The Chobe National
Park offers extreme contrasts and a variety of wildlife experiences
within the confines of one park. It covers a variety of vegetation types and
geological features that vary from the almost tropical habitat of the
Linyanthi swamp to the severe, desert-like landscape of the Savuti, and from
the lush Chobe floodplain grassland to the deep sands of the Brachestegia
woodland.
Chobe National Park is
a large wilderness area covering nearly 11 000 square kilometers, which
makes it the third-largest park/game reserve in Botswana.
The Chobe River
forms the northern boundary and in the extreme southwest corner it borders
onto Moremi Game Reserve. The primary function of Chobe National Park is the
protection of the full range of southern Africa's large predators, as well
as the localized puku antelope and migratory elephant population, which can
number up to 70 000.
It also has the Mababe
Depression with its black cotton soil and Acacia scrub, as well as the
pan-studded mopane and Combretum areas at Nogatsaa.
Four main areas have
been developed in Chobe (namely: Savuti, Chobe River, Linyanthi, and
Nogatsaa), each of which offers a unique experience. The Savuti and Chobe
River Front areas will be discussed, since these are the two areas of focus
during the trail.
Chobe River Front:
The Chobe National Park was named after the
Chobe river, which forms the northern boundary of the park. The Chobe River
area is very rich in plant life, offering Bachestegia sandveld, mopane
woodland, mixed Combretum veld, floodplain grassland and the riverine
woodland. The latter has, unfortunately, been severely damaged by elephants
and has in places been reduced to scrub or totally denuded.
Perhaps the greatest
attraction of the Chobe river area is the elephants, which can almost always
be seen there. Their late afternoon visits to the water's edge offer hours
of fascinating viewing and wonderful opportunities for the photographer.
Along with the huge
herds of elephants, huge herds of buffalo can also be seen in this area
during the dry season. You can also expect to see tsessbe, waterbuck, roan,
eland, sable, giraffe and, if you are lucky, one of the rare puku.
The floodplains of the
river make an ideal viewing area, with mixed patches of open grassland,
thickets of bush and riverine forest. In the river itself you should see
hippo, and crocodile. The Chobe river area has a rich selection of bird life
as well. Exquisite sunsets make this a wildlife experience not to be missed.
Chobe River:
The Chobe river has its origins in the
highlands of Angola and flows in a south-easterly direction. This section of
the river is called the Kwando.
When it enters
Botswana, it not only changes its name, but also undergoes a dramatic 90
degree change in course at the point where it meets a major fault line. The
name of the river changes another 3 times before it reaches the Zambezi
river.
After entering Botswana
the Kwando river becomes the Linyanthi. At Parakurungu it becomes the Itenge
and only near Ngoma Gate does it become the Chobe river. From the point
where the Chobe abruptly bends, The Magwegqana or Selinda spillway links the
Delta to the Chobe. It is popularly believed that the Selinda can flow in
both directions, resulting in the Chobe doing the same. This is not true. In
fact, the water merely backs up for a considerable distance, creating the
impression of a change in the current.
