The air is thick with scent—wet wood, wild sage, damp grass. A fish eagle calls overhead. Beneath a leadwood tree, five wild dogs tear into the still-warm body of a male impala, their muzzles slick with blood. Behind us, a lion watches from the shadows, unmoving, unreadable. This is Moremi Game Reserve, the beating heart of the Okavango.
Covering nearly 5,000 square kilometres in the northeastern part of the Delta, Moremi is where water meets woodland, and where some of Botswana’s richest wildlife encounters unfold. It’s a place of drama—where predators move between islands, trees stand drowning in slow floodwater, and the boundaries between land and water blur with the seasons.
On May 29, we explored this Eden. What we found was a landscape in flux, full of stories—old and new, wet and wild.
The Living Edge of the Delta, Moremi Game Reserve
Moremi Game Reserve is where the Okavango’s waters meet the woodland. It lies on the eastern edge of the Delta, encompassing both dry mopane forests and flooded floodplains, and it’s one of the few places in Africa where a protected area was declared by local people—in this case, the BaTawana tribe, who saw their ancestral lands and wildlife threatened and acted to preserve them.
Geologically, the land here is formed by sediment deposited over tens of thousands of years. Beneath the shifting topsoil lies ancient Kalahari sand, underlain by deeper clay beds and fossil river channels. These define where floodwater flows—and where it stops. As a result, Moremi is a place of patterns: ribbons of papyrus, islands of dry woodland, crescent-shaped oxbow lagoons.
During the dry season, it becomes a sanctuary. Animals that struggle to find water elsewhere converge on the swamps and channels. For predators, it’s a buffet. For birdwatchers, it’s paradise.
Predators in the Woodland
Early on the morning of May 29, we left camp and drove into the forest. The tracks were damp, the light golden. Mopane trees flanked the road, their butterfly leaves trembling.
Then we found them—five African wild dogs, panting and smeared with red. The remains of a male impala lay in the dirt, hooves twitching, ribs cracked open. It had all happened just minutes before. The dogs were alert, ears flicking, eyes scanning the undergrowth. Somewhere beyond the bush, we knew lions wouldn’t be far.
We didn’t have to wait long. Just a few hundred metres away, a lioness was watching. She made no move. Perhaps she’d already eaten. Perhaps she was waiting for a moment of weakness. In Moremi, the power struggles are constant, the tension always present.
Later that day, a boat trip gave us a completely different view—one of stillness, beauty, and strange decay.
Boat Trips through Drowned Forests
One of Moremi’s unique features is the ability to explore both by land and by water. We took a boat safari in the Xakanaxa region, weaving through papyrus channels and past groves of trees slowly dying from too much water.
This is a landscape shaped by flood—not sudden or violent, but slow and creeping. The water rises during the dry season, reaching trees that cannot cope. Mopanes and leadwoods, their roots submerged too long, die standing up. Their grey trunks become ghostly sculptures in the swamp, homes for owls and perches for fish eagles.
Around us, African jacanas danced across the lilies, and kingfishers zipped from branch to branch. In the channels, we saw crocodiles, hippos, and once, a massive monitor lizard sprawled in the sun.
Moremi’s duality—of flooded silence and woodland chaos—is what makes it so special. Few places offer such contrasting experiences in a single day.
Trees, Insects, and Food from the Forest
As we moved through the forest, our guide pointed to a tall tree with a slightly peeling bark. “That’s the mopane tree,” he said. “And in the right season, it’s full of caterpillars. We call them mophane worms.”
To the uninitiated, it may sound strange—but these caterpillars are a valuable protein source for many communities. They’re collected, dried or cooked, and eaten across Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Namibia. Mopane worms are seasonal, nutritious, and surprisingly tasty when fried up with onions and tomatoes.
Their presence is a reminder that Moremi Game Reserve isn’t just a safari playground—it’s a living landscape that feeds and sustains people too.
Wildlife Beyond the Big Five
Moremi Game Reserve is rightly celebrated for its predators—but its beauty lies in the details too.
We saw:
- Red lechwe bounding through shallow water
- Warthogs kneeling to graze at the water’s edge
- Tsessebe, alert and skittish in the open
- Giraffes browsing the high canopies
- Elephants everywhere—crossing roads, feeding in thickets, or bathing in shallow pools
Birdlife was also spectacular. From fish eagles to open-billed storks, from African pygmy geese to grey herons—every patch of water hosted something worth watching. At one flooded section of woodland, we watched a group of saddle-billed storks and glossy ibis foraging side by side, their reflections perfectly mirrored in the water.
And then, of course, the sounds: frogs croaking, birds calling, the splash of a hippo as you look the other way.
Camps and Lodges in Moremi Game Reserve
Moremi Game Reserve offers a range of places to stay, from public campsites to luxurious lodges. We stayed in the Xakanaxa region, one of the best areas for mixed habitat and varied game.
Recommended camps and lodges include:
- Camp Xakanaxa – Located on the banks of the Khwai River, offering both land and water-based safaris. Elegant tents, great guiding, and wildlife right on your doorstep.
- Okuti Camp (Ker & Downey) – Stylish and family-friendly, set near the Maunachira River, with easy access to permanent water channels.
- Third Bridge Campsite – A good self-drive option with spacious pitches and hot showers. Expect elephants in camp and roaring lions at night.
- Khwai Leadwood and Khwai Bush Camp – Situated just outside the reserve in a community-run concession, offering exceptional game viewing and community engagement.
Access to Moremi is either by light aircraft from Maun or via rough 4×4 tracks for the adventurous. Guided mobile safaris also operate through the park, combining campfire charm with excellent local knowledge.
Moremi Game Reserve’s Place in the Delta
Moremi Game Reserve is not just part of the Okavango Delta—it is its protected core. Without it, the Delta would not function as a sanctuary. The reserve protects the seasonal floodplains, permanent waterways, and woodland edges where so many species shelter during dry months.
Its creation in 1963 by the BaTawana royal family set a precedent for local-led conservation. Today, the balance between tourism, ecology and tradition is carefully maintained.
The reserve is part of the greater Okavango Delta World Heritage Site, and forms a crucial wildlife corridor for animals moving between Chobe, the Delta, and the Kalahari.
When to Visit
Our visit in late May was timed perfectly. The water was rising, the weather cool and clear, and the animals beginning to shift into their dry-season behaviours.
The best months to visit Moremi are May to October. Game is easier to find as water becomes scarce outside the Delta. Roads are dry and accessible. June and July offer cool, mosquito-free nights, while August to October sees peak predator activity.
From November to March, rains bring greenery, migratory birds and fewer crowds. But access can be tricky and some roads become impassable without experience and recovery gear.
A Place of Edge and Energy
Moremi Game Reserve is a place of edge—not just ecological, but emotional. It’s where water meets wood, predator meets prey, silence meets sound. In one moment you’re drifting through papyrus on a still lagoon; in the next, you’re watching wild dogs shred an impala.
It’s a place where trees die standing, where insects feed people, where lions track the scent of buffalo through shallow pools.
It is, without question, one of Botswana’s greatest protected areas—and one of Africa’s most unforgettable.
If you’re coming to the Okavango, don’t just fly over the Delta. Land in it. Drive its tracks. Drift its waters. Listen to its stories.
Because in Moremi Game Reserve, the bush still speaks.
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