and I have been bitten 4 times. Good thing we are taking those pills.