Our beautiful camp at Ihaha

Camping Chronicles at Ihaha Camp – Where Wildlife and Wild Adventures Collide

Wildlife camping adventure at Ihaha Camp, Chobe National Park

In this article:

Ihaha Sign
Ihaha Sign

A wild Welcome

Ah, Ihaha Camp in Botswana’s Chobe National Park – where the adventure starts before you even arrive. After a warm welcome at Sedudu Gate (complete with a map and instructions we’d promptly ignore), our inner Indiana Jones kicked in, and we set off on what can only be described as an exploration of the wrong roads. And when I say “exploration,” I mean bundu bashing through a private gate like we were auditioning for a 4×4 challenge. Thankfully, the Navigator in the backseat took charge and redirected us from oblivion back to the path of righteousness—err, I mean, the correct road.

Wildlife encounters on the Journey

The drive to Ihaha was like a wildlife documentary on fast-forward. We had front-row seats to buffalo herds, elephant crossings, and hippos having a river rave. The highlight? A mother elephant and her calf. As the baby finished its liquid lunch, it keeled over and decided to stage a road nap between its mother’s legs, “bones in the light”. While we waited, stuck and staring, they slowly formed a protective circle as the baby took a midday snooze. At this point, even the river was giving us looks like, “You should’ve stayed on the scenic route, pal.”

A herd of Buffalo at Ihaha
A herd of Buffalo at Ihaha

Setting up camp

Arrival at Ihaha Camp was nothing short of majestic. We snagged a prime spot under a massive sausage tree, right by the Chobe River. The view? Chef’s kiss. We had the tents up in no time—everyone had their tasks, and it was like a well-choreographed dance, minus the grace. With the sun setting over the river, we dined on the gourmet delight that is boloroni (yes, that’s a thing, Google it), made on our trusty Safari Chef, and washed it down with some G&Ts, while impalas had their own sundowner party by the water. If you ever want to feel fancy while eating boloroni, just add a Chobe River sunset.

Ablutions

Now, let’s talk ablutions. Considering the camp’s remote location, the facilities were surprisingly clean and well-maintained. The showers are indoors, inside a solid building, and while hot water is provided sporadically—thank the solar-powered geysers—the showers are functional and decent. A good tip we followed: don’t walk to the ablutions after dark unless you’re keen on encountering nocturnal wildlife up close.

The next day kicked off with coffee, rusks, and an impala ballet in the floodplains. I kid you not, those impalas were having a blast—prancing, chasing each other, and generally looking like they’d had too much coffee themselves. Our morning drive brought us face-to-face with an enormous buffalo herd, and let me tell you, buffalo don’t care about your itinerary. A quick reverse later, we spotted some kudu and waterbuck, but the big cats were playing hide-and-seek with us that day. Typical.

Impala form our "porch"
Impala form our “porch”

Getting robbed twice

Back at camp, a bunch of baboons thought they’d try their hand at thievery—stealing our stash of emergency compressed grapeseed firewood like it was some kind of baboon-approved treasure. It was like watching a baboon version of Ocean’s Eleven. But the star of the show? A honey badger. This little legend strolled in like he owned the place and proceeded to help himself to our garlic fried rice. I tried negotiating with a chicken leg (badger: 1, me: 0). But it wasn’t just rice he had his eye on—our Pro Active freeze-dried food crate also caught his attention. As he began clawing at it, I finally scored a point, fending him off with a fire extinguisher before he could feast on our survival stash. Victory was mine! (Barely.)

Nocturnal Adventures

As the day wrapped up, we settled in with a bottle of Monkey Shoulder whisky, reflecting on our role as extras in the wildlife theatre of Ihaha. Just when I thought the drama was over, a leopard decided to announce its presence with a scream from the bushes—right next to camp, of course. Later that night, when my wife braved the dark for a quick bathroom break, the leopard screeched again, practically on our doorstep. Let’s just say I’m glad she was half-asleep and didn’t notice how close it was—because the adrenaline levels were already at max capacity.

By morning, the only evidence of our nocturnal visitors were paw prints—leopard, jackal, who knows what else. With camp packed up and a last glance at the wildlife-rich floodplains, we rolled out, already scheming about our next wild adventure.

Conclusion

Ihaha Camp isn’t just a campsite—it’s like camping on the front lines of a wildlife soap opera, where the stars are elephants, impalas, and the occasional honey badger with a taste for garlic rice and freeze-dried gourmet. If you’re looking for rustic charm with a side of wild, this is the place to pitch your tent.

Have you been to Ihaha, let us know what you think by joining the discussion on the Forum!

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