One of the many highlights of our Southern African adventure was a full day safari day trip that we took to the Chobe National Park in Botswana from our base in Livingstone. We started the day early and headed to the Kazungula border checkpoint, then took a short ferry ride across the Chobe river to the Botswanan side. During the ferry ride, we crossed the tripoint on the river that connects Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana – and briefly inhabited 3 countries at the same time!

Chobe National Park

Chobe National Park is situated along the banks of the Chobe River, which forms a natural border between Botswana and Namibia. The river seasonally floods the grassy plains, which makes it an ideal habitat for a variety of animals, and a great location for saris and wildlife viewing. Located just an hour away from the border crossing in Kasane, this park is home to one of the largest concentrations of game in Africa. Chobe National Park is arguably most synonymous for its teeming herds of Elephants – and is home to more than 120,000 of these majestic giants.

River Safari

We started our game viewing with a late morning river safari, floating lazily along the Chobe and getting extremely up close and personal with Elephants, Antelopes, and Crocodiles that were gathering at the waters edge to drink. It was incredible to be able to get so close to the animals and watch them in their natural habitat, without the barriers of an enclosure to restrict them. A pod of Hippos even got dangerously close to our boat, which allowed us to observe these massive yet deceptively fast creatures frolic around at close quarters.

Elephant Crossing

During the River Safari we were treated to the sight of a few Elephants trying to cross the river and join the rest of their herd in the grassy floodplains. At the outset the Elephants approached the water cautiously, then started wading into deeper waters. It looked like a daunting task for the Elephants, but after a few minutes with just their trunks sticking out over the waterline like periscopes, the 3 buddies finally made it to higher ground on the other side.

Game Drive

After a quick lunch back at the Chobe Game Lodge we headed out for an afternoon game drive in search of more wildlife sightings. Besides encountering more Elephants, we were soon treated to another set of majestic animals – a tower of Giraffes gently grazing in the sparse forest at their own pace. After a few more hours driving around the Park and sighting Water Buffalos, Warthogs and Baboons, it was sadly time for us to bid goodbye to this amazing wildlife preserve and make our way back across the border.