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The Kalahari Desert, an in-hospitable bush-covered plain, spreads over much of Botswana and westwards into Namibia and Angola. There is little surface water except during the rains which fall between October and March, usually as heavy showers which swiftly disappear either downwards into the hot sand or are sucked up by the burning sun. With the exception of a few dead river-beds and scattering of pans the area is featureless, long rolling plains lightly covered with bush and oc¬casional acacia trees. During the summer months temperatures rise and it is impossible to walk bare¬foot on the hot sand. This is the home of the Kalahari Bushman, conservationist par excellence.