Water, Water, Water But None to be Found

9 days crossing the most parched territory. No rain has fallen for 8 months in this region. Rivers that normally flow from season to season have not seen water since 2018.

Where are we? Even for me that’s a difficult question. I am usually really good at having a mental bird’s eye view of where I am and where I’m going. However, this region baffles me.

This is a smaller scale map giving a better idea of where we are in relation to Zimbabwe to the east, Namibia to the north and west and South Africa to the south.

The area we have been travelling to is the repository of all the water flowing in from the Angolan hills. The water flows south along the Angolan/Botswana border, finally disappearing somewhere between the Chobi River and the Kalahari desert in Botswana’s southwest region.

The landscape has been sparse, and at the end of the winter season, there are few trees with any greenery. The rainy season has started, and we are plagued by threatening black skies in the late afternoon with viscious looking lightening and thunder. But rain? Non-existent or none….a few drops hit the top of the tent and disappear or evaporate before they hit the ground.

What little water has fallen has produced amazing results. Sitting in a campground for 3 days in Chobi National Park we noticed green shoots growing at the rate of about 12mm/day. Trees are starting to sprout leaves and some water holes are getting replenished.

Some areas do experience a deluge for a short period. This presents obstacles for those of us driving through these areas. We have driven nothing but sand roads for 9 days. They are challenging, but I will give full marks to the Toyota Land Cruiser – an amazing vehicle with hi/low 4 wheel drive and a differential that gives the ability to lock all wheels together to drive through deep mud. Tires must be deflated from 3kpa to 1.6kpa for the deep sand. We haven’t got stuck yet and hope never to meet mud that bogs us down to a stop and leaves us as bait for lions!

Here are a few pictures from the last 9 days.