Winter Holidays - Collected Memories!

Winter is receding rapidly into the past, but when I found this unfinished photo album type post in drafts. I enjoyed taking a look back at my favourite time of year in Kasane. Better late than never to post these memories:)

I really love our winters, and I especially love it when visitors choose May or June, being one of the most comfortable climatic moments in our tropical world. Apart from cool weather, there is also a very pleasant absence of the insect hordes that flourish in the rainy season! From a scenic point of view, winter also catches the Chobe River in one of its loveliest moods, thanks to our seasonal floods and the high water. In a good season the Chobe and Zambezi rivers merge, to create an impressive mass of water, visible in this sundowner photo.

The fast flowing river creates rather fascinating patterns in the water. I never get tired of these river foam designs, sketched onto the surface by the current.

 

Visit from biker buddies!

Our early June highlight: an impromptu visit from Dejon and Kelley - an adventurous biker couple from Cape Town. We became friends via social media (as one sometimes does) as we followed their adventures all the way up to Tanazania.

As we chatted more and more frequently during their travels south towards us, we exchanged ideas and experiences and found we had a huge amount in common. Eventually we helped arrange logistics for shipping their much needed replacement bike tyres from Durban to Kasane, and ultimately it just seemed obvious that our new friends, and Bumblebee (their fabulous Yamaha xt1200 Super Tenere bike) should all come and stay with us, as we know well how welcome a biker haven can be after those long days on the road. Looking back it was perhaps a leap of faith on both sides, but I never questioned opening our home to these two special people. I believe that sometimes you just know!

Chobe boat cruise, June 2021

Biker chick pals

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apart from taking lots of time off work to explore our area like tourists with them, we took our own boat out on the river, complete with a couple of adventurous 4 x 4 boat launching dramas, and enjoyed the high water below the rapids, very close to home.

Just visible here under the clear fast flowing water, is the white sand of our "private "squeaky beach. Something to look forward to every year, when the water drops! For now, just floating above it..

Cruising around below the rapids

D's biker GoPro adapts to water!

Famous Chobe sunsets on the river bank, just a few minutes away from home. After the boat is safely out of the water, many a sundowner is enjoyed here. Kel and I had to pile on the winter gear, but came prepared. I enjoyed this silhouette! There is actually a crescent moon in there, too.

What's the point of having biker friends in town if you don't go on a bike camping trip together! We camped at Muchenje Campsite and Cottages, enjoying the high water here on the floodplain. At this time of year this campsite is a beautiful waterside experience.

Our blue tent in the very same spot occupied by the red tent during the rainy season! Blogpost about the red tent over here

Campfire by the river, with great company!

We would have happily had Dejon and Kel staying with us for an unlmited time, but they did feel the need to proceed south, and also we had two very important young visitors booked in next: our twin nephews, Matthew and Ronan. After a couple of days of covidly complicated travels for them via Johannesburg, we headed for lunch at Chobe Safari Lodge by the river, straight off the flight from wintry Johannesburg to glorious Kasane!

Back home, some quality time walking on the farm..

Being high river season, we could make it all the way downstream to the new Kazungula bridge. Blogpost about the new bridge over here

Being a few weeks on from the earlier floating photo, squeaky white sand now exposed, due to the drop in water level!

The boys enjoying the golden sunset time on the river. I just love this light.

Chobe National park, more of nature's beauty, and a special lioness sighting...

Yes again. I can't get enough of our sunset silhouettes and make everybody pose!

Nata Camping trip

We headed off with the boys 300km south, to Nata Lodge, and arranged to meet up again with Dejon and Kel, who had been cruising around other parts of Botswana! Armed with a lot of critical supplies since we were travelling by car (yes, Botswana was in a wine and beer lockdown once again!) we had a great reunion with the two bikers. By my standards it was freezing cold at night, but nothing a campfire can't fix!

Typical Nata Palms

Bumblebee, at Nata Lodge

 

 

Sundowners on the edge of the Makgadikgadi Pans here still very much flooded and full of water. Just outside the boundary fence of the Nata Bird Sanctuary, seen disappearing into the water!

Cruising on top of the vehicle, just like our own boys - about 20 years ago, in the same place!

Swimming in the amazing salt pans!

On our way home, we stopped over at Eselbe Camp, on the Nata River, a favourite place of ours, but we could not stay over due to time constraints this time... we said goodbye to the bikers, who were staying over, then heading further south.

Obviously "H" the dog is the star of the show, here!

Kel and H

Back in Kasane, a traditional Chobe boat cruise with the boys, before saying goodbye to them and sending them back home, all of us a bit sad but already excited for the next visit in 2022!

Happy Aunt with the boys!

Feeling very blessed and fortunate to live in such a special place, and despite all the disasters heaped on by the pandemic, we are still here and still surviving one way or another. Lucky to have created these irreplaceable memories this year!