Challenge:

Adventure

Destination:

*South Africa

Departure Dates From:

17/05/2008

Duration:

3 weeks

Kitty:

£ 0

Desert Tracker, 25 days Cape Town to Johannesburg

This is an action-packed safari journeying through diverse landscapes, eerie and barren desert, pounding Atlantic coastline, lush and prolific game parks, tranquil and peaceful wildernesses, and the thundering Victoria Falls. Experience them all by a range of exhilarating adventure activities that will pump you full of African adrenaline!

DAYS 1 - 7, Cape Town, Orange River, Swakopmund
Start in cosmopolitan Cape Town, one of the world's most picturesque cities, overlooked by Table Mountain and bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. We visit one of Cape Town's Townships cultural tour where we have a traditional lunch before traveling north to the citrus farming area of the Western cape. We continue through the desert land of Namaqualand en route to the Gariep (Orange) River, which marks the border with Namibia. The first stop in Namibia is one of the natural wonders of Africa - the Fish River Canyon. At some 500m deep and 160km long, this is the world's second largest canyon (after the Grand Canyon). Further north we travel into the desert at the Namib-Naukluft National Park, the world's oldest desert and location of the world's highest sand dunes (up to 300m) at Sossusvlei. Climb a dune at dawn for a dramatic view of sunrise across the vast sea of sand. Sandwiched between the desert and the ocean is Swakopmund, a delightful coastal resort and a wonderful place to relax. Various optional activities are available here - quad biking, sand boarding, scenic flights - and the opportunity of an enjoyable night out in one of the excellent restaurants! 

DAYS 8 - 15, Etosha Natonal Park, Okavango Delta
Further up the eerie Atlantic Coast, is the Cape Cross Seal Colony, home to thousands of seals. Further inland we pass through the spectacular rock formations of Damaraland at Spitzkoppe (the 'Matterhorn' of Africa). Here we camp among the massive rock outcrops and see ancient bushman paintings. Etosha National Park is a vast reserve of over 20,000 sq km, surrounds a central salt 'pan' and features some 114 mammal and 340 bird species. After morning and afternoon game drives, camp for two nights next to floodlit waterholes, which adds to game viewing experience. From Etosha, we travel south to Windhoek, Namibia's capital city, reminiscent of the German colonial era. Enjoy shopping, a restaurant and a pint of ale! From Windhoek we travel east to Botswana, and skirting the northern reaches of the Kalahari Desert via Ghanzi, where we take a bushman walk. We arrive in Maun, the gateway of the Okavango Delta. The Okavango is a natural wetland spreading over 1,600,000ha - an enchanted and delicate ecosystem of giant lily pads, labyrinthine channels and swaying grasses. Venture out into the Delta itself to explore, on foot and by Mokoro (dugout canoe) the oxbow lakes and floodplains. We bush camp on river islands with the night sounds of the African bush - an unforgettable wilderness experience!

DAYS 20 - 25, Botswana, Kruger National Park, Johannesburg
From Livingstone we travel back into Botswana and briefly revisit Chobe National Park. We continue quickly south via Nata and Francistown, to South Africa and the famed Greater Kruger Area. Largely flat bushveld and savanna, Kruger has a huge variety of wildlife and this is the perfect terrain to view some of Africa's Big 5 as well as giraffe, hippo, and antelope. We may have the opportunity to take a night game drive. From the Kruger area we head via the Mpumalanga region to Johannesburg, South Africa's largest and most vibrant city, where our tour ends.