Simon was our man… from the time our small single engine private Cessna 208 touched down on the tiny, barely visible air strip in the Okavango Delta marshlands in the country of Botswana. If you’re not prepared for extreme temperature changes within a few hours (30 degrees at wake up and 85 degrees by noon), this “rough it” camp is not for you. BUT, it’s definitely the camp to admire wildlife in its natural habitat… including inside the camp! 😝 Yelp, after dark we could not leave our “luxury” tent unless accompanied by Simon. Hippos like to sleep in the grass next to your tent and leopards hang out in the trees above and surrounding your tent…so midnight walks are forbidden.

I can’t even begin to remember all the different animals and birds we viewed going about their daily routines. Here’s a few that made quite the impression….

My first outing, (Tommie was in camp napping), Simon and I drove up on 2 male elephants fighting for territorial rights. The were pretty intense about who was staying and who was going. The loud screams and the clunking, clashing noise of their tusks at each encounter rang thru the air and made you flinch each time they collided with such enormous strength and body weight. The fight lasted about 30 minutes, but in the end, the larger elephant won and the slightly smaller one moved on. During the entire 4 days of 10 separate safaris, we saw LOTS of elephants. We watched as they crossed thru water (Simon said they can’t swim, they “snorkel” 😜), and then when emerging from the water, the gave themselves a “dirt bath” afterwards… slinging dirt with their trunks onto their backs. Several outings, we observed how they use their tusks to rip the bark from their favorite tree, and use their trunks to deliver each piece to their mouth… some really large. We even had them charge us, flapping their ears in warning if we got too close to their babies.

When you’re staring at a lion who’s only 12 ft away from you … and he’s looking straight into your eyes … your heart rate will definitely increase. The Lion is such a majestic creature with no real predator… just fighting among themselves. We were fortunate to see several sets of lions and observe them for 30-45 minute intervals.

A rare siting was a Mother Cheetah and her 3 cubs. They were napping during the day on a small hill when we drove up. The Mom eyed us but stayed calm and let us get within 25 feet. The cubs woke eventually and the entire family moved across our path to another hill nearby. We followed and continued to observe their play time. It’s was like being a part of a National Geographic documentary. AMAZING! A mother cheetah generally has 4 cubs… but the spotted hyenas kill most of them. This mother still had 3, so she was a good protector. Simon said she was larger that most.

The black tear marks on their face tells them apart from the leopard. They are not climbers like the leopard, so you don’t see them in the trees. There ARE the fastest land animal … running a lightening speed of over 70 mph. Leopards are hard to spot, although we did see one briefly. Since they are built for strength – they can carry prey twice their own weight up a tree to eat. They are very fast, but not as fast as the cheetah.

Now just imagine, it’s early morning and the sun is just coming up…the Jeep is rounding a corner where the weeds are as high as the vehicle… and there stands a Hippo…who’s supposed to be back in the water by now, but his internal clock must be messed up, because there he is…ready to charge you. Obviously, you back up out of his path.

Baboon city… there must have been 200+ in this pack. Their babies were precious, swinging in the trees and following their moms around….even though we know baboons are mean by nature. They travel during the day along with impalas and other antelope species, even with elephants… but like to return to the “cities” at night.

The Delta was filled with Red Lechwe…a rare antelope species only found on the Okavango Delta. His back legs are longer than his front – many refer to him as the aquatic antelope because he stays in the water up to his knees most of the time. They are a medium sized beautiful, graceful animal.

Wild dogs are an endangered species in Africa and protected by the government. Farmers get paid if a wild dog kills their goat, sheep, orc other animal. We saw a pack of 5 dogs on our last night safari… they all had while tips on the end of their tails.

And BIRDS, WOW! Never knew there were so many types of birds. You could lay on the porch of your tent at almost any time of day (not night😜) and the you could hear and see dozens of different bird species. It sounded like a loud chorus… sometimes out of tune. My favorite sighting was the lilac breasted roller… 7 vividly bright colors on one bird. When she flew, the bright bluish purple color under her wide wings flashed across the sky and forced you to pay attention.

This camp only has 8 large tent suites, so a maximum of 16 guests. The service is fabulous and personal, and the grub is delicious. THERE’S NO WIFI! They do have a small laptop hooked to SLOW dialup in case you must check your messages. The sunsets, after dinner circle around the campfire, and the star gazing made for the perfect ending to your day. We were blessed to be here during the full moon.

If you’re looking for a place to disconnect with the outside world for a few days, and reconnect with the simple life, this might be your answer. By the time we left, we had made many new friends and felt totally relaxed. Tears even flowed when I said my goodbye to “the man” Simon who was wearing not only a huge smile, but also the silk hunting scarf and Turner Farms ball cap Tommie had given him. Moving on to explore the ancient wonders of Egypt.