Year in the Wild Blog

Epic wilderness of Serra Cafema

Some names are synonymous with adventure and wilderness: Mana Pools...Etosha...Richtersveld...Okavango.

Then there's the name Kaokoland. And the words Serra Cafema. The mention of these words confirms for me how much I love my work, how much I love Africa and its natural wonders, and what a privilege it is to travel to these places. When I hear names like these, I feel like I've been transported into an epic dream of fantastical proportions. Except these places are very real, better than
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Aerial photos of Kaokoland, northwest Namibia

The northwest of Namibia - known today as Kunene Region, but formerly as Kaokoland and Damaraland - is one of the most untouched stretches of land in Southern Africa. About 70 000 people live in an area twice the size of Belgium, and you must have a fully-equipped 4x4 if you're going to explore anywhere off the main gravel road that runs north to south, from Palmwag to Epupa.

It's a place that must seen at least once in your life. Unlike the south of the Namib desert, which is characterised
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Black rhinos, shooting stars and smiles at Doro Nawas

From Epupa Falls, I headed south again to Damaraland to stay at Doro Nawas, a Wilderness Safaris Lodge surrounded by spectacular mountain scenery.

The 4 000 square kilometre Doro Nawas is one of Namibia's many community conservancies which now cover almost 20% of the country's surface area. Together with the national parks, Namibia now has over 40% of its land formally protected, one
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Epupa Falls on border of Namibia and Angola

From Puros, where I photographed the desert elephants, I drove north to the tiny settlement of Orupembe, and from there to Marble Campsite, where I spent a night (check out on Google Maps here). The next day I travelled east to the main town of Opuwo and then north to Epupa Falls,
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Desert Elephants of Namibia

My next Year in the Wild 2013-14 starts in July this year, and once again I will focus on most of South Africa’s most special protected areas, as well as the transfrontier parks on the borders of the country. I’ve been working hard at planning this trip and after all the travelling last year, I wanted to escape "work" for a bit, and go somewhere far, far away!

So for the past three weeks, I have been travelling through north-west Namibia, exploring this remote desert landscape. My goal was
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Karoo Journey – Stars, stars and more stars at Anysberg

Astronomers estimate that there are about 300 billion stars in the Milky Way. But because of light pollution, most city-dwellers can see only a few hundred of them. Head to Anysberg Nature Reserve, however, and it’s as if every single star in our galaxy is within grasp.

Situated in the Western Cape about 80kms north-east of Montagu and about 100kms south-west of Laingsburg, the
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