On our final morning in Xaranna, we chose to forego the game drive (which we loved) and try out a water excursion in a Mokoro (the dugout canoe of the Okavango Delta). We did not regret it. KD and Buud took us out from the dock in front of the lodge and we entered the delta.
A stowaway frog. For such a small animal, these guys are rather noisy.
These water lilies are apparently a favorite food of elephants in the area.
Miles and miles of channels.
Another frog.
When we got back to the lodge we had breakfast and headed to the tent cabin to pack. Apparently, these elephants decided to see us off. They came to eat right across the river from our cabin.
Although our stay in Xaranna was very short (only 2 nights) we really loved the lodge and the staff. This was reinforced when they sent us off. Not only did the entire lodge serenade us as we said our goodbyes to KD, Elicious, Kenneth, Paolo and Seranne, they packed us both a lunch for our journey to Nxabega. Their kindness and hospitality is something that we'll always remember.
We made the thirty minute drive to the airstrip with Elicious. We had to wait a few minutes for our plane and once it arrived, we met Irvine, one of the hospitality managers from Nxabega. The 5 minute flight was full of wildlife viewing (tons of elephants, giraffe, zebra and hippo). As before, it was also hot and bumpy.
Arriving at the airstrip, we were picked up by Kux who would be our ranger for our four night stay at Nxabega Okavango Tented Camp. Another plane arrived with several other guests who would also be staying at Nxabega and we got into our vehicles for the ten minute drive to the lodge.
Where Xaranna was very luxurious, Nxabega was rustic. The cabins were the most humble that we'd stayed in, and the weather was very hot. We definitely missed the air conditioners that we had in the other 3 camps. That said, the lodge itself was very lovely and the staff greeted us with an incredible medley of songs in the Tswana language.
We enjoyed a massive lunch on arrival and had a chance to meet a couple of the other guests. There was a family from Normandy in France and a couple from Paris on their honeymoon. We also met a really lovely couple who lived in London, she was an American from California and he was an Italian from Tyrol.
After heading back to the cabin to unpack and rest, we met back at the lodge for "high tea" before our afternoon game drive. High tea at Nxabega was really expansive (probably because they served a single brunch instead of breakfast and lunch) with fruit, freshly baked breads, sandwiches and desserts. Before we left, we got to meet Bill and Nicola, a Scottish and Welsh couple who lived in Southern Britain. They'd be accompanying us our on game drives with Kux and our tracker TT.
Our first game drive in Nxabega would actually be on a boat excursion in the delta. The boat dock was about 45 minutes away and on the drive we got to see Elephant, Cape Buffalo, Warthog, Mongoose and various antelope.
We crossed a lot of water on our way to the boat dock.
The river at Nxabega was much wider and deeper than what we experienced at Xaranna. It was also very cool and refreshing out on the water, which was great after the oppressive heat in the lodge.
An African Fish Eagle. We saw 100s of them.
Apparently this tree is an excellent fishing spot.
We saw a hippo in the water, but didn't get any snapshots of it as it ducked under the surface as the boat was approaching.
We had our sundowners on the boat while watching a magnificent African sunset. It was really spectacular.
On our way back to the lodge, we were able to see a bush baby jumping from tree to tree.
We enjoyed a wine-centric dinner with Bill and Nicola. We had duck and lamb with chocolate cake for dessert. Even better, we saw a young hippo grazing in the grass just below the dining area of the lodge while we were eating. It was a great first day in Nxabega and we were excited to see where tomorrow would take us.
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