Game tracking, hiking in the Drakensberg and Swaziland, and a safari in the Kruger National Park

This walking safari reveals the immense variety on offer in South Africa with a good balance of game tracking in reserves, walking in the mountains and game drives in national parks. There are several days to hike in the remarkable Drakensberg Mountains, the hilly country of the Kingdom of Swaziland and the less-visited area of Mpumalanga. Perhaps the highlight of the trip is taking guided game walks in private reserves: we learn how to track wildlife, observe at close hand the remarkable variety of bird and plant life and, of course, experience the thrill of a close encounter with wildlife on an equal footing. There are also several game drives in the famous Kruger National Park and Mkuzi Reserve which acts as a sanctuary for the endangered Black Rhino.

Itinerary:

Day 1 Start Johannesburg. 2 Morning transfer to the old gold rush town of Pilgrim's Rest on the eastern escarpment. We spend some time exploring this unique frontier town by foot. En-route we will travel through South Africa's highest town, Belfast (1970m), and the scenic Long Tom Pass and stock up on supplies such as drinks and snacks. 3 We drive through some spectacular countryside, punctuated by visits to scenic spots such as Bourke's Luck Potholes, at the meeting of two rivers, the Blyde (Happy) and Treur (Sad), then onto Blyde River Canyon, the 3rd largest in the southern hemisphere and to the fantastic views at God's Window (4 hours). If lucky you may be there when God's Blanket is down, a majestic cloud inversion that gives you the feelings of being on top of the world. We arrive mid afternoon and may take a short optional hike in the surrounding woods. 4 / 5 Two full days walking in the 'panorama' area of Mpumalanga. We take the section of the route known as the Dokolewa Waterfalls Trail. This area has the largest stand of indigenous forest left in South Africa and there is also the chance to see the elusive Samango Monkey! Some great walking through various forest types, including Blue gum eucalypts. There will be chances to swim in natural waterfall fed swimming holes at lunch spots and one of the overnight stops. 6 We transfer to a private reserve in the lowveld area near Kruger N.P (2 hours). Two days of bush camping on the private reserve. We take a sunset game drive before turning on our spotlights for a night drive - a wonderful way to see nocturnal predators, such as the elusive Leopard. 7 Up early for morning game walk on the reserve led by a local guide and tracker following water drainage lines in search of animals. The focus will be on plants, spoor and birds as well as the wildlife. You will see animals both large and small, and maybe spot the elusive leopard. Walk back to camp for a big breakfast, then rest while the animals rest in the hottest part of the day. You will have the chance to go on an additional extra optional sunset drive to see those animals you missed. 8 Early morning game drive out of the reserve before heading for Kruger National Park (2-3 hours). Time allowing, we stop at a snake park en-route, where you will be given demonstrations on reptile conservation. The park specializes on re-introducing snakes to their natural habitats. This is justifiably one of the most famous wildlife parks in the world. It is also one of the oldest being established by the ZAR president Paul Kruger in 1898. It has arguably the greatest variety of animals of any park in Africa, with lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, black and white rhino, as well as cheetah, giraffe, hippo and many species of antelope and smaller plains game. The total census includes 147 mammals, 507 birds, 114 reptiles as well as 336 different trees. It is easy to understand why we have a day here. The campsites are also excellent and the general infrastructure good. The landscape is beautiful as well as intriguing. If you see all the predators you will be very lucky, however you will almost certainly see some of the big five and a huge variety of smaller mammals. We game drive through the park to the campsite, where there will be chance for a swim and hot showers. 9 / 10 Morning game drive in Kruger including a breakfast before back to camp to pack up and move on to the next country and crossing into Swaziland. We drive to the hilly Malototja Nature Reserve (3 hours). A relaxing evening in the cabins here before a long walk the next day. There is superb flora here and we take a day walk on one of the picturesque walking trails. Over 280 species of birds have been spotted in this reserve, as have many antelope species. You will have great views and the chance to spot various eagles or even the very rare Bald Ibis. The Nkomati River cuts a gorge through the park and flows east in a series of falls and rapids before it meets the lowveld. Nearby Ngwenya has one of the world's oldest mines dating from 41,000 BC. 11 / 12 Today we head out of Swaziland. We visit Mbabane Craft Market before heading south through rural Swaziland. Upon leaving Swaziland we move on to Mkuzi Game Reserve in Zululand. Mkuzi/Itla is one of the last safe havens for the endangered black rhino and a very popular birding destination with over 420-recorded species. We set up camp before an active next day. We will take a morning game walk with a ranger, to see if we can get up close and personal with these rare rhinos, plus various other species. The giraffes are very inquisitive here! After a big brunch, by one of the lakes, with the watchful eyes of the hippos in the water, we will have the chance to visit a hide at one of the waterholes on an afternoon game drive. Sit in the quiet and see all sorts of species come up and drink, from the playful baboons to the nervous zebra. There may be a chance for an optional sunset drive with the camp rangers as well. 13 A full day's drive to the Royal Natal N.P. Along the route you will get to stop for Lunch at one of the various historical sites. These could be a Zulu battlefield or museum (entry fee at your own expense), as you drive through the heart of Zululand. We aim to arrive late afternoon into the camp at the foot of the Drakensberg, so we can do a short 1-hour walk. 14-15 Two full days to explore these breathtaking mountains. The Drakensberg is a basalt escarpment forming the border between Kwa Zulu-Natal and Lesotho and continuing into the Free State. It means 'Dragon Mountains', but the Zulu named it Quuathlamba ('the barrier of Spears'). This is a more accurate description of the sheer, forbidding, jagged escarpment. The walking takes us to both the highland and lowland areas for magnificent views. The low route will have us walking into the natural Amphitheatre, past Protea trees, the national flower of South Africa as well as the name of their cricket team. The high route takes us to the highest point of this region where you will look back over where you walked the day before and into Lesotho. We drive to the trek start point then trek the edge of the mountains, possibly with mountain baboon chaperones up to the ladders, which take us to the top. There is an alternate scrambling route for those that don't wish to take the ladders, but this will take longer. We will stop for an evening meal on the way back to camp. 16 Morning walk in the Drakensberg; transfer to Johannesburg. End Johannesburg.

Mode of travel: 7 days walking. Altitude maximum 2900m, average 1250m.
Group size: min. 5, max. 12, plus leader and local rangers/trackers.
Accommodation: 1 night hotel, 9 nights log cabins and chalets, 5 nights full service camping (camp beds provided).
Food: All meals included except 1 lunch.
Optional Single Supplement: from $380.00
Trip Reference: TZS
Reverse Itinerary: trips that run in reverse are specified with an 'R' in the dates and prices table below.