Journey to the River Khwai

With these 28 tips for an unforgettable trip to the enchanting Khwai Concession in Botswana, we did all the hard work for you. All you have to do is phone and book.

Our tour leader, J.I. de Wet’s 80-series Land Cruiser gained a new nickname. That’s after one of its spotlights conked out the previous day during a deep water crossing: “Camp, camp… come in for the Three-eyed Monster,” he signals over the two-way radio. J.I. is sitting with us at the Matswere Pan where we’re watching a group of ravenous pelicans. It’s roughly 5 km as the crow flies between us and the Khwai Concession from the Magotho public campsite in Botswana. “Stand by,” answers his mom Almarie, who’s sitting underneath a colossal camel thorn tree. This whopper at stand no. 7 has enough shade for four camping trailers. “Eight wild dogs just ran through the campsite!” she shouts. “They ran through one by one, like we weren’t even here.” Under normal circumstances we would have raced back like the Dakar Rally legend Stéphane Peterhansel to take photos of these rare animals. But the last four days we’ve seen them on every game drive. Which is why J.I casually answers: “Fantastic! Enjoy it.” This pack, which consists of 13 dogs, has a den with young cubs in this area, and they’re terrorising every impala, kudu and zebra in sight. We follow them daily on one of the many sandy twin-tracks that wind through Magotho’s camel thorn tree forest, while we wonder why almost half of the trees are dead. It looks almost like that deserted place in The Lion King where Mufasa forbids Simba to venture. >

It’s not often you encounter such an ominous place. Like a bunch of school boys spraying each other with water, a group of about 10 elephant bulls entertain us in the afternoons with their antics in the shallow Khwai River, and at night we hear Moremi’s lions roaring on the far side of the river. Apparently they swim through from time to time to patrol the banks of the Khwai. We even attempt a few water crossings, which, thanks to the Cruiser’s snorkel, is more exciting than frightening. There is, however, a family in a Ford Ranger who chose the wrong line through the river and whose vehicle did not a snorkel… an act that brought an abrupt end to their trip. Novices and seasoned travellers often sleep here, 3½ hours’ drive from Maun, the nearest industrialised settlement. We spend the last four nights at Sable Alley’s private campsite, and the change in habitat is astounding. The veld consists mainly of mopane, forest fever berry, and apple leaf trees, and it’s a lot more marshy than Magotho, about 5 km south-east. We watch a female leopard and her 3½-month cub devour an impala, and an adolescent male from a previous litter unsuccessfully chasing a swarm of spurwinged geese through the shallow water. We learnt a lot during our nine days in Khwai – which tracks to drive and which to avoid, how the local wild dogs find each other after a failed hunt, why it’s a bad idea to drive off the road, and even where you can buy a cold Black Label quart. Here are a few tips to make your first – or next – trip to Khwai one you’ll never forget.