|
The Summer Season
Spectacular!!!
(Botswana, Namibia and Zambia)
From December to the end of April, short afternoon showers
create the summer season and a profusion of new life – antelope and plains game
give birth to their young,
opportunistic predators take advantage, colorful migrant birds arrive, dormant
plants burst through the soil and flowers and fruits abound.
This focused ‘’Summer Season Spectacular’’,
valid
between 01 December 2008 and 31 March 2009 , boasts diverse
habitats through the Kalahari Desert,
Okavango Delta, Kwando River and the thundering Victoria Falls, showcasing the
highlights of this amazing time of year.
|
D AYS 1, 2 &
3: KALAHARI PLAINS CAMP, CENTRAL KALAHARI GAME RESERVE
After arrival in Maun, you are met
and assisted with your air transfer to the Kalahari Desert to our newest
camp, Kalahari Plains.
Kalahari Plains Camp
is located in a new concession within the productive and diverse area of
the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR). This tented camp, set to open
on 01 December 2008, has 10 Meru-style tents (9 twin and 1 family) each
with en-suite bathroom.
Especially during the summer
months the landscape here teems with a multitude of antelope species and
large predators. This area is characterized by vast open grassy plains,
seasonal pans, wooded acacia islands, prehistoric scrub-covered dunes
and fossil riverbeds. |
 |
|
The Central Kalahari Game
Reserve offers one of the most remote and unspoiled experiences on the
African continent – at over 5 million hectares / 12 million acres this
reserve is one of the largest in the world. During the summer months the
northern part of the CKGR, where the camp is situated, offers some of
the best wildlife viewing in Botswana. At this time of year these
verdant flatlands are alive with aggregations of gemsbok, springbok and
blue wildebeest.
Predator concentrations
are also high and sightings of the legendary black-maned Kalahari lions
are complemented with some of the best cheetah viewing in Africa. Wild
dog and leopard are seen on occasion and other mammal possibilities
include southern giraffe, steenbok, red hartebeest and charismatic
ground squirrels and meerkats (suricates).
Bird life is equally
diverse with over 220 species recorded to date, with a variety of
arid-west endemic species such as Burchell’s Sandgrouse, Kalahari
Scrub-Robin and African Wren Warbler. |
 |
|
DAYS 4 & 5: JACANA OR XIGERA CAMP, OKAVANGO DELTA
The Okavango Delta represents the extreme contrast of a
water-filled world in an otherwise arid desert: abundant water, sunlight
and soil combine to form a paradise bursting with life. The difference
between the Kalahari and the Okavango becomes amazingly clear even as we
fly from the one to the other. Accommodation on this leg of the trip is
at either Jacana or Xigera Camp, both of which are situated in the heart
of the Okavango Delta’s myriad waterways. This is the ultimate Delta
experience, with serene waters flowing through innumerable channels
around remote islands and a profusion of plant and animal life. The
experience focuses on the permanently flooded inner Delta, the serene
waterways and the islands of trees and bush.
Jacana Camp is
situated just west of the Moremi Game Reserve and consists of 5 Meru-style tents
nestled discreetly into lush vegetation on a seasonal island. Each tent
is on a wooden deck overlooking the floodplains and has an en-suite
bathroom with flush toilet and shower. The bathroom is enclosed but
roofless allowing for showers by starlight.
The camp has a plunge pool for cooling off from the
midday sun. The main dining area is on an elevated wooden deck between
two magnificent sycamore fig trees and surrounded by dense wild date
palms. Downstairs, there is a cozy bar and lounge with an area for an
open fire under the stars. |
 |
|
Xigera Camp
(pronounced Keejera) is a private luxury tented camp situated in the
Moremi Game Reserve and consists of consists of 10 luxuriously furnished
tented rooms with en-suite facilities and outdoor shower. Each room is
raised on a wooden deck offering superb views of the seasonal floodplain
and lagoon. Meals are enjoyed under the thatch of the raised lounge, pub
and dining area overlooking a permanently flowing channel. The wooden
footbridge, a unique feature to Xigera, connects Xigera Island to the
next one and is often used by hyaena and leopard moving between the
islands allowing guests great viewing opportunities.
Activities at the two camps feature excursions on the
water in both mekoro and motor boats as well as game drives. Birding is
excellent, with specials like Pel’s Fishing Owl, Slaty Egret, Wattled
Crane and African Skimmers to be found. In contrast to the Central
Kalahari, game viewing here features the water-adapted red lechwe,
occasionally amphibious elephant and the small herds of tsessebe and
greater kudu resident on the larger islands. Predators such as lion and
leopard may be encountered. |
 |
|
DAYS 6 & 7: LIANSHULU CAMP, KWANDO RIVER, MUDUMU
NATIONAL PARK, NAMIBIA
We depart by aircraft to the Kwando airstrip from where
we enjoy a boat ride on the magnificent Kwando River to scenic Lianshulu
Lodge situated inside Namibia’s Mudumu National Park.
Lianshulu
Lodge accommodates guests in 9 twin rooms and 1 family
room, each individually styled and tastefully furnished, with en-suite
bathroom and secluded viewing deck. The camp is shaded by a fringe of
dense riparian forest and overlooks the tranquil Kwando RIver. The airy
thatched dining, lounge and bar areas open onto spacious, split-level
wooden decks, affording sweeping views over the Lianshulu Lagoon.
Breakfast, brunch and congenial dinners by candlelight are served on the
deck.
Two indulgent fireplaces, scenic outlooks and a secluded
swimming pool create idyllic places to relax in the natural
surroundings. The area is once again a contrast to the tight waterways
of the Okavango Delta and opens into lush wilderness of riverine forest,
marsh and open woodland. Activities here include morning or sunset boat
cruises, nature drives in the Park and visits to the Lizauli Traditional
Village, a model homestead where members of the local community give
fascinating insights into their way of life in this remote corner of
Namibia. Many typical savannah species occur in the area including
buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and waterbuck with elephant and hippo being
particularly abundant. Predators are sometimes encountered and around
400 bird species have been recorded in the East Caprivi. Hippo,
crocodiles and fish such as bream, tigerfish and catfish can be seen
from the lodge’s deck. |
 |
|
DAY 8: TOKA LEYA CAMP, MOSI-OA-TUNYA NATIONAL PARK,
LIVINGSTONE, ZAMBIA
After a light breakfast, we depart by road to
Livingstone, Zambia. This interesting 5-hour drive takes us across the
Caprivi Strip and into Zambia via the border town of Katima Mulilo in
Namibia. After crossing into Zambia, we drive through beautiful teak
forests and African villages, stopping to visit the old cathedral of
Mwandi.
We arrive in the early afternoon at the new
Toka Leya
Camp, situated on the banks of the Zambezi River in the
eastern sector of the Mosi-Oa-Tunya National Park, some 12km up from the
Victoria Falls. This is an area of spectacular scenic beauty: from the
Falls themselves to the broad, picturesque course of the Zambezi River
upstream, the rainforest adjacent and the stark jagged gorge downstream.
The power and timelessness of nature’s forces are evident throughout. |
 |
|
At 1708 metres wide, Victoria Falls is the most
expansive curtain of water in the world and drops more than 100 metres
into the sheer Zambezi Gorge. The Tonga and Makalolo peoples lived here
for centuries before the Falls were ‘discovered’ by David Livingstone in
1855, who named them after his queen. Its local name – after which the
national park is named – is Mosi-Oa-Tunya, “the Smoke that Thunders,”
which accurately describes the huge spirals of spray that can be seen
30km away.
Accommodation consists of 12 en-suite safari-style tents
(3 of which are family rooms), each with a view of the magnificent
Zambezi River. The dining and bar area are under a canopy of trees
overlooking the River and there is a swimming pool. Activities include a
tour of the Falls on the Zambian side, game drives, river cruises and
fishing. Other activities on offer in the area at an additional charge
include sunset cruises, helicopter flights, micro-lighting, canoeing,
jet boating, white water rafting and fishing amongst others. |
 |
|
DAY 9: VICTORIA FALLS, TRANSFER TO LIVINGSTONE
AIRPORT
The grand finale is a guided tour of the Victoria Falls,
one of the seven Natural Wonders of the World.
Later, we transfer to Livingstone Airport and bid
farewell to the adventure. |
 |
|
|
|
|
Rates: |
1 January to 31 March 2009 |
|
USD
3,456 Per Person Sharing |
|
Single Supplement: USD1,052 |
African Safari
Consultants
TOLL FREE 1-866-733-4263
(1-866-SEE-GAME)
|