First day of winter - Arriving at Sindabezi Island Camp

A flock of roosting guineafowl outside out tent woke us at 4:30 so we finished packing for our departure from Botswana. We went to the lodge for our breakfast then met Conrad for a short morning game drive. Since our flight was after 11 am, we had several options for the morning but we opted to go out one more time for a game drive.

Mary on a white sand dune in Chobe

We drove through a part of the area that we hadn’t visited then through the Savute Channel looking at herds of impala, flocks of guineafowl, families of spurfowl and the occasional Steinbok. In the past, the Savute channel has had water in the stream. However, shifting tectonic plates and a general drying in the area has caused the streambed to be dry for a number of years. We took a stretch break for tea and the usual small cakes called rusks. Another truck from our camp stopped by so we visited with Markus and Hanna from Stuttgart before continuing on.

Zebra and impala grazing

Conrad drove to the top of a dune composed of very fine powdery sand. From there we could see several young warthogs, impalas, giraffes and some wildebeest. Conrad was looking at the other side of the dune and spotted a lion. We got binoculars and confirmed that two lions were resting in the shade of a tree. We saw a lot of tracks in the sand from everything from lions to beetles.

At Savute Airstrip

At 10:30 we transferred to another Land Cruiser and said our goodbyes to John, Jane and Conrad. We drove the the airstrip and chuckled again at the sign marking “Terminal 5, Gate 3” even though there was no terminal, only a gravel airstrip cut into the bush.

The 12-seat Cessna aircraft was full including a passenger in the copilot’s seat. The pilot for the 30-minute flight was the most professional of any that we have in the bush. His takeoff and landing were very smooth. We realized that this was the first time that we had seen a paved airstrip or road since we left Maun on June 13.

When we landed in Kasane, Botswana we were picked up by a “G Man”, a contracted driver who took us into Zambia. We disinfected our shoes at the border then went to a health check before going to immigration and customs. Everyone at border control was very helpful and the process of getting our visas was completed in just a few minutes.

Mary at the landing for Sindabezi

Our bags were transferred to our Zambian driver who drove us for about an hour to our next camp. As he drove, he gave us a brief history of Zambia, an overview of the culture and some information on places of interest that we may visit for the week that we are in the country.

Chiyeso (pronounced Chea-so), the manager of Sindabezi Island Camp, met us at the dock and took us to the island where we would stay for the next few days. The island is in the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. This camp and our final camp, Potato Bush Camp, are operated by Green Safaris who have eight camps in Zambia and one in Malawi. Unlike previous camps with 12 tents, Sindabezi has only five tents, all of which were occupied at the time we arrived. These tents were not as modern as at Xugana or Savuli but were clean and comfortable. Like all the other camps, this camp operates completely on solar power and filters all drinking water. The daily routine here is set by each group of visitors. There is a long list of options from which we can choose.

Cindy at the tent on the Zambezi River

Unlike the Botswana camps, lunch and dinner are from a menu chosen earlier and served plated rather than buffet. Our tent overlooks the Zambezi River and has a bed with mosquito netting, a soaker tub, an outdoor shower and a hammock by the river. We think this camp will be ideal for our group. The island had lots of seating and places to relax. As Mary and Cindy met with our valet, Memory, to explore options for the coming days, Mark and I walked around the island. We saw several Nile monitors, some of which were large. The camp’s mascot is a hippo that was born on the island. Horace the Hippo still makes frequent visits to the camp, mostly at night. Robert, a camper from Johannesburg, advised us that a morning at Victoria Falls then a visit to the town of Livingstone would be time well spent.

Breakfast area at Sindabezi Island Camp

Although we had a small lunch on the flight, we had lunch provided in the camp. Mary and I had pork medallions with a mixed greens salad. The dessert was chocolate zucchini cake. For the afternoon, we chose to do a boat cruise on the Zambezi.

We went to the dock at 4:30 to meet our guide. Since Mark and Cindy were interested in birds, he took mostly to spots where they could see bee eaters, waterfowl and songbirds. We also saw several hippos in the river as well as waterbucks and impalas on the Zimbabwe side of the river.

Sundown on the Zambezi River

About 6 pm we were met at a point where camp staff had set up a mobile bar and seats for viewing the sunset on the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. We watched the sun go down and hippos swimming in the river.

We crossed the river back to the camp in Zambia where we changed for dinner. As we walked toward the campfire, I tripped on the edging around one of the plantings and took a hard fall. I dusted off and found seats at the campfire for us. We sat around the campfire where we were served leek soup as an appetizer. We chatted with Robert and his wife from Johannesburg, two friends from England and a young couple from Arkansas.

Sindabezi Island Camp staff places visitors at tables around the common areas of the camp. Wine, beer and drinks were offered before, during and after dinner. Mark and I had roast chicken on a bed of rice while Mary and Cindy had risotto. Dessert was a small cake with vanilla ice cream. Everything was well prepared and served elegantly. Mary and Cindy especially appreciated being able to preselect from a menu for meals rather than eating from a buffet.

After dinner we returned to our tent and prepared for bed.