7 EASTERN CAPE PARKS UNCOVERED

To know the Eastern Cape is to love it – just ask anyone from that province. Hell, I’m only an occasional visitor and I love it. That became even clearer on this trip as I travelled through a land of spring hares and spekboom, aloes and aardvarks, where thicket meets ocean and beach dunes go on forever.

I kept clear of the Karoo and stayed relatively close to the coast between Port Elizabeth and East London. I crossed rivers with names like Great Fish, Sundays and Bushmans, and passed countless signs for Frontier and Xhosa monuments. Occasionally, I tuned into Algoa FM for local flavour (and the rest of the time I relied on Nanaga Farm Stall’s legendary pies).

I travelled in June when early winter rains had seen the drought-stricken province become blanketed in green grass, purple irises and yellow daisies.

All seven of the reserves I visited were farms that have been converted back into wilderness, all more than 20 years ago. It was encouraging to see how the ecosystem has been reinvigorated. The red-billed oxpecker, for example, has made a remarkable comeback in the area. While some are success stories, other reserves still have some work to do. All of them, however, are striving to conserve our wild areas and protect at-risk species. The biodiversity is impressive too, as many reserves boast five of the eight South African biomes – thicket, grassland, Nama-Karoo, fynbos and forest.

The standard of lodgings varied; some were affordable, while others might need some saving up for. All of them, however, come with a hearty dollop of Eastern Cape hospitality. Many also offer day trips, which is handy when you’re holidaying on the coast. Ultimately, if you visit, you too might develop a fondness that feels a lot like love for this wild backcountry. You’ve been warned.

1 WALK WITH GIRAFFES

Bellevue Forest reserve

‘You’d be surprised how tricky it can be to find the world’s tallest animal,’ guide Stefan Smith said as we entered the 450-hectare giraffe section of the reserve. We