As usual, up early, a quick breakfast (I
did not have anything to eat) and then a short drive to the local airport to
catch a bush plane. There are hundreds of those planes
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| Bush Plane Used to get into the Delta |
around; they don't need
a great tarmac; any straight level surface will do as a landing strip. The
arrangements for the flight were made by the lodge. With us on the plane are an
Italian mother and her 2 late teenagers. Those 3 are dropped off first after an
hour and fifteen minutes flight. We waved and offered a polite smile and now
it's us and the pilot.
Below us is nothing but shallow swamp as far as the eyes
can see. Get lost here
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| View From the Plane |
and you are food for some animal. Few and far between I
see below us slight elevations, islands to use a better word, but still, mostly
swamp. Not morass but mud, you never know if it supports your weight. There are
some solid sections, too. I see shades of green and brown water ways, rivulets,
channels, creeks. No lakes to speak of. I see bushes, grass and smallish
trees, a few larger trees here and there. The water moves over an immense area,
miles upon miles, shallow and always trying to level itself. No civilization in
sight. The whole area
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| View of the Delta From the Plane |
below us is
mainly flat. There is nothing to see but the randomness and mix of flowing
water and dirt. There are no roads of any kind. We touch down unto “our”
landing strip somewhere in this nowhere land, the Okavango Delta. The Okavango River
is one of those rare rivers that does not end near the ocean. The river just runs
itself dry; and the water at the end of this delta sinks into the ground or
evaporates.
As usual, a welcoming party greets us at
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| More Delta Views |
the
landing strip. There are two men and an old, dilapidated, utility truck. The
luggage goes into the truck, we walk. This truck is the only vehicle on this
large island, our home for the next 2 nights. We walk and the temperature around
us is about 36 C. Not much shade. The trees that give good, deep shade are rare
in the delta. Animals ate the trees as seedlings, elephants pushed them over,
high floods ripped them out or they don't grow here. It is hot.
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| Walking to the Main Building (Tent) |
After a good 5 minute walk we come to the
reception area of our lodge. Mmmm, maybe let's call it a camp. A nice lady
greets us, shows us where the outhouse is and explains the peculiarities and
set up of this place. It seems the lack of electricity is severe. A confusing
array of instructions of what to turn on and when made my eyes cross each
other. We are assigned tent # 8, the closest to the lodge. After the greeting
lady’s rather lengthy instructions I just want to go and lie down and cool off.
The temperature is about 35 C and my fever is about 38 to 39. I need rest. OK,
we check into our tent and find an old fashioned, rotating fan at the foot of
the bed. No AC. Not enough electric to
run AC’s. Ever the optimist I lie on the top of the sheets and try to nap.
Carol is good, she never said boo but her
face speaks volumes. We both look at each other and realize that this is the
life in the Delta. Where have our heads been? We “dreamed” of better accommodations
but this is reality! This is as good as it gets. Our safari outings would have
been 3 hour walking tours, twice a day, for the next 6 days. Great if you are
30 or 40 years old but any older and it gets more difficult the older one gets.
With my fever running wild now and concern for my health, we made the decision
to cancel the Okavango part of our journey. Carol spoke to the greeting lady
and we were in luck. A late arrival bush plane could take us to Maun, the
flight hub for bush planes and a city that has a hospital. The total time on
the ground for us; inside the Okavango Delta was about 2 hours. We did not see anything of the Delta except
what we saw from the plane ride. I am told they have Air Conditioning in Maun.
So off to Maun we go.
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