Things to do in Kalahari
The Kalahari is a land of red dunes, fossil river valleys and wide, silent pans. Walk with San guides near Ghanzi and camp out in the Central Kalahari or the Kgalagadi.
The Kalahari is a land of red dunes, fossil river valleys and wide, silent pans. Walk with San guides near Ghanzi and camp out in the Central Kalahari or the Kgalagadi.
The Kalahari covers most of Botswana, but its wildest stretches lie in the west and southwest, far from towns and tar. Camelthorn trees dot the sand and the grass turns gold in the dry months. The wildlife here copes with long spells without rain, from gemsbok that rarely need to drink to the black-maned Kalahari lions. It suits travellers who enjoy space and silence, and trips here run slower and longer than a delta safari.
Ghanzi is a cattle-ranching town on the Trans-Kalahari Highway. About 35 km north, the Naro San village of D'kar is home to the Kuru Art Project, where San artists paint and print their work. Lodges around Ghanzi offer bush walks with San guides, who teach you to track animals and find water in the sand. The Central Kalahari Game Reserve fills a large part of Ghanzi district and is one of the biggest game reserves in the world. After the rains, from about December to April, Deception Valley and the other fossil river valleys turn green. Springbok and gemsbok often gather there to graze, with lions and cheetahs following, though numbers vary with the rain.
In the far southwest, the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park joins reserves in Botswana and South Africa into one open wilderness of red dunes and dry riverbeds. Two Rivers sits where the Auob and Nossob riverbeds meet, and it's easiest to reach from South Africa. Tsabong, the main town in Kgalagadi district, is the last fuel stop before the Mabuasehube section. There, basic campsites overlook a string of pans, and the waterholes give you the best chance of seeing animals.
Distances are long, so most trips here are guided, fly-in or carefully planned self-drives. Ghanzi is a few hours' drive south-west of Maun on tar, and Two Rivers is around 810 km from Gaborone. Allow at least three nights in either park, carry all your water and fuel, and book campsites well ahead. The Kalahari links well with the Okavango via Ghanzi, or with the south on the road through Jwaneng.
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