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Photo by George Guille, It's going to be a long 300km... Bolivian Amazon

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by George Guille
It's going to be a long 300km...
Bolivian Amazon



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  #1  
Old 19 Jul 2016
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Chobe Botswana

Has anyone ridden through this? The road/ track looks pretty cool to ride.
Found some pics of the signs at the gate and can't see anything saying that bikes aren't permitted like some SA parks do.

I'd be coming from the south.
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Old 20 Jul 2016
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Originally Posted by tmotten View Post
Has anyone ridden through this? The road/ track looks pretty cool to ride.
Yea we drove a truck trough Chobe during rainy season. Big river crossings and so. Nice video:



http://schoene-motorradtouren.de/?report=lkw_tour
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Old 20 Jul 2016
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Thanks. Anybody on a bike?

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Old 20 Jul 2016
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I've ridden through Chobe NP on the transit road (tarmac). Be surprised if bikes are allowed anywhere else. Saw a big herd of ellies on the way.
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Old 21 Jul 2016
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no bikes in chobe,moremi.
park in kasane and go on a game drive.
make sure to go on a chobe river sunset cruise,we liked it so much we went
twice.can be arranged at almost any lodge.

maybe camp at senyatti lodge.

4x4 community forum.za has loads of great information

have fun
kp
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Old 21 Jul 2016
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Dang. That sucks. I'm allergic to tarmac. What are my options then?

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Old 21 Jul 2016
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A couple of years ago I rode from Ngoma to Kasane, which is the transit route through the Chobe Game Reserve. Yep, was tarmac, but quite a few heaps of fresh elephant dung. Dense bush all along the road. Was sort of scary to travel on a heavily packed bike
At Kasane there's a nice lodge with a campsite.
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Old 21 Jul 2016
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Originally Posted by kpredator View Post
no bikes in chobe,moremi.
park in kasane and go on a game drive.
make sure to go on a chobe river sunset cruise,we liked it so much we went
twice.can be arranged at almost any lodge.

maybe camp at senyatti lodge.

4x4 community forum.za has loads of great information

have fun
kp
I won't be able to get there from Maun if they won't let me through. Looks like there aren't many options to avoid pavement in Botswana it seems.
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Old 22 Jul 2016
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Not many game parks/reserves will let you in on a bike- the chewed remains of a dusty overlander next to his bike with claw marks in the seat might freak out the gentle tourists who flew in to see the big cats. It is a bit of a schlep from Maun to Kasane- worst bit is the Caprivi which is a long dull road (although plenty of ellies around- we saw a herd of three dozen) treat yourself to a night at Nunda River lodge near Divundu to make it bearable...

Plenty of off tarmac in Bots, just not in the game parks- the pans will keep you amused, plenty of tough sand too. The Chobe Transit route ain't that bad:

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Old 22 Jul 2016
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I'll have a look at those places when I get to the office. Have there been attacked by cats on bikes? Haven't heard of any by bears here in NA. Had a black flee right in front of my front wheel. They've attacked mountain bikers but I'm thinking motorbikes are too fast and large.

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Old 22 Jul 2016
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Not many game parks/reserves will let you in on a bike- the chewed remains of a dusty overlander next to his bike with claw marks in the seat might freak out the gentle tourists who flew in to see the big cats. It is a bit of a schlep from Maun to Kasane- worst bit is the Caprivi which is a long dull road (although plenty of ellies around- we saw a herd of three dozen) treat yourself to a night at Nunda River lodge near Divundu to make it bearable...

Plenty of off tarmac in Bots, just not in the game parks- the pans will keep you amused, plenty of tough sand too. The Chobe Transit route ain't that bad:
I'm not sure if I'm understanding your suggestion but I think that may be because I didn't clarify that I'll be reaching Botswana from Northern Namibia. But are you suggesting riding the Namibian Caprivi pan handle towards Zambia instead?

I was hoping to be able to do this. Blue is tarmac, magenta is dirt. Just about all the dirt options I see on here are blocked by parks it seems.

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Old 24 Jul 2016
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Ah, I see. If you're going to Kasane via Maun from (eg) the Mohembo crossing area then it's a bit of a schlep across to Nata before heading north. That said, you'll be able to do some riding in the pans on the way. I loved the Okavango and of course Maun (recommend Island Safari Lodge) is the place to be to get a boat in. I can see why the shortcut would be attractive in that case.

In some places you might be able to talk your way in to a park/game conservancy with a bike (that's definitely been done), but probably not in Botswana. Might be worth having a look on Wilddogs and seeing if anyone has squeezed through the fence.

Dunno if anyone on a bike has ever been caught by a cat- there have been some encounters- would scare me shitless! Look at that Chinese woman who got killed a day or two ago in a wildlife park near Beijing- mauled by a tiger cos she got out of her car Darwin Award nominee there I reckon!
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Old 25 Jul 2016
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Well, if you come from norther Namibia, then you've had many options to see elephants and giraffes in the wild (no tarmac, no gate, no permit). Bots is made for wealthy people on package tour, not for dirt bikes.

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Old 25 Jul 2016
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I've received suggestions to ride the cut lines on the wilddog forum. I'll look into that. Looks pretty cool actually.

I used to work with a South African environmental scientist who worked in the bush. He's not too worried about wild cats but shit scared of the ones in the lion parks who are used to and without fear of humans.
Off course he has no experience on bikes.

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Old 30 Jul 2016
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Chobe Botswana

Mikumi NP is the only one you are allowed to drive through by bike



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Last edited by Überflieger; 5 Oct 2016 at 20:52.
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