Friday, November 22, 2013

Experience The Wild Splendor Of Africa's Most Renowned National Park

By Kyle Olsen


South Africa is proudly the home of the world's most famous game reserve called The Kruger National Park. This is a massive park that covers almost 20 000 square kilometres. The four surrounding regions are Limpopo, Mozambique, Mpumalanga and Zimbabwe. All of these regions are stunning in their own right, and four new reasons to take four more vacations.

The reserve is also part of the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere, which UNESCO recognized and registered in October 2001. It the largest of South Africa's six biosphere regions and ranks third largest on the planet. It consists of land that is a combination of forest, grassland and Savannah.

As mentioned earlier, it is a historical site as well. This is evident by the cave and rock paintings found scattered all over the area. This is another reason why this site is protected land. It is home to some of the most amazing animals in the world, including species of birds, reptiles and fish. Mammals are not the only inhabitants of the Kruger National Park. Better than 300 species of trees grow here as well.

The most requested tour in the Kruger is the open Jeep big 5 tours. Video and photography hunting lions, the leopards, the rhinos, the elephants, and the Cape buffalo is what makes this tour so popular. It's not easy to capture a glimpse of one of these animals, let alone take a photo of them! They are very dangerous, but beautiful animals, but are not the only kind around. There is a variety of buck, crocodiles, baboons, hippos, hyenas and many, many more to see.

Self drives during the day is also very popular and quite safe. There are a few camps all over the park and they offer guided tours of their own as well. All guided tours are accompanied by armed, experienced rangers, for safety reasons. Walking around is not advised, however.

The reserve's infrastructure is in excellent condition with good quality roads that can easily accommodate regular passenger vehicles as well as 4X4s. Small side roads are more suitable for a 4x4 vehicle. These offshoots allow closer inspection of the landscape and its inhabitants.

Even though these are only dirt tracks and roads, there are strict speed limits. Animals will walk right in front of your car without warning, so speeding can be dangerous for you and the wildlife. Besides, the sound of a roaring engine is not conducive to spotting any animals.

The reserve has thirteen camps. Visitors can find everything from rustic tent accommodations to luxury facilities with swimming pools, laundry facilities, and cafeterias. The largest camp is Skukuza, which is a 20-minute journey from the Kurger Gate and serves as the KNP headquarters. Among the many amenities are a gas pump, a post office, a grocery store, a library and the world's hottest 9-hole golf course. Its location alongside the Sabie River makes it a prime location for animals to find water.

The village of Masorini dates back to the Iron Age and has been restored. It is located twelve kilometres from the Phalaborwa gate, which is on the way to the Letaba rest camp. The huts and furnaces are reconstructed as authentically as possible.

Archaeologists uncovered two bodies when excavating bombs were detonated in the area of Thulamela (which sits on a plateau in the north of the reserve) and believed they were royals since they were adorned with gold. They were discovered and named by the excavating team, King Ingwe and Queen Losha. The site remained undiscovered until 1993 and the oldest stones ruins date back to the fifteen hundreds. This royal citadel is amongst the most historically significant archaeological sites in the country.

The weather is sub-tropical, meaning it is typically hot and dry in the summer and cold and wet in the winter. This is the exact opposite to the European countries and North America. The rainy season is usually between September and April because of its location south of the border. Visitors from EU countries find the end of summer the easiest to time to visit and ideal because animals are easier to spot in the low brush.




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