Hippo and baby, Okavango river

On an afternoon boat trip we came across a herd of hippos waking up and heading for the water. There were two young ones and it was great to watch their mothers initially pushing them towards the river. It was definitely a big highlight of the trip so far. On the same boat trip we also saw a herd of elephants drinking along the edge of the river as well as many species of bird.

We were up and on the road at sunrise again this morning. We drove back into Namibia, completing all the paperwork as we left Botswana, and went straight to the Mahango NP. The weather has been much colder today and it is quite windy which obviously made the wildlife head for shelter as we saw very little except a huge male elephant that crossed the dirt track in front of us. Very different to when we went through the park two days ago.

We are spending two nights camping at another lodge by the Okavango river. The sun deck over looks the river and there are constantly hippos in the water in front of it. There are also two African Wood Owls in the trees near where we are. The sunset boat trip was fabulous and afterwards we ate at a big table with other guests. The food was excellent and was quite a treat for us as we’ve been cooking on a single gas burner or over a campfire. As we finished our meal we heard lions roaring on the other side of the river, very distinctive from the constant hippo noises.

I’ve added two collages as extras.