8/9/2024
We left my friend’s place at 10.30 and drove up to Bev’s niece’s place where we left our car. Emma took us to Warwick station then we got the train to the airport, for our 17.20 flight with Singapore Airlines to Singapore. We found our gate for the leg to Cape Town and saw a sign showing the way to a butterfly garden, intrigued we finally found it. The butterflies were all roosting, if that’s what butterflies do, but we found a few in the hot humid outside air. They are of course in a huge cage complete with waterfall and lots of flowers and rotting pineapple to feed on.
9/9
At 01.30 we were off to Cape Town via Johannesburg. We had to stay on the plane whilst the cleaners worked around us, we’ve had this before and I don’t think it’s a fair practice for the cleaners, I’m betting it saves the airline money. The only bird I managed to spot out of the plane window? Rock Dove/Feral Pigeon of course. We got into Cape Town early and eventually made it out to meet up with all the other travellers on our trip and got ferried to the Fountains Hotel in the city after waiting for a long time for a couple who had come to Cape Town early so were not on the flight. Good old communication eh? We met up with Glynis and Melanie from honeyguidebirding (admin@honeyguidebirding.co.za or whatsapp 27834522916) and we were soon heading south. Spotted House Sparrow, Red-winged Starling, Jackal Buzzard, Pied Crow, African Sacred Ibis, Yellow-billed Kite, and Egyptian Goose. We stopped at Silvermine which is Fynbos habitat or heathlands, finding Cape Sugarbird, Karoo Prinia and Orange-breasted Sunbird with lots of proteas and other flowers out, but it was a windy cool day which kept a lot of the birds from being visible. From there we headed down to Boulder Bay where we paid to get in to see the African Penguins on the beach, also finding Kelp Gull, Cape Cormorant, Cape Robin Chat, African Oystercatcher, Blacksmith Lapwing and Crested Tern. From there we turned back north along the coast to Strandfontein wetlands where in a whistlestop tour we found Common Starling, Rock Kestrel, Black-winged Kite, Grey Heron, Hartlaub’s Gull, Double-collared Sunbird, Pied Crow, African Sacred Ibis, Egyptian Goose, Jackal Buzzard, Lesser Swamp Warbler, Common Moorhen, Black-headed Heron, Red-billed Duck, Little Grebe, Cape Canary, Cape Wagtail, Yellow-billed Duck, Eared Grebe, Cape Teal, Common Tern, Great-crested Tern, Great Cormorant, Cape Shoveler, Kelp Gull, Lavaillant’s Cisticola, Cape Spurfowl, African Marsh Harrier, Cape Sparrow, Purple Swamphen, White-necked Raven, Common Greenshank, Blacksmith Lapwing, Greater Flamingo, Speckled Pigeon, Western Cattle Egret, Moccoa Duck and Black-winged Stilt, Southern Pochard, Southern Fiscal and Red-knobbed Coot. We then had to race to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens to get a few birds in before they closed. We got, Olive Thrush, Double-collared Sunbird, Egyptian Goose, Sombre Greenbul, Dusky Flycatcher, Malachite Sunbird, Cape Canary, Cape White-eye, Cape Robin Chat, Hadada Ibis, White-necked Raven, Common Buzzard, Guinea Fowl, Black Sparrowhawk, Southern Boubou, Forest Canary and with the help of another birder Spotted Eagle Owl. We then checked out a few spots for night birds as it got dark finding an African Wood Owl at Constantia. From there we headed back to the hotel where we said goodbye to our new friends and went up to our room and collapsed into bed.
10/9
The breaky at the hotel was very good with a good selection of yummy food. We were down in the lobby on time and got ourselves checked off the list. It was about 8.30 when we boarded the bus/truck and headed north. We skipped the trip up Signal Hill and Lion’s Head which was disappointing, instead we went to a spot by the sea with a view across to Table Mountain which had no cloud over it. We then went to a shopping centre nearby for the crew to buy all the food. Bev and I went for a walk around the streets and got Cape Weaver, Cape Sparrow, Laughing Dove, Red-eyed Dove, Speckled Pigeon, House Sparrow, Hartlaub’s Gull, Hadad Ibis, Cape White-eye, Pied Crow and Red-faced Mousebird. We passed by the shanty town and were soon out in the country. It’s difficult birding from a moving bus but a splash of red was a Southern Red Bishop, and an all black swift was African Black Swift as we passed through the Malmsbury area. We stop about every 2hrs, so Winkelshoek was the first one. Just on the outskirts of the town I spotted a Ground Squirrel, and with a walk around the wayside stop I found Rock Martin, more Cape Weavers at different stages of breeding, Greater Striated Swallow. As we headed on north the Red Bishops became abundant, some large swifts were Alpine Swifts, and some large geese in some paddocks were Spur-winged Goose. We had a brief stop at Pikeneerskloof as we laboured up the hill for a view of the lowlands. We camped at Markuskraal, an orange farm and had our tents up by mid afternoon, so we had plenty of time for a look around. I found Cape White-eye, Common Starling, Pied Crow, Cape Weaver, Common Waxbill, Ring-necked Pigeon, Laughing Dove, Yellow Bishop, Cape Wagtail, Cape Robin Chat, Cape Canary, Cape Sparrow, Rock Martin, Cape Bunting, Hadeda Ibis, Southern Masked Weaver, Guinea Fowl, Greater Striped Swallow, Cape Bulbul, Cape Spurfowl, Southern Red Bishop, Fiscal Flycatcher, Red-eyed Dove and Olive Thrush. We had dinner supplied by the camp and not long after it was bed time.
11/9
Up before dawn, packed the tent, had breaky and we were on the road by 7.30. First stop was Klawer where I got Red-eyed Bulbul, Yellow Canary and White-backed Mousebird as new with more breeding Cape Weavers and some Cape Sparrows. We stopped to look at the flowers at Steenkampshraal Rd south of Bitterfontein where some Rock Martins were breeding and I had a brief look at a Long-billed Pipit. Our trip through Namaqualand was all about views with flowers. Our lunch spot at a rest stop 20km south of Springbok was probably the best as far as variety in a small area, but in others a hillside would be a sea of one colour. At the lunch spot I found Karoo Scrub-robin, Layard’s Tit-babbler and Southern Double-collared Sunbird. In Springbok I found some Pale-winged Starlings, along with lots of House Sparrows. Not far north of Springbok there was a dramatic change in scenery. We were still rolling through rock strewn hills but all of a sudden not only did the flowers stop but most of the vegetation, leaving barren hillsides and barren flats as well with only a sparse smattering of ground cover. We passed through into Namibia with no drama and camped at Felix Unite camp by the Orange River. It was nearly dark by the time we had pitched our tent, I had a quick look down by the river but didn’t find anything new. Dinner was at 20.00 cooked by the crew.
12/9
Up at dawn, breaky and at 8am we boarded the old Felix Unite bus to take us nearly back to where we crossed the border. Not long after we arrived an African Fish Eagle came and perched on the other side of the river which everyone got to see. The canoes eventually arrived and we set off down stream for a 13km paddle on mostly still waters with three easy rapids, each time we came to a rapid there would be a new bird that I couldn’t stop to photograph. The cost was 525Rand in old patched up canoes some leaked badly, ours was good. They did track well through the water. The birds that I got on the canoe trip and around the camp were: Great Cormorant, House Sparrow, Rock Martin, Cape Wagtail, Common Waxbill, Hadeda Ibis, Southern Red Bishop, Orange River White-eye, African Darter, Great Egret, Bradfield’s Swift, Egytpian Goose, Karoo Thrush, African Sacred Ibis, Grey Heron, Long-tailed/Reed Cormorant, Pied Kingfisher, Little Egret, Blacksmith Lapwing, Red-knobbed Coot, African Pied Wagtail, Common Sandpiper, African Shelduck, Yellow-billed Duck, African Spoonbill, African Marsh Warbler, White-throated Swallow and African Black Duck. We had lunch and pulled down the tents then headed off north to Ai Ais. On the way in we spotted Springbok and Klipspringer Antelopes. After we’d set up the tents I wandered off north to the the old dam and found a troop of Chacma Baboons then went back through the camp to the small sewerage pond. I found African Shelduck, Red-knobbed Coot, Common Moorhen, Southern Acacia Barbet, Familiar Chat, Mountain Wheatear, Pririt Batis, Southern Masked Weaver, Pale-winged Starling, Three-banded Plover, Cape Wagtail, Little Grebe. I was just approaching the pond when I flushed what looked like Black Crake, so I wandered down to the river which was too salty for waterbirds and was more cautious on my return to the pond and was rewarded by some nice views of a pair of Black Crake in the fading light. Dinner was had not long after that, then it was time for bed.
13/9
It was a 4.30 wake up this morning for a 5.15 departure for the 80km drive to Fish River Canyon. The truck drove us to the north lookout and we waited for sun up, then walked back along the rim to the main lookout point, about 2km, we then had breaky. It’s pretty barren habitat here. There was a large flock of Pale-winged Starlings begging for food, some Rock Martins and a Familiar Chat, and that’s that. On our way out of the canyon we found some Gemsbok and Mountain Zebra, Black-chested Snake Eagle, Southern Pale Chanting Goshawk and Southern Ostrich. The trip into Keetmanshoop was so uneventful that we both nodded off. The town was pretty birdless. We are in rooms tonight at the Schutzenhaus. The room is huge. We headed out again at 16.00 to Giants Playground where there are large rocks stacked on top of each other. I got Rosy-faced Lovebird in the carpark, Rock Agama and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting. A short drive away is the Quivertree Forest where we watched the sun go down with some tame Rock Hyraxes, then back to the hotel where John had stayed behind to cook dinner for us. As usual bed soon after.
14/9
We set off after breakfast and a quick look around where I managed a shot of Rosy-faced Lovebird feeding in mistletoe, at 8am. Both Bev and I are coming down with colds, so I struggled through the day with a headache, sore throat and runny nose. It was a mostly transit day with no new birds until we stopped at Hammerstein Lodge. Just before getting to the lodge we found some Bat-eared Foxes foraging in the late afternoon. It’s back to camping for us, so we pitched the tent then I went out looking for new birds and found Crimson-breasted Gonolek one of the must see passerines with a bright red breast, black back with a white stripe through the wing, but I couldn’t get a good shot of them. I also found Acacia Pied Barbet, Ashy Tit and Chestnut-vented Tit-babbler.
15/9
4.30 in the morning to rise is very difficult after a poor night’s sleep due to my cold, but we managed to get our tent de-pitched and get into the truck for our 5.30 departure. We got to the gate at Sossusvlei a bit early so some went for a coffee. After sunrise the gates were opened, the queue had grown considerably by then, by the time we got to Dune 45 there were already many people climbing it, the walk up wasn’t that hard with plenty of foot holes to plonk my boots into so I was at the top, which isn’t really the top of the dune in quick time for some magnificent views of dunes in the early morning light. We had breakfast by the truck then went down to Deadvlei. The truck isn’t 4wd so we were transfered to 4x4s to where we walked the last bit to the valley which has lots of dead trees looking stark against the towering dunes. There were hardly any birds around, and nothing new. By the time we got back to the truck it was lunch time then we headed up to Sesriem Canyon, which is a slot canyon with some small pools of stagnant water in one section. We then drove to Bushman’s Desert Camp north of Solitaire along rough corrugated gravel roads, not far from our destination we found a Lappet-faced Vulture and Martial Eagle soaring nearly over the road. My energy level was low, so by the time we’d pitched our tent with a view over the valley I was knackered and lay down for a rest. It took all of my willpower to get up when Bev said that they had a small floodlit pool that had some birds around it, I knew what they were going to be, and I was right, a few Double-banded Sandgrouse, being a new bird it was worth getting up for. I managed to get some food into me, and was very grateful when some of the ladies on the the trip who were medically trained and carrying suitable drugs with them offered to give them to me. Bed as soon as I could. You may notice that the photos have a hazy look to them. There is always a mixture of smoke but mostly fine dust in the air here, making the day light harsh and the sunsets spectacular despite little to no cloud. This phenomenon was with us for most of the trip.
16/9
I found a Great Rufous Sparrow early then at 7am we piled into the open 4wd truck and headed out into the desert along private tracks. The habitat here is just a bit better than much of what we’ve passed through recently and it showed with Gemsbok grazing all over the place. We flushed a Kori Bustard and found some Ruppell’s Bustards that were too far away and into the sun to get a decent shot. They make the wierdest call, somewhat like what you might expect to be a frog. When we got back we had breakfast, de-pitched the tent and headed off. Just as we neared the highway we found a pair of Double-banded Courser. First stop was the Tropic of Capricorn where I heard frogs calling, but I wasn’t fooled, I found a small group of Ruppell’s Bustards and managed a shot of them. Next stop was Kuiseb Canyon which is also described as a moonscape, only a pair of Pied Crows here. The leader had to do some shopping for lunch in Walvis Bay, then we drove to the edge of the big lagoon for lunch. There were both Greater and Lesser Flamingos close to shore along with Pied Avocet and a pair of Common Greenshank. We then drove north to our hotel in Swakopmund where we’ll be for two nights. We’re at the Dunedin Star Guest House where we got a pleasant room. We had enough time to walk down to the river mouth just on the south edge of town where there is a wetland. We added Caspian Tern, Little Stint, Chestnut-banded Plover, Three-banded Plover, White-fronted Plover, Kitlitz’s Plover, Curlew Sandpiper, Common Ringed Plover. We had just enough time to get back and change before we headed down for a group dinner at Kuckis pub where I had an Oryx burger for 140Rand. It was 22.30 before we got back to the hotel where I crashed.
17/9
Up at 6.30 when and went for breakfast then we walked down to the bike hire shop at Fat Bikes and got 2 city bikes for 250Rand each. We went down to the river again adding Crowned Cormorant, Cape Cormorant, Plain Martin and African Palm Swift, before heading north along the shoreline picking up Grey-headed Gull, Whimbrel and Ruddy Turnstone. The bikes we’d hired had no gears so the ride north to the salt works was hard work and the only bird of conequence here was Eared Grebe. The birds here were mostly a long way away so my scope came in handy, but I was disappointed to have ridden all that way for little reward. On the way back the wind had picked up so by the time we got back into town we were both knackered. We dropped off the bikes and found that when we had layed the bikes down at some stage the lock that was looped around the handlebar had slipped off, so we had to pay 250Rand to replace it. We had a late lunch of a pie each from a small cafe, then bartered a Malachite bowl down from 1500Rand to 650Rand. They must have been desperate for a sale as it’s probably worth around US190. By the time we got back to the hotel it was time to collapse again.
18/9
Breaky was in the hotel again, bacon and eggs and white toast. It was 8am when we set off, not along the coast as we were supposed to but inland to Usakos and Omaruru. We had lunch about 50km out of Outjo where I got a Kalahri Scrub-robin, then into Outjo where we bought a few cakes at the Spar supermarket rather than the bakery. I found a Namaqua Dove here. It was then into Etosha NP in time for a look at Ombiko Waterhole where we got African Fork-tailed Drongo, Kori Bustard, Plains Zebra, Springbok, Black-faced Impala, Blue Wildebeast, Steembok and Kudu. We camped at Okaukuejo in the SW of the park. We pitched tent then went over to the waterhole adding Elephant, Ground Squirrel, Marico Flycatcher, Helmeted Guinea-fowl, Blacksmith Lapwing, Egyptian Goose, Little Grebe, Southern Mourning Dove, Laughing Dove, Pied Crow, Cape Crow, African Jacana, Southern Grey-headed Sparrow, Red-eyed Bulbul, African Palm Swift and Black-headed Heron. It was time for dinner, then back to the waterhole finding 9 White Rhinoceroses, Jackal and Namaqua Sandgrouse. Bed about 22.00 We couldn’t tear ourselves away from watching the Rhinos until then despite being desperately tired.
19/9
We were up early again, breaky, a quick look at the waterhole which didn’t add anything else. Then we headed out to the gate to get our safari jeeps. We found a Tawny Eagle on the way, three of them. The next find was a Rock Kestrel, then African Grey Hornbill, Northern Black Korhan which we saw the male do its display flight which is to fly up vertically to well above the trees then plummet back to earth. Red-crested Korhan and Greater Kestrel. The first waterhole was Gemsbok Flat which had Namaqua Sandgrouse, Red-capped Lark, Wood Sandpiper, African Wattled Lapwing. Heading on east we found a Martial Eagle and then a Secretarybird (whoohoo!). Not far form there we stopped to look at some Zebras and then got a flat tyre. When the others caught up they said they’d found a Cheetah following the Zebras we’d just seen, so when the driver had changed the tyre we went back and found it looking at a stream of Springbok passing by. It waited until the last one then in a flash it was all over and the last Springbok was down. The Cheetah started dragging it away then dropped it and ran. The driver had noticed that the replacement tyre was also flat and had got out of the car, that was enough to scare the Cheetah away. Amazingly after a few minutes the Springbok got up and staggered around for a while. Eventually another stream of Springbok came through and it joined on the end. A Lappet-faced Vulture cruised overhead with another Tawny Eagle whilst the saga unfolded and a Stark’s Lark was nearby. Eventually we headed on east and got some Spotted Thick-knees. We had a late lunch at Halali where I added Cape Glossy Starling, Violet Woodhoopoe, Southern White-crowned Shrike, Bare-cheeked Babbler, Southern Mourning Dove and what may be a hybrid Damara/Red-billed Hornbill. All tame and easy to photograph. We headed on east on what has been the horribly corrugated road all day. We found some Heartibeest along the way to Goas Watehole which had Red-headed Finch Black-winged Stilt, Egyptian Goose, Little Grebe and Blacksmith Lapwing. Heading on east from there we came across all of the possible hornbills, they being Red-billed, Damara, African Grey and Southern Yellow. We found a Southern Pale Chanting Goshawk on a termite mound that stayed long enough to get a shot of. Koinachas Waterhole had a lone Brown Hyena which wasn’t hanging around, and disappeared soon after we arrived. It was a short hop from there to Namutoni camp for the night where there were some Grey Go-away-birds. The waterhole had Helmeted Guineafowl, Blacksmith Lapwing, African Drongo, Yellow-billed Hornbill, Common Moorhen and Red-eyed Bulbul. There was a herd of Zebra drinking there when a herd of Elephants came in and pushed them off, later some Giraffes came in and the Elephants came back and pushed them off too.
20/9
Up at dawn and added Marico Sunbird and Dusky Sunbird in a flowering tree, there may have been others in there, but try as I might I couldn’t get a clear shot at any of them. A little further away was a Brubru, Southern Grey-headed Sparrow, Cape Starling and Southern Masked Weaver. Breaky and we were on the road by 7.30. On our way out of the park we came across a Dik-dik the smallest of the antelopes, but it was mostly hidden in the thickets so couldn’t get a good photo. Not far out of the park was a Purple Roller on the wires. We passed through Tsumeb where some people did shopping and I got an African Hoopoe, a flock of Eastern Paradise-wydah, but no breeding males, and Black-winged Kite. We passed through Grootfontein and had lunch at Mururani Camp which had Black Kite, Red-billed and Yellow-billed Hornbills, Mourning Dove, Red-eyed Bulbul, Pied Crow, Laughing Dove and the new bird Common Myna, which look like they’ve spread a lot in recent years. Later got African Hawk Eagle soaring above fields. As we’ve been heading north the vegetation has been getting taller and thicker and in places greener, but as we got closer to Rundu we came across the villages spread out along the road. They are small cleared areas with usually small huts on them, no electricity or running water, we saw several donkeys carrying water containers and the really poor carry them on their head. We drove through Divinu and not far south along the Kavango River we got to Rainbow River Lodge at about 17.00 and hopped straight onto the sunset cruise which took us to see several small pods of Hippoptamuses. Just as we were casting off a Black Crake emerged from the riverside close by and remained out in the open, so I took its portrait. On some rocks was a Giant Kinfisher, Little Egret. By the first pod of hippos were some Water Thick-knees, Common Sandpiper and Striated Heron. We went by a large colony of Southern Carmine Bee-eater, many digging away at the embankment refurbishing their nests. Also seen were Black-winged Stilt, Blacksmith Lapwing, Barn Swallow, Long-tailed Cormorant, Burchell’s Starling and Intermediate Egret. Back just on dark, cost 500Rand, dinner and bed.
21/9
It was another warm night with the prospect of another hot day ahead. I had enough time for a look around before breakfast and found White-bellied Sunbird, Grey Go-away-bird, Hartlaub’s Babbler, White-backed Mousebird, Spectacled Weaver, Arrow-marked Babbler, Emerald-spotted Woodpigeon, Black-collared Barbet, Black-capped Bulbul, Meyer’s Parrot, Crowned Lapwing, Yellow-bellied Geenbul, African Darter and Marico Sunbird. On our way out was a Magpie Shrike. In the national park were some Roan Antelopes. We crossed into Botswana a bit slowly with a screen for Monkey Pox as well as customs. There was another tour group in front of us which slowed us down more. A new list was started for Botswana which started with Yellow-bellied Greenbul, Pied Crow, Grey Go-away-bird. Carmine Bee-eater and Magpie Shrike. We went through Shakawe where there were some Purple Rollers and Meve’s Starling. The road from the border was a single lane pot-holed road which had to be taken slowly. The road improved after Gumare. We stopped at 13.00 for lunch not far south of the town where we discovered that the thumping around had damaged the rear door, so some people got together to sort of fix it. In the meantime I found Long-billed Crombec, Chestnut-vented Tit-babbler, Southern Corndonbleu, White-browed Sparrowed Weaver and Yellow-billed Kite. We got to Maun in the late afternoon, with plenty of time to look around the grounds of the Sedia Lodge Hotel. I found Common Myna, Grey Go-away-bird, Red-billed Hornbill, Mourning Dove, Hartlaub’s Babbler, Laughing Dove, Burchell’s Starling, Holub’s Golden Weaver, Fork-tailed Drongo, Emerald-spotted Woodpigeon, Hamerkop, Arrow-marked Babbler, Hadeda Ibis, Magpie Shrike, Red-billed Buffalo Weaver, Southern Fiscal and just on dark a pair of Bat Hawks overflew us which got my attention let me tell you. Dinner, bed.
22/9
It was a windy night that persisted until we left the area. Up at dawn, most of the others had gone off for their flight over the Okavango Delta for A$250, instead I went for a wander around the grounds finding African Hoopoe which was still camera shy, Meve’s Starling, African Green Pigeon, African Palm Swift, Blacksmith Lapwing, African Fish Eagle and Lilac-breasted Roller, I was charging up my camera battery at the time so didn’t get a shot, should have got a second battery shouldn’t I. The door to the truck was still broken so we got the safari vehicles to come and pick us up from the campsite and off we went into the Okavango Delta. It was a while before we got our first sighting which was a Martial Eagle Flying overhead. Next was a whole group of White-backed Vultures sitting in trees, which is a sure sign that they had been feeding on something, but we couldn’t see what it was. We had two views of Bateluers. When we stopped for lunch there was a Wahlberg’s Eagle nearby. We passed through Sankuyo and found a Brown Snake-eagle in a tree. Further on when we stopped to look at some Giraffes, one had Yellow-billed Oxpeckers on it. On the ground nearby was a Red-billed Spurfowl. In Mababe we saw a Hippo out of the water and a croc in the water. Jammed up against the old bridge was a dead elephant in the water. We also saw Steembok and Spotted Thick-knee. At about 16.00 we arrived at the place where we were to go on a Mokoro trip. Traditionally these are hollowed out logs, but these were made of plastic, bit disappointing, but more practical. We were poled up the creek finding African Jacana, African Openbill, Greater Blue-eared Starling, Goliath Heron, Hippo which wasn’t too happy to share the water with us and gave a warning mouth gape and grunt, we took the hint and retreated. Warthog, Elephant, Chackma Baboon, Banded Mongoose and Waterbuck were all seen along the bank. A Little Bee-eater was seen in a tree. All too soon the sun went down and we were back where we started to board the safari vehicles to take us to our accommodation which is glamping style tents. Dinner was had in a tastefully decorated large marquee, and was a three course dinner set menu, superb. Bed straight away as it was already 21.00
23/9
Up before dawn, breaky and we all piled into the two safari vehicles. Our first sighting was of Slender Mongoose, then Cape Buffalo. Smith’s Bush Squirrel was next, then the beautiful Lilac-breasted Roller, even the non-birders let out a wow when we first spotted it. Great Egret, and Intermediate Egret were found without comment from anyone. Next we added Red Letchwe then African Sacred Ibis. We got poor views of Long-toed Lapwing, then Cattle Egret and South African Cliff Swallow all along a stretch of the Khwai River along with Spur-winged Goose and Hamerkop. In the woodland we got Swallow-tailed Bee-eater and Tsessebe Antelope and Roan Antelope. It was about here that I started to feel queazy with a headache and gut ache. When we got back to camp I collapsed in bed and slept until the afternoon safari. I stumbled upon Cordonbleu Finch and Swamp Boubou on the way there. I struggled through the afternoon trip eventually figuring out that I had motion sickness with the back of the safari vehicle bouncing around on the 4wd tracks. I managed to add Red-billed Firefinch, Glossy Ibis, Saddle-billed Stork, Red-billed Teal, Common Greenshank, Wood Sandpiper, Bradfield’s Hornbill, Dwarf Mongoose, Marabou Stork, Golden-breasted Bunting, Red-billed Oxpecker and Sable Antelope. I spent most of the trip staring vacantly ahead though. The nurses came to my rescue again and gave me a motion sickness tablet, but it was too late, as soon as dinner was over I was in bed.
24/9
I was still sick in the morning, so there may have been an element of motion sickness, but it’s now gastro, I struggled to eat anything for breaky. I wangled myself a seat in the front of the jeep for the long dusty bumpy ride back to Maun, where I forced down a sandwich and an apple for lunch then we set off for Gweta, arriving there in the late afternoon. We were supposed to be camping but there were no camping spots left so we all got a room, it was old and filled with mozzies but we had mossie nets. This time I only managed a few mouthfuls of food before I felt sick so went back to the room to sleep.
25/9
I woke up not feeling well again but I was able to eat more without feeling sick so that gave me more energy, and I gradually improved during the day, unfortunately some others are now coming down with gastro. We got to Kesane via Neta for lunch where we set our tents for the last time. In the grounds was a Tropical Boubou calling that I managed to spot in the foliage, and there were some Vervet Monkeys in the grounds too. At 14.30 we got onto the afternoon cruise along with about 20 other boats of different sizes. I wasn’t impressed with our boat man when he forced some hippos out of their pond into the river and then got too close to a baby crocodile basking in the sun and almost shoved some large crocs resting on the bank, but when I asked him to give me a better view of a Yellow-billed Stork he somehow seemed to change his attitude and started giving the wildlife enough space. We motored around an island in the Chobe River and found Collared Pratincole, Malachite Kingfisher, African Spoonbill, White-crowned Lapwing, Long-toed lapwing, Whiskered Tern, African Snipe and African Skimmer (major woohoo) I missed the Indian Skimmer when we were in India and I missed the Black Skimmer when we were in South America so I’m really pleased to at least get one of them. Back after dark where my sickness caught up with me again, eating a bit of dinner and straight off to bed
26/9
We had a lot of people come down with the gastro last night including Bev which meant we had a depleted number on the Chobe NP morning safari which had cost A$90ea with no refund. We set off a bit late, but we had the ferarri driver of the guides and after our check in at the gate he hurtled through the tracks after we had told him that the priority was lions. He was asked to slow down at one stage which he did. He was good though, he got us to the lions third vehicle so we got good looks at females and cubs around an elephant that had died naturally and they were scavanging, he then went to where there were two male lions and then a pair of females. The birds we not in abundance and as usual the others were impatient to get their 100th shot of a giraffe rather than my first shot of a Red-backed Scrub-robin. Did manage Crested Frankolin as new. At 8am we turned back and were just a few minutes late getting to where a group had seen a Leopard which had just dropped down out of the tree before we got there. Back at camp the decision was made to take the sick people to hospital. I was mostly recovered so didn’t go. Bev went and the treatment was only 375pula plus medication, so not too expensive. I had a wander around the grounds and found Chin-spot Batis, White-backed Mousebird, Black-faced Waxbill, Common Hoopoe which again wasn’t interested in having its portrait taken, Marico Sunbird and Orange-breasted Bush-shrike. When it got too hot I retreated to the bar and filled my waterbottle up with ice and hid in the shade. The truck eventually turned up and we set off east for Zimbabwe. We took the US$30 single entry visa and had to wait a while before we could head off. I had told our tour leader that I had missed out on seeing a Ground Hornbill on the tour so far, she had told me that they were possible along the road we were travelling. So when the truck slowed down to stop opposite one foraging on the side of the road I was very grateful. She’s been an excellent leader. We were slated to stay at the Shearwater in pre-setup tents, but found we were now going to the N1 Hotel. I was prepared to up-grade to a room to give Bev close access to a toilet but found to our delight that everyone was in rooms. The only minor downside is that we are on the second floor with no elevator, so whilst Bev collapsed on her bed I got all our stuff out of the truck as that’s the last we’ll travel in Aretha the truck/bus. Bev slept the afternoon and evening. I relaxed then at 19.00 joined the group to walk the short distance to where a ladies group had made some traditional African foods for us, the most interesting being a caterpillar, which wasn’t great but not terrible. It was then back to the room to sleep.
27/9
It was kind of inevitable that I would get it back and this morning was the one where I woke up with the runs. Thankfully Bev was on the improve and had some left over drugs, which I took some of and went down and struggled through a bowl of muesli and fruit then slept until late afternoon. We both headed out in the late afternoon heat at 15.00 to walk down to Victoria Falls. It has a US$50 ea entry fee, so there were no crowds. We checked out all the viewing points. The river level is low, so some of the curtain is not flowing but there was still a good flow. There were a few Vervet Monkeys and at least one Malbrouck Monkey at the entry point and we added Bearded Scrub-robin, Tawny-flanked Prinia and Grey-backed Camaroptera. Walked back through the endless line of stalls with salesmen trying to force their wares on you, it gets wearing after a while, a very short while. It was an early night to bed again.
28/9
I was up early had some breaky and walked up the Zambesi Rd towards the golf course. There were lots of tracks to flollow down to the river shore and through shady glades where bird were active. I didn’t add any new water birds but did find Southern Black Tit, Crested Barbet, and Bearded Srub-robin as new. There were probably quite a few others that I couldn’t get a proper ID on as they hurried through the scrub. Towards the end of where I wanted to go I came across an elephant, it flapped its ears at me from less than 100m away, but as I moved away it settled down. In a creek I came across some hippos grunting away and decided that was enough. It was now hot and the birds becoming inactive anyway, so I walked back along the road visiting the Big Baobab on the way. My last new bird were some brief views of White-fronted Bee-eaters as they zoomed about the place. I spent the rest of the arvo asleep. At 19.00 we all gathered downstairs and went to the Shearwater Hotel for our farewell dinner. I had the Village burger which I thought was going to not be enough as I was hungry, but it was enough. Bev didn’t have much but was still sick on it, so she’s still far from recovered.
29/9
Today was our last farewell to the truck Aretha and crew as they took us to the airport and with lots of hugs and hand shakes they were off to Namibia to start their next trip. We all boarded the Safair flight for Johannesburg in the late afternoon. Not the best airline. You have to pay for everything and the seats don’t recline, budget airline. We got the free shuttle to the Garden Court Hotel. At the check in I waited impatiently for 3/4 of an hour whilst the girl checked in two customers. When it was my turn she asked me if I was with Trip-a-deal and when I said yes she told me to go to the other queue, I was quite angry at that, she knew I’d been standing there and hadn’t bothered to communicate anything to me. Anyway from there it was a quick check in and up to a pleasant room. We went back down to O’Grady’s Bar where we ordered some nachos and a salad. We almost watched the full T20 bowling attack of Ireland vs South Africa before our meal came. and when it did the nachos were only warm. Ireland won the match by the way, nearly bowling SA out as they fell short by a few runs
From there it was the long flight via Singapore back to Australia
If you would like to contribute the the well being of this world, our world, your world, an easy and effective way to do it is to join a quality environmental group. There are many spread across the world all plugging away trying to make the world a better place for wildlife. We belong to Birdlife Australia, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), Bush Heritage and Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC). You can donate your time and or money to these and many others knowing that the world will be a slightly better place because of your effort.