Jens back from Africa and I back from Asia and finally both in Europe again. We decided this summer to try something: Jens would check out the paragliding conditions (and obviously also fly) in Macedonia and I would work from there. An entire month. So no competitions this year. Jens left alone by car since he wanted to pass by Greifenburg and I would first visit some friends in Kosovo.
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I’m very proud to announce that I placed third in the birds category of GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2018.
So this trip so far has been all Botswana. I started off in the Kalahari, went to Nxai Pan and the via Maun continued to Khwai in the Okavango Delta. Again via Maun I continued my way down to a place I’ve never been before.
Almost a year ago we came from Matopos National Park via Khama Rhino Reserve and went to Gaborone. I needed to get the radiator of my car fixed and afterwards we drove to the Kgalagadi. That wasn’t the best experience for us though and you can read here why not. But anyway, in Gaborone I got to know Joel, who’s also a photographer with a big heart for the bush, but not always enough time to get there. And so this time we decided to do a trip together to a rather wild area and for that we needed a tracker. Joel brought a friend of him, Gerald and on the way we picked up the tracker. That resulted in my car being packed up quite seriously… (more…)
After the Kalahari and Nxai Pan, with a little stop to resupply and pay friends a visit, I left for the Okavango Delta. One of the most pretty places on earth. Khwai, next to Moremi Game Reserve is one of the few places in the Delta where you can still drive around in your own car. Besides that it’s truly filled with wildlife. I must say also more and more cars, which is a pity, but well…
It’s not unusual to see lions (lionesses in this case) in this area, but it is a bit more unusual to actually see them in full action. Since lions are mostly pretty lazy, for sure during the day.
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So, right after the Kalahari (you can read about that right here) I drove up to Nxai Pan. Not too much of a ride (in African terms) so I got there the same day. The sandy road from the gate to the pan, was not always easy to drive. You need to be focused and ready to react.
Nxai Pan is always worth going, if you ask me. Since it’s pretty small (again definitely African terms), you always see something. And due to the zebra migration I saw a lot of zebras this time. They even were served for breakfast here…
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This time the Africa trip started off in Botswana. I visited the Kalahari with a friend, went to Nxai Pan, visited friends in Khwai and went with another friend to Zutshwa (a rather unknown area South of the Kalagadi). First I’ll tell you about our rather wet visit to the mighty Kalahari.
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I received three honorable mentions in the International Photographer of the Year competition: Night at the Hyena Den, Orange, and Wildlife in the Dark. Feeling very proud!
Right after the last trip to Africa (and mostly to Mana Pools) we left for Mexico. A bit funny to meet each other again after two months on the airport of Amsterdam. And like in the movies we were both walking on these fast ‘treadmills’ in opposite directions when we suddenly saw each other.
Our flight to Mexico went pretty smooth, but passing customs was a nightmare. About three hours we waited in a line that seemed to have no ending. And when we finally got through it looked like our driver gave up waiting. Luckily it only seemed that way… So long after midnight (while we landed at 19:00) we finally arrived in Valle de Bravo, what would be our home for the next 7 weeks.
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