After some research I had decided to stay at Camp Swamp at Sepupa, a 350 km drive from Maun. The first 100 km were in a southwesterly direction, and then 250 km due north edging the western side of the Okavango swamps. Camp Swamp had boats taking tourists into the delta. Their big hit was a 3 day trip to an island in the delta, with game walks included. I would make do with a much shorter trip.

Before leaving Denmark and while planning the trip, I had two concerns. One of them was malaria. I did not under any circumstances want to take the often very potent tablets for a period of 2-3 months, when in high risk malaria areas. I read as much about malaria as I could find on the net. My doctor prescribed tablets for a 10 day treatment, if I should get malaria. My own preventative measures were quite simple. Whenever I booked into a place with mosquito net around the bed, I used them without fail. My tent is probably the safest place to be, with mosquito net in all the right places. I asked a number of people what their course of action was. Almost every person travelling 1-4 weeks would take the tablets. For journeys longer than that hardly anyone took the tablets. As soon as they felt any symptoms they would immediately take a “crash course” of tablets, or see a doctor or hospital immediately. A German guy I met on Zanzibar, who had had severe malaria told me that I would have no doubt at all, when I was infected. Studies have shown that mosquito spray or roll-on containing a high amount of DEET (50% or more) is by far the most effective. I use a roll-on DEET stick as soon as there is any risk. When at Jungle Junction in Nairobi, someone told me about a self-test kit for malaria. I bought a few of them and have tested myself from time to time. I just did one today, and am happy to report that it came out negative (I am not pregnant!). See the attached pictures with the kit, and the result - one line at the C mark (clear).

My other concern was being chased by dogs - and bitten. To that end, my doctor gave me the required injections, together with all the others. Most of the dogs I have met along the way - and there have been incredibly few - have been more scared of me, than me of them. Almost 18.000 km into the trip I finally had a serious chase by two vicious dogs, determined to get hold of me. The last 5 kilometers from the main road down to Camp Swamp were really challenging “washboard” and deep sand tracks. Definitely not my favorite mixture, and I drove very slowly. Suddenly out of my right eye, I see two large dogs heading in my direction, teeth showing. Without thinking I give full throttle, and am amazed how easy it is to drive through the sand at speed. I leave the dogs behind and slow down, only to see them take up the chase again. I open up again, and this time easily outpace them. I should thank them for giving me a lesson in sand driving!

The Okavango is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa. It covers a vast area, and owes it’s existence to the Okavango River that flows from the Angolan highlands across the Namibian Caprivi Strip and into the Kalahari Desert. The Delta is home to a huge number of animals, elephant, lion, black and white Rhino, buffalo, giraffe, various birds and much more. It is considered one of the world’s foremost game viewing destinations, whether you do it by traditional mokoro, motorboat, a game drive, or fly in to one of the exclusive remote lodges. 

My mode of transport was the more modest motorboat. With Elms in control, we headed up the Cubango river early morning, trying to locate some crocodiles or even hippos. The feeling of being in the reeds is quite exhilarating. On the one side were papyrus plants everywhere, and on the other side some type of straw, harvested for thatch. It didn’t take long before Elms slowed the boat, and then reversed a bit. After a while I spotted the crocodile. How in the world he could have spotted it at speed, I have no idea, but it happened again and again. Elms has done this job for 14 years, and knows this part of the delta, intimately - and he loves it, he told me. The area is also popular for tiger fishing, and he told me that every year a couple of people loose their lives to crocodiles, while fishing in the river. We continued a few kilometers up the river with it’s twists and turns. I am happy I didn’t have to find my way back. We did not see any hippos on the trip, but plenty of crocodiles and bird life, It was a totally unique experience, unlike anything I have ever tried before, to be right in amongst the reeds. No question that a trip in a mokoro will be even better, as it will enable you to take the narrow canals that lead further into the delta. 

It was time to move on. I packed my tent and bike, and headed for the exit gate at Camp Swamp. Just like when I arrived, there was nobody at the gate. I got off the bike to open the gate and drove through. As I had closed it from the other side a 4x4 drove up, and I reopened the gate for him. The guy in the car had noticed all the gear on the bike, and wanted to know more. He was a middle aged South African, moved to Botswana 15 years ago, and was heavily involved in rhino conservation, and also in the transfer of a large number of rhinos from one park to another - I don’t recall the names of the parks in question. He then spotted Hector, in his usual spot behind the windscreen on the bike, jumped out of the car and asked me please if he could take a picture of it. I explained the story behind it; that my daughter in Denmark had crocheted it for me for the trip. It turns out he is actually the editor of a magazine for the organization he works for, and told me they are looking for some sort of mascot. He thought this was exactly the thing they were looking for. Only afterwards did I realize that I hadn’t asked the originator for copyright and license issues, and just told him to use Hector in the best possible way. I may just have a court case pending when I hit Denmark!

Thankfully, I did not run into the two dogs again on my way back to the main road, and headed further north to exit Botswana and enter Namibia.