Leaving Etosha behind, we visit a local village belonging to the Himba tribe, a striking group of people who cover themselves in red pigmentation made from ochre. As this is our third village visit, I’m a little reluctant to go, and the experience mirrors those of previous visits, although as ever the children are a constant source of entertainment - particularly one youngster who insists on formally shaking everyone’s hand. At least this time the proceeds go towards a local orphanage, so the commercialism isn’t quite as obvious. We make an early morning visit to the Cape Cross seal colony (noisy and smelly, and battered by enormous waves), then head to Swakopmund via one of the many shipwrecks which give the Skelton Coast its name. Arriving in Swakupmond is a bit surreal... surrounded by desert, we ... read more

Alongside the Maasai Mara and Serengeti/Ngorongoro, the Okavango Delta is undoubtedly one of the most famous natural wonders of Africa. It is our next destination as we cross the border into Botswana. At this time of year, the delta is flooded, and this year’s floods are particularly high. We camp in Maun, the hub of all delta activities, then gear up to be poled into the delta on mokoros, small two-person dugout canoes. It takes us roughly thre hours to reach our campsite in the middle of the delta, making our way slowly through knee-deep water filled with reeds, lillies and lots of flies. Not quite as civilised as punting on the River Cam, but still a unique experience as we kick back and watch the world float by. On our first day in the delta, ... read more

Hyena is alive with excitement at the thought of entering our next country, about which we;ve all heard so much but know little of what to expect. Unfortunately, we’re only entering Zimbabwe briefly for a few days cruising on Lake Kariba, but as we’re the first Absolute Africa truck to enter for 18 months, we feel a bit adventurous. We enter Zimbabwe (avoiding the hawkers on the Zambia side selling fake Zimbabwean Dollars - the hundred trillion dollar note being the favourite) over the Kariba Dam - a stunning border crossing over the high dam wall, built in the 1950s in a combined hydro-electric project by Zambia and Zimbabwe (then known as Rhodesia). The result, Lake Kariba, is Africa’s largest man-made lake. After posing for photos next to the ‘Welcome to Zimbabwe’ sign (which, comically, is ... read more

Back on the mainland, we drive through Tanzania to our next destination - Malawi, one of the poorest countries in Africa. Our main port of call is Lake Malawi, the vast body of water which accounts for 30% of the country’s land area. Driving into Malawi, we immediately notice a difference to the other African nations to the north - most houses are traditional mud and straw huts, and there are few large settlements. After passing through stunning, rugged scenery, we stop first at Chitimba, a campsite on the shores of Lake Malawi, before heading further south to Kande Beach, where we’re to spend 3 nights. Compared to the golden but bare sands of Zanzibar, Kande Beach has much more character, but our stay there quickly comes to be characterised by the people of Malawi rather ... read more

Our luck from the Serengeti does hold. We camp on the crater rim, and take the jeeps down at dawn. The Crater is an immense sight... 18km across, home to an almost self-contained eco-system complete with elephants, zebra, lions, cheetah and hippos. It was created by the eruption of an enormous volcano, higher than Mount Kilimanjaro, which left the larget intact caldera on the plant. From the rim, 650 metres above the crater floor, it looks devoid of life, but once in the crater we realise it is anything but. We pass through a small area of dense woodland, then out into the open plain - framed on all sides by the steep crater wall. We pass wildebeest, zebra and ostrich so close we can almost touch them... for some reason the animals here don’t take ... read more