Adventures

The Northern Cape has numerous wonderful places for travelers to visit. It is a sanctuary for lovers of the outdoors, with its limitless wildlife, exclusive flora and striking scenery. It is a land of various ways of life, and has memoirs, stretching back thousands of years. Be sure to visit some of the following places on our Top 10 list.

1. Tswalu Kalahari Reserve

This mysterious desert wilderness situated on the edge of the Kalahari covers some 102 000 ha of land. Tswalu committed to "restoring the Kalahari to itself" is the largest privately owned game reserve in South African and a conservation vision in progress. Some of the highlights include true Kalahari Lions, majestic Cheetah and Desert Black Rhino. Tswalu with more than 250 species of bird is also home to 70 species of mammal, including Sable and Roan Antelope. Tswalu provides unparalleled safari experiences including guided walks, horseback safaris and hot air ballooning over the desert landscape.Being a member of the prestigious Relais & Chateaux you can be sure that guests are offered luxurious accommodation and splendid cuisine.

2. The Orange River

The River stretching 2340 km is ideal for canoeing and rafting with long stretches of open flat water punctuated by rapids and weather that is warm all year round. For wine lovers the Orange River Wine Route makes up 10% of South Africa's vineyards. The Cellars are made up of five wineries and the wine grapes of the Oranjerivier Wine Cellars originate from 794 producers along the Orange River.

3. The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

This Park is a result of the unification of South Africa's Kalahari Gemsbok Park and Botswana's Gemsbok National Park and a truly unspoiled ecosystem. The park, at 3.7 million hectares, is one of the largest conservation areas in the world.

4. The Kimberley Big Hole

In 1871, diamonds found on a once flat-topped hill resulted in a mad scramble for fame and fortune. The largest hand-dug excavation in the world is now known as the awesome Kimberley Big Hole. Dug by picks, shovels and sheer determination, measuring 215 metres deep with a surface area of 17 hectares - the mine yielded 2 722 kilograms of diamonds.

5. Augrabies Falls National Park

The world's sixth largest waterfall is where the mighty Orange River is at its most impressive. Thundering its way through a ravine and into a pool walled by sheer granite, creating the Augrabies Falls. The name of the falls originated from the Khoi word meaning 'place of great noise' which describes the roar as the falls plummet 56m into the ravine.

6. Sutherland

Sutherland is known for its brilliant night skies and the world-renowned Southern African Astronomical Observatory, a site that houses 10 telescopes, one being 'SALT' (Southern African Largest Telescope). It can record distant stars and galaxies a billion times too faint to be seen with the unaided eye.

7. Kuruman

This little town is blessed with a permanent and abundant source of water. Commonly known as the Kuruman Eye, the water flows from the Gasegonyana more densely vegetated than most oases. The Eye is a natural fountain delivering approximately 20-30 million litres of crystal clear water daily, which supplies water for the town, feeds the Kuruman River and spills yet more water into two 7km irrigation canal. It was this fresh source of water that led to the establishment of the Moffat Mission Station here in the early 1900th, naming the eye the 'fountain of Christianity'.

8. Richterveld National Park

The Richtersveld is hauntingly beautiful, with mountains and sandy plains forming Southern Africa's largest mountain desert park, an area covering 160 000 ha. Although harsh and dry, the Richtersveld is a botanist's living laboratory, home to around 30% of all South Africa's succulent plant species. The Richtersveld is an extremely fragile ecosystem, with less than 50 mm of annual rainfall. Suprisingly breathtaking, it offers rarely seen purity of an unspoilt country.

9. Kathu, "the town under the trees"

The name came into being because of Kumba's iron ore mining activities, one of the world's largest open-cast iron mines. The mine is also home to one of South Africa's greatest golfing gems, Sishen Golf Course, a truly unique setting to play a round of golf winding its way through a 500 hectare Camelthorn forest on the edge of the Kalahari Desert. This par 72, 18-hole course is the last masterpiece of Robert Grimsdell and is currently rated in the top 30 best golf courses in South Africa. Being situated off the beaten track, the course is blissfully un-congested and visitors are always assured of getting a game here.

10. The Namaqua National Park

Between July and September Namakwa sheds its drab facade and showers the world with a riot of flowers of every hue, offering rich and splendid brilliance. It contains more than 6 000 plant species, 250 species of birds, 78 species of mammals, 132 species of reptiles and amphibians and an unknown number of insects, making it the world's most diverse, arid environment. More than 40% of these species are found nowhere else on Earth.

Travelling With Friends

My mother used to say visitors were like fresh fish, great for the first two days, OK for the next day but that they start getting a little hard to bear on day four, as for days five and onwards, the fish or the friends….a little hard to bear!

Now try spending two weeks, in one four-by-four doing the “Botswana” or other safari “thing”… as passengers in a friend’s car, my wife and I looked forward to a stunning experience with two of our best friends.

Planning was fun with us enjoying many a meeting gathered around maps on the table, lists detailing packing methods, food and equipment, list upon list developed and added to around eventful evenings sharing good food and fruits of the vine. What for I call a friend, we have known each other for many years, shared fun and laughter and know each others good and bad points, personality failings and deepest secrets, that kind of friend is who I refer to in this context. To put this differently, forgive me if I over elaborate, we were all four, ready willing and able to head for the savannah together with no hesitation.



Going back to my mother for a moment, we once did the caravan “thing” with another family in a large caravan with supporting tents and spent two weeks in the rain, needless to say that was my mothers first and last camping trip. Moving on to the present, the day arrived and off we went, the first and last days being dedicated totally to travel, via the exciting metropolis of Maun and into what can only be described as one of the most wonderful of all the last remaining natural wonders of Africa.

Dare I digress again but with names like Moremi; Third Bridge and Savuti rolling of one’s tongue, if one can put to one side the exorbitant prices and the few acceptable facilities one should normally expect, this is top of the pops, bite the bullet, pack well and head for Botswana, it’s worth it.



Our friends are fanatical bird watchers….now lets put this into perspective, one gets nature lovers who enjoy a broad range of the boundless beauty of nature, like most of us, then one gets the nature lover who also takes a little turn towards birds – we are in this category, my wife and I watch birds, we do this in most places, we log them and we enjoy spotting the different birds in each region. We love climbing into a hide or securing a quiet spot, perhaps with a glass of Chardonnay, to sit and watch. We do not however need to spend fifteen minutes at each bird, particularly if it is the tenth example of the exact same bird on that particular game drive! To cut quite a long story short, by day three, when I had stopped to see a Superb Starling for the umpteenth time we were quite ready to never see another bird ever, and I mean ever again! Have you ever experienced real claustrophobia, the fear of closed or confined spaces? Well let me tell you, that was the smallest four-by-four that ever travelled Botswana, every time I was in the mood to gaze over a waterway to watch a family of Hippo frolicking about with the young males play-fighting, perhaps even a bird or two, we were allocated about thirty seconds tops and then whisked away to another Superb Starling or similar.

Thank goodness our friendship is and was so sufficiently strong we could deal with this, an agreement in the evening limiting a five minute stop and only for a first sighting or at least a good sighting was soon agreed and the four of us ended up sharing that can only be described as the holiday of our lives, made possible through friendship and trust. So much for the happy ending, how can you ensure the same thing when on a combined holiday:

• Most importantly, select a destination and friend carefully; repeat carefully, to ensure all of you have the same expectations and desires for your holiday enjoyment.

• Obviously, the friends would not be classified as such if you did not share similar interests in food; people; the environment; fun activities and the like. Make sure they are really friends, do you know them well, make sure you have been on the odd weekend away before you commit to something like the trip mentioned above or perhaps a yacht cruise or similar confined quarter.

• Agree everything in advance, where are you staying; what are the costs; who is responsible for what.

Travelling With The Family

Each year, thousands of families and couples set off on their summer vacations. It is the most popular time of year to take a holiday and everybody tends to have the same idea as the children break up from school.

There are a number of ways in which you can book your summer holiday and generally online is one of the best ways to go about it.

Booking a Summer Holiday

One of the first things that you need to do before you book your summer holiday, is to find out everything possible about where you want to go. This is because booking a holiday is not always as easy as it seems. You need to know where it is you want to travel to, whether you want package holidays or a self catering holiday and whether there will be children travelling with you. These questions need to be answered before you even look for a holiday as it will help to speed up the process of finding and booking one that you like. Also, your destination’s popularity will make a difference to your booking. If the destination is extremely popular for example, it is obviously likely to get booked up early and so you will need to make a booking several months in advance.

Once you know where it is you want to go and how many people are going, you can then go ahead and book the holiday. Usually most people prefer to use the services of a travel agent when they book their vacation. This is because travel agents know a lot more than you do about the various hotels, flights and packages which may be on offer. They organize everything for you and that leaves you with more time to prepare for the vacation.

However, whilst travel agents may be extremely helpful, that help does tend to come at a price. This means that if you are on a budget then it would be cheaper to arrange everything yourself. These days it is quite simple to plan everything yourself as the Internet gives you everything that you need and you can book a holiday at just the click of a button. Do not forget that if you are arranging everything yourself, you will need to consider everything from travelling to accommodation and activities whilst you are there.

Overall booking a holiday is not always as simple as it seems and it can cause a lot of stress. It is easier to be prepared and to know where you are going, what you want to do and who is going with you before you start. Also remember that if you want to use the services of a travel agent then it does not come for free.