The elephant park - from tail to trunk!
go! - South Africa|June/July 2022
Elephants and spekboom - that's what most people think of when you mention Addo. But did you know that Addo stretches from the sea to the Karoo and has five biomes? It's one of our most diverse national parks yet it's compact enough to explore in less than a week. Here's what you need to know.
SOPHIA VAN TAAK
The elephant park - from tail to trunk!

I'm floating on my back in a cement dam somewhere in the Zuurberg when I see a long tube overhead. No, it's not the trunk of an elephant but the nest of a spectacled weaver - one of many that my travel companion Eloise Costandius and I have seen during our visit.

It's been a rainy few days and we've often had to make do with these "trunks", instead of the real things, because the elephants have had no need to visit the waterholes. Our ellie tally will remain low because it's our final night in the park and I don't think they venture into this mountainous Kabouga section too often...

There were elephants here once, when the Iqua, Damasqua and Gonaqua people trekked along the Sundays, Kabouga and Wit rivers with their livestock. Maybe even when the Xhosa people built their kraals under the leadership of chiefs Cungwa and Habana.

But hunters arrived in the 1700s and killed anything that moved. Farms were marked out and the remaining elephants became a problem for the farmers. A major called PJ Pretorius was appointed in 1919 to exterminate the elephants - he killed 114 in a year and sold two calves to the Boswell Circus.

A local farmer, JT Harvey of the farm Barkly Bridge, didn't accept the status quo. He decided to leave the elephants on his farm in peace, and that's how Addo Elephant Park was born...

Our trip through Addo started five days ago in the indigenous forest of Woody Cape in the far eastern corner of the park. From there, we crossed the N2 to explore the grasslands and subtropical thickets of the Colchester and Main Camp areas. Tomorrow, we have one section left: across the Zuurberg to the Nama Karoo, where the greenery of last week will fade into shrubland and noorsveld.

To think: You can see all this in just one park!

WOODY CAPE

Bu hikaye go! - South Africa dergisinin June/July 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye go! - South Africa dergisinin June/July 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

GO! - SOUTH AFRICA DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
Rolling out the big guns
go! - South Africa

Rolling out the big guns

If you're still scanning the horizon for a Chinese automotive invasion you're looking the wrong way. It's already happening, and the new GWM Tank is the off-road spearhead into the highly lucrative and hotly contested lifestyle market.

time-read
2 dak  |
June/July 2024
TAKE A HIKE
go! - South Africa

TAKE A HIKE

The beautiful agony of Tienuurkop

time-read
3 dak  |
June/July 2024
Time out in Dullies
go! - South Africa

Time out in Dullies

A long weekend in Dullstroom is just long enough to make you realise you need to spend several more weekends here! There's food, drink, art and action in abundance. Here's your guide.

time-read
4 dak  |
June/July 2024
Gallivanting in the Galápagos!
go! - South Africa

Gallivanting in the Galápagos!

The Galápagos Islands are on many a traveller's wish list. They were on Hanlie and Vivian Gericke's too, even though the price of visiting made their eyes water. Was it worth it? Read on...

time-read
9 dak  |
June/July 2024
BURCHELL AND THE COUNTRY OF THE BUSHMEN
go! - South Africa

BURCHELL AND THE COUNTRY OF THE BUSHMEN

How many times have you driven through a landscape and wished you could have seen it centuries ago? In 1811, the English artist and explorer, William John Burchell, travelled through South Africa. Join us as we follow in his footsteps.

time-read
10+ dak  |
June/July 2024
Long live the Hibiscus Coast
go! - South Africa

Long live the Hibiscus Coast

The KZN South Coast is a national treasure. It's still the place to go if you want a classic seaside holiday complete with warm waves, cold beer, soft serve and good vibes. Here's your guide.

time-read
8 dak  |
June/July 2024
The island at the end of the earth
go! - South Africa

The island at the end of the earth

Imagine adlace-with the cleanest air arid:the clearest seawater, where_no human.oranimabwants to:harm you: A placewhere the climates balmy. year-round:-with a sekrhistory ahd wwild scenery. A place like this:exist8” and it’s called St Helena.

time-read
10+ dak  |
June/July 2024
A day on the road
go! - South Africa

A day on the road

You never know what the road will bring. Toast Coetzer heads south on the N1 and discovers South Africa.

time-read
5 dak  |
June/July 2024
The wilder shore
go! - South Africa

The wilder shore

The final leg of a 30-day trek across East Africa sees lan Tyrer and the Africa - Wild & Untamed crew explore both shores of Lake Malawi. Get ready for an overloaded ferry, a croc attack and being surrounded by elephants...

time-read
10+ dak  |
February/March 2024
A river runs through it
go! - South Africa

A river runs through it

Sabie is onthe Drakensberg escaromentialongMpumalanga’s famous Panorama Route. Want a weekend away surrounded by forests and waterfalls? Here's wnat you need to know.

time-read
10 dak  |
February/March 2024