Did You Know?

The Chobe River has five names, depending on where you are along its course. It’s called the Cuando where it begins in Angola, the Kwando when it reaches Namibia, then it becomes the Linyanti when it enters Botswana; for a short stretch (70km) it’s the Itenge, then becomes known as the Chobe as it runs alongside Chobe National Park, before it meets the Zambezi River at Kazungula. Here, a curious thing happens. From around February to May, the sheer volume of floodwaters from the Zambezi back up for a considerable distance, creating the impression that the Chobe changes direction.