After a somewhat disappointing game drive in Chobe National Park this morning, I’ve set aside any expectations I had for tonight’s sunset cruise along the Chobe River (an activity included in our tour; there’s no extra cost). But guess what? We spot tons of wildlife up close and enjoy a relaxing ride with sundowners (beer / cider / wine) to boot. It’s a pretty incredible evening and I’m eager to share these photos.

Let me start with a quick geography note — the Chobe River runs along the Botswana / Namibia border and then converges with the Zambia / Zimbabwe borders shortly thereafter. We don’t need our passports for the boat ride but we’re practically touching Namibia, which is kind of neat.

Here is our vessel for the next few hours:

Sunset is a few hours away and it’s HOT. For the first half hour or so people sit under the shade of the upper deck sipping chilled beverages (it’s BYOB), but then everyone crowds at the front of both decks when we approach wildlife. There are elephants everywhere.

There are dozens of other boats on the water. Ours is one of the biggest / most crowded, but the upper deck provides a vantage point that smaller boats lack.

Next up: hippos. Our captain steers the boat as close to land as possible.

These hippos bury their faces in mud. I’m surprised they haven’t sought out deeper water, as they normally don’t expose this much skin when the sun is out. Perhaps the mud acts as sun block.

We pass a boat of serious photographers with enormous lenses:

Think anyone would notice if I hop off my boat and onto theirs? I want in on this photography action.

Everyone’s eyes are drawn to giant crocodiles sunning themselves on the shore of the Chobe River.

Here’s another one. His mouth is open to regulate body temperature.

He eases into the water as our boat grows closer — his seven-foot-long body now entirely submerged, save for the top of his head poking out above the surface.

Another elephant herd…

And then we hear commotion nearby and spot yet ANOTHER elephant herd… where were all these guys at sunrise this morning?!

Two of them get into a loud fight, grunting and making shrill sounds as their ears flare back and trunks duel for power. They quiet down just as suddenly as they riled up, padding off into the brush.

Buffalo graze nearby:

There’s excellent bird watching along this cruise and I wish I had the lens (and fancy photo boat with tripods) to capture these little guys.

Wish sunset fast approaching, the upper deck becomes more crowded. We have a fantastic view of the river.

I’ve seen a handful of breathtaking sunsets in Africa, and this one ranks up there with the best of them.

Chobe River / National Park — you have redeemed yourself! The wildlife came out in full force this evening and put on quite a show. Honestly, even if we hadn’t seen that many animals, it’s hard to be anything but grateful when you’re cruising down a river at sunset with a drink in hand. This was a fabulous night.

I visited Botswana on a 30-day Nairobi to Joburg tour with Nomad Tours. They discounted my tour in exchange for blogging and photography; opinions are my own.