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The ϳԹ Trip-Finder: Africa
By Kathy Martin
BURKINA FASO/ TOGO/BENIN: Cycling West African Villages
The Route: A 14-day, 510-mile pedal along the back roads of rural West
Africa, with visits to villages, markets, and Atlantic beaches, far from
congested capitals and noisy game drives
When To Go: November
Difficulty: Moderate
Travel Advisory: BYO bike–mountain bikes or
hybrids are recommended. You can check your
machine as your second piece of luggage on most international flights.
High/Low Points:
- Feasting on rice and Malian peanut sauce in the clifftop Dogon
village of Niongono
- Pushing your bike through a mile of deep sand on the
international road between Mali and Burkina Faso
Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Bicycle Africa / 1 / $1,200
CAMEROON: Conserving the Rainforest
The Route: A 15-day botanical survey of Cameroon’s low-altitude rainforest, in which you
help villagers gather and identify rare and endemic plants and stay
in the homes of local families
When To Go: April-June
Difficulty: Easy
Travel Advisory: Living conditions are primitive: After full days of working in the
rainforest, you’ll sleep in forest villages without electricity and running water.
High/Low Points:
- Identifying Aucistrocladus kupensis, a vine that may be effective in treating
AIDS
- Wondering how far the surrounding banana and rubber plantations will encroach
on the rainforest
.
Luxe Factor: Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Earthwatch / 6 / $1,095
EGYPT: Riding Horseback Along the Nile
The Route: A swift, 11-day gallop on Arabian stallions along Egypt’s main artery,
with the desert on one side and the green Nile Valley
on the other, including visits to pyramids, oases, and archaeological digs
When To Go: January-March, September-December
Difficulty: Moderate
Travel Advisory: The horses are magnificent: Your Arabian stallion or mare is the
product of thousands of years of breeding–developed for stamina in ancient
battles and to travel far and fast across the harsh landscape.
High/Low Points:
- Leaving the queued-up tourists in the dust as you ride off
into the desert from Cheops Pyramid
- Craving a shower after a sweaty week in 90-degree weather
.
Luxe Factor: Camping; Tourist hotel
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Equitour / 6 / $1,900
FITS Equestrian / 5 / $1,780
Classic
KENYA/TANZANIA: Photographing the Wildebeest Migration and Calving Season
The Route: An 11- to 20-day photo safari coinciding with the big-game migration
or calving season in Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park or Kenya’s Masai
Mara Reserve, including visits to Ngorongoro Crater and other reserves and
parks
When To Go: June-November, January, February
Difficulty: Easy
Travel Advisory: The herds migrate out of the northwest Serengeti in June and
spend July to October in the Masai Mara, December to May
in the southeast Serengeti. Most calves are born in late January
and February and draw hordes of predators.
High/Low Points:
- Panning your camera across thousands of wildebeests and
zebras racing across
the plains
- Finding your camera lens repeatedly caked with dust kicked up by
the herds
Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
International Ventures Ltd. / 4 / $3,095-$3,795
Ker & Downey / on demand / $6,000*
Thomson Safaris / 7 / $3,990*
Tusker Trail & Safari Co. / 1 / $2,370
Voyagers International / 6 / $2,495-$3,590
Wilderness Travel / 7 / $3,895
MADAGASCAR: Hiking the High Plateau Villages
The Route: A ten- to 19-day tour, including extended hikes into the mountain
reserves to see Madagascar’s famous lemurs, chameleons, and crocodile caves and
experience Afro-Indonesian rainforest culture in native villages and burial grounds
When To Go: April-October
Difficulty: Moderate
Travel Advisory: Bring light-colored long pants to ward off leeches, a strong headlamp
for night hiking and exploring the crocodile caves at Ankarana, and
sandals for river crossings.
High/Low Points:
- Hearing the shrill cry of the indri lemur, which sounds like
a cross between a police siren and a humpback whale
- Stumbling upon a disinterred body waiting to be wrapped in a
new shroud at the Merina tombs
Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Above the Clouds Trekking / 3 / $3,550
ϳԹ Center / 8 / $1,750-$1,840
Journeys International / 7 / $2,200
Lemur Tours / on demand / $1,680
New
MOROCCO: Kayaking and Rafting Whitewater Rivers
The Route: A nine-day exploratory trip out of Marrakech into the limestone gorges and red-rock canyons of the High Atlas range to run the class III-IV rapids of four or more snowmelt-fed rivers
When To Go: April
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous
Travel Advisory: If you plan to kayak, you’ll need strong intermediate to advanced skills and a reliable roll on serious whitewater; otherwise, book a seat on a raft.
High/Low Points:
- Descending 20 miles of Classs III-IV rapids through three dramatic gorges on the l’Assif Ahansal River
- Shooing away packs of in-your-face vendors in Marrakech
Luxe Factor: Camping
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Nantahala Outdoor Center / 1 / $1,775
NAMIBIA: Tracking Game with the Kalahari Bushmen
The Route: A two- to three-week expedition through Namibia’s stark desert, including game
tracking with the Bushmen of the Kalahari, elephant-viewing in Etosha National
Park, and a visit to the Skeleton Coast or Kaokoveld Thirstlands
.
When To Go: March-October
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Travel Advisory: Gulping down water in the presence of the Bushmen is considered
very bad form. Water is so scarce that the Bushmen have
traditionally squeezed and strained liquid from the moisture-retentive stomachs of gemsbok
antelope.
High/Low Points:
- Having a Bushman divine from spoor and bent grass blades exactly
what a leopard had been doing
- Seeing Herero women swelter in long-sleeved, high-necked dresses designed for modesty’s
sake by nineteenth-century missionaries
Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Africa ϳԹ Company / 5 / $3,175
Baobab Safari Company / 6 / $3,300
Esplanade Tours / 30 / $2,000
Mountain Travel-Sobek / 3 / $4,490-$4,790
Turtle Tours / 3 / $3,450
SOUTH AFRICA: Diving for Great White Sharks or Humpback Whales
The Route: A nine- to 12-day shore-based dive trip into either the Atlantic
off Cape Town in search of great white sharks or Sodwana
Bay, north of Durban, to see spectacular Indian Ocean coral reefs,
humpbacks, and sea turtles
When To Go: April-July, September-December
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Travel Advisory: Assess your adrenaline threshold: Lost World’s itinerary includes reef dives in
Sodwana Bay National Park and an overland safari into Zulu Nyala,
while Mad Dog’s dive masters take you down in shark cages
into chum-baited water.
High/Low Points:
- Feeling puny in the magnificent presence of sea creatures six times
your size
- Thinking too hard about what it’s like to be a whale
at Sea World in Durban
Luxe Factor: Rustic lodging; Tourist hotels
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Lost World Expeditions / on demand / $3,295*
Mad Dog Expeditions / on demand / $3,500
TANZANIA: Safari in the Selous and Ruaha National Parks
The Route: A nine- to 17-day classic tented safari in Ruaha and the
Selous, where you can float down the Rufiji River and see
more big game than any other place in the world, including
African buffalo, crocodile, antelope, and elephant
When To Go: June-November
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Travel Advisory: Because these two parks in southern Tanzania are off the beaten
safari circuit, the animals here aren’t used to human intrusion. You’ll
get a more candid look at big-game behavior than you would
in more frequented parks..
High/Low Points:
- Floating just a couple of raft-lengths away from the gaping maw
of a Rufiji River hippo
- Fighting over the socket in your safari vehicle that charges your
video camera
Luxe Factor: Camping, Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Abercrombie & Kent / on demand / $2,580
Africa ϳԹ Company / on demand / $3,700
Baobab Safari Company / on demand / $2,250
Borton Overseas / on demand / $2,450
Overseas ϳԹ Travel / 2 / $5,590*
Thomson Safaris / 4 / $4,990*
ZAMBIA: Bushwalking the Luangwa Valley
The Route: A 12- to 18-day safari on foot between remote bush camps
in Zambia’s South Luangwa and other parks, where you’ll see elephants, leopards, kudus, giraffes, and hippos on game-viewing walks and night game
drives
When To Go: June-October
Difficulty: Moderate
Travel Advisory: It’s not a bright idea to leave your tent after everyone’s
gone to sleep. Inquisitive lions and hyenas frequently wander into these
quiet bush camps at night.
High/Low Points:
- Spying a leopard returning to his kill for an evening snack
during a night game drive
- Catching only spotty glimpses of wildlife in the thickly wooded areas
of the park
Luxe Factor: Camping, Rustic lodging
Outfitters / Departures / Price
Africa ϳԹ Company / weekly / $1,995-$4,250
Baobab Safari Company / 2 / $3,750
Borton Overseas / 5 / $3,635
International Ventures Ltd. / on demand / $225 per day
Mountain Travel-Sobek / 2 / $4,290
Safaricentre / on demand / $3,200-$5,525
*Includes airfare from U.S.
See also:
Copyright, 1996 ϳԹ Magazine
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