Makgadikgadi & Nxai Pans Region Hotels

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Makgadikgadi & Nxai Pans Region Information

Makgadikgadi & Nxai Pans Region...

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Overview

Makgadikgadi and Nxai Pans Region
Nata
Ntwetwe Pan
Kubu Island
Nata Bird Sanctuary
Makgadikgadi and Nxai Pan National Park
Sowa Pan
Makgadikgadi Pans National Park
Nxai Pan National Park
Baines Baobab

Introducing Makgadikgadi & Nxai Pans Region

Nata

Nata is a small village situated at the crossroads for routes north and west providing an important refuelling place fortravellers heading to Kasane or Maun in Botswana, Southern Africa. Nata is located 190km from Francistown and 300km from both Kasane and Maun. This region of Botswana is characterized by cattle-farming. The nearby Nata Bird Sanctuary is a community project and is well worth a visit. About 165 bird species including flamingoes and pelicans can be observed here. Sowa Pan with its unique beauty and beaches of rolled quartz pebbles also provides outstanding bid viewing opportunities in Botwsana.

Ntwetwe Pan

The Ntwetwe Pan covers more area than its eastern neighbour, Sua Pan. The Ntwetwe Pan used to be fed by the waters of the Boteti, but they were diverted at Mopipi Dam to provide water for the Orapa diamond mine and the pan is now almost completely dry. The western shore of the Ntwetwe Pan in Botswana is probably the most interesting in the Makgadikgadi area, with landscapes of rocky outcrops, dunes, islets, channels and spits.

Kubu Island, Botswana

Kubu Island in Botswana rises no more than 20 meters above the Sowa Pan. Kubu Island is a national monument: fossil beaches, stunted baobab trees and mysterious stone walls make for a great visit. This scrap of rock and its ghostly baobab trees is surrounded by the sea of salt. The real name of the island, but less known, is Lekhubu which stands for 'ridge' in the Setswana language. It is the most famous of all the rock islands in the Makgadikgadi of Botswana. Most of the rock islands in this region of Southern Africa are remnants of ancient sand dunes. Kubu Island is different in that it is one of the scatterings of granite islands.

Nata Bird Sanctuary

The Nata Bird Sanctuary in Botswana was established in the early 1990s on the far northeastern edge of the Sowa Pan. Apart from the Makgadikgadi and Nxai Pan National Park in Botswana, the Nata Bird Sanctuary is the only protected reserve in this region. It is a 230 sq km community project designed as a refuge for the wildlife on and around Sua Pan. Mammal species are restricted to antelope (hartebeest, kudu, reedbuck, springbok and steenbok) and springhares, jackals, foxes, monkeys and squirrels. Eland, gemsbok and zebra are being re-introduced, and current plans include engineering a permanent water hole, which will be filled with pumped water from the Nata riverbed.

Makgadikgadi and Nxai Pan National Park

The Makgadikgadi Pans Game Reserve and Nxai Pan National Park were established concurrently in the early 1970s. The Nxai Pan National Park was extended south to the main Gweta/Maun road , it adjoins now the Makgadikgadi Pans Game Reserve, which was renamed "The Makgadikgadi Pans National Park" to form one vast area covering just under 7,500km2. The Makgadikgadi and Nxai Pan National Park in Botswana comprises the Ntwetwe Pan, the Makgadikgadi Pans, the Nxai Pan, Baines' Baobabs and Kudiakam Pan.

Sowa Pan

The Bushman word for salt is 'sowa'. The Sowa Pan is a vast white expanse of the largest natural Salt Pans in the world. During the rainy season the Nata River carries water into the Sowa Pan filling the northern part of the pan and attracting an array of waterbirds including flamingos, pelicans, ducks and teals. The Sowa pan and the western Ntwetwe in Botswana are important breeding sites for the flamingos who migrate here from the Etosha National Park, Namibia, and as far as East Africa.

Makgadikgadi Pans National Park

The Makgadikgadi Pans National Park is located about halfway between Maun and Nata on the Francistown road in northern section of Botswana. The roads within the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park are rough and in many cases very sandy, so it is essential to have a 4x4 vehicle for visitors who drive themselves. It is also wise to carry water and travel in tandem with a second vehicle.

Nxai Pan National Park

The Nxai Pan National Park is located in close proximity to the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park. The Nxai Pan National Park covers 2,578 square kilometres. Within the Nxai Pan National Park there are two small public camping grounds with ablution facilities; one in the south on the edge of the plain, less than 2 kilometres from the entrance gate, and the other in the north, 8 kilometres from the gate, within mopane woodland.

Baines Baobab cluster of trees in Botswana / Seven Sisters

Baines Baobabs were named after the famous painter and explorer of the last century Thomas Baines, who painted this unusual group of baobabs in 1862 during his journeys through Southern Africa. This remarkable cluster of trees, also known as Seven Sisters, has been immortalized by other painters as well, including Prince Charles. Today, the scene that captivated Baines, inspiring him to record the formation on canvas, is little changed and still attracts the attention of visitors, although now the baobabs are recorded on film.

Makgadikgadi & Nxai Pans Region Hotels