Go slow on the banks of
four rivers You may not be a tree lover or a birder. You may not even like camping or road-tripping. Days at a waterhole when the monotony of yet another gemsbok or springbok or zebra coming to drink may bore you to tears, and the thought of the foggy coast and the sound of crashing waves, the boring conversations of fishing trips and the catch of the day makes you wonder where else in Namibia a more exciting adventure could be waiting. Rièth van Schalkwyk followed the whim of a family member to break the tradition of Christmas at the seaside, packed the camper for two weeks of slow travel and camped on the banks of the Kavango, Zambezi, Chobe and Kwando to discover the magic of looking closer and staying longer.
S
ummer in Namibia is hot and dry. That is, in years when the rains are late or, even worse, fail to come. The end of 2021 was such a summer. The sky blue and bright, or hazy because of veld fires and strong winds. The veld colourless except for Shepherds trees edged against an ugly charcoal hue over last stretches of burnt land. Come December, the collective trek usually heads westwards for a cool respite at the coast to escape the inland heat and drought. We decided to travel north instead. To find water and, if not so much the greenery, at least returning summer birds and flowering trees. By a stroke of luck or idiocy on the part of the colonial powers the water-rich north-east became part of Namibia. And how lucky that is. Called Caprivi for over a hundred years, but changed to Zambezi Region in late 2013 as if to claim it as our birth right, this is the only part of Namibia that is always wet, that always has abundant water even in the driest of dry periods. Two mighty rivers connect us to our four neighbours and provide fertile land for an abundance of trees to grow lush and high, providing different biomes to the rest of Namibia. From around our campfires on a riverbank under the dark moon and starry night skies, we could see fires burning across
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the water or the flood plains and hear the drums of rituals – in another country. This fascinating piece of our land is a corridor for elephants criss-crossing between Angola, Zambia and Botswana. Zebras migrate in huge numbers in summer and although buffaloes are not in as big a hurry as in the Serengeti, they also move about and stay long enough for us to observe them close-up on the flood plains or in the woodlands. The Carmine Bee-eaters return to their nests in the banks of the Zambezi near Katima in early summer, but when you arrive too late in December they may have left already. Our journey started in mid-December. As we approached Grootfontein along the B8, the clouds were building. Upon reaching the Mangetti the promise of rain was real as the first showers moved our way. The Silver Cluster Leaf trees are so abundant along the tarred road and their shape is so recognisable that once you know their name, they are easy to identify. With Helga Burger’s Unbearable Beauty of Trees on my lap it was impossible not to be mesmerised by the parade we passed. For the time being, ignore the other seasons in the book. Just keep it open at Summer and stop when you see the first flowering tree. Pick a flower. Once seen, you will never fail to recognise a Raintree, Zambezi Teak, White Bauhinia or Thorny Teak. There are so many
