Kwando & Linyanti :: overview

The Linyanti Wildlife Reserve consists of 125,000 hectares of pristine wildlife area to the north of the Okavango Delta. It is bordered by the Linyanti River in the north and the Chobe National Park in the east. Across the Linyanti River northwards lies Namibia's Caprivi strip. Two thirds of the Savuti channel is situated within the reserve.

The Linyanti area is very different from the Okavango Delta and should be included in every Botswana safari itinerary so that travellers have a more complete and varied experience of the country's different wildlife areas. This private reserve is enormous and is situated in one of the most remote and inaccessible parts of Botswana. The region is one of the least visited and most pristine corners of Botswana and the concession owners intend to keep it this way. The Linyanti region is shared between a very small number of private camps, ensuring that guests are able to view the abundant wildlife privately and exclusively.

The area is renowned for their predators and large concentrations of game, particularly elephant and buffalo which move down to the Linyanti River at the start of our winter months (May/June) and only retrace their steps inland once the main rains arrive (late-November/December). Sable and Roan Antelope occur, as well as Lion, Leopard and Wild Dog. The marshes are home to Red Lechwe, Sitatunga, Hippo, Crocodiles and wonderful birdlife. Moving along the fringes of the waterways, guests can see Kudu, Zebra, Buffalo, Waterbuck and Impala. The region's key feature is the Linyanti River and marshes, which are complemented by the contrasting dry woodlands inland. Massive lagoons and steadily flowing rivers abound with papyrus and phragmites. The heavily forested riverine fringes blend into dry countryside further inland, away from the river. There are many varied habitats within the Linyanti; marshes, waterways, riverine forests, dry woodlands and open grasslands.

Almost parallel to the Okavango, the Kwando River flows south from Angola across the Caprivi Strip and into Botswana. Like the Okavango, it starts spreading out over the Kalahari's sands, forming the Linyanti Swamps. In wetter years this is also a Delta, complete with a myriad of waterways linking lagoons; a refuge for much wildlife. It's a wild area, much of which is on the Namibian side of the border, in the Mamili National Park, where it's difficult to access. A fault line channels the outflow from these swamps into the Linyanti River, which flows northeast into Lake Liambezi, and thence into Chobe.

Both the Kwando and the Linyanti rivers are permanent, so for the animals in Chobe and Northern Botswana they are valuable sources of water. Like the Chobe and Okavango, they have become the ultimate destination for migrations from the drier areas across northern Botswana – and also sought-after safari destinations, especially in the dry season.

In recent years this area, between the Chobe National Park and the Okavango Delta, has been split into three large concessions – Kwando in the north, Linyanti in the east, and Selinda in the middle.

In some ways these are similar, as each encompasses a large area of mopane woodlands and smaller, more prized sections of riparian forest and open floodplains on old river channels. Look at the locations of the camps and you'll realise that much of the interest lies in these floodplains and riparian forests – diverse habitats rich in species.