Remember, Don't Run Unless I Tell You To Run ...

Moving right along, we're at the Okavango Delta in Botswana

Today's Geography Lesson:  This delta is unique because the Okavango River flows from the highlands of Angola, through Namibia, and into the landmass of Botswana - it does not flow into the sea.  
It empties into the flatland of northern Botswana, which eventually further south turns into the Kalahari Desert.  The river spreads out and becomes an immense area of wetlands and islands to form one of the world's largest inland deltas. 

We went there today from the small town of Maun, Botswana.  It was a fairly distant hour-and-a-half ride in an open jeep that led to an off-road adventure deep into the bush.   When we got to our first stop, we got out of the jeep and were met by some locals in small dug-out canoes. 

This is something we anticipated, because that's how you get out into the Okavango Delta, by small man-powered boats (full disclosure, the boat we were in was actually coated in fiberglass, but I don't want to ruin the vibe).   We set off in two boats, with another couple, Luke and Yana. 

These boats are "pushed" along by experienced guys called "polers" who have a long stick that they use to push off the bottom to propel the boat forward.   Frankly, the boats seemed real tipsy, and we were warned not to move suddenly or shift our weight.  It took a while to get used to them, it felt like they could tip over at any moment. 

It was a sublime adventure, as we wound our way through long patches of open water, only to find ourselves in very narrow channels of deep grasses in a labyrinth that seems impenetrable.   The weather was perfect, warm, sunny, and big billowy clouds.  

We had one rather disconcerting moment on the way out to our destination.  We came around a tight bend in a narrow channel, and the two boat pilots got excited and we came to an abrupt stop. We were in the front boat (and I was in the front seat) and the guides were very concerned that there was a hippo in front of us in the water.  

Hippos are huge beasts and can be very dangerous if provoked. We stopped and waited ... there were bubbles coming up out of the water.  We waited for the hippo to move.  The boat pilots made a bunch of noise to scare the hippo away, to no avail.  It got kinda tense.  If a hippo attacked us in these little boats in the middle of this grassy marshland, we were goners.   

We eventually quietly passed through the spot, never seeing the hippo.  They can stay underwater for ten minutes or more.  It was especially unsettling for me, because if that big dude attacked, I would be the first to go ...

Eventually we arrived at terra firma (dry land), and got out to commence our next episode - a game drive on foot.  We were going hiking.  This was a really cool way to go out and find animals - by walking around and looking for them.  

The pilot of one of the boats became our walking guide.  He gave us many instructions - one of which I will quote here: "Remember don't run unless I tell you to run, please wait until I instruct you to run, and then run fast!"

We were on an "island" and in theory there were potentially a bunch of animals.  We walked a long ways and didn't see anything, but just when we thought we would come up empty, we saw a giraffe, and then some zebras, and then two more giraffes.  And before long, we encountered a huge pod of hippos at a watering hole.  I counted somewhere near 36 of them.  Awesome! 

Keep in mind we were on foot.  We got real close to one of the giraffes.  This was one of the highlights of the trip so far.  We were within fifty feet or so. 

And one final bit of excitement - when we got back to the boats and got ready to set sail for home, there was a hippo in the water just out from the boating launch.  Not good.  We could definitely see this one, and the boat guides said we had to find another way to put the boats in. 

So we had to carry them a couple hundred yards and put in at another spot some distance away.  

Tomorrow will be a travel day, not sure if there will be much to report ...