This route will take you 1200km north of Cape Town into the semi-desert and desert area of the Northern Cape. The red dunes with their sparse grass cover make this a unique desert region.
On day one we travel through the Swartland past wheat fields, onwards through orange orchards onto the Northern Cape, a region of arid beauty and reach our first night’s destination, the town of Springbok. On the second day, we do birding in Goegap Nature Reserve and travel to Augrabies Falls National Park. We arrive in the late afternoon, giving visitors time to view the spectacular Augrabies Falls, where the Orange River crashes through a narrow gorge and down a 56m drop.
We start day three at dawn with a game drive, where after we tackle the rest of the road via Upington to the Kgalagadi National Park, arriving in the late afternoon, in time for a refreshing swim and sundowners. Night drives are highly recommended (optional extra provided by the Park) and need to be pre-booked – please advise if you wish us to include this on your tour.
We spend a minimum of four nights in the Kgalagadi National Park thereby giving you a good taste of this unique region! Many of the localized Lark species occur here and a trip to the Kalahari National Park will produce the finest Raptor viewing in South Africa. This is also home to the magnificent black-maned lions and game viewing can be exciting in between bird watching! Ground squirrels are regular visitors to the campsites and rest areas and provide visitors with many hours of entertainment! Suricates (Meerkats) can be seen close to their burrows and pose willingly for photos in various comical stances. Photographic opportunities for animals and birds alike are numerous.
Accommodation is in the Rest camps, which offer comfortable chalets, some with air-conditioning. A restaurant at Twee Rivieren provides traditional venison meals and other delectable South African dishes.
After four days, we head back to Cape Town, traveling south to Brandvlei, where we overnight, birding for endemic Larks and dry scrub birds along the way.
