Kruger National Park Travel Forum

Hi

We are satying in Gomo Gomo for 4days/3 nights in June and read that walking safaris are offered in the afternoon....anyone been on these? What is the normal procedure?

Impression I get, is walking with tracker/armed guide through the bush, looking at all the fabulous wildlife, including flowers/birds and of course game. What happens if when 100's of metres away from the lodge you come face to face with aggressive game...be it hungry cats, or aggressive game protecting young...bad tempered black rhino etc. Has anyone eperiences, or stories to tell of what actually happens on the walks?

Thanks

The trackers/guides know the terrain and the animals intimately - they will not take you into a dangerous situation. Your walk is "stage-managed" to make sure they don't loose anyone who hasn't settled their bar bill.

I did a walking safari in a private reserve right next to Kruger (2 days walking, 2 days driving) and another one at Moremi in Botswana (a little more nerve-racking since in Botswana the rangers don't carry guns!) I thought it was really fascinating although you don't get nearly as close to the game as you do when you're in a vehicle. I didn't feel in any danger--the tracker knew where the animals were long before we got anywhere near them, and we didn't approach the animals closely. Most of them don't stick around long enough for you to get that close anyway. The super part of it was that I got a lot of understanding of how the tracker did his job, which can seem kind of like wizardry the first time you encounter it. Also, if you're walking you can get into a lot more of the terrain than you can do in a vehicle (dense bush, over boulders etc.) so you can potentially do more game viewing.