Karoo slack-packing safari places hikers in breathtaking surroundings – with luxury to look forward to
After a scenic drive from Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth), arriving at Samara Karoo feels undeniably, immediately special. Here is the definition of ‘wide open spaces’ – a place where driving to your neighbour to borrow a cup of sugar will be a three-hour round trip. Mountains march in receding lines, so in any direction, they’re always moody and distant. Vast, flat plains blur slightly as herds of springbok wander across them, and the skies have so little light pollution that the Milky Way is visible at twilight.
Out in this enigmatic wilderness, a simple but comfortable fly camp has been set up under the stars, the base for the Cheetah Trail, a slackpacking walking safari that also takes in Samara’s safari-tented Plains Camp, a few kilometres away. The generally imagined setup for such fly camps is that cots or mats are laid down in a compact area with perhaps a strand of electrified wire encircling the camp to ward off curious critters, with everyone then rolling out a sleeping bag to huddle down together at bedtime.
The reality? No electric fence – the fire, noise and movement of campers are enough to keep nocturnal passers-by passing by – and the beds are large, luxury stretchers with duvets, blankets and mosquito nets, arranged in groups under trees with side tables, bug spray, mugs for water and boxes of tissues. Off to one side, there’s an open-air shower and a chemical loo. It’s more like a garden party sleepover at Downton Abbey than a ‘basic’ camp-out.
Everyone is offered their favourite tipple and seated around a large campfire on which the guides cook lamb chops, sausages, aubergine steaks, braai rolls, chicken kebabs and more over the coals. The meal is delicious, if slightly difficult to see with the fire as the main source of light. Many guests set their cutlery aside and use their hands so they can feel what they’re eating. Dessert is barbecued pineapple slices covered in chocolate sauce, all prepared on the fire – a brilliant idea.
Lying in the dark, the quiet wilderness feels simultaneously wrong (what’s out there that you can’t see?) and magnificently, peacefully right. If you drift in and out of sleep, the stars will have shifted, updating the pristine panorama above your head. A chorus of jackals pans from left to right, the sound eventually surrounding sleeping guests. The guide on watch stokes the fire and does circuits of the surrounding bush with a torch bright enough to be noticed by astronauts passing overhead. Collectively, it’s a soul-stirring basics-meets-extravagance experience.
Wildlife and widescreen scenery
An early start includes breakfast around the fire before setting out for Plains Camp via a mindfully meandering path that allows for maximum wildlife sightings and interest. The guides track a couple of black rhinos that always manage to stay ahead and out of sight, following criss-crossing, figure-of-eight paths. While on their trail, it’s fascinating to note the tiny blooms that arise from nowhere after rains earlier in the week, alongside the scattered, centuries-old shepherd trees, some of them at bonkers angles even as their leaves remain vivid green thanks to tap roots that extend deep (the guides say 70m!) into the soil.
We approach a small herd of giraffe and are motioned to sit, slowly and quietly, as apparently this makes them curious. Sure enough, they wander closer, unperturbed, peering at us for a couple of minutes before continuing with their browsing.
A light rain begins to fall as we reach Plains Camp, where the safari tents offer 180° views of a poetically exquisite, ancient landscape. Freshening and warming up happens courtesy of bucket showers hot enough to scare a lobster (you can adjust for cold by leaning out into the rain).
In the common area, a large dining table can be placed in- or outside, depending on the weather, while a small, circular pool begs for sun-drenched afternoons. There’s a single phone charging point, temporarily busy as newly arrived guests dip back into reality, then quiet as the realisation kicks in that resting on a sun lounger across the valley from faraway mountains is time better spent than scrolling on TikTok. Even a cloudy day is no reason for disappointment – it simply changes the texture of the vista, suggesting Van Gogh one minute and Klimt the next.
There is silence of a quality impossible to achieve in any sort of urban area. No pumps, no generators, no hum or buzz of power lines, no dogs barking or cars hooting. Bird calls become signals rather than background noise, and the changing intensity of the wind allows you to hear the word ‘shimmer’… without anyone saying it.
It’s a wonderful context for doing nothing, but it feels almost criminal to close your eyes when there’s still light around, wasting that view…
Brotherhood of beauty
On an afternoon walk, right near the camp, two of the trail’s namesakes are lounging about in the grass – large, relaxed cats known as ‘The Kalahari Brothers’ for their original home region (management of cheetah populations involves relocations in order to diversify the species’ small gene pool). This pair is so powerful that they don’t bother with the usual smaller antelope like springbok, successfully teaming up to bring down gemsbok and kudu.
From there, it’s a short hike up the hill to a spot with even wider views than the camp. In the distance – 16km away – in the valley where the Samara Karoo Lodge is situated, rain is falling as we enjoy sundowners. That area apparently gets twice the annual rainfall of Plains Camp. For now, it’s as dry as good gin on our side, so G&Ts, snacks and conversations about adventures flow freely.
There’s more food back at camp, delivered with infectious smiles and giggles from the cheerful, caring staff, before retiring to a tent warmed by a log fire set while we were out, which, with all the window flaps closed, sets the temperature at ‘mild sauna’ before it equalises with a bit of airing.
On the final day of the trail, sun and sky make a comeback after mist and rain, as does the wind, a reminder that the landscape makes the rules here. Itineraries are lovely, but what happens will happen – all while you’re enjoying genuine comfort and attentive service.
Text | Bruce Dennill
Photography | Supplied
For more information or to book for the Cheetah Trail, go to samara.co.za.
