Limpopo National Park

The GLTP certainly holds potential to be a massive park that you can disappear into for weeks. But, this vision is still a few years off... At the moment, full traversing between the 3 encompassed parks is still bound by national boundaries and you are very much exploring 3 vastly different parks. The SA section - Kruger - is well, Kruger. Packed full of animals, easy navigation and crowds (unless you're in a private game reserve). It is undoubtedly a spectacular experience. Heading into Moz, you're met by an entirely different experience. Limpopo National Park, and the private game reserves to the south, host nearly the same wildlife as Kruger, but they are in lesser quantities and much more wary of humans. Poaching remains a significant problem in this park (the final rhino was shot early 2013) and this not only impacts the experience in the park, but threatens the broader formation of the GLTP. While the initial plan was to allow the Kruger fence to deteriorate as Mozambique secured their perimeter, the rise in poaching has led many to discuss rebuilding the Kruger fence entirely. A decision has yet to be made on this matter. Providing poaching and park management comes under control, this could be a truly spectacular park - but, there remain many big "if"s. Keep an eye on it, and in the interim, all the incorporated parks are certainly worth a visit!

This park is described as a great work in progress, and if all the expected benefits materialize it will certainly be the best game park in the whole continent. Having been to both Kruger and Limpopo I felt compelled to review this whole area in one swift move and perhaps explain why I think it will be just amazing once it is all finally completed. Now, this bigger-than-Ben-Hur park will, eventually, comprise several different game parks including the two above mentioned which I visited. I must say that you could not get two more diverse parks than Limpopo and Kruger. One is astronomically modern, well organized (a little too well) and well stocked with game (a little too much) while the other is depleted of wildlife by and large and is by far one of the wildest game parks you could visit. I actually loved both, yet found each a little too excessive in their respective characteristics. When the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park is finally completed I envisage a Limpopo with better roads and more animals, and a Kruger with fewer tourists and harder-to-spot game. Seriously, it’s like the animals line up outside your camp in Kruger just waiting for you to photograph them! Great, don’t get me wrong, but I certainly get why Limpopo next door is so empty... Nowadays one still has to get out passports and cross borders (like we did) to get from one park to the other, but I sincerely hope that in years to come some sort of arrangement can be made so one does not encounter a fully-functioning border posting half way through a seemingly wild game drive. It’s just not very ‘Out of Africa’ if you know what I mean. Exceptional potential in the most exciting part of Africa, my money’s on the Great Limpopo Transfrontier to set the bar higher than ever. PS. Kruger was packed whilst Limpopo was empty, hence the middle-road star rating!!

Limpopo is not the kind of place you come to if ticking the Big Five off your list is your only concern. Having said that, the Limpopo is fantastic if you want to experience the raw Africa; one which isn’t perfectly manicured and doesn’t offer its game on a proverbial silver platter. Our three-day safari drive felt more like an old fashioned expedition than the usual game drive you can partake in South Africa. Here, you can channel your inner Morton Stanley and delve into uncharted territory. Well, at least it seemed uncharted! We chased tracks, tried to define movements in the distance, enjoyed our packed lunches under the shade of the biggest baobab trees we’d ever seen and spent far too many hours watching a German overlander try to get his 4WD over the Limpopo River without getting washed away. It was great! The Limpopo may technically be connected to Kruger but it is a world away from its divinely pristine conditions, although there are arguments to be made for both sides actually. Camps and facilities are few and far between and, while you may not see a lot of game here, you also don’t see the throngs of touring safari jeeps congregating over a sleeping lion either. Spot something and you’re likely to be the only one to experience it, which for us was just tops. Actually, make the best of it and do the two, a few days in Kruger followed by a few days in Limpopo and you’ll have a well rounded African safari experience. The Limpopo has suffered tremendously in the past from over-poaching yet local initiatives have been in place to reintegrate some much needed big game into this reserve. The stunning scenery is as gorgeous as any other in southern Africa so, the way we see it, this is one of the most exciting up-and-coming parks in the area. The potential is endless so I suggest you get here before it’s taken over by masses of tour groups!