BOTSWANA


ABOVE: The Okavango Delta at sunset


allow, before our guide, Bobby, turned his attention to making sundowner gin and tonics. We sipped in silence as the marmalade-hued disc of sun slipped behind the hills, a turtle dove cooing in the distance.


Land of contrasts


The journey from Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero to our second lodge, Sanctuary Baines’ Camp, offered an impressive insight into the vast and varied landscapes ov oÌÃÜ>n>° "n Ìhi Çx-minÕÌi li}hÌ->iÀVÀ>vÌ yi}hÌ from Kasane to Eagle Island, and subsequent 25-minute helicopter ride to Sanctuary’s private airstrip, we passed huge expanses of Kalahari desert, sprawling savannah and bone-dry woodland. And then there was the delta: fanning out like a


Garden of Eden, transforming our view into a watercolour painting of blues and greens. Rich vegetation surrounded deep lagoons and networks of meandering streams; termite mounds created mini islands amid Ìhi yoo`«l>inð 7il`livi yoVki` >n` vÀoliVki`° Our guide was leaning against a Land Rover in the shade of a tree as our helicopter landed. He }>Ûi Õà > wÀm h>n`Ãh>ki >n` «iÀÃon>liÃi` Ü>ÌiÀ bottles, and introduced himself as Professor Ice. “I’m a professor of the delta,” he grinned, “and I was born in June, when there was an unusual frost.”


`


We sipped our sundowners in silence as the marmalade-hued disc of sun slipped behind the hills, a turtle dove cooing in the distance


Less than 10 minutes later, Sanctuary Baines’


Camp (Review, page 90) unfurled like an oasis within a parched grove of trees. From a network of wooden walkways, the camp opened out on to a sparkling lagoon, with a lounge, restaurant and bar offering front-row seats to the view. Our visit came in late October, at the end of the dry season, when Botswana was waiting – desperately – for the rain to come. A combination of global warming and other natural factors meant the country was having one of its hottest, driest summers on record, and, with the mercury regularly exceeding 40C, the lagoon at Sanctuary Baines’ Camp was dwindling, drawing even more wildlife to its shores. Elephants by the dozen, buffaloes, antelopes and a menagerie of birdlife all coexisted happily. Evening and morning game drives passed by in a blur of excitement and hushed tones. Our efforts ª


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