Having guided for 3 years as a german guide at Sunway Safaris I (Dirk) moved into the office and started in the marketing department which meant no more touring. When I heard I was going to go on an agent’s trip to Botswana the excitement set in. I was going to host 4 agents from Europe on what we call a Fam trip. I flew to Maun and met up with Johnny and Charlotte our Botswana managers at Planet Okavango and did the shopping that needed to be done for the next 4 days.

The following day I was transferred into out accommodated camp that was already set up and then to the poling station to meet the agents that where flying in by helicopter to the start point of their adventure in Botswana. After a quick drink and introduction to what the plans were for the next few days we climbed into our mokoros and headed towards our camp. The first afternoon was a relaxed intro to Botswana and what can be expected.

After a Delta kudu bolognaise we retired to the sounds of the African bush. Early the next morning we headed out for a bush walk to see what we could find. After about 3 hours with Zebra, hippo and giraffe seen up close we headed back to our camp to pack up and take our mokoros back to the poling station to meet our guide Jamie and the vehicle that would take us to the Moremi game reserve for 2 nights of wild camping. Now wild camping is an experience in its own where you need to be totally self-sufficient taking everything you need as there are no shops nearby. After hearing we would be at HATAB (Hospitality and tourism association of Botswana) 2 close to North gate I was even more excited as this is one of my favourite camps having stayed there a few times in my last season of guiding. Set under some large trees and too far away from the Khwai River the area is home to a male leopard and a small clan of hyena. After a few hours’ drive we arrived at the site and set up camp quickly, did a briefing so we could do a short afternoon game drive.  The afternoon drive was a little slow as there has been some late rains in Botswana and the bush is truly thick with certain grasses being taller than our land cruiser making it difficult to see very far. That evening we dinned under the stars with some wine and a Moremi coconut curry. The night sounds stared around 8pm with lions calling in the distance, the resident male leopard letting us know he was present and the hippos laughing at each other’s jokes in the background. Early the next morning after a cup of coffee we headed out direction hippo pools. It was again a very slow morning with no big cats to be found and only some general game been spotted. Returning to camp I got a delicious brunch going with eggs, bacon and mushrooms served with some nice German bread. Next on the agenda was a bush shower… Hot water off the fire was put in the bucket shower and all enjoyed a shower with a difference with an amazing view.

After shower time was some down time in the heat of the day. We sat around the now dead fire and chatted about our time in the African bush whilst the vervet monkeys adopted our shower tent and bucket shower as there playground. After some cheese and biscuits we headed out on the afternoon drive in the opposite direction to hippo pools. We found some nice elephant bulls, hippo out of the water and some lions having an afternoon snooze. We decided we would leave the lions and carry on with the drive and then stop by them on our journey back to the camp. After about 25min we were driving through and open area scattered with small pans and dead trees when I spotted a young male leopard walking towards us on the road. One minute he was there and the next gone.. We approached the area he was last seen and stopped to scan the area only to find him lying in the grass no taller than 40cm about 3m away from the vehicle. The 4 camera’s in the back of the vehicle sounded like world war 3 starting taking as many pictures of this majestic cat as he cleaned himself. After a short time he decided that the paparazzi on the land cruiser had taken enough pictures, got up, did a stretch and then disappeared into the grass. Wow!! We had seen 3 of the big 5 in a matter of an hour. Heading back to the camp we stopped in at the lions we had seen earlier only to find they had move 1m to the left and where still having a sleep. So with the sun setting we decided best we head back to camp and get dinner on the fire. Tonight we dined on steak, wors, butternut and sweet potatoes all cooked on the fire. Whilst finishing off our meal I had that feeling that we were being watched and did a quick scan of the bush with my torch to find a lone hyena watching us from a mere 3m behind the wash-up station. Our dinner had brought him in close hoping he could also share this delicious meal. We watched the hyena move around the camp for about 2 hours taking pictures and talking about the family structure and the conflict often seen between hyena and lions. Making sure everything was lifted off the ground and locked away we retired to our tents and listened as the hyena moved into the camp to see if it could find some scraps to enjoy. Later that evening the leopard called form not too far away from the camp and a hippo passed by on route to his feeding ground. Early the next morning we broke up camp, loaded the vehicle and trailer and headed out the park into the Khwai concession on route to our last overnight stop at Hyena Pan a camp we use on our Botswana Wild Parks accommodated safari the BTa14. On arrival at the camp we enjoyed a wonderful lunch and then it was time to do some work. Whilst going through our brochure we had a few elephants come down the permanent waterhole in front of the lodge for a quick drink and a bath. Now imagine working with elephants in the background?? Not too easy!

Ok with work done the G&T’s came out and some time to reflect on what we had experienced over the last few days. After a shower and some down time we all met at the fire and watched as a small herd of elephants drink at the floodlit waterhole before heading up to the deck for an amazing dinner and a few more G&T’s and some good South African wine. After dinner we headed back to fire side to enjoy our last evening under the Botswana night sky. A hippo and another elephant came past for a quick drink and then disappeared into the mopane surrounding the waterhole. We all retired to our beautiful tents and had a great night’s sleep in a comfortable bed. The next morning with breakfast behind us we said our goodbyes to the staff and headed back to maun to catch our flights to Johannesburg.
What an amazing experience, being back in the bush again after 2 years! I cant wait for my next agents trip!!