KGALAGADI NATIONAL PARK

South Africa, Namibia and Botswana share boundaries and game parks too, and perhaps the best example of this is the huge Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park- formerly known as the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, and regarded as one of the region’s best wildlife reserves. The Gemsbok National Park in Botswana merges with Kgalagadi in South Africa, covering in all an area of about 36,000 sq km. Of this, the South African reserve accounts for almost 10,000 sq km- an expanse of arid land drained by two rivers, the Nossob and the Auob. There are no boundaries between the South African and Botswanan parks, and animals move freely from one park to the other.

The Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park has stretches of red sand dunes and sparse scrub vegetation, making it easy for visitors to spot wildlife. Hundreds of antelopes gallop in unison across the red sands, and a wide spectrum of wildlife- gemsbok, meerkat, eland, blue wildebeest, springbok and hartebeest- can be seen throughout the area. By day, the black maned Kalahari lion cools off beneath bushes and the leopard stretches out on the branches of the camelthorn tree- both offering excellent opportunities for photography. Also home to predators like the cheetah, black-backed jackal and hyena, this park has about 215 species of bird life, including the pygmy falcon, Ludwig’s bustard, crimson-breasted shrike, Kalahari robin and Burchell’s sandgrouse.

Entry Permits
An entrance fee of R25 (for adults) and R12 (for children) is necessary to enter Kgalagadi. The entry permit can be obtained at the gate to the park. An additional charge of R5 is payable for every vehicle brought into the reserve.

Access
The park is best accessed from Upington (260km). Johannesburg and other major cities of South Africa have regular flights to Upington Airport, and the city has good train connections to the rest of the country as well. From Upington, there are buses to the national park; alternatively, you can hire a vehicle and drive all the way- the landscape is stunning. The three rest camps in Kgalagadi all have airstrips of their own, where light aircraft can land with prior permission from the Park Warden. Within the park, there are graveled roads along which you can drive to get a closer look at Kgalagadi’s wildlife. Note that you must be back in your camp before nightfall.

Best time to visit
Like all of South Africa’s other game parks, the Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park too is best visited in the winter, between March and October. Summer temperatures can go as high as 40°C, and it can get very uncomfortable, to say the least.

Accommodation
Kgalagadi’s distance from any other settlement means that a day trip to the park is virtually impossible. Visitors, however, have a fairly comprehensive range of accommodation to choose from: chalets and rest camps, stilted cottages and huts. There are three rest camps on the South African side of the park: Nossob, Mata Mata and Twee Rivieren, all of which have ample accommodation, including campsites. The recently opened Bitterpan camp lies roughly in the center of the park and has accommodation atop stilts.

Tariffs at Kgalagadi range between R65 for a camp, through R200-400 for a cottage, right up to R4000 for a chalet at Bitterpan. For reservations and further information, contact South African National Parks, (PO Box 787, Pretoria 0001; Tel: 27-12-3431991).

For detailed country and visitor information, see South Africa.