TEAM IDWALA OUT AND ABOUT.

Recently Nicole decided to visit one of SA’s top tourist areas. Close encounters with crocodiles, ostrich racing and good Karoo hospitality awaited her.

One of the most popular destinations in South Africa has to be Oudtshoorn. It is an easy drive from Idwala and takes about 4 hours.  Everyone in this town is friendly and eager to help. To start our Karoo visit, we enjoyed a traditional breakfast including scrambled ostrich eggs. One egg is enough to feed 30 people! We headed out to the amazing Cango Caves, just a few minutes' drive outside of town.  Five chambers of breathtaking rocks made out of lime stone.  The way these rocks are formed is very special; these features are called stalactites and stalagmites. (Growing downwards from the ceiling and growing upwards respectively).  A must-see for any visitor to this area. Some of the features that you get to see inside these chambers are formations such as Cleopatra’s needle, the Leaning tower of Piza and the Organ.  Lights are strategically placed around the caves to give you the ultimate view of the rocks. It feels as if you are in another world and your eyes can’t seem to stop moving around the caves as they are trying to take in every detail.  The oxygen levels inside the caves are lower than outside.  It’s a very strange feeling when leaving the caves and stepping back into reality, your body receives a rush of oxygen.  Plan to spend about 1 hour for the regular walk.

After the caves we went to the Cango Wildlife ranch. There are a variety of animals, ranging from flying foxes (a type of large bat) to white tigers to crocodiles, lions and cheetahs. At the Cango Wildlife ranch they offer crocodile cage diving. We decided to do this and it was definitely an experience I will never forget . We got up close and personal with 3 of these huge reptiles, 2 females and 1 male, but as it was quite late in the day they weren’t very active and were more interested in sun bathing than us. To be honest, I did not mind! Nevertheless, we got up so close that we could see into their eyes and see them staring back at us. The cage that you go down in is cylindrical-shaped and made out of metal bars with handles so you can pull yourself down under the water. The water is kept clear for maximum visibility. Bathing suits and towels are provided. The must-do event in this part of the world is visiting an Ostrich farm.  We chose Highgate Farm, about 10 minutes outside of the town. The visit started with a tour of the farm where we learnt about the history of the Ostrich industry, the life-cycle of an ostrich and saw eggs being incubated.

A short drive down the road and our guide took us to see the world’s biggest bird up close and personal. We were taken to a nest where the guide invited us to stand on the eggs. It’s unbelievable the weight that these eggs can withstand. We were given the option of sitting on an ostrich. It’s a very strange sensation that cannot be put into words. My fellow traveller was brave enough to take a ride on the ostrich. To finish our tour we watched the locals race the ostriches. Place your bets and watch the birds run by! While visiting Oudtshoorn, Team Idwala recommends stay at Oakdene Guesthouse in the main road. For a delightful experience, we also recommend staying at Red Stone Hills which is about 30 km outside of the town. No visit is complete with out dining at the top Karoo cuisine experience, Kalinkas (the only place to try Ostrich)