The Karoo National Park, a perennial favourite of ours, was the first major destination on our recent “summer trek” through the national parks and nature reserves of the Western and Eastern Cape Provinces. The Karoo’s landscapes may be harsh, and its inhabitants equally tough, but there’s no denying that having so much open space around you has a very special allure.
During our visit I posted a few photographs on a daily basis to give those following along on our travels a glimpse of what we were experiencing. Let’s start this recap with those.
The Karoo National Park has two major game-viewing loops accessible to visitors without a 4×4. The shortest of those is the route through the Lammertjiesleegte between the rest camp and the entrance gate. Along the way, the Bulkraal Picnic Site is a nice place to stretch your legs and look for habituated birds to photograph.
Karoo National Park’s Rest Camp is a delightful oasis in this thirstland, and besides being a safe and comfortable place for humans to spend the night it is also a magnet for a range of wildlife!
The longer of the Karoo National Park’s all-access game-viewing loops is called Potlekkertjie, and incorporates the ingeniously constructed Klipspringer Pass. This beautiful drive has something to offer driven at any time of day, but is best enjoyed slowly early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when the sunlight catches the surrounding mountains and glades so beautifully. Halfway along visitors can have a picnic at secluded Doornhoek.
DeWetsWild is proud to be a contracted reservations agent for the Karoo National Park, so whether you’d like us to assist you with a reservation to visit on your own or would like us to include the Park in a guided tour arranged specifically for you, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
DeWetsWild 
Die Karoo Nasionale Park in die somer – julle is braaf, ne 😉. Ek’s mal oor julle foto’s van die klipspringers … en ek kyk altyd twee keer wanneer ek sebras sien!
Ek vat eerder die somerhitte as die winterkoue in die Karoo, Corna! 😉
Die Karoo Nasionale Park is n besonderse plek en regtig n besoek werd in enige seisoen.
I echo sustainabilitea in her comment, Dries, and I can say you’ve made my life so much richer with your blog. Had I not discovered your blog, I’m sure I’d have never followed through with my South Africa bucket list item.
Having had a chance to show you, Lynn, Pat and Gary a little slice of our country was a dream come true for me too, John!
I’m so thankful your adventurous life leads you to all these places and that not only do you take excellent photos of what you see (and know all about what you see), but that you have a wonderful blog where you share all of that. ❤ My life is definitely richer for that.
Thank you very much for the kind words, Janet. I am still holding out hope that I’ll be able to show you around these natural treasures of our country at some point!
Me too.
Your photographs make me long to return! We usually enjoy spending a few days there on our way to or from Cape Town. The peace envelops one from the start and – as your photographs show – there is a lot to see for those who are prepared to look around them. Animals aren’t everything! The Karoo National Park has one of the most pleasant and well-organised campsites I have experienced: there is a lekker gees there too 🙂 🙂
The hospitality of the Karoo’s people alone makes a visit worth the while, Anne, and then to be surrounded by such beautiful scenery and abundant wildlife really is the icing on the cake!