South Africa Safari! Africa

Africa has always been fascinating to me. Why, you may ask yourself, would I ever visit such a dangerous place? Not only are there lions, snakes, and hyenas… Most of the African countries have wars, terrorism, and high murder rates. So what would possess someone to go there? Africa gets under your skin. At least it got under mine. I've only traveled to two African countries but I left with that feeling and can't wait to go back. It's something I can't quite put my finger on, but I think I've got a clue.

Hobby farm, Kimberly, South Africa

Addo Elephant Park, South Africa

People ask about the animals, and they are marvelous when you come from a place like northern Europe. You can get up-close and see wildebeests, giraffe, elephants or even lions in their native habitat. But Africa is so much more than just the animals. It is this vast never-ending beautiful piece of heaven. Here the stars shine just a little brighter. The air smells just a little cleaner. The grass is just a little greener. The landscape is magnificent and ever-changing. There is no place like Africa. Welcome to the continuum of time and history.

How would I sell a trip to Africa? Anyone who has ever visited Africa will know, there is no need to sell this continent. Once you have been here, the longing to go back will never leave your soul. Who wouldn't want to fall asleep to a wildlife lullaby of lions roaring and hippos grunting. Enjoy the wide, open spaces of the vast countryside. See the sun rise and set over spectacular scenery and wonder why mother nature ever allowed humans to interfere with perfection.

Hobby farm, Kimberly, South Africa

Safari Game/hobby-farm, South Africa

Safaris are the way to encounter the wild animals. You are safe in a car and yet you can get pretty up-close to these big, wild animals. There are different types of Safaris and they all give you a different adventure. Some might not be for you. I personally loved all of them. One of the good things about visiting a gaming farm is that the owner more or less knows where the animals are located. The farms are fairly small compared with visiting Serengeti so there is often a higher chance of finding the animals. Quite often the hobby/game-farms also have the option of getting you a bit closer, because they own the animals and know their location. You can get candlelight dinner in the open. Bushwalk and have a look at some of the smaller animals up-close. They also offer more freedom in terms of safari types.

Hobby farm, Kimberly, South Africa

There's nothing quite like a nighttime safari. Here you will see animals in their nocturnal pursuits of other animals, or maybe just trying to avoid the spotlight shone on them from a moving vehicle. My experience included two rhinoceros acting like ostriches and hiding their heads in the bush while the rest of their bodies were still fully visible on the dirt road. Once the rhinoceroses discovered this they pulled their heads back out, ran 15 meters further down the road, and tried the same thing once more. It was hilarious seeing two full grown enormous giants acting like teenagers trying to hide dirty magazines under the bed. We had spotters with us on the night safari, just to point out the animals to our untrained eyes. I’ve been on two-night safaris and both times I’ve loved the complete darkness, the spotlight moving around the bush and take my responsibility as co-spotter of great African animals very serious… and had a blast. When not staring into the darkness, the stars are a beautiful distraction. I have rarely seen the milky-way more bright, or the moon more spectacular.

Day Safaris are often conducted either early mornings, just after sunrise or close to sunset. This is because most of the animals we are longing to see are lazy and find a nice shaded place to chill during the hottest hours of the day. Most of these game-farms have a luxury compound with a pool and beautiful “bush-cabins” where you can chill during the hottest hours of the day. So while the animals take cover and relax you have the option of chilling in the pool or getting a cold drink from the bar.

Though a predator is still beautiful while lying down, it is so much more majestic when standing up…or even when hunting.
If you want the full experience on your trip into the bush or savanna you will be an early bird and be up at dawn. The animals make a lot of noise so you will probably be awake around this time anyway. Jump onboard and meet thousands of wildebeests running fast on the green grass. Count giraffe, an animal that looks like something from another world, when their heads stick above the trees. Encounter the big five, the kings of Africa, presenting themselves like true royalty, or simply wave hello to Pumba on the drive by.


Hobby farm, Kimberly, South Africa

Want an encounter out of the ordinary? Go searching for the dung beetle and see them roll their dung around with their back. It is a spectacular adventure and you have a chance to see it up-close because you are on private property.

Addo Elephant Park, South Africa

If it is elephants you want to see, then head to Addo Elephant Park. Addo Elephant National Park is the third largest national park in South Africa (after Kruger National Park and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park). Here you can investigate and explore a world of diversity. As the name gives away, Addo Elephant Park is the famous home of Elephants.
They once roamed the entire continent. By 1979 there were only 1.3 million African elephants left, and in 1989 they were added to the international list of the most endangered species, with only sixteen left in the Greater Addo area.
Now more than 600 elephants live here alongside 400 Cape buffaloes and 48 endangered black rhinos. The park, of course, has a huge variety of antelope species, birds, and other animals as well. But it is the elephants that are most important. The Elephants play a key role in the environment, when you drive around you’ll see why. They are pulling down trees, breaking up bushes, and digging waterholes and trails. Even their droppings are important to maintain the park’s ecosystem. Baboons and birds pick them over for undigested seeds and nuts, and the dung beetles use them to reproduce.
It was here I first saw ostriches doing mating dances. Looking like a show-girl doing a fan-dance these glorious creatures were graciously dancing around each other in a perfectly coordinated performance, where we just had to stop the car to see if they could keep up the perfect performance.
The Park stretches from the semi-arid karoo of the north, over the Zuurberg Mountains and down through the Sundays River valley to the coast, to in-between the mouths of the Sundays and Bushman's rivers.

Addo Elephant Park, South Africa

Africa has so much to offer, I don't even know where or how to begin to put it all into writing. All I can write is… visit Africa, and you will know what I mean when I say Africa gets under your skin.