Orange River Safari

Travelling fly fisherman, biologist and outdoor writer Jason Rodd packs his bags and leaves England to join a few friends on a true African river safari.

- Jason Rodd

The longest river in South Africa, the Orange, rises in the Drakensberg mountains of Lesotho a mere 200km from the Indian Ocean and flows westward some 2200km before spilling into the Atlantic Ocean at Alexander Bay. It defines the lower limit of the Kalahari and forms the boundary between Namibia and South Africa. Although the Orange River has abundant fish stocks throughout its length, for the finest fishing one must venture to the Namibian border where it flows through a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier National Park.

The Richtersveld is an incredibly harsh environment with summer temperatures soaring up to 53 degrees Celsius and an average annual rainfall of little more than 55mm. Despite this, life thrives here as a result of water carried to the area by the Orange River and moisture from the damp morning fog that rolls in from the Atlantic called Ihuries or Malmokkies by the locals. Biologists describe this ecosystem as the Succulent Karoo. It is home to small antelope and troops of chacma baboon, as well as the secretive African leopard. But it is perhaps most famous for its unique succulent desert flora, the variety of which is unsurpassed anywhere in the world with 33 species that exist only here. As a biologist it is hard to stop waxing lyrical about the incredible diversity and unique adaptations life here exhibits.

Overlooked by rugged mountains, the Orange River (or Gariep as the local Nama people call it) moves like a mighty snake twisting through a lonely desert landscape. These are not your average mountains; no, they loom like frozen monsters in their final moments seemingly unweathered and still alive. Some appear to crouch like an ancient Nama hunter, while others have stopped suddenly, tall and proud. They are both beautiful and imposing. As the sun bounces off them and reflects back onto the water, it is obvious how the river inherited its name.

ANOTHER WORLD