Arnoud Quanjer Wildlife Photography

The Moremi Game Reserve is situated to the northeast of Maun, Botswana, and covers some 20 percent of the Okavango Delta. The Moremi Game Reserve was created by the Tawana tribe in 1963 and named after their chief Moremi. Today, the reserve lies within a wildlife management area where the animals are allowed free seasonal movement. Most of the dry land area of the Moremi Game Reserve is Mopane (Colophospermum mopane) woodland while the rest is riverine woodland and floodplains. I personally hate Mopane woodland as you generally speaking don't see so much wildlife there (except for elephants) so during my trip to Moremi in October 2008 I concentrated most of my stay in areas that didn't have so much Mopane. As the South Gate area and most of the Eastern side of Moremi is Mopane woodland I decided to spend the bulk of my stay in the Third Bridge and Xakanaxa area. I did go to all four camps though to get a feel of the camp sites and the areas around them. You can find information on all the publis campgrounds using the menu on the left of the screen.

Best season to visit

Game viewing is best during the dry season months being July to October. This is when the seasonal pans dry up and the wildlife concentrates on the permanent water. These winter months (May to August) can get very cold at night, however, warm sunny skies during the day. From October time until the rains break, the day time temperatures can be extremely hot.

Camping

There are four public campsites within the Moremi Game Reserve for the more adventurous traveler. All the public camp sites have ablution facilities and running water (not guaranteed though - please check before travelling). It is advisable to pre-book campsites as long as 12 months in advance. To book campsites in Moremi contact the DWNP office in Maun:

P O Box 20364, Boseja, Maun, Botswana
Telephone No: (267) 6861265, Fax No: (267) 6861 264
Physical location: next to the Police Station in Maun

Getting there

The Moremi Wildlife Reserve is open to visitors throughout the year. However, the road conditions may become difficult during a heavy rainy season and the park may be closed due to this. If visiting the park during this time, please confirm before travelling that the park is open for self drive visitors. If driving, the reserve can be accessed from either the North or the South Gate roads.
 
If you are driving from Maun, you will travel in a North-Easterly direction along a tar road to Shorobe which is approximately 30 km out of Maun. Once you reach Shorobe, the road become gravel. You will come to a veterinary control fence, which is locally known as the buffalo fence. This fence was constructed to protect the cattle industry to the south from any diseases that may be carried by the wildlife. Once you are through the gate, you are in 4x4 territory and therefore a 4x4 vehicle is required due to the sandy track. You will drive for some distance before there is a fork in the road. Take the left hand fork and you will drive through mopane and acacia woodland areas, interspersed by areas of open grassland. Please make sure you drive at a low speed, due to soft churning sand as well as being in a wildlife area and so game may be spotted.
 
99 Km from Maun, you will reach South Gate, which is the Southern entrance gate (Magwee) to the Moremi Game Reserve. Here you will also find a public camping site with ablution facilities.

Road conditions

Part of the adventure for the self-drive enthusiast of visiting this wilderness area is the 4x4 vehicle driving experience. The Moremi Game Reserve is not accessible to any other vehicles. In the dry season the roads can be very sandy, but generally speaking they will be in reasonable state. Even in the dry season you'll run into some floodings, make sure that you walk through them before attempting to drive them to avoid getting stuck. If your rear differential is low to the ground then you run the risk of getting stuck on your diff on some of the sany roads as the tracks can be very deep.

In the wet season Moremi driving through Moremi becomes something of a mission. Extensive parts of the reserve can be flooded and river crossing can get very deep. If you're not an experienced 4x4 driver then it's probably best to avoid Moremi in the wet season (and the rest of Botswana for that matter).

Fuel, food and water

There are no fuel, food or drinks available in Moremi. You have to make sure that you are completely self supporting when planning a trip to Moremi stay at Nxai Pan. The nearest town to Moremi where you can stock up is Maun which is approximately 104 km from South Gate. You can do a return trip to Maun from any of the camps in Moremi in one day should you need to refuel or get food. I did a trip to Maun and back from Xakanaxa and I was back in Xakanaxa before the afternoon drive. This was in the dry season though and the roads were excellent. Normally speaking a return trip will take you a full day.

Malaria

The Moremi Game Reserve is in a malaria area and therefore mosquitoes are prevalent throughout. It is advisable for visitors to visit their doctor before traveling in order to get the best advise on what anti-malarial prophylactic to take. This is especially important during the summer months, which is during the rainy season.