San Camp is located deep in the Kalahari Desert on the edge of the Makgadikgadi Pans, the largest saltpans in the world
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About San Camp
San Camp is located deep in the Kalahari Desert on the edge of the
Makgadikgadi Pans, the largest saltpans in the world.
The Makgadikgadi pans consist of two major basins, relics of a massive lake
and swampland that existed over much of northern Botswana between about 2
million and 40,000 years ago. On the edge of the western basin, also known as
the Ntetwe Pan are Jack's and San camps.
Camp Description
A maximum of 12 guests are accommodated in 6 large walk-in green canvas tents on
slightly elevated wooden platforms with en suite facilities (bucket showers and
flush toilets). After the rains (December to April), there can be enormous herds
of Wildebeest, Zebra and Springbok (with the accompanying predators) on the open
grasslands. The summer rains also leave a warm shallow layer of water that
entices waterfowl and flamingos. Activities are conducted in open 4x4 vehicles,
custom designed for this terrain and accompanied by knowledgeable guides. In the
winter months only, all-purpose ATV vehicles (four wheeler motorcycles/Quad
bikes) are available, allowing guests to travel across the saltpans. Walks with
a Bushman tracker and visits to historical boabab trees used by Livingstone and
Selous are alternative options.
Game Viewing
During the summer months (November to April) the focus is on the thousands of
zebra which have migrated from the Boteti River and Makgadikgadi Pans National
Park immediately to the west. During these same months, the pans fill with water
and attract numerous species of birds from flamingos to wattled cranes and
pelicans. During the dry, or winter months, the migrations move westwards to the
water available in the Boteti River but many desert-adapted creatures remain
resident.
This is the domain of the brown hyaena, a shy and elusive creature, as well
as suricates, aardvarks and small bustard species. Ralph Bousefield and his
guides have made many important finds in the field of palaeontology, with stone
implements and other evidence of Stone Age dwellers.