{"id":4462,"date":"2017-07-11T10:04:13","date_gmt":"2017-07-11T10:04:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/?p=4462"},"modified":"2019-07-15T12:32:03","modified_gmt":"2019-07-15T12:32:03","slug":"okavango-2017-flood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood","title":{"rendered":"Record Rains in the Okavango Delta in 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The dry sands of the Kalahari have been thirsting for water over the last few years. Each wet season the people and the animals of the Okavango gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain.<\/p>\n<p>But 2017 in the Okavango Delta has been different; their calls were finally answered loud and clear.<\/p>\n<p>Northern Botswana has been pummelled with some of the largest volumes of rain in years, providing well-needed relief for thousands of thirsty animals living along the rivers and pans of this vast World Heritage Site. Some areas received over 1000mm; which is a huge amount for a semi-arid desert in the Kalahari basin.<\/p>\n<p>An update from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/lodge\/machaba-camp\">Machaba Camp<\/a> in the Moremi Game Reserve:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;This season there has seen more water than one could imagine with the rainwater overflowing the river banks. Floodplains are all submerged and we have access to half the concession. The airstrip also felt the aftermath of the tremendous amounts of rain the Delta has experienced this season, where one can now view hippos on the submerged runway via a mokoro!<\/p>\n<p>No secret that the cats of the Delta are not the biggest fans of getting their toes wet, with leopards spending an obscene amount of their time elevated patiently waiting for the water to dissipate to roam their full territories again. Lions are elevated\u00a0into the trees to gain a better vantage point and to keep dry.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"max-width aligncenter wp-image-4481 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg\" alt=\"okavago 2017\" width=\"1440\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=900,height=600,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=375,height=250,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=450,height=300,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=768,height=512,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-horsesafaris-botswana-timbuktu-travel.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1440px) 100vw, 1440px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Now that the rains are over for the season, the lodges in the delta have been waiting with baited breath to see what this year\u2019s Okavango flood will look like.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-delta-fluke-nature\">annual floods<\/a> are the lifeblood for animals and people living in the Okavango, as the swollen rivers from Angola pour down, reaching the Okavango pan handle in May and spreading out into the delta throughout June and July. Some lodges even held concerns of high water levels in the delta flooding buildings and airstrips!<\/p>\n<p>But it\u2019s now early July, and the floods have yet to arrive in any large capacity!<\/p>\n<p>According to data from the Namibia Hydrology, flood levels this year have been very low coming into the delta. 2015 and 2016 had much higher peak surges in water, and this year we are yet to see any significant influx.<\/p>\n<div id=\"timbuktu-wp\"><link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css?family=Merriweather:700|Open+Sans:300,600\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/africa-safari?action=DesignATrip&wId=001\" class=\"no_underline timbuktu-test-class\" target=\"_blank\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_container image-included\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner \" data-entity-type=\"country\" data-country-id=\"10000000\">\n                    <figure><img src=https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/images\/affiliate\/timbuktu-general-african-safari.jpg?w=500&h=634&auto=format&fit=min&dpr=2&q=50&crop=center bottom data-country-id=\"10000000\" class=\"timbuktu_desktop_image\" alt=\"General Image\"><img src=https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/images\/affiliate\/timbuktu-general-african-safari.jpg?w=768&h=309&auto=format&fit=min&dpr=1&q=50&crop=center bottom data-country-id=\"10000000\" class=\"timbuktu_mobile_image\" alt=\"General Image\"><\/figure><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_copy\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_heading\">Design your own trip<\/div>\n                        <span class=\"timbuktu_works\">Choose a destination, pick your properties and we'll do the rest<\/span>\n                        <div class=\"timbuktu_button\" style=\"background-color:#128d8d\">Design a trip<\/div>\n                        \n                    <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                    <\/div><\/a><\/div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"max-width aligncenter wp-image-4484 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg\" alt=\"okavango 2017\" width=\"1440\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=900,height=600,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=375,height=250,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=450,height=300,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=768,height=512,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/wilderness-elephants-okavango-delta-timbuktu-travel.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1440px) 100vw, 1440px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>So where is all the water?<\/p>\n<p>One theory goes that all the rain that northern Botswana received earlier this year was the rain that was diverted from the Angolan highlands, shifting south and falling over the Kalahari desert in Botswana. So perhaps the water that is supposed to come into the delta this year has already fallen in the delta\u2026 a strange turn of events.<\/p>\n<p>The constant change in channel \u00a0and flood dynamics means certain parts of the Okavango receive changing amounts of water each year with some areas being in a drying phase while others receive water for the first time in decades.\u00a0This year, there has been a slight drop in water levels north of Chief\u2019s Island, and some of the permanent swamp areas are not seeing much water. Northern Chiefs Island is one of the most spectacular game areas in the Okavango, and this is not likely to change, with the wildlife concentrating around water sources and permanent pans in the delta.<\/p>\n<p>The strong rains have filled many of the floodplains and rivers in the southern Delta, and into the Moremi Game Reserve, but these levels will soon drop too if more flood water does not come down from the north. If the floods don\u2019t come, the net result for the delta will be a dry second half of the year as the rain waters evaporate and leave.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"max-width alignnone wp-image-4468 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg\" alt=\"okavango 2017\" width=\"1440\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=900,height=600,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=375,height=250,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=450,height=300,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=768,height=512,fit=crop,quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/mokoro-safari-okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu-2-copy.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1440px) 100vw, 1440px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The delta is well known for its water-based safaris, and while it\u2019s hard to say how these dynamics will affect certain areas now (Boat cruises,\u00a0mokoro trips). If you are thinking of travelling to the delta this year, get in touch with us as we are monitoring the situation carefully. We\u2019ll be able to tell you where\u2019s best to go, and give you the latest insight and information.<\/p>\n<p>All in all, it remains an interesting time for the Okavango Delta hydrology, and that\u2019s what makes visiting this dynamic, unique and fascinating wonder so much of a thrill!<\/p>\n<div id=\"timbuktu-wp\"><link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css?family=Merriweather:700|Open+Sans:300,600\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/wizard\/start?action=StartTheWizard&wId=001\" class=\"no_underline timbuktu-test-class\" target=\"_blank\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_container image-included\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner \" data-entity-type=\"country\" data-country-id=\"10000001\">\n                    <figure><img src=https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/images\/affiliate\/start-africa-safari-wizard-timbuktu-travel.jpg?w=500&h=634&auto=format&fit=min&dpr=2&q=50&crop=center center data-country-id=\"10000001\" class=\"timbuktu_desktop_image\" alt=\"Wizard Image\"><img src=https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/images\/affiliate\/start-africa-safari-wizard-timbuktu-travel.jpg?w=768&h=309&auto=format&fit=min&dpr=1&q=50&crop=center center data-country-id=\"10000001\" class=\"timbuktu_mobile_image\" alt=\"Wizard Image\"><\/figure><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_copy\"><div class=\"timbuktu_banner_heading\">Not sure where to go?<\/div>\n                        <span class=\"timbuktu_works\">Answer a few simple questions to get instant trip recommendations<\/span>\n                        <div class=\"timbuktu_button\" style=\"background-color:#128d8d\">Start the wizard<\/div>\n                        \n                    <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                    <\/div><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>But where\u2019s the flood water?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":4477,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[53,4104,3298,3297,2786,4087,3296,1541,4096,1540,79,87,1446],"class_list":["post-4462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-safari","tag-botswana","tag-chiefs-island","tag-july","tag-june","tag-kalahari","tag-machaba-camp","tag-may","tag-mokoro","tag-moremi-game-reserve","tag-okavango","tag-okavango-delta-2","tag-safari","tag-water-safari"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Timbuktu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/timbuktutravel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1440\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Holly Allison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@timbuktu_travel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@timbuktu_travel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Holly Allison\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Holly Allison\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e620200268902e3da171acaa838c214b\"},\"headline\":\"Record Rains in the Okavango Delta in 2017\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood\"},\"wordCount\":788,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/cdn-cgi\\\/image\\\/quality=50,format=auto\\\/https:\\\/\\\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\\\/2017\\\/07\\\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Botswana\",\"Chief\u2019s Island\",\"July\",\"June\",\"kalahari\",\"Machaba Camp\",\"May\",\"mokoro\",\"Moremi Game Reserve\",\"Okavango\",\"okavango delta\",\"Safari\",\"water safari\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Safari\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood\",\"name\":\"Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/cdn-cgi\\\/image\\\/quality=50,format=auto\\\/https:\\\/\\\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\\\/2017\\\/07\\\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00\",\"description\":\"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/cdn-cgi\\\/image\\\/quality=50,format=auto\\\/https:\\\/\\\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\\\/2017\\\/07\\\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/cdn-cgi\\\/image\\\/quality=50,format=auto\\\/https:\\\/\\\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\\\/2017\\\/07\\\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg\",\"width\":1440,\"height\":960},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/okavango-2017-flood#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Record Rains in the Okavango Delta in 2017\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Timbuktu\",\"description\":\"Stories from Africa\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Timbuktu Travel\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/logo.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&ixlib=php-3.3.1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/logo.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&ixlib=php-3.3.1\",\"width\":696,\"height\":696,\"caption\":\"Timbuktu Travel\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/timbuktutravel\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/timbuktu_travel\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/timbuktu_travel\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.timbuktutravel.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e620200268902e3da171acaa838c214b\",\"name\":\"Holly Allison\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Holly Allison\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?","description":"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?","og_description":"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood","og_site_name":"Timbuktu","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/timbuktutravel\/","article_published_time":"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1440,"height":960,"url":"https:\/\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Holly Allison","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@timbuktu_travel","twitter_site":"@timbuktu_travel","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Holly Allison","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood"},"author":{"name":"Holly Allison","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e620200268902e3da171acaa838c214b"},"headline":"Record Rains in the Okavango Delta in 2017","datePublished":"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00","dateModified":"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood"},"wordCount":788,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg","keywords":["Botswana","Chief\u2019s Island","July","June","kalahari","Machaba Camp","May","mokoro","Moremi Game Reserve","Okavango","okavango delta","Safari","water safari"],"articleSection":["Safari"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood","url":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood","name":"Record Rains in the Okavango 2017 but where is the flood water?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg","datePublished":"2017-07-11T10:04:13+00:00","dateModified":"2019-07-15T12:32:03+00:00","description":"The Okavango 2017: Each wet season the people and the animals of the Delta gazed towards the sky in the hope of rain, their calls were finally answered.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/quality=50,format=auto\/https:\/\/assets.timbuktutravel.com\/2017\/07\/okavango-delta-botswana-timbuktu.jpg","width":1440,"height":960},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/okavango-2017-flood#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Record Rains in the Okavango Delta in 2017"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/","name":"Timbuktu","description":"Stories from Africa","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Timbuktu Travel","url":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\/2025\/08\/logo.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&ixlib=php-3.3.1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/timbuktutravel.imgix.net\/2025\/08\/logo.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&ixlib=php-3.3.1","width":696,"height":696,"caption":"Timbuktu Travel"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/timbuktutravel\/","https:\/\/x.com\/timbuktu_travel","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/timbuktu_travel"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e620200268902e3da171acaa838c214b","name":"Holly Allison","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ba77c954753dbf5b2ac1d20680581eecd98acc52dd68951f5338d1eac6c73900?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Holly Allison"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4462"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4462\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4477"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.timbuktutravel.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}