, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

On our journeys we went over several of these bridges pictured below. The signs always made me smile – as if we could speed over them! One of them was only inches wider than our vehicle’s tyres and our guide had to line up his approach very carefully.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Guides usually stop to pass on information to each other. I took the photo below because I think this company needs to give a bit more attention to its marketing !

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Below – The ground hornbill is something else that I hadn’t seen very often. They are classed as vulnerable (to extinction) globally, and listed as endangered in several countries. We were lucky enough to see a few of them on the trips.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Zebras. So great to photograph. We saw probably over a thousand of them! Interesting fact – a zebra foal’s legs are as long as its mother – that way it can be hidden from predators easily 🙂

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Wildebeest are part of the Ugly Five and also have a reputation for being very stupid! I like the simplicity of this lone guy in the landscape.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

And then we have part of the Big Five – the Cape Buffalo. We were in the middle of a huge herd of them and they have such a great expression when they look at you 🙂

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

They often have a passenger too – the oxpecker bird, who spends its time feeding on the ticks and bugs on animals.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Baboons. Vicious creatures. Ever since I was bitten by one when volunteering I haven’t liked them !

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

This one below had obviously been in a fight. I said they were vicious!

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

On the other hand, Vervet monkeys are cute, especially the babies.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

These hippos made me smile – all of the water surrounding them was covered in plants but they look very happy 🙂

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

And then we saw yet more in somewhat cleaner water….

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Late one afternoon we came across this young elephant who put on quite a show for us. I don’t know whether he had an itchy head but he was twisting his trunk into many shapes. He then started playing football with a rock.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Botswana is known for its huge population of elephants, and we certainly encountered a lot of them – some at extremely close quarters! One huge female appeared right at the side of me when I was looking in the opposite direction and gave me quite a shock when I turned round in the vehicle. She was within touching distance but luckily very calm! Too close to take a photo and once I’d got over my shock I just put the camera down and enjoyed the moment of having such a massive creature right next to me. I say ‘enjoyed’ but it’s always in the back of my mind that they could finish me off in a second if they wanted to!

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

The small things can be just as good to photograph as the big.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

The Fish Eagle is a beautiful bird and master of fishing!

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Although the Hammerkop isn’t particularly attractive, I loved the reflection here.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

The best sighting of the tour though was this leopard and we had her in our sights for over 30 minutes. Unbelievably, we saw three different leopards in Chobe. Isn’t she stunning!

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

The impalas knew that a predator was around and were on high alert. When they all look in the same direction it’s a good indication that something may be close.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

Often a leopard sighting is just a glimpse, and this was the second one we saw. The third one was literally a couple of flashes through the bushes.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

On our last evening in Chobe we had a spectacular sky whilst we were driving back to camp and then came across several giraffes. It was almost totally dark by this time, but I managed the shots with no artificial light.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

The sign below made me smile as we approached the border of Botswana. Someone is obviously not proud enough to keep it in good condition!

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.

And that was my Botswana trip! I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would – so much that I’m communicating with the Company out there to organise a bespoke photography trip. ( Let me know if you want to be kept informed.) Next stop – Zimbabwe.

, Botswana Part 3. Chobe.
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