Westward on the water...

Last Saturday, we found ourselves hitching a ride on an impromptu boat trip... heading west over the new lake currently covering our flood plain. We could have just kept going for miles and miles, in an illegal immigrant kind of way, over what is supposed to be dry land! Sadly though, we eventually had to turn around and come back home under the light of the half moon...

Staying with the water theme, here's another flood photo, especially for people who know this part of the world. Viewed from the river, this is the Sedudu Bar in the campsite at Chobe Safari Lodge. Now merely a part of the great Chobe River/Lake!

Since it's a long weekend, I shall be away for a couple of nights, camping in the bush - enjoying the stars and the full moon!

Sending love and happy Easter wishes to all reading this

Blue skies and blue water everywhere (still)

It certainly seems that our rainy season has finally ended. All the grey clouds have vanished, and without their protective insulation blanketing us from above, temperatures have dropped signficantly.

I really do love this time of year, with the dazzling blue skies and the edgy chill in the morning and night air. Days are still hot, but there is the promise of Winter to come... and then after that we start again with the waiting-for-rain game around October!

Leaving you with one last watery photo for now - we took this from the road on the way to work yesterday. The wide blue river closest to us in the photo is the main channel, which we can see from opposite our office. This is the usual Chobe river, which is currently spilling over its banks. Everything blue going back all the way towards the horizon, is supposed to be a green floodplain, and instead is a sheet of water...

Just for interest, if you feel like scrutinising, otherwise do skip - in the foreground bottom right, you can maybe make out a palm tree. You can see the same palm tree in the Saturday photo just above the hippo pictures, in this earlier post.

We are off on a weekend getaway combined with a little business, but sadly our planned stay at Ngepi Camp in Namibia had to be postponed till later this year, as the lodge is underwater... So, until next week, and early weekend greetings to all reading this!

Sunsets in the Flood

Last night we drove up to a spot on top of a hill, and looked out over the floodplain. As hinted at in my previous post, here are a couple of examples of the sun setting over a reflective, inundated landscape...

I have to just mention right here that we should also spare a thought for those villagers who have had to evacuate their settlements along the Caprivi strip both on the Botswana and Namibian sides of the border, and a couple of people right here whose homes are close to the river, and who have had to take refuge higher up. Some lodges are either already affected, or could be soon...

Let's just hope that the waters start to recede sooner rather than later. I am always in awe of Nature in all her power and beauty, and counted a good few blessings once more, to be lucky enough to be sitting safely on top of a hill just looking on at the sheer masses of water.

This elevated vantage point is almost in the middle of the town, but the road to the top is wild, and criss-crossed with elephant tracks. The scents of elephant dung and crushed wild basil linger in the evening air, and, despite the feeling of remoteness, the streetlights of Kasane are visible down below, and road traffic can be heard passing by. Yet another example of the curious juxtaposition of wilderness and civilisation in this place we call home!

As the sun disappeared, I felt the first sign of an Autumnal chill in the air, despite the still-warm sand under my feet. It seems that our rainy season might have have finally come to an end, and that the seasons are changing at last...

Floodplain views - the rising river

Every day, en route to work, we choose to take the scenic road down the hill and enjoy the view out over the beautiful Chobe river floodplain.

View from the top of the hill, just before descending to river level. Neighbouring country Namibia is on the other side.

I find that a good start and mood for the day is highly encouraged by simply appreciating this beautiful view (and baobab) while driving down to our destination at river bank level.

Right now it's time for our annual floods to arrive, and it seems that exceptionally high levels are expected this year. Huge amounts of water are coming down from Angola, and other catchment areas, as we are part of the great Zambezi river system.

The Chobe river suddenly transforms from a meandering blue ribbon, obediently following its channel through the green floodplain, into massive sheets of water which spread out and cover the flat basin with a shimmering, reflective surface. As one can imagine, this watery sheet has the ability to take on any number of colours and moods, according to the state of the sky above it, and this makes for some incredible sunsets. More on that in future posts, I'm sure!

Last Sunday we took a few photos of the advancing floodwaters entering the floodplain.

Above is last Sunday's photo of the floodplain. Below is today's photo (Saturday) from the same spot.This water seems to have appeared almost overnight, and it is still rising!

On Sunday afternoon, we also took a walk along the river's edge at Chobe Safari Lodge. While marvelling at the high water level, we heard a loud water spraying sound emerging from some partially submerged trees right nearby.

Soon afterwards, a long, dark, submarine-shaped body emerged vertically from the water - followed rapidly not by a periscope, but by a pair of flapping hippo ears! Two hippos were in the area, so we stayed around to take some photos of them - one of which graced my previous blog post.

Hippos are fascinating creatures to watch in the water. One minute a hippo is there, and the next, it's gone. While they are underwater, you are never entirely sure where they are going to surface next, and this can be slightly alarming!

I have the greatest respect for these animals, as they can be extremely dangerous, and I've heard it said that hippos account for more deaths in the African river enviroment than crocodiles. Even though they are vegetarians, their sheer size and power, coupled with the most enormous teeth means that they can cause a lot of damage. Apparently the big hippo "yawn", is actually a sign of aggression! Even though we are surrounded by wildlife here, we never lose sight of the fact that they are completely wild creatures in their natural environment...

Hippo in the very wide, flooded river near submerged trees

Watch this space for more flood images in the not too distant future, and in the meantime, happy weekend greetings from my grey, cloudy, watery world...