With cosy and comfortable cottages, lush greenery and scenic barbecue areas located on the banks of the Notwane river, the Waterside Cottages just on the outskirts of Gaborone offer a great option for couples, small or larger families to escape the bustle of the city and unwind in peace and tranquility.

After having gone through a global pandemic and having welcomed a new addition to our family at the same time, it had been a long while since RBOF had actually been on the road in any way, shape or form.  Seven months after welcoming our new camper to the family, we decided to brave out into the bush and spend a day and night with him in the chalets at the Mokolodi Nature Reserve.  Our streak of "bush excitement" was still as present as ever though...

​We were in the middle of the Mokolodi Nature Reserve, near Gaborone, Botswana. It was a hot and dusty afternoon.  I had sliced open my index finger with a knife. Our First Aid kit was somewhere at home.  Our baby was tired and crying.  And the battery on our 4x4 was dead...

We woke up at around 7am on our second morning at Ihaha rest camp in the Chobe National Park in northern Botswana, having only slept for about three hours the night before. The massive tree branch that had snapped in the middle of the night, crashing onto our roof tent and car was now lying about a metre away from the vehicle.  We were tired, sore, hot and still in shock but those evil Camping Gods were not done with us yet.

What better way to end off a very busy work year and to get some much needed rest  & relaxation than to go camping in northern Botswana for about a week? Well, it would seem we had angered the Camping Gods in 2018 and they were not having any of this “R&R” nonsense.  It was going to be one of “THOSE” kind of trips and we had no idea what was coming!

Most of our online research about the Moremi Game Reserve in north-western Botswana, and more specifically, Third Bridge Campsite within the MGR, revealed that this was proper, wild bush camping in the sense that you were in the middle of the wilderness and wild animals will be a common sighting in camp. This sounded perfect to us and thus we went and spent 3 nights of semi-camping at Third Bridge Campsite.

Having reached Khankwe 04 campsite in the very late afternoon, we cautiously watched the charcoal grey clouds creep in from the North and the South bringing the darkness with it much sooner than we had hoped. As the dark clouds loomed, the plastic wrapping that held our firewood was getting wet on the outside as the drizzle began. No sense in lighting the fire as the rain fell, but we did need some sort of lighting to make us feel safe in the pitch black of the Khutse Game Reserve. That's where the LightFORCE LED Strip Light, foldable and waterproof camplight comes in!

It has become tradition with us that anytime we decide to go camping, something will always turn up or happen that will make the trip that much more exciting or frustrating or nerve-wrecking (or in most cases all three).  Our latest trip to Khutse involved fire, rain, magnificent sunsets and an elephant charge!

Some might say that packing space when camping is more valuable than having enough water on your trip! Ok, not really, but it is an important factor when planning for and going on a camping trip.  According to some campers, arranging your gear and foodstuffs in your vehicle is a fine art and having the right kind of storage boxes can make your packing arrangement look like the Mona Lisa of camping.  We tested and reviewed the Camp Master Utility Box storage units and here's what we think of them.