Tandu Tula has many reasons to celebrate the coming of 2014, one of which is the recent opening of their brand new eco-friendly, exclusive-use explorer camp - Tanda Tula Field Camp.


Located on 16,000 acres of South Africa’s Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, the new addition was born out the growing demand from travelers for a completely exclusive and private African experience. Because the camp is run on an exclusive-use basis, the privacy among each group is only slighted by the 3-5 dedicated staff members that meet the guests' every whim.

In addition to providing intimacy among the guests, the camp’s emphasis on walking safaris promotes an unrivaled level of intimacy between the guests and the African bush. Entirely immersed in nature, the walking safaris are led by some of Southern Africa’s most experienced guides and trackers and focus on tracking lion, elephant, and rhino on foot.

Keeping in-line with savoring the traditions of the past, Field Camp is decorated in true East-African style. Its four custom-designed boudoir tents and its communal tent are furnished with exquisitely detailed campaign-style furniture, and Persian rugs and lanterns abound. 

One of the principle goals of Tandu Tula governing the design and build of this camp was to keep its environmental footprint as minimal as possible. In order to do this, the camp is non-permanent and there is no electricity - instead the camp features oil and solar lanterns. The use of open-air bathrooms with hot water bucket showers and eco-toilets also help shed the environmental impact.

Tanda Tula Field Camp is the newest gem in the treasure chest of Tanda Tula founders, Don & Nina Scott. They are permanent residents of the main lodge and are deeply involved with day-to-day operations. They are both ecstatic to be able to provide such a unique, hands-on experience to their guests. “This experience is all about you, your guide and tracker, and the incredible wilderness that we are so privileged to share,” says Nina.






Booking Details

· Maximum of 8 guests and a minimum of 2
· Minimum stay of 3 nights is required for all bookings
· Operates from the 1st of March to the 31st Of October annually
· Ideal for families and friends travelling together who prefer exclusivity
· Guests should be adventurous and enjoy walking and tracking big game on foot
· Guests must be walking fit and should be able to manage a 10-mile walk
· Children from the age 12 are welcome 

To plan your next African safari around a stay at Tanda Tula Field Camp, visit our website www.roarafrica.com to inquire.

A brand new electric Land Rover arrived at Londolozi over Christmas. Courtesy of Barkers Performance Products and Land Rover, the electric vehicle was sent here to be put through a rigorous and rough field test owing to the success and pioneering development of Londolozi’s first three prototype electric Land Rovers. Having unveiled this new product at South Africa’s Tourism Indaba in May, Land Rover and Barkers Performance product have created a hugely impressive vehicle and when it arrived on our doorstep just before Christmas, we simply had to put it to the test!

The Electric Landrover runs off an Air cooled AC Induction Motor with 330Nm of Torque and 59kW of Motor Power.  The batter is comprised of Air cooled Lithium Phosphate and has a voltage of 300V.  Ranging from 80km per battery on the open road and +20km through a game reserve, the vehicle is able to offer a game drive of approximately 8 hours.  The gear stick features Drive, Neutral and Reverse with 4WD and Low Range.

Although we are testing the vehicle over a number of weeks, we decided to examine the performance through a few different disciplines: Acceleration & Speed; Gradient; Silence and Sand.

Londolozi has been at the forefront of pioneering the first ever Zero Emissions Safari Vehicle. The vision for this vehicle is to run purely on batter power which in turn is charged by solar panels. The carbon output would thus be zero, except for that used during the manufacturing of the vehicle.  Since 2009, when we unveiled our first prototype electric Landrover, the journey has been extremely fun yet also challenging. Our second prototype burnt down soon after completion, owing to an electric failure.  Yet with the help of Anton Komar and Sid from Green Rover we managed to achieve a reasonable level of success with our prototype number 3.

Our intention at Londolozi is to continue to be a leader towards a truly Zero Emissions Safari Vehicle and change our entire fleet to electric vehicles as soon as the opportunity presents itself.  This initiative, in particular, forms part of our broader goal to dramatically minimize our carbon footprint on the environment.

Just in from Gorongosa....

Ian Michler, renowned specialist guide and photojournalist will lead a 7 night trip in Gorongosa in October this year! Ian is going to be exploring Gorongosa National Park (from the Explore Gorongosa base) for the first time. He is so excited. And there are still some places available on the trip! The trip not to be missed. Ian is an awesome guide and we can't wait to see what he finds in Gorongosa.

He will be taking guests fly camping, to Mount Gorongosa birding and hiking and of course all around the park - even to some of the further reaches of the park.

Answers to a few questions that you might be thinking...

Who is Ian?
A stockbroker by profession, Ian left the world of finance in 1989 to go and live a dream in the Okavango Delta. He has 14 years of guiding experience in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe conducting big game, birding, adventure and photographic safaris. Ian is also an accomplished photographer (Agfa Wildlife category winner in 1998) and writer of two coffee table books to his credit. He is presently working on a third, which will be on Botswana. He writes and photographs for various wildlife and travel magazines, Africa Geographic and Africa Birds and Birding in particular.

What is fly camping?
Fly camping is real safari the way it used to be. You'll go out from the more permanent Explorers Camp to camp in the wilderness in a mobile smaller camp. It's real camping but you are well looked after all the way. It's not backpacking. The food is great, the drinks are cold and the adventure can't be beaten. In the amusing words of our friends at Gorongosa:
"Although the trend these days is for safari camps to provide seventeen imported Mongolian cotton facecloths per person, delicately soaked in endangered highland yak milk and served chilled with a skinny moccachino presented in Italian marble coffee cups with gold inlay... we at Explore Gorongosa like to think it is more the experience that counts and that, like the wrapper around a yummy Swiss chocolate, the camp is simply the outer layer which keeps the whole thing together."

When this year? 18-25 October 2010

Where will I be staying?
You will be hosted by the only private camp in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique - Explore Gorongosa. Rob & Jos Janisch will organise your stay including all the fly camping, mountain trips, swinging from hammocks. And anything else you may want to get up to!
More on Gorongosa on our website here and on the blog here.

How do I get more information? Email us- click here

After numerous clients of ROAR AFRICA have shown great interest in elephants, having heard about their plight and or after inter-reacting with elephants, we have decided to spread the word on collaring elephants by Save the Elephant Organization.
Heated debates based on fact, assumptions and emotion take place around the world concerning elephants, their numbers and the sale of ivory. Facts based on sound scientific results become essential.
Save the Elephants (www.savetheelephants.org) operates in four countries in Africa. Greater Kruger National Park is the principle area in Southern Africa. Save the Elephants is based in the Timbervati area near the town of Hoedspruit.
One is able to follow what is being done by going onto the webpage. But better still is to become involved by sponsoring or joint sponsoring the collaring of an elephant with your name on it. Through Google Earth your can follow your elephant hour by hour while the device records humidity and temperature on the elephant’s neck.
Below are the collar sponsoring details and options.

• Please note that in the table below you have ten types of sponsoring options to choose from.
• Most satellite collars are deployed at our Northern or Eastern Study sites in the Kruger National Park as these elephants could potentially move into Zimbabwe or Mozambique where cell phone reception would be a problem.
• Elephants collared in the Associated Private Nature Reserved (APNR), which represents our Western Study Site are fitted with GPS/GMS collars (cell phone collars)
• If you sponsor collars you get to name the elephant
• All sponsors of GPS/GMS collars as well as collar deployment costs receive a Google Earth link where they can follow their collared elephant as it moves across the landscape
• Sponsors of deployment costs only, can attend a collaring operation free of charge but will have to cover their own travel and accommodation costs if need be.
• Your contribution will be acknowledged on our website
• Your name will be added to our Elephant Newsletter distribution list
• Orders for collars need to be made at least one month in advance
• We prefer collaring elephants during our cooler months as the heat risk for the elephants are diminished over this time
• We prefer to collar more than one animal on one day so we often like to synchronise collaring operations
• Please remember that you can only sponsor a refurbished collar if we plan on removing an existing collar from a particular animal
• Please note that helicopter costs depend on the hours spent locating the animal and represent estimates only
• All prices are subject to change

click table image to enlarge

For further details contact Geoff:
Email: geoff@roarafrica.com
Tel: +27 72 3479904 or +27 33 2510673
or on www.roarafrica.com

The Summit on the Summit expedition is the brainchild of singer and producer Kenna. His father suffered from waterborne diseases as a child in Ethiopia. A group of celebrities signed on to climb the continent's highest peak — Mt. Kilimanjaro — to raise awareness about the need for clean water worldwide. The team all summitted the 19,340 foot mountain last week after six days of climbing.

ROAR AFRICA is proud of our clients on the trip who are now enjoying some well-deserved relaxation at a beautiful lodge in Tanzania. Prior to climbing, Jessica Biel said she was astonished to learn that more than a billion people across the globe have no access to clean water.

"This is a basic human necessity that needs to be addressed now," Biel said in a statement, adding that she's proud to climb Kilimanjaro with the celebrity team "to help any way I can in order to raise awareness toward the life-threatening clean water crisis happening not only in Africa but around the world."

Donate to the cause directly through the United Nations Foundation.
1 cent = 1 litre of clean, safe drinking water. 5,910,300 liters donated at the time of writing.

In May Roar Africa took a trip to Paradise Island. The tiny island where Bob Dylan composed his song Mozambique is one of five islands making up the Bazaruto Archipelago which at the time of writing you won't even find on GOOGLE maps. No, you'll have to switch to satellite view to see them, but they were very much on the map years ago and they will be again soon. They are glorious.

For Deborah and I it was a first visit to Paradise Island and for the Graham and Tish it was the first time back in 29 years. And that visit 29 years ago was also a first visit - they were the first intrepid "tourists" to arrive in 1980 after the Independence war (and still during the civil war).

Graham Keth tells the story:

Exploring Paradise Island.

Santa Carolina (Paradise Island), 2 miles by 0.3 miles in size, is a true rock island with deep channels, three beautiful beaches, and coral reefs close to the shore. In the 1950's Joaquim Alves, a flamboyant Portuguese businessman, controlled the coast line from Beira to Vilankulos (roughly 160 miles) and married a Mozambique local called Donna Anna. He gave her the first hotel in Vilankulos which was named after her and then focused his efforts on the tiny Santa Carolina where he built a grand 250 room hotel that was very popular with honeymooners and others for 20 years. This man was a legend in the area.

Before the air strip was built on Santa Carolina one would fly to Vilankulos and transfer to Santa Carolina by ferry - a distance of about 50 miles which took up to 4.5 hours (light Aircraft +/- 15minutes). After the air strip was built in the mid 60’s pilots would clear into the country at Beira or Lourenco Marques (Maputo) before continuing to the Island.

The very first of many trips to the island was round about 1959. The hotel was in its heyday and filled with people. However Mozambique was in the middle of an independence war and Joaquim Alves abandoned the hotel in 1973 towards the end of that war. Santa Carolina became a “no go area" occupied by FRELIMO - The Liberation Front of Mozambique. After independence in 1975 the Civil war ensued (1975 to 1992) but under the new government the FRELIMO personnel were moved to the main land. So it was that in 1980, shortly after Zimbabwe also gained independence, a colleague (also a pilot) and myself decided on a trip to the Island.

We flew from Zimbabwe in two aircraft for safety and were the first two aircraft to land on the island after Mozambique’s independence . We were unaware of the condition of the airstrip and landed after several low level inspection approaches. The friendly Mozambiquan staff, all dressed in their threadbare old uniforms, welcomed us to the island and gave us the best rooms available. Most of the rooms had been vandalised by the troops that occupied the island.

Exploring the old hotel.

Fortunately we brought our own essentials of tinned food, tea, milk and sugar. At our first meal we were offered fish which included Crayfish cooked over an open fire. Tish and I ordered one each and we could not believe their size, they weighed 11.7 lbs each! We were also given “Chicken casserole” which clearly was not a fowl at all and could only have been seagull, by the taste and the size and colour of the bones.

This is fishing paradise and so I hired one of the remaining old fishing boats (no life jackets and no radio communications) - we left at sunrise. As we were departing, I was aware of the captain’s assistant bailing water out of the boat with a 5 liter can. Initially I was not concerned as I thought it was water that had seeped in after standing overnight. We fished for about 3 hours on the high sea beyond Bazaruta island. All this time the chap never stopped bailing out water, however the fishing was good and after landing several barracuda, king fish and several sharks we returned. Other problems included blocked fuel filter stoppage of the engine and a horrible vibration of the prop shaft presumably from worn bearings or bent prop shaft.

On arrival I was met by a rather concerned Tish; unbeknown to me the other aircraft had left as one of their children had taken ill. Tish was concerned because although also the holder of a pilot's license she had no experience on the twin engine aircraft.

Another good memory of that trip was standing waist deep in the sea with a screw driver and eating oysters straight from the rocks. At the end of the trip we paid our bill with clothes and tackies (sneakers) as they insisted that money of any denomination was of no use.

The present hotel is still derelict, as is the Donna Anna in Vilankulos. The Paradise Island concession was previously owned by Ecco Delta Ltd. Rani Resorts has recently entered an agreement to purchase the concession and hopes to start building soon.

*****

Although the hotel on Santa Carolina is in ruins it makes a wonderful day trip from one of the neighboring islands where there are beautiful lodges to choose from. Our day trip to the island was taken with Indigo Bay (Rani Resorts) with wom we had a wonderful stay on the neighboring Bazaruto Island (More on that in a seperate post). Take a day trip for a picnic, snorkeling, exploration, or just for some private beach time. It's also happens to be great kiteboarding spot but I took my own kite and borrowed a board from a very accomodating Indigo Bay staff member. Until recently the piano which Bob Dylan apparently used was still in the hotel ruins. It is now safely on the neighboring island but I hear it will be returned when Rani Resorts rebuilds on the Santa Carolina.

Wind + private beach = Kiteboarding Paradise

I'm not sure which was the greater thrill; cowering in front of a massive silverback appropriately named Marvel on the slopes of a Virunga volcano, or that evening- my 23rd birthday- too thrilled to be tiered, basking in the afterglow of the experience with a banana beer in my hand and staring out at the red glow from Tonga volcano erupting in the valley below... our next destination.

With one of Oscar's harem, 1992

A lot of people have seen the Mountain Gorillas in Central Africa. Many, though undoubtedly far fewer, have seen Lowland Gorillas. All that's really required today is the desire and money. This sometimes makes my moment seem less special though certainly no less treasured by me. The fact is it was pretty damn special.

I think what added to the reward was that it was a high point of many months of travel across Africa. Relatively speaking this safari (Swahili: journey) was made without money. I was 22 when my friend Oren Kaplan and I, having just finished University, set off hitchhiking in South Africa with a sign saying "Cape to Cairo". It was 1992. We were two young, white South African males headed north at the tail-end of Apartheid. We loved the fact that we were sometimes the first of our demographic to arrive at a place (even receiving "first" visas) and that we were something other than what was expected of us when we got there.

We were rewarded with generosity and growth because let's face it; nobody is who you expect when you get there. We used only local means of transport which often meant legs but always meant that we were thoroughly immersed in, no... we were part of the experience. After a few months, and years of experiences, we reached the Gorillas in central Africa.

The Fearsome Ninja: Napping and up close

The first Gorillas I saw were Eastern Lowland Gorillas in Congo (then Zaire). Very few people were visiting the country back then because most consulate websites had warnings not to due to unrest. That was intriguing in itself but that's a different tale; one about guerrillas. Perhaps it was slightly reckless but it was the most rewarding month of the journey. The Lowland Gorillas were in Kahuzi-Biéga National Park, west of lake Kivu which borders Rwanda. We spent about 2 hours tracking Ninja, his harem and "kids". It was like hiking through a giant bowl of salad after which you suddenly found out that they were all around you. What a moment that was! Ninja was unfazed by our presence. In fact Ninja the Napper would have been an appropriate name. He had mastered the art.

The first photo in this post of me with one of "Oscar's girls" was actually taken weeks later on the Zaire/Congo side of the Virunga volcanoes further north. This is my favourite safari moment captured perfectly on film by my friend and travel buddy Jim Buckley. Of course it was months before we actually saw that he did nail the picture because we had no digital camera back then. We spent a few days up at Djomba Hut on the slopes of the Virunga volcanoes and visited two Mountain Gorilla families whilst there. The entry in my diary on May 25th begins "It's so pleasant here we're having difficulty leaving...".

If I go back I will probably never be as close to the gorillas as I was then. Visits were not as controlled back then and we were not as conscious of the possibility of spreading flu or something to the gorillas. The babies actually came and crawled onto us licking our arms where they could taste the salt from our sweat. They reminded us of children as they clambered about testing things and each other. Pulling sticks, hanging on branches... learning what does and doesn't work with some amusing results usually preceded by a loud cracking sound.

Of the three families we visited only one had a silverback, the 35 year-old Marvel, who showed any aggression. We followed protocol cowering and avoiding eye-contact. It got a little intense being curled up with a 400 pound silverback leaning right over us. It worked out fine though- apparently Marvel always knew he was the boss and didn't have to prove it. (Most Intense Safari Moment for sure.)

The More Fearsome Marvel

It's no wonder that banana beer brewed in a pit tasted so good that night; dead flies and all. We had tracked down our cousins on the side of this dormant volcano in the Rift Valley. In four days time we would have completed our walk across this valley to the source of that red glow, complete with gushing lava, and we would witness and contemplate the great continent rifting live in front of us.

"You're invited to join a walk of no ordinary proportions!"

That's what arrived in my inbox today; An invitation to be part of the inaugural hike of stage 1 of the Rim of Africa - a trail years in the making and following the natural ridge lines of mountain ranges in the Western Cape from the Cederberg to the Outeniqua.

The vision of the Rim of Africa is to "create a mega-distance trail on a par with the best the world has to offer". It is the first long-distance hiking initiative in South Africa and is based on, amongst others, the the Appalachian and Continental Divide trails in the USA. The route is a result of three years of work and reconnaissance by Ivan Groenhof, Galeo Saintz and volunteers. It stretches from the northern Cedarberg of the Cape's west coast to the Outeniqua Mountains of the Garden Route. 650 km of paths following natural lines and linking the regions biodiversity treasures, national parks, tourism destinations and communities like beads on an African necklace. It is hoped that the Rim of Africa will connect to the Outeniqua Trail and Eden to Addo hike thereby creating an extended 1,200 km trail. I suspect I'm not the first to wonder if it can't be extended further through Hogsback, the Drakensberg and onwards up to Swaziland.

The primary value of the Rim of Africa is to create a platform for transformative experiences in nature that directly link cultural practices to conservation. The initiative has been endorsed by the following conservation partners: CapeNature, Mountain Club of South Africa, The Cape Leopard Trust, and Eden to Addo Corridor initiative.

This is certainly a walk of "no ordinary proportion" and you might not have the time or inclination to embark on something of this magnitude. However every bead on this necklace will be a memorable experience so if you are outdoors-inclined don't forget to explore beyond the beaten path. South Africa has incredible hiking opportunities. Better yet be part of the inaugural hike starting April 12th.

3/11/9 Postscript: Received from Ivan Groenhof: "Just a small but important change. We have moved the Inaugural Rim of Africa Mountain Passage forward due to “Voting Day” so the new date is the 23rd April to the 3rd May covering the entire Cederberg and the first 3rd of the rouged Skurfteberg. "

For more information go to: Rim of Africa

If you enjoyed last year's post on "The Great Migration - But Underwater" you may be interested in watching the remarkable footage "Nature's Great Events: The Great Tide" being aired on BBC One tonight at 2100 GMT (and repeated on Sunday at 1800 GMT). I assume those without BBC One will be able to access this show in due course on DVD or possibly on BBC One's live online broadcast.

"Nature's Great Events: The Great Tide" produced by Hugh Pearson and narrated by David Attenborough covers the feeding frenzy of thousands of sharks, whales, dolphins, gannets and other predators on millions of sardines migrating northwards along the South African coast. Absolutely fantastic footage of this event has been captured by Underwater cameraman Didier Noirot. Particularly interesting has been the insight into how squadrons of Gannets, after diving to a depth of 10m (30ft), join the other predators and swim to pursue the sardines to a depth of 20m (60ft). For more on this show including some incredible video clips to whet your appetite see today's BBC story here.

Witness this yourself:
The event occurs most years but is dependent on the alignment of a number of natural factors including rainfall and ocean temperature. ROAR Africa partners with the expert dive operation who pioneered the Sardine Run; Blue Wilderness. If you're interested in witnessing this remarkable event here is some detail on a trip we can arrange for you:

Video from "azuloceano".



Timing:
Best date to target: June 18th (arrival) through June 25th (departure)
6 days of diving and ocean activity. If you picked another week to be available you'd be best choosing the preceding week.

Destination:
East London as the operating base rather than KwaZulu-Natal or Transkei. The week before we'll check in and may re-route you up the coast to Coffee Bay (by car), Port St Johns (private air charter), Port Edward (via flight to Durban). This can also be done at a moments notice during the week.

Operators:
Blue Wilderness. These are the pioneers, the makers of the Blue Planet series, and the experts who we work with.

Chance of Success:
Surprisingly high. Maybe even 80-90%. Even though people say the run has not happened for quite a few of the past 7 years this is not entirely accurate. What that means is it hasn't happened on a massive scale. Blue Wilderness has had great success catching smaller sardine events every year except the only "flop" year which was 2003. That is only a flop from a sardine perspective. There is plenty to do and see. The biomass has been lower during the last 7 years mostly due to drought (one of the parameters is food from runoff/rivers) which broke last year.

Other diving options (non-sardine diving):
Cape Town: offers interesting diving. Kelp dives, wreck dives, shark diving. June is not a good time of year for Pelagic species diving in Cape Town but it is prime for Great White breaching. I say breaching specifically. This occurs during a limited time of year and in a certain area only.
KwaZulu-Natal: near Durban: great time of year for both Raggies (Ragged Tooth Sharks) and Tiger sharks on Aliwal Shoal.
Mozambique: Excellent time for Whale Sharks and Manta Rays in Mozambique. Tofu is a good destination.
Madagascar: Good time for Whale Sharks and whales.

Of course there are plenty of other non-diving activities that ROAR Africa can include in a trip. In fact you could witness a double-migration. This is a good time to witness the great migration of herbivores while on safari in Botswana.

Back in "varsity days" when I was at the University of Cape Town (U.C.T.) in South Africa I was a member of the gymnastics club where I was more enthusiastic than skilled. It was a fun club that attracted a small crazy group of real gymnasts as well as adventure sports enthusiasts particularly rock climbers and surfers. We got on well with our rival club at the University of Stellenbosch and great ideas were born whilst drinking beers and doing hand stands above the braai (barbecue). Someone had heard of bridge jumping or bridge swing and bungee jumping and before long a couple of our more crazy members were off with climbing ropes to test the idea. Destination Gouritz River Bridges (also Gourits, Gouritsrivier) about 350km (a few hours) east of Cape Town towards the famous Garden Route.

Early Days:
We didn't have bungee ropes in the late 80's but we did have climbing ropes which stretch about a third of their length and climbing harnesses. That's not enough to risk a straight fall without injury but Gouritz had a unique layout. The new highway bridge is next to the road bridge and the old railway bridge. They are slightly closer together than the depth of the valley. We could tie climbing ropes to the new bridge and jump off the old one (65m or 213ft high). After a chilling 50m (164ft) free fall you'd take up the slack and enter and incredible swing/flight down the valley and under the other bridge. Before long we were making regular trips up to Gouritz sometimes leaving Cape Town directly from a party with some new recruits who'd wake up in the car alarmed at what had seemed like a good idea at the time. The bonus was that they soon found an instant cure for their hangovers.

Today:
Today the first "official" operation we used to jump with in 1989 still exists: Wildthing Adventures. Over 83,000 jumps later and with a sophisticated operation with accommodations, jumping platforms and so on it looks very different from the pioneering days but you can bet the effect is the same. And there are other options now too. Bungee ropes didn't take long to reach South Africa and other venues have opened up as well.

The Highest Commercial Bungee Jump in the World!
A few hours east of Gouritz in the Garden Route is the fantastic 216m (yes- that's over 708ft) Bloukrans Bridge. Bloukrans is the highest and largest bridge in Africa; the third highest in the world and the largest single span concrete arch bridge in the world. This absolutely dizzyingly high bridge is a beautiful arc across the forested valley within sight of the ocean. A bungee jump is different to a bridge jump in that the rope is more elastic. It's a giant elastic band and you fall and recoil as opposed to fall and swing. Face Adrenalin runs a professional operation there and if the jump seems a bit too much there are thrilling but less intense adventures like the 200m (663ft) Flying Fox "foofie slide" (zip line) and the bridge walk.


Further afield: Victoria Falls Bridge, Zimbabwe/Zambia
The bridge across the gorge just below one of the seven natural wonders of the world has to be about as spectacular a place to bungee jump as you could possibly find. The bridge connects Zimababwe and Zambia and is effectively in no man's land. At 111m (364 ft) is was until fairly recently the highest commercial jump in the world. You jump almost into the Great Zambezi River. In fact you are collected by a boat just a stones throw from where the world's greatest white water rafting trips begin. This is a jump that Roar Africa Founder Deborah Calmeyer tested herself years ago and much to her own surprise.
So the question is.....are you ready for Roar Africa to add some adrenalin to your trip?

Much to my surprise I found myself attempting a repeat of the Comrades Marathon this year. According to my friend Peter Boyd we were not complete with this task until we had run the race in both directions. It alternates direction every year. It is also apparent that my arm can be twisted rather easily. I entered on May 5^th, the last day of entry, and on June 17^th we lined up in Durban for the grueling 56 mile (87km this year) run to Pietermaritzburg, climbing 7000 feet and descending 5000 feet in the process.

The run was tougher than last year due to my lower fitness. It was a long, hot, and towards the end a painful day, but it was very rewarding. We ran for Starfish again and this time I carried a small disposable camera with me. The attached picture is of Pete with some of the Starfish children. The children are residents at Starfish’s home for AIDS orphans at Cato Ridge (about 60km in to the 87km route). They were outside their home watching the race as it passed directly by; but started jumping around and shouting much more vigorously whenever they spotted anyone running with a bright orange sweatband (that’s what Starfish gave their runners as a ‘marker’).

It was a great immediate connection between us as the sponsored runners and the beneficiaries of the money – I hope it gives a small sense outside the main info on the starfish website of how grateful they are for all our fundraising support.

We were also well supported by family and friends. Thank you everyone!

For more on Starfish and the Comrades see last years post here:
http://roarafrica.blogspot.com/2007/07/comrades-ultra-marathon.html

or their respective websites here: Starfish and Comrades

After your run relax and take in some more of the country on a trip with Roar Africa.

People around the world have heard of the extraordinary annual Great Migration of over two million herbivores in search of grazing in East Africa. Some have heard of the similar smaller migration in Botswana. However there are relatively few people outside of coastal Southern Africa who have heard of the incredible annual marine migration of sardines.

Every year during or around June millions of sardines move northwards up the coast of Southern Africa. This phenomenon may be as important for the coastal ecosystem as the mammal migration across the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem. Just like the mammal migration, the sardines are followed by scores of predators in a feeding maelstrom. Whales, about 23,000 dolphins, 100,000 Cape Gannets, and thousands of sharks and game fish hunt the shoals as they head northwards towards the warmer waters of Mozambique. In this migration humans are also predators in some cases catching shoals with nets right from the shore.

You can witness this incredible marine migration. First you’ll see thousands of Cape Gannets diving in formation from 30m at 90 km/h and reaching 10m depths. They also help identify the locations of the shoals. Sometimes only snorkeling gear is required for a closer look at the action but some real adventure awaits experienced scuba divers.

"...Below the waves, the noise is deafening as the dolphins shoot past at an incredible pace, communicating with their distinctive echo-locating clicks. Within minutes, 20 bronze whaler sharks surround us. These magnificent creatures have us mesmerised until an inquisitive female swings directly towards one of the divers and veers off at the last moment. We ascend to the boat, hearts pounding. We were getting close..."

From BBC News article on "The Greatest Shoal on Earth"

This is real shark diving and an incredible experience. Are you ready for it?

For More see:
(1) National Geographic “South Africa’s Teeming Seas"
(2) Photograph
(3) Peter and Stefania Lamberti of Aquaviaion together with Doug Perrine have captured incredible footage of this event which has been screened on the National Geographic Channel and BBC's award-winning Blue Planet series and in their one-hour documentary "The Greatest Shoal on Earth".

"It's the thrill of the chase, not the kill, that delights the heart of the hunter…." ANON

Hunting, conservation and elephants- how do those three come together? Green-hunting is the answer. Roar Africa does not support hunting generally but there are times when hunting can benefit conservation of animals. For example the non-lethal, green-hunting of elephants. Clients enjoy the thrill of the hunt whilst contributing to conservation both scientifically and financially, and without depleting the dominant elephant bull population-essential to the health and social dynamics of elephant herds.

This concept has been pioneered by Save the Elephants and Timbavati Private Nature Reserve on the western border of the famous Kruger National Park (KNP), South Africa. Hunters pay to dart large bull elephants which have been depleted though excessive hunting and poaching. They then get involved collecting data on the unconcious elephant for both scientific reasons and for the creation of their eco-friendly trophy. It is a thrilling experience and one kind of hunting which we would love to share with you.

Meet Mac the 100+ pound-per-tusk, green hunting emissary and get a detailed account at Save the Elephants. The charity was founded in 1993 by Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton who made a pioneering study of elephant behaviour in the late '60s in Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania.
http://www.save-the-elephants.org/regions.asp?linkID=10&contentID=17

from Rob Breen: Tri-Nations for Starfish

Last month my friends Mike Pienaar (South Africa), Peter Boyd (Scotland) and I (U.S.A.) ran the Comrades 56mile ultra-marathon raising money for Starfish Greathearts Foundation. It was Pete and my first Comrades and Mike's tenth. Yes, I did say tenth!

In South Africa it seems "normal" to do such a thing once, twice, ten or even more times. I noticed that in the U.S.A. I received a lot of "street-cred" mentioning the race whereas in South Africa people would say something like "Oh, that's nice, how many have you run? My grandfather is running his 30th this year."

At 56 miles the Comrades is the oldest and the largest but not the longest ultra-marathon in the world. It was started by a group of WWI veterans to honor their friends who had died in the war. Attracting about 12,000 runners it alternates direction annually between Pietermaritzburg (both Mike and my home town) and Durban. It winds through the Valley of a Thousand Hills. You either climb a total of 7,000 and descend 5,000 feet over the course of the race or vice-versa. Our year was "downhill". Some wise cracks were urging us on about 1 hour in and some 50miles (and 9+ hours) to go with "C'mon guys, it's downhill from here". Riiiight! But wow the support was fantastic.

The most rewarding cheers were form the Starfish kids were were raising money for. Starfish supports children orphaned by HIV/AIDs and the area of South Africa we ran through is one of the hardest hit by HIV/AIDs in the world. They recognized us by our Starfish caps and logos and gave us goosebumps with their cheering. You can support them at www.starfishcharity.org

We took it slow and steady and finally finished the race in about 10.5 hours. Mike gained entry into the coveted (by nutters) Green Number Club for his tenth finish. Pete and I were chuffed with our regular nutter membership status. Well....for now anyway.

If you are a runner think about putting The Comrades on your to-do list. As they say it is "The Ultimate Human Race. It Will Define You! "

www.comrades.com

After the race enjoy the country with your family or running mates. Roar Africa will create a private trip for you with all the R&R you deserve!