Bordered to the west by the Selinda Wildlife Reserve, to the east by Chobe National Park, and to the north by the Linyanti River, Linyanti Swamp system and Namibia, is the remote and inaccessible private safari concession NG15, aka, the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve.
Linyanti Wildlife Reserve gets its name from the Linyanti River which forms its northern boundary. The river divides the lush Caprivi Strip and Linyanti Swamp system of Namibia with the waterways, lagoons, floodplains, forests and grasslands of the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve in Botswana. The reserve is 275,000 acres of private wildlife concession unfenced with its neighbors allowing game to roam freely, and home to only four small safari camps accessible only by light aircraft offering visitors a private un-crowded and game rich safari experience. For clarification – the Linyanti River begins its life on the central plateau of Angola where it is called the Kwando River (also spelled Cuando), then its name changes to the Linyanti River where it hits a fault line and turns northeast, then the name changes again to the Chobe River before it flows into the Zambezi River and tumbles over Victoria Falls.
Game viewing in the reserve is focused along the banks of the Linyanti River, the Savuti Channel, and the forests and grasslands of the interior. The Linyanti River is characterized by hippo and croc filled pools and lagoons, marshes with aquatic sitatunga and red lechwe antelope and abundant birdlife, and massive herds of elephant, buffalo and zebra during the dry season with predators constantly keeping watch. Birdlife along the river is tremendous especially during the Green Season when the summer migrants are in the area. Open floodplains along the river attract antelopes, predators and large baboon troops. Beyond the floodplains 
there is a band of riverine forest home to kudu and leopard, and inland are huge dry mopane forests and grasslands with abundant giraffe and antelope populations. Running through the middle of the reserve is the famous Savuti Channel (spelled ‘Savuti’ outside the Chobe National Park, and ‘Savute’ inside the national park).
The Savuti Channel starts in the Linyanti Swamps, meanders through the reserve, and ends at the Savute Marsh in the middle of Chobe National Park. Throughout its history the channel has fluctuated from a flowing river to a dry ribbon of lush grassland. For the last 28 years the channel 
has been dry; but now the channel is once again flowing with water and elephants are happily frolicking, cats are swimming, wild dogs are chasing kudu through the channel, and lion and hyena are battling over kills in the shallow water. Game viewing is spectacular and this is one of the best places in Africa to see the African wild dog and cheetah.
Game Viewing – at its best in the dry season May through October
The reserve is famous for its enormous herds of elephant, buffalo and zebra along the Linyanti River and Savuti Channel during the dry season. Estimates put the number of elephants in the area during this time at around 50,000; it is not uncommon to see over 1,000 per day while on safari. Thousands of zebra spend the winter around the Linyanti Swamp system before heading south to the Savuti in November in expectation of summer rains and good grazing. During the Green Season, water is readily available throughout the area, animals are much more spread-out so the density of game viewing is not nearly as good as during the dry season.
Predator viewing is exceptional – The main predators are lion, cheetah, wild dog, hyena and leopard.
Hippos, crocs, fish and water birds are abundant in the waterways and lagoons.
There are high concentrations of giraffe, baboon, vervet monkey and warthog.
Antelope species include: Wildebeest, impala, kudu, waterbuck, red lechwe, sable, roan, eland, and the aquatic sitatunga.
Birding is phenomenal especially during the Green Season. Species include: kori bustard, carmine bee-eater, wattled crane, slaty egret, woodland kingfisher, African skimmer, and a host of summer migrants.
Night drives provide the opportunity to see nocturnal animals such as bushbaby, spring hare, aardwolf, serval, genet, porcupine and pangolin.
Activities include: off-road game drives morning, afternoon and night; walking safaris; canoeing, boating and fishing depending on water levels.
Green Season: November-April: rain falls during the warm months of November to March with high temperatures and humidity. Game spreads out as water is readily available inland. Exceptional birding.
Dry Season: May - October: sunshine evaporates the inland waterholes and water becomes scarce forcing animals to congregate in huge numbers along the Linyanti River and Savuti Channel. Game is at its most dense and easily visible. October is the hottest month. The prolific and diverse wildlife and scenery form a wonderful contrast to the Okavango Delta creating a nice compliment to a Botswana itinerary.
Linyanti Wildlife Reserve camps 
DumaTau
Kings Pool Camp
Savuti Camp
Linyanti Tented Camp
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The Selinda Wildlife Reserve is 320,000 acres of private and pristine wilderness where guests are treated to one of Africa’s finest wildlife safari experiences. The reserve is a private concession ‘owned’ by a few passionate conservationists who are all about wildlife, the environment, conservation, small luxurious safari camps, and offering their guests intensely personal and impassioned safari experiences. There are only three camps in the entire reserve, between them they host a grand total of 32 guests per day, meaning that this reserve is one of the most private and intimate places to view wildlife in Africa. When on a game drive you will not see anyone else other than those people from your small camp. This privacy cannot be overstated – the![Copy of 0CDB1432(2)_1600x1200[1]](http://travelbeyondblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Copy-of-0CDB14322_1600x120012-150x150.jpg "Copy of 0CDB1432(2)_1600x1200[1]")
difference between viewing wildlife undisturbed, by yourself, and on your own time, with the ability to off-road to get close to the sightings, and the option to linger all day at a sighting if desired; and viewing wildlife in a queue of Land Rovers, minibuses and personal vehicles with hordes of people trying to see the same animal that happens to be next to the road, is a dramatic difference in the overall safari experience. At Selinda, you will see no fences, no power lines, no roads and no crowds of people or vehicles, just untouched ecosystems and loads of animals.![Copy of Zib203_1600x1200[1]](http://travelbeyondblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Copy-of-Zib203_1600x12001-150x150.jpg "Copy of Zib203_1600x1200[1]")
relaxed, located in fantastic settings, and home to incredible staffs, chefs and safari guides. Guests receive the highest standard of service in postcard picturesque surroundings with dense game viewing in total privacy on a flexible schedule where the animals dictate activities – when there is game to be seen you can go see it and stay with it for as long as you want!
I’m in the Okavango Delta. It’s 6 a.m., the winter allows an extra half hour of sleep, its August and the morning is cold, about 48F as I sip my coffee next to the crackling fire. Rain is never in the forecast this time of year; the cool crisp morning will give way to an 80F cloudless sunny day. There are ten people in camp plus the staff and all around me the shimmering expanse of a 4,000 square mile network of papyrus lined waterways, lagoons, grasslands, and palm trees on sand islands. I hear elephants sloshing through the shallow water en route to feed. I leave the warmth of the fire and board the open Land Rover and put on the wool
lined poncho provided for me. The cool air hits my face as we leave camp and moon gives way to warming sun. Red lechwe, zebra, wildebeest, hippo, elephant, lion, leopard and sable antelope await my gaze. The two areas for visitors within the Delta are the Moremi Game Reserve and the large private reserves called ‘concessions’ that surround Moremi; these concessions are leased by safari companies and offer visitors the most remote, game rich and private safari experience in all of Africa. Botswana’s high quality/low volume safari philosophy means that while expensive, this is the best place in the world for a safari where you will see loads of animals and no people except those in your small camp. There are no permanent structures in the Delta; and while luxurious, all the camps can be dismantled without a footprint in short order.
The afternoon is warm. I climb into a mokoro and the poler pushes his pronged branch into the Kalahari sand under the clear shallow water and we silently slip through the tall grass penetrating the water. A tiny painted frog clings to a blade of grass and we silently pull up next to him and observe at eye level; an African Skimmer nest with eggs inside is right on the side of our mokoro waterway; an African Fish Eagle is perched on a branch overlooking a lagoon and calls to his mate for life across the channel; in the distance elephants are on the move.
palm islands teeming with wildlife. The water from Angola doesn’t reach Botswana until the dry season, the result is that the Delta is in full flood when the sky is blue and there is no rain. Moremi Game Reserve covers about 20% of the Okavango Delta and is surrounded unfenced by private safari concessions; the whole area is a pristine wildlife wonderland. The difference between the camps within Moremi and the private concessions is that in Moremi walking safaris and off-road game drives are not allowed. Palm trees, sandy islands, grassy plains, wooded islands, slow meandering papyrus lined watercourses and quiet lagoons provide the visitor a very unique and diverse ecosystem which in itself is worth the trip. The 
safari camps are small and intimate with some of Africa’s best safari guides and bush chefs; and you will see very few other people while there. Activities are numerous, both water and land based are on offer. Mokoro (low dugout canoe) trips through the Delta are surreal; power boating through the passageways and lagoons is a thrill and the fishing is relaxed and peaceful in secluded lagoons. Game viewing is excellent year-round and birding is spectacular in the summer months. Game drives are done in open safari vehicles day and night and walking safaris are allowed on the private concessions. It is peaceful and
divine and I believe, provides one of the world’s best, if not the best, safari experiences in Africa. Rhinos are being re-introduced into the area, and sightings are slim. In the Delta there are both water and land based camps, at the land based camps the activities revolve around game drives in open safari vehicles and walking safaris, while at the water based camps the activities focus on mokoro trips, power boating, walking and fishing; game drives are usually on offer with a boat bringing guests to the safari vehicles waiting on dry
land. It is a good idea to combine water and land based camps on an Okavango itinerary to take advantage of the different experiences and different species found at both. Camps are relatively expensive in the Delta because of the remoteness which means you must fly into camp; the camps are small, intimate, wonderfully staffed and provide true bush luxury.
hippo, crocodile, lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, hyena, jackal, genet, serval, monkey, baboon
