4×4 Self-Drive Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, Botswana

A self-drive through the Makgadikgadi Pans in Botswana requires a high-clearance 4×4, proper recovery gear, and careful seasonal planning. The best time to traverse the dry salt flats is during the dry winter season from June to October. During the summer rains (December to March), the clay paths and pans can become impassable bogs.

The Boteti River originates from the outflow of the Okavango Delta and terminates at the Ntwetwe Pan in the Makgadikgadi Pans. This seasonal river is an essential lifeline in the dry season, and it can attract unusual amounts of species, with enormous herds of Zebra congregating here during their journey from the plains to the south. Hippopotamus and Crocodile live in the river and subsist in little pools of water during dry years, waiting for the river to flow.

In 2009, the Boteti River started flowing again after 30 years of non-flow, changing the landscape. Since then water levels have changed with the intermittent flooding and drying out of the river. In times of low rain, the waterholes in the river constitute a critical lifeline for the fauna of the area.