Self drive options Mababe depression

**Jules_inAfrica** · 2024/10/19, 10:25 PM

Does anyone have any information or experience in regards to exploring the Mababe Depression area?
There's a new luxury lodge (Mokete by Wilderness, very much out of our budget

) and several other high end lodges using the area now and driving from Savuti via the Marsh route towards Mababe Gate this October we saw several game viewers driving in the Marsh area visible from the main "marsh road" as well but couldn't find any tracks on T4A really.

The little information I've found online is suggesting this is a rather new area for game viewing and touristic use.
The area visible from the marsh road to and from Savuti central always looks so promising but until this year we never saw any vehicles other than along that main road.

I've attached a screenshot and marked the area, obviously the Mababe depression is not just this bit but this seems the most reachable from Mababe village (if there was tracks for self driving).

**CalDriver** · 2024/10/19, 11:13 PM

I’m not sure where the vehicles you were seeing were, but NG 41 appears to be a hunting concession. I have been eyeing Nogatsaa camp, which is NE of where you indicate. Perhaps there are seasonal tracks that aren’t shown on T4A where it floods?

**Jules_inAfrica** · 2024/10/19, 11:55 PM

No with binos you could definitely tell they were game viewing. And the lodges in that area are all non hunting from what I've found. And there are mobile operator sites close to Mababe Gate as well, maybe they drive there but we didn't really see any roads turning towards the area from the marsh road.
The Nogatsaa campsite is great, although obviously there could be more game viewing routes, but in the dry season you can just sit in the hide at the camp and wait.

**PAT n WOLF** · 2024/10/20, 10:23 PM

There are four tour operators camps near and after Mababe entrance, along that depression -Savuti road. Please don’t off-road because if they catch you it will be a problem. The game viewers you saw we doing illegal off-roading and had you reported at the entrance, they would have charged them or taken their guide licenses.
There is a plan to build roads to access that whole marsh towards the side of the floodplains from khwai river but the roads are not yet made. So we still drive along that Mababe entrance -Savuti road only.
I guess you are unfortunate. I have seen lion kill, cheetahs and soo many animals just along that road. Just this month we saw a strong buffaloes herd as we started that open depression area.
The area around Mogotho is a private concession so you are not allowed to access the area…

**Jules_inAfrica** · 2024/10/22, 06:35 PM

Originally Posted by PAT n WOLF

There are four tour operators camps near and after Mababe entrance, along that depression -Savuti road. Please don’t off-road because if they catch you it will be a problem. The game viewers you saw we doing illegal off-roading and had you reported at the entrance, they would have charged them or taken their guide licenses.
There is a plan to build roads to access that whole marsh towards the side of the floodplains from khwai river but the roads are not yet made. So we still drive along that Mababe entrance -Savuti road only.
I guess you are unfortunate. I have seen lion kill, cheetahs and soo many animals just along that road. Just this month we saw a strong buffaloes herd as we started that open depression area.
The area around Mogotho is a private concession so you are not allowed to access the area…

Thanks for the info!
I didn't mean to say the transit road is not worthwhile, we had a cheethah, lots of ellies, a giraffe kill by lions etc there on the way to and from Savuti. But it would still be nice to explore the marsh, so we'll wait for those roads!
We'd never drive offroad into an area with no roads, but since there were several cars all driving one way we kind of assumed that there's roads there we hadn't known about.