CATEGORIES

An Outspan Worthy Of Your Oxen

Driving from Gauteng to the coast? Let Verkykerskop meet you halfway.

Beaches, Boulders & Busted Buses

The Mozambican coast south of Vilanculos is familiar to many South Africans: Ponta do Ouro, Xai-Xai, Inhambane, Tofo… But what about the north? Johan Wahl and his wife Jana shouldered their backpacks and ventured into the unknown.

Thirsty In Die Hel

In 1975, my family holidayed in Cape Town for the first time.

Silence Is Golden

The world is loud and busy and distracting, and talking is overrated. To reconnect with his inner voice, Erns Grundling did a hike in the Eastern Cape and he didn’t say a word for two days.

You Gotta Have Faith!

These days, you wouldn’t attempt a drive from Cape Town to Israel without a 4x4 and a GPS. Neither was present more than 50 years ago, when a group of students from Stellenbosch University jumped into a 1200 cc VW Kombi with nothing but faith to get them to the Promised Land.

Road Trip Gold

Musician Gil Hockman was on tour in Europe, playing shows everywhere from dingy bars to medieval courtyards, when – out of nowhere – he struck road trip gold in the French countryside.

Living Large

The new Mercedes-Benz GLS is humongous and costs as much as a house. Who buys this kind of car and what do they use it for?

Touch Down On Planet Ngorongoro

Mention “Ngorongoro” around the braai and people will look up from their drinks. It’s one of Africa’s most iconic wildlife destinations – an entire world within the crater of a volcano and unlike anything you will have seen in southern Africa.Here’s how to plan a visit.

10 Things The Karoo Taught Us

For the making of the new TV series Weg Agterpaaie Karoo, journalists Erns Grundling and Toast Coetzer explored more than 5 800 km of back roads in the South African hinterland – a journey that took six weeks. Here are 10 lessons they learnt.

The Pelican Brief

The wind-battered islands offthe West Coast are home to important breeding colonies of sea birds, under siege by bloodthirsty pelicans. You can volunteer to spend a week on Malgas Island and chase the pelicans away. Yes, for fun!

Georgina Jones

We occasionally send reader questions to this marine expert, who overcame her claustrophobia and signed up for a scuba-diving course nearly 30 years ago. Since then, she has contributed significantly to the knowledge base of our underwater world.

Good As Gold

Golden Gate Highlands National Park has clear river pools in summer, snow-covered peaks in winter, sandstone cliffs, bearded vultures, hiking trails and great places to stay. You never knew the Free State was so spectacular, did you?

Take Your Pic

Take Your Pic

Wine

Cool, calm chenin blanc

Philippolis, 85 Years Later

Philippolis, 85 Years Later

The Importance Of Pudding

What happens when there’s a power cut two days before the annual Dankfees in Merweville, threatening the pudding output? Everyone pitches in to help, that’s what – including visitors from all over the country.

Lose Yourself In Stone Town

For most visitors to Zanzibar, Stone Town is their first point of contact with this East African island before they head to the beach resorts. But if you only have a long weekend at your disposal, Stone Town offers more than enough mini adventures to keep your camera clicking away…

Find Magic in​ Magoebaskloof

Magoebaskloof, with its forests, clear streams and soaring mountains, is only four hours from Gauteng. Here are 10 great activities for a long weekend in the Land of the Silver Mist.

Tailwind through the Tankwa

The R355 is the back road between Springbok and Ceres, famous for huge views and tyre-chewing gravel. But why drive, thought Henko Roukema, when you can ride a bike?

Good To Know

Meet Ndlovane. This bull elephant (pictured) is one of 12 new tuskers in the Kruger Park. But what is a tusker? Kirsty Redman, co-ordinator of the Tuskers Project, explains.

The Leopard Next Door

Except for lions, which live in prides, and cheetahs, which form male coalitions of two or three brothers, most cats are solitary. Males and females each have distinct territories that they mark and defend. Leopards are a great example of this kind of system.

Everyone's Desert

The soaring red dunes of the Namib make Sossusvlei one of Namibia’s most popular tourist attractions. But can you still feel the spirit of the desert with all those tour buses around? You can. Here’s your guide.

Two New Retro Rides

Harley-Davidson and BMW are similar in that they don’t just sell motorcycles, they sell a lifestyle. To immerse himself in both cultures, our resident bike nut took the new Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special and the BMW R nineT Scrambler for a spin.

dazzled by the delta

“okavango” must be one of the most evocative words in travel. it’s easy to stay on the banks of the river or next to the delta, but for the real experience you need to get your bum into a mokoro and spend a night on a houseboat.

faith, hope and nampo

from a humble beginning in 1967, nampo harvest day has grown into the biggest agricultural trade show in the southern hemisphere. it’s no longer only about tractors, planters and mielies, but it will always be about farmers. and in the midst of a drought, it’s also about hope.