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There is a huge concentration of elephants in the
park, thought to be the largest in Africa and estimated at
around 100,000. The Chobe elephants managed to escape the
mass slaughter seen in other African parks during the 1970’s
and 80’s. The elephants migrate 130 miles to the south
east of the park in the rainy season. It’s the home of
the Kalahari Elephant, the largest of all living elephants.
The Park hosts an outstanding variety of habitats; from the
floodplains, baobab, acacia and mopane tree woodlands to the
thickets of grasslands bordering the Chobe river. The Linyanti
River to the North and the Savuti Channel in the
south also means the park has a huge range of water life and
makes it a great place for fishing. There are more
than 91 species of fish for the catching. The park is famous
for not only its big species and game, but the staggering
450 species of bird from eagles to kingfisher, bee-eaters
and marabou storks.
Other inhabitants
The original human inhabitants of the park were the San
people, known in Botswana as the Barawa. They were
hunter-gatherers who moved around in search of water, fruits
and wild animals. They were later joined by the Sabubiya
people and in the 20th century by a group of Btawana,
so wildlife aren’t the only things you may see in the
park.
The Park's Regions
There are four main regions of the park:
- The Chobe River Front is a rich forest and thought
to be Africa’s finest short safari drive as it is home
to elephants and buffalo in the dry season and
birdland year round.
- The central pans of the Nogatsaa Grass Woodland
is little known and is wet even in the dry season, attracting
game from August to October. It’s a great place to see
eland.
- The Linyanti Wetlands in the north-west of the park
is the home of the isolated Linyanti Swamp which extends
into Namibia’s Mamili National park.
- The Savuti Region is Botswana’s most famous
wildlife area. Covering over 3000 sq miles, the area includes
the Savuti March, the Mababe Depression and
the Magwikhwe Sand Ridge. The Savuti was once dry for
a hundred years before flooding suddenly in the 1950’s,
then dried up again in the 1980’s. This strange force
of nature was caused by shifting of the earth tectonic plates.
During the dry season the depression is like a desert. There
is a huge variety of predators and game, and in its pans and
waterholes the bull elephants are on the rampage during the
dry season. The Savuti region with its annual zebra migration
in the Depression region is a prime location for safaris.
Where to stay
Chobe is a pretty luxury park to visit, there are a number
of luxury hotels and lodges in the Northern town of Kasane
and Kazangula and an international airport is located
nearby. The park itself is also only an hour’s drive
from Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.
Getting around
The roads in the park are relatively recent and somewhat primitive,
so you will definitely need a four wheel drive vehicle to
explore the park. The roads are better near the Chobe River,
when the best time to set off for a Game drive is early morning
or late afternoon. Then you may see thousands of elephants
come to drink in the river, where you can see the best siting
of elephants in the wild you will probably ever experience. |
