wander okavango della, bolswana

TRUNK SHOWBY JAMES STURZ

By July, up to 4 trillion gallons of water cover theOkavango Delta in northern Botswana, and the zoo-foot-tall sand dunes of the Kalahari Desert become palm- andpapyrus-fringed islands. Go now to explore lush lagoons

where elephants wade before the waters recede in the fall.

"THE SANDIBE OKAVANGO SAFARILODGE EXUDES PUREAFRICAN LUXURY,AND THE WILDLIFE DIDN'T DISAPPOINTA SAVVY TRACKER LED OUR GROUP TO

A RARE LEOPARD SIGHTING"~~ Marcy Mendelson, AFAR.com

CeliiitieiehfiBotswana's most famouscrafts are baskets wovenfrom fan palm fibers. Theyare dyed with natural pig-ments: blue from fever-berryleaves, dark brown frommagic guarri shrubs, andyellow from the roots of redstar apple trees. Some bas-kets take a month to make.Nearly all lodges sell baskets,but you can also purchase themonline at www.botswanacraft.bw.

Tour Okavango on a makara,the dugout canoes of theBayei people, traditionallycarved from jackalberry andsausage trees but now oftenmade from fiberglass. Lodgeguides paddle the boats(or pole them like Venetiangondoliers) past lechweantelope, painted reed frogs,and flocks of purple herons.Most lodges offer mokoro tripsbetween June and October.

32 M:AR.COtvl JUN~ IJULY 2013

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The ecotourism company WildernessSafaris has been operating mobile camps

Iin Botswana for 30 years. Today it runs16 lodges in the Okavango Delta. Hereare two of the best for wildlife viewing.

I11.I

SAFARI LODGES

Three private, parquet-flooredtents at Little Mombo Camp fea-ture outdoor showers and privatedecks that overlook the flood-plains of the vast Moremi GameReserve. You'll see elephants-Botswana has more than anyother country-as well as lions,leopards, and hyenas.

Located on the delta's 700-square-mile Abu Concession, Abu Camp(above) offers an unusual safariexperience: to walk among aherd of rescued elephants, oreven ride a mother or calf, asyou observe the region's game.Reserve the open-air "star bed"on an elevated platform next tothe elephant enclosure.

Accommodations at both camps mustbe booked through a tour outfittersuch as Travel Beyond. From $2,431.(800) 876-3131, travelbeyond.com

In Setswana, the principal languageof Botswana, pula means "rain."In a country that's 84 percent desert,locals cry "Pula! Pula! Pula!" toinvoke or celebrate good luck. Notcoincidentally, the word is also thename of the national currency; onepula equals about 12 cents.