African Explorer

Our adventure takes us to the Indian Ocean where a chain of coral atolls forms the enchanting island paradise of the Maldives. We'll also travel to the eastern coast of South Africa to experience real Africa at the private game reserve of Zulu Nyala. In the heart of the South African bushveld, at Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve, we don our bush clothes and learn to track wild animals and drive land rovers in an exciting game ranger experience. In Namibia, the URI 4x4 Desert Run takes us dune riding in customized vehicles on an adventure that takes us through some of the most spectacular scenery of the southern regions.

Botswana is a land-locked country with a unique natural setting. The desert is quenched by the Okavango - a river that flows into the heart of Botswana to spread its shallow roots into a sea of sand sustaining a thriving kingdom of African wild. But Africa's wildlife does not only thrive on land the Red Sea is filled with a prosperous marine population rich in colour and prolific in its diversity. In this episode we find a quaint getaway in South Africa's KwaZulu Natal, where trout fishing is a favorite pastime. We'll plunge into the warm waters of the Red Sea and swim with its varied marine life, exploring the reefs as well as famous wrecks, but first we take an off-road adventure through the deserts and swamps of Botswana following a challenging 4X4 trail.

In Africa there are tales of many giants, but nowhere is there a concentration of giants such as that found in Botswana. At a private game reserve called Mashatu the giants include the recovering herds of elephants that have returned to this area after an absence of almost 60 years. The owners of this private game reserve boast of having six more giants, from the huge baobab tree to Botswana's national bird and even the endless African sky! The same sky that reflects millions of stars into one of Africa's largest lakes - Lake Malawi. With its rich topography, little coves and quiet rocky islands the Lake of Stars offers an ideal habitat for animals, birds and fresh water fish. But Africa's giants do not end on mother Earth! Buried deep within the waters that filled the gorge of the Rift Valley when Africa and Asia split apart, there are several wrecks. Here the giant is the wreck of the Thistlegorme, lying silently in its watery grave visible only to those scuba divers who visit her. In this episode we plunge into the Egyptian Red Sea to explore the wartime wreck of the Thistlegorme as well as other relics that have sunk to this watery grave. We travel to Mashatu in southern Botswana in search of the giants and the ancient herds of Shashe and in the heart of Africa we explore the shores of the Lake of Stars in Malawi.

South Africa's natural heritage stretches from the depths of its surrounding oceans where ancient submerged dunes have solidified and formed the base of thriving reefs home to myriad varieties of technicolor marine life and reaches to the highest peaks of the Drakensberg - the mountain range that stands proud over Southern Africa. In this range enchanted caves burrow deep, hiding a dream-like wonder world of glinting stalactites and stalagmites. For the mountain enthusiasts, this episode includes a riding adventure on the ponies of Lesotho. In South Africa, we explore the Cango Caves, one of this country's natural wanders steeped in ancient history. Hugging the South African coast line, the Indian Ocean offers diving enthusiasts a variety of rich marine environments. Join us as we explore the most famous ones.

The deserts of South-western Africa are harsh and unforgiving. The animals that have adapted to these merciless conditions are the few last remaining herds that wander the dry riverbeds in search of food and water. Similarly, east of Africa, creatures as large and imposing as the desert elephant also travel miles in search of their favorite food, following the currents of the Indian Ocean. In this exciting episode we find wild dogs and lions at a private game reserve in South Africa. We swim with the gentle giants of the sea off the untamed coast of Southern Mozambique, before setting out in off-road vehicles, we travel through the Kaokoveld - an imposing desert of North-western Namibia, regarded as one of the last true wilderness areas on earth.

Sensual in its movements, the Sega dance epitomizes the potpourri of cultures that give colour to Mauritius an Indian Ocean island with steep volcanic cliffs, offset by a skirt of green sugarcane that eases gently onto sugar white beaches. Seafarers found this island while sailing the waterways of the world, at the same time land-based explorer found a wildlife haven in the heart of in Southern Africa, old herdsmen ride on horseback over Lesotho's highland plateau. This episode takes us dancing to the rhythm of the Sega on the tropical island of Mauritius. In Botswana, we venture deep into the Okavango Delta to one of its most exclusive hideaways - Gunn's Camp. High above the plains of South Africa, we explore the spectacular 'Mountain Kingdom' of Lesotho.

Sharks are the predators of the ocean for centuries they roamed the world's waterways unharmed, swimming, feeding, but then came man the trophy hunter and ruthless killer placing the greatest hunter of all - the great white shark - on the endangered list side by side with the rhino another great beast killed to satisfy man's flimsy pleasures. Today, thanks to the dedicated work of a few concerned people, both the great white shark and rhino are protected in South Africa. This episode delves into the secret lives of the sharks of the Indian Ocean as we visit their favorite hunting grounds. We'll also come face to face with Africa's big five at Nduna Lodge, a private game reserve in southern Zimbabwe. And we find a sanctuary for both the endangered black and white rhinos at Lapalala Wilderness in the Waterberg Mountains in the Northern Province of South Africa.

Neighboring South Africa's famous Kruger National Park, the Sabi Sands Game Reserve is home to a number of private concerns including the privately owned Exeter Game Lodge. Join us on an evening game drive and discover the wonders of the African bushveld under the cover of darkness. On the shores of Lake Kariba, in Zimbabwe we visit floating houseboats set among a forest of petrified trees at Matusadona National Park. The Ngorogoro Crater was formed millions of years ago as a result of volcanic activity during the birth of the Great Rift Valley, we visit this beautiful biosphere reserve and the adjacent Lake Manyara National Park, but first we join a convoy of off-road vehicles and discover the beauty of the Kalahari Desert.

South Africa's 1800's diamond rush was said to have been the largest of its kind in the world, resulting in the largest open cast diamond mine. In this episode we visit one of Africa's most beautiful and most threatened wilderness areas, the Okavango Delta in Botswana. In South Africa, the neighboring Game Reserves of Sabi Sabi and Mala Mala offer some of Africa's best game viewing wild animals, characters of local myths and legends. There once was a mighty buffalo of great strength and skill. He was a powerful hunter and was feared by all the animals of Africa. One day he came upon a lion drinking at a water hole and as he was about to stab the beast with his powerful horns the lion screamed for mercy. And so it was that the lion became the buffalo's slave and did all the killing for him. But one day the buffalo got greedy and asked the lion to kill one of each type of animal that lived in the bush, for him to feast on. "Oh great buffalo, yes I will kill one of each creature for you... but let me begin with you!"

Great beasts of Africa the elephants once roamed freely over this wild continent today their rambling is confined to fenced sanctuaries - the great game parks of Africa, here they live in family herds guided by matriarchs and safe guarded by the group's strength. The lone elephant bulls wander quietly over the plains and bushveld they live, age and die, sick ones are buried and in Kruger National Park in South Africa, the Shangaan people called this burial site - Sirheni - 'at the grave' The end of a life and the beginning of another. In Maldives there is a graveyard where life thrives and multiplies. The demise of these ships brought life to many marine creatures that have made the rusting carcasses their home. Corals found a foothold reef fish have made the gloomy interiors their secret lair and larger fish visit the graves regularly to feast on the living inhabitants. Yet these reefs so beautiful to scuba divers are dangerous saboteurs to sailors. In this episode we find great herds of elephants in Sirheni, in South Africa's Kruger National Park. We take a plunge into the tropical waters of the Maldives where forgotten ship hulls are clothed in a rich carpet of marine creatures. In South Africa we find playful seals and creative artists at the sea-side resort town of Plettenberg Bay.

This is known as the Great Migration - the most breathtaking wildlife spectacle on earth. The Serengeti ecosystem supports the greatest remaining concentration of game in Africa, including more than three million large mammals. We join more than one and a half million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of zebra on their annual pilgrimage through the plains of Tanzania. The endangered wildlife species of Africa include creatures once thought to be vermin. Believed to be a menace to farm animals, they were merciless hunted and killed, bringing their numbers close to extinction. In Africa, no other animal epitomizes this more than the wild dog. In this episode we find one of the few remaining packs in South Africa's Kruger National Park. We venture into the heat-hazed desert of the Karoo, in South Africa, to look for the forgotten town of Nieu Bethesda.

In this episode of the Africa Explorer, we explore one of the oldest private game reserves on the continent- Thornybush. Home to the Elephant and mighty Rhino makes for an incredible stay in the intimate lodges. Leaving the heat of the bush we enter Benguerra in Mozambique, rich in the countries colonial history. Resupplying, we travel 700 kilometers north to the old Bazaruto archipelago, famed for its romantic setting and deserted beaches. Leaving this island paradise behind, we ascend some 5895 meters to summit the famous Mount Kilimanjaro- the world's largest volcano. After conquering the highest freestanding mountain, we retreat to Camp Okuti in the Moremi Wildlife reserve. With over 500 species of birds, the day is full of furred and feathered experiences along the edge of a watery paradise.

In this episode of the African Explorer, we return to the magnificent Kruger Park for another trip through its amazing history and celebrate its 100 years of conservation. One last time, we enter the Red Sea to take a trip into World War 2 as we dive the famous Thistlegorme, which was sunk- its vital cargo still intact to this day. Now the home to a thriving underwater reef this vessel requires more than one dive to truly view properly. As the journey comes to an end we return to the ancient mountains of the Drakensburg to experience unbounded freedom under the trusted canvas of a tent. Climbing to the top of these peaks puts any visitor on eye level with the Eagles that soar with the air currents providing one last spectacle before the journey across the continent finally comes to its incredible end.