Ride Report
The Okavango Delta is such a unique place that there is no better way of arriving than by helicopter. As the pilot flew over the buffalo fence, separating civilisation from unspoilt nature, he banked to the left and I was awarded the perfect view of a family of elephants – what could be better?
On arrival at Kujwana we were given a refreshing drink and seated for a full briefing before meeting the horses. Kujwana main camp has seven tents and single travellers are able to have a tent at no additional supplement. All the tents have en-suite bathrooms with running water and flush toilets so pretty luxurious for camping in the bush. The main area of camp is lovely too with a fire pit for sitting around in an evening. There is a dining table for candlelit evening meals and the bar area for the much needed cold beer after the morning ride.
Our initial ride on the first afternoon was steady and allowed us to familiarise ourselves with the horses and guides. From then on the rides were a good mix of paces and we varied the afternoon activities.
The usual times are approximate, but the daily pattern is normally a wake-up call to your tent at sun rise (c. 05:00 in summer and c. 06:00 in winter). In the hotter summer days you would ride from about 06:00 through to 10:30; in winter from about 07:00 through to 11:30. Lunch is back at camp and the afternoons are for resting and relaxing in your tent or by the pool. Afternoon tea will usually be about 15:30 before the afternoon ride or activity from 16:00 to 18:00.
On a usual seven night stay, riders will have an all-day ride with a picnic lunch to Moklowane Camp. This camp is all on stilts and so riding in and seeing it emerging out of the treeline is quite a sight. There are five tents at Moklowane. Three are closed tents and two are open fronted with only a mosquito net over the bed – very exciting. Like the tents, the main area is also up in the trees and so allows for a glorious view over a hippo pond.
I thoroughly enjoyed staying at the two different camps as the areas they are in are so different. The all-day ride is also a lot of fun and you definitely feel as though you’ve earnt your G&T by the time to make it to Moklowane!
If you’d like to read more about my time at Kujwana, read my blog post here.
