The Okavango is the largest of only a very few inland delta systems. It is created by highland waters from Angola reaching shifting tectonic plates. Each year approximately 11 cubic km of water spreads over an area around the size of Wales. The high temperature of the delta causes rapid transpiration and evaporation resulting in three cycles of rising and falling water levels.
The nature of the geography is such that many lodges are best reached by air as they are on “islands” surrounded by water and marshes. Flights between islands might only be 10 minutes long with the schedule being determined the day before, depending on arrivals/departures from the logdes. Our first flight had five stops, of which ours was the third. There are dirt roads in the region, but the land distances are not indicative of the time it would take nor the feasibility at a particualr time of year.
The traditional mode of transport is the mokoro, a canoe dug out from a tree trunk and propelled through the shallow water and vegitation using a pole. The ones used by the lodges are made of fibreglass to prevent unnecessary tree felling in the area.
Shilli-Fully Travels 