Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park - Nossob - Arnoud Quanjer Wildlifephotography

Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park - Nossob

Tuesday, 09 March 2010 20:38 |

(2 votes, average 5.00 out of 5)

'U' shaped road in the Nossob area

Nossob restcamp is located on the Botswana border in the North of the park. The atmosphere in this camp is very relaxed and wildlife in the Nossob area is very good. I've seen cheetah, lions, spotted hyena's, african wildcats and bat-eared foxes near this camp. From Nossob you can drive all the way up to the norternmost point of the park (Unions End). This is without a doubt my favourite camp in the park. If you want to stay in the camp you should book as early as possible as it is one of the more poular restcamps in the park. If you're staying in Nossob make sure that you visit Marie se draai waterhole in the morning and in the evening. This little loop road is without a doubt one of the most productive roads in the park. It's also a very good road for finding bat-eared foxes. In 2007 not a day went by without seeing them on this road. The roads in the Nossob area are usually very 'U' shaped due to the grading of the roads. This means that you need a vehicle with a high vantage position to see over the grass next to the road. If you're in a sedan car then wildlife viewing in the Nossob area can be a mission.

The campsite in Nossob doesn't have a lot of camp sites so if you want to camp make sure that you make your reservations well in advance. I usually book my stay in the Kgalagadi about 7 - 8 months in advance. In summer the temparatures can soar over 40 degrees centigrade while in winter the temparatures drop below zero. If you're camping in either summer or winter make sure that you are prepared for these temparatures.

The drive up from both Twee Rivieren an Mata Mata restcamps is a long one (approx. 160km), so if you're driving up from either of these two parks make sure that you have enough time to make it to Nossob. Average game viewing speed in the Kgalagadi is about 20 - 25 km/h.

Facilities

Scops Owl at Nossob hide Nossob has a petrol station that sells diesel and leaded and unleaded fuel. You can pay in South African Rands, Botswana Pula or Namibian dollars. Credit cards are not accepted for fuel or any other purchase in Nossob so make sure that you carry plenty of cash. The shop in Nossob sells some canned food, softdrinks, wine, beer and if you're lucky some deep frozen meat. You can order freshly baked bread in the shop. If you want to order bread then make sure that you do that a day in advance.

Since a couple of years Nossob has a pool which is a luxury in that water scarse region. The pool doesn't have a lot of shady areas (and that's an understatement) so make sure that you use anti sunburn before you go to the pool or you'll be fried. Check the photo gallery on the bottom of this page for pictures of the pool.

Besides the pool another nice thing about Nossob is that they offer a nighthide with a floodlit waterhole. From this hide you can view a waterhole that's located approx. 100m from the camp. At night this waterhole is lit untill 22:00pm a floodlight. I've personally never seen anything spectacular at the waterhole but I've spoken to people who have seen lion, brown hyena and cheetah there. I did manage to get some good pictures of a Scops Owl at the hide in 2007. The owl was sitting in the tree that is at the extreme left of the hide. This just shows you that it's always a good plan to visit the hide and carefully look around for small animals if there are no animals at the waterhole. Since 2008 all the wildlife activity at the waterhole at Nossob can be monitored live via a webcam that SANParks has put up there. Click this link to open a new window showing the live webcam images.

Arnoud Quanjer Wildlife Photography

Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park - Nossob

Facilities

Photo gallery