Nature Reserves in Namaqualand

Padlopers, birds, butterflies and blomme Just 17km northwest of Kamieskroon is the Skilpad section of Namaqua National Park. Twitchers and butterfly afficionados love it and it's worth spending a few days here - even in ‘bad years’ the sandy plains are plastered with vivid orange.

The dirt road that circles Skilpad takes you an overwhelming five kilometres through magnificent blooms. Halfway through is the “Roof of Africa” viewpoint, an area of huge granite domes affording panoramic views of the reserve and Kamiesberg mountains.

Skilpad is situated on a ridge of hills that capture most of the rain blowing from the west coast. Because of this the flowers are consistently spectacular, even when other areas are not. Outside of springtime much of this area is used as grazing land for sheep, clearing the bushes that would suppress the growth of the annual daisies and break the continuity of colour.

Adventurous and energetic? Try the new 4x4 trail, the Caracal Ecoroute, which opened during July 2009 at the Namaqua National Park. The 153 km trail stretches from Skilpad in the Northeast to Groen Rivier in the south, and will enable visitors to enjoy previously inaccessible spectacular areas of the Namaqua. You can also do the 50 km 4x4 eco-route or get on your bike for the 6 km mountain bike trail. Bikes can be hired in the park.

Skilpad? Namaqua National Park is home to the world's smallest tortoise, the Namaqua Speckled Padloper!

Hot tips for flower gazers
Get up close and personal - explore on foot and go down on your hands and knees! Closer inspection reveals a multitude of little floral treasures that hide among the daisies. Happy flower gazers have pollen dusted noses and grubby knees. Take a magnifying glass along.Plan to drive with the sun behind you - generally from north to south and westward in the morning, eastward after noon.
On a sunny day the flowers are fully open for five hours between 11h00 and 16h00.
Two days is ample for a region if you have good weather but don’t rush it.
Get a multi-day weather forecast at www.weathersa.co.za

The riot of colour in Goegap Nature Reserve is a magnet for artists, photographers and anyone seeking some nature therapy. Kaleidoscopic fields of vivid purple mesembryanthemum, yellow Namaqua daisies and orange gazanias all turn their happy faces towards the sun.

Lying about 70 km north of Kamieskroon and 15 km southeast of Springbok, Goegap Nature Reserve is a fantastic place to kick off your flower trip. Bearing in mind that the best route to travel for a flower trip is north to south so that you see the flowers facing the sun.

“Goegap” derives its name from the Nama word for waterhole and there are plenty supporting the bird and animal residents. The Hester Malan Wild Flower Garden has a wide and interesting selection of Namaqualand succulents. There’s a 17 km drive that sedans can negotiate and an 80km 4x4 route. The landscape of granite boulders and sandy plains makes for stunning scenic driving on the narrow untarred roads. You could also hop onto the three hour guided truck tours during the flower season.

Funky feathers? Look out for the Namaqualand Sandgrouse which has an amazing ability – it can store water in its breast feathers and fly as far as 40 km to quench the thirst of its nestlings. Twitchers will be kept busy with spotting all 94 recorded bird species! Home to 45 mammalian species, you will have a chance of spotting gemsbok, springbok, Hartman's Zebra, bat eared foxes and aardwolf amongst the incredible number of floral species.

Saddle up and ride on the wild side in this magnificent landscape. Contact Namaqua Horse Trails Tel: +27 27 718 3583. On the milder side of keeping your carbon footprint down why not get on your bike and cycle the 17 km sedan route?