Day 1: Maun to Xakanaxa
The scheduled flight to Maun from Johannesburg arrives by midday, and you will then be flown by charter plane to Xakanaxa airstrip in the Moremi Game Reserve where you will be met by Letaka Safaris.
The flight takes you from Maun over the southern Okavango Delta and gives a wonderful aerial perspective of the habitat where we will spend the next 3 nights.
From the air only the larger animals are seen easily. These include large breeding herds of elephant that live in the mopane scrub. On the open plains large herds of buffalo and lechwe may be seen and in the waterways rafts of hippo are a common sight. Once you land in Xakanaxa the smaller game can be found.
Birding can also be excellent, with a good number of species to see, from raptors, to hornbills, cuckoos and honeyguides.
Accommodation: Tented Camp
Activities: Scenic Flight, Game Drive
Days 2 and 3: Xakanaxa Exploration Days (Moremi Game Reserve)
Moremi lies on the eastern extremity of the Okavango Delta. Habitats here range from wide-open floodplains, marshes, lagoons, papyrus fringed channels, vast reed-beds, woodland and savannah. As a result of the extremely variable habitat the diversity of both wildlife and birdlife is excellent.
Moremi is amongst the best game reserves in Africa in terms of viewing the endangered wild dog. Xakanaxa is home to a resident herd of several hundred buffalo whose range covers the territories of at least 4 prides of lion which may often be seen flanking the ever moving herd. Breeding herds of elephant move between their browsing areas in the mopane forests and the fresh water of the Okavango. Red lechwe are one of the more unusual antelope species and commonly found here, while the rare sitatunga antelope may be spotted from motor boat along the water-ways.
The swampy areas of Xakanaxa are home to a variety of species from coucals, crakes, skimmers, storks, the rare wattled crane to the majestic fish eagle.
Accommodation: Tented Camp
Activities: Game Drives and Boating
Day 4: Xakanaxa to Khwai
The Manuchira Channel is known as the Khwai River at its eastern-most extremity.
The day’s journey follows this water course, with the track weaving from the riverside and floodplains into the mopane veldt and the woodlands that make Khwai one of the most scenic areas of the Okavango. We pass the magnificent Dombo Hippo Pools in the morning stopping to enjoy the scenery and the antics of the resident hippo.
The western mopane veldt is home to mostly breeding herds of elephant while the eastern reaches of Khwai are home to some impressive old bulls. The mature bulls revel in the cool waters of the Khwai and are far more approachable while drinking and bathing than the breeding herds. The river has an unusually high density of hippo as well as some huge crocodile. Leopard, cheetah, serval and lion are common predators along this route and both
Xakanaxa as well as Khwai are included in the home ranges of 2 different packs of wild dog. General game includes southern giraffe, plains zebra, tsessebe and red lechwe with roan and sable antelope being less common residents.
In the mopane woodlands you have the chance of seeing eagles, hawks, and weavers. The verges of the swampy areas are home to longclaws, coucals, and crakes.
Accommodation: Tented Camp
Activities: Game Drive
Day 5 and 6: Khwai area exploration day.
You spend your time between the dry land habitats of the lead-wood and camel-thorn woodlands and savannahs and the riverside and marshy back-waters of the Khwai. Time permitting you may visit the lagoons and waterways of Xakanaxa, with the largest heronry in southern Africa.
The Khwai region boasts excellent populations of both bull elephant as well as breeding herds. Lion, leopard, serval and wildcat are common predators of the region with wild dog and cheetah being less common. Buffalo use this area seasonally with large herds moving in during the summer rains. The swampy areas in the west are home to red lechwe. Other ungulates include tsessebe, blue wildebeest, giraffe, kudu, sable antelope, roan antelope and impala.
This area has some exceptional birding, with the western reaches being home to the uncommon rosy-throated longclaw. There are some interesting raptors, including the rare cuckoo hawk, and a variety of eagles, including the long-crested, tawny, steppe, martial and bateleur. The waterways host rails, crakes, snipes and jacanas.
Accommodation: Tented Camp
Activities: Game Drive, Walking Safaris and Night Drive
Day 7 Khwai to Maun:
After breakfast you enjoy a game-drive to the airstrip where you will board you light charter aircraft for Maun. This marks the end of your Safari with Letaka Safaris.
Travel Days
On travel days you have an early start, pack your bags and leave camp to have breakfast
somewhere scenic. Following breakfast there is a game drive en route to the next camp – stopping for tea/coffee and cookies and later for a relaxing lunch under a shady grove of trees. Invariably lunch finds you within a short distance of camp and you arrive to find the crew has once again erected the camp at the new destination. There is time for a shower before afternoon tea and then it is time to begin the exploration of the area. Please note that this is a rough outline of a travel day and events change from safari to safari depending on the distribution of game, distance between camps, conditions of the roads and the decision of your guide etc.
Exploration Days
The best game viewing is the early morning and each day begins at the first hint of dawn with a coffee and light breakfast around the fire. From here you go straight into game drive, walking safari or boat trip. After several hours of wildlife viewing you stop for a comfort break and have tea, coffee and cookies. Between 10 and 11 am return to camp where there is time to freshen up with warm water in your standing basins before enjoying a sumptuous brunch consisting of fresh-baked camp bread, baked dishes and salads. After brunch there is time to relax, siesta, read a book, shower etc. before heading out in the late afternoon for your game-drive or boat trip. In areas outside of the National Parks you may also return to camp after dark with the use of a spotlight to look for nocturnal game. This is a guideline as to what happens on most exploration days. The course of each day’s events will be determined by local conditions, distribution of wildlife and birds, safety and the decision of your guide.
Included in price: All specified activities, park entry fees, meals, accommodation, drinks (in
Tented Camps) and all transfers.
Not included: Travel insurance, all flights unless otherwise indicated, items of a personal nature, toiletries, staff gratuities any drinks at lodges or accommodation other than Tented Camps.