Day 1:
Today we leave from Johannesburg on a Five hour trip to the Kruger National Park, and
depending on time we will
enter the Reserve at
the most suitable gate. The adventure immediately starts with an hour or two trying to spot as many species of animals like lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo, giraffe, zebra and the many others that
inhabit this world famous nature reserve. The evening is spent
around a campfire, with a traditional meal and maybe a glass of our best. Later we all crawl into the safety of our rooftop
tents and go to sleep with the sounds of
Africa around us.
Day
2:
Today we
will be up
at the break
of dawn, a
cup of
coffee and a
light
breakfast
before the
animals take
to
the
shade, and
then
an
early
morning game
drive to the
border post.
This is
Africa
and
the border
post
crossing may
take
anything
from a
couple of
minutes to a
couple of
hours). Once through
the
border post
civilization
as you know
it ends.
Juggling our
way east on
bush tracks
we hope to
cross
the
Limpopo
River before
sunset. The
route takes
us through a
little
travelled
rural part
of
Africa. Along the way
we will see people living as
they have for the
past hundreds of years set in the lovely
African scenery, complete with the odd burnt out Soviet tank here
and there. Two hours before sunset we
will find a suitable spot, and
with permission of the local chief set up camp.
Day
3:
If all goes well then we will reach the ocean in the late afternoon, setting up camp at our first
diving
destination, Morrongulu.
If not, we bush camp again and get there the next day, who cares anyway?
Day
4:
Morrongulu offers some of the best diving in Mozambique, and we need to make the most of the two days here. Apart from
the schools of tropical fish, the turtles and the odd whale, we will be looking for sharks,
Manta
and Devil Rays and float over
forests of green coral trees.
The routine is to have something light to
eat, do
one dive, return for brunch, do the second
dive, and chill out after lunch. The town of Massinga is
half an hour
away, and I will take you
to the
markets and sights.
Day
5:
Today we will have two more dives (probably deep ones to Jake's Crack and King's Deep).
Day
6:
Today will be an early rise as we make our way to the remote and beautiful area of Pomene.
We will fit in
two
dives.
Weather
permitting
to launch.
Day
7:
Today there will be two more dives. There is a chance we do a 5 knot drift dive in the lagoon, and may even
see the elusive dugongs and the rare humpback river dolphin. Time permitting we can even explore the
lagoon
and mangrove swamp by boat.
Day
8:
We
leave for
the Barra Reef, this reef is close to Inhambane. This is about a 8 hours drive to get there. This will be done on fair
roads,
until about eight kilometers from the site. The
campsite is
practically
on the beach and
tonight we will have a dinner at the local restaurant (dinner own
expense).
Day
9-10:
We will do four dives on any of the10
local reefs. Here we will search amongst other things for Mantas
and Whale
Sharks. The routine is to have something light to eat, do one dive, return for brunch, there after
do the second dive. The rest of the
day you have the vehicles at your disposal to explore the area at leisure.
Inhambane is a picturesque town with many
markets,
African pubs and beautiful colonial architecture.
It is also worth the while to sail the bay in one of the Arab dhows
(dinner own
expense).
Day
11-12:
Today we will do a short trip of 50km over tricky terrain, this takes us to the highlight of the trip - Jangamo
Bay.
The four dives
here are aimed specifically at finding mantas and whale sharks - but no
guarantees as
you know
by now. The reefs & scenery will definitely not disappoint you.
Day
13:
Today all good things come to an end and we have to leave the diving behind now. We drive back to Maputo
and the luxury of
a hotel bed and hot bath after a week's camping. The
Ovum is centrally situated and allows
for
easy
exploration
of the city.
If you want
to sample
the bustling
nightlife of
Africa in
the
capital city,
this will be
your chance
to do so (dinner
at own
expense).
Day
14:
Crossing the border we drive back to Johannesburg via the scenic Mpumalanga Province and get you on your flights home.
