Ride and Walk Botswana – now closed
** THIS CAMP IS NOW CLOSED. OTHER CAMPS YOU MIGHT CONSIDER ARE OKAVANGO HORSE SAFARIS AND AFRICAN HORSEBACK SAFARIS **
Ride and Walk (RAW) Botswana is based at Motswiri Camp on the edge of the beautiful Selinda Spillway at the western end of the Selinda Reserve in northern Botswana. The spillway is an ancient watercourse linking the Okavango and Kwando-Linyanti rivers and their vast flood plains, and in 2009 it filled with water for the first time in 30 years.
Accommodation & Facilities
Set in a shaded position on the raised banks of the Spillway, Motswiri has just five authentic safari tents set on raised decks, which are airy, spaced well apart with their own en-suite bathrooms, a large verandah and viewing deck, and spacious bedrooms. The central mess boasts a large, comfortable lounge and a separate dining area, along with a pool on its own deck. The mess has wonderful views of the spillway and the wildlife that is attracted to it. The camp blends into its setting very well, and is solar powered to minimise its impact on the environment. Meals are often eaten outside, allowing guests to enjoy Botswana’s enviable climate and spectacular starlit night skies.
Wildlife & Activities
Ride and Walk Botswana specialises in carefully tailored riding and walking safaris, on the vast open plains of the Okavango delta to the immediate west and the riverine forest of the Spillway to the north and east, making this one of the most diverse and geographically interesting places in Botswana for riders and walkers. Ride and Walk Botswana has a barn of 24 horses, including Thoroughbreds, Boerperds, Arabs and Kalahari crosses, and sizes ranging from 14.2 – 16.1 hands. The horses are very well schooled, well fed and cared for, acclimatised to the area and to the wildlife that you may encounter. Guests have a choice of English or trail saddles. Rides will not normally comprise more than six guests, and all are led by an excellent guide accompanied by a back-up rider. Riders can expect to spend around six hours per day in the saddle, and they should be comfortable at all paces should they have to gallop out of trouble. Keen riders can also enjoy other equestrian activities such as jumping and polocrosse.
Ride and Walk Botswana also welcomes non-riding guests, who can enjoy a wide range of activities such as walking, fishing, mokoro trips, boat trips, day and night game drives, fly-camping or simply relaxing by the pool. Some of these activities are naturally dependent on water levels in the Spillway, but flexibility is key at Motswiri Camp and guests can do as much or as little as they want.
The wildlife that might be seen here includes giraffe, zebra, tsessebe, lion, leopard, cheetah, the rare roan antelope, sable and wild dog. Many large herds of elephant and buffalo migrate through the reserve during the year and there are also fantastic birding opportunities as a result of the diverse vegetation.
