Having so much fun in Nata at ESELBE camp and backpackers, it was hard to get a move on. Not only because it was midnight and I had snoozed for an hour at the most. I had to proceed with my adventures, I have a timeline. I was on a mission. This will be my last surreal adventure in real nature.

Despite previous heavy rains, I decided to investigate an island of Eden engulfed in a sea of salt. It’s an island I had visited before, and it’s an island I have photographed and documented well. Lekhubu Island. This time?

Well, this time I had aerial support.

I left the happy camp in Nata at around midnight. My tired eyes barely opened as I had hardly any shut-eye. Too many beers on yet another warm night didn’t combine as well as I hoped for. At least I was able to rest my body before yet another epic adventure. My fellow traveler friends may have put a wager on whether I will leave or not. If I don’t go tonight, I won’t have time to go at all.

The sensible, and crazy way, to get to Lekhubu Island is to drive in milder temperatures at night. The drive itself would be more difficult and tiring to say the least. However, the risk of overheating with either Zimba or myself are significantly lower. At least. Risk assessment Botswana style.

I missed the turnoff to this narrow corrugated track. Anyone would have missed out as the entrance was barely visible through overgrown, thorny scrubs. These added a few more scratches to Zimba’s shiny coat as I navigated south. Straight up and ahead, the horizon exploded in a wild manner. Zimba and I were steering directly into a lightning storm in the very far distance. The lightning strikes looked amazing as they pulsated a spreadsheet of veins over an otherwise starry, clear night. It was the most adequate entertainment I could have asked for.

It was slow going as Zimba dug through some soft sand left right and center. However, at around 5 am, we caught up with the blitz. A battery of lightning flashed straight above me, whamm-bamm, thank you ma’am, as rolling thunder followed.

I felt like sitting in a rollercoaster of natural power. What a spectacular sight. I pulled over onto the high grass to enjoy the natural light presentation. Just wow. It was also a safe zone that even if it started raining heavily, I would still be able to manoeuvre my trusty companion.

We didn’t get much rain. Taking a lightning photo was yet another challenge. Shutter speed vs ISO.

As the storm moved out further west, first light made an appearance over the eastern horizon. Not much longer, a glowing ball emerged over salty pans.

How good is that? No one could have scripted the timing of this crusade any better. What an epic opening to this tale.

I passed a few tiny communities as the stony track broadened like a pan.

It’s too hot and dry for cellulite to decay.

One could see the danger of mud-sliding if continued heavy rains had fallen.

The objective of my adventure to this region came to be a little clearer.

This is the land of artistic giants.