River sights in Africa
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Fish River Canyon
There's nowhere else in Africa like Fish River Canyon, which has been gouging this gorge for thousands of years with incredible results. It's huge - 160km (99mi) long and 27km (17mi) wide - and most of the canyon falls within Fish River Canyon National Park, where you can camp, walk, hike or relax in the bubbling hot springs.
At the northern end of the national park, there's the Hobas Information Centre, picnic sites, camp grounds, walking trails, and access to some of the best viewpoints in the canyon.
From Hobas, you can walk the five-day Fish River Hiking Trail to Ai-Ais, at the other end of the canyon. The 85km (53mi) walk follows the sandy bed of the river (it should…
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Parque Nacional da Kissama
Kissama (also spelt Quiçama), situated 70km (43.5mi) south of Luanda, is Angola's most accessible and well-stocked wildlife park. This huge swathe of coastal savannah punctuated by gnarly baobab trees is home to elephants, water buffalo, indigenous palanca antelopes and a precarious population of nesting sea turtles.
Inaugurated as a nature reserve in 1938 and upgraded to a national park in 1957, Kissama remains at the forefront of Angola's wildlife regeneration efforts despite of years of poaching and neglect during the civil war. It's thanks largely to a pioneering relief project known as Operation Noah's Ark. This extraordinary scheme, run in partnership between the…
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Liwonde National Park
Liwonde National Park is the closest thing Malawi has to a traditional game park. Dominating the west, the Shire River overflows with hippos and crocodiles and is a favourite stomping ground for the abundant elephants. Waterbucks are also common near the water, while beautiful sable and roan antelopes, zebras and elands populate the flood plains in the east.
Night drives can reveal spotted genets, bushbabies, scrub hares, side-striped jackals and even spotted hyenas. Several black rhinos are protected within a separate enclosure as part of a rhino breeding program, and there's a rich and colourful array of birdlife. October to January is particularly good for…
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Bintang Bolong
Bintang Bolong is a large, meandering tributary of the Gambia River that rises in Senegal and joins the river about 50km (31mi) upstream from Banjul. The banks of the tidal river are lined with mangroves. Tucked away among the maze of shrubs lining the shores is the spectacular Bintang Bolong Lodge, an ecofriendly camp made almost entirely from local mangrove woods and clay bricks.
The lodge was completely renovated in 2004 and now houses up to 16 people in stunning huts that sit on stilts by the river. If the tide is high, you can almost leap from your bedroom into a canoe and go bird-watching or fishing in the mangroves. The lodge offers boat trips as well as plenty of…
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Mida Creek
The extensive mangrove forests around Mida Creek, just south of Watamu, support a huge number of bird species, including the spectacular malachite kingfisher, yellow-billed stork and African fish eagle. It's paradise for bird-watchers and there is also some good snorkelling and scuba diving at the mouth of the creek.
The head of the creek, the best area for viewing waterbirds, is reached by a dirt road opposite the Mida entrance to the Arabuko Sokoke Forest Reserve. The guides who work out of the reserve can organise guided walks in the mangroves.
Many people also come here on boat tours (arranged through Watamu hotels), which visit a boardwalk and picnic ground on Sudi…
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Outamba-Kilimi National Park
This is a beautiful tract of savanna and jungle, with very diverse wildlife: primates such as chimpanzees, colobus monkeys and sooty mangabeys; hippos, bongo antelopes, buffalo, elephants and perhaps even lions can be seen, along with 260 bird species.
The park has two sections. The northern Outamba section consists of rolling hills, grasslands, flood plains and rainforests, dissected by several rivers. The Kilimi section is much flatter and not as interesting. By the park headquarters, there are thatch huts overlooking the Little Scarcies River and guides can be hired to track elephants, visit bird-watching towers, or canoe out to see hippopotami.
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Parc National de Ranomafana
Parc National de Ranomafana is 41,500 hectares (102,549 acres) of lush rainforest, riddled with small streams that plummet into the Namorona River, and teeming with 12 lemur species, including red-bellied lemurs and broad-nosed gentle lemurs.
The park entrance and Angap office are at Ambodiamontana village. Permits are compulsory and are available at the Angap office.
Guided walks range from two to four hours, try a nocturnal walk for the chance to spot the fanaloka, or Malagasy civet, and the dainty brown mouse lemur.
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Fish River
This typically flows between March and April. Early in the tourist season, from April to June, it may diminish to a trickle, and by mid-winter, to just a chain of remnant pools along the canyon floor. Fish River, which joins the Orange River 110km south of the canyon, has been gouging out the tremendous canyon gorge for aeons.
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Ras el-Maa River
Heading northeast from Place el-Majzen, all roads lead to Bab al-Ansar, the eastern medina gate. Just below the gate, you'll see women gathering to do their washing in the fast running Ras el-Maa River , which pours of out of the mountains above the town.
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