Spotting a lion cooling off in the shade while on safari at Nokana

Are you possessed of endless curiosity about the African Bush? The resilience of a long distance runner and more energy than a hyperactive toddler? Good! You're going need it if you want to go on safari with Michel Oyana, the owner of Nokana Safari Camp near the world famous Kruger National Park in South Africa.

Scuba diver, filmmaker, barista, chef, skier, jazz pianist, wine connoisseur, master horseman, raconteur and passionate conservationist.... In short, Michel is one of the most fascinating people I have ever met. This charming and hilarious Frenchman came to live in Africa about 14 years ago and is exceptionally well acquainted with the African Bush and the Kruger National Park he calls home.

Michel has had great success with the French tourist market over the past decade or so since he started Mopaya Lodge and he has now decided to widen the market to include the English-speaking world in the form of Nokana Safari Camp on the same property. Acting as guide himself during his extensive excursions here – a 13 hour game drive inside the Kruger Park for instance – he has now decided to also employ English field guides and rangers. Nokana Safari Camp is located on its own private game reserve with 3,000 hectares of traversing rights around the lodge and a further 17,000 hectares of prime Big-5 game drives including the famous 12,000 hectare Thornybush Game Reserve.

Nokana Safari Camp is a unique little gem. It is an eco-friendly camp situated under beautiful leadwood trees and knobthorns. They use solar panels and recycled wood and there are only six luxury canvas tents subtly hidden among the bush willows, raised on wooden stilts and offering en suite facilities and outdoor showers. Additionally, two thatched chalets with private verandas offer peace and privacy.

A fenced area of 11 km around the Lodge and the Camp, with 45 km of private tracks, allows secure bush walks and peaceful horse back safaris, whilst avoiding the lions, leopards, hyenas, wild dogs and cheetahs that come to visit from time to time.

After a game drive where we see blue wildebeest, zebra, warthog and countless guinea fowl milling around the waterhole metres from us, we head to the look-out tower for sundowners surrounded by the Drakensberg and Lebombo mountains. Chilled Allesverloren Port – enchanting, accompanies the African sunset...

I wash off the bush dust in a luxurious bubble bath before heading to dinner around the boma. The boma has been transformed into a magical setting with tables arranged around the massive fire with lanterns everywhere. The millions of stars above smile down on us as we consume the delicious fare of butternut soup for starters and T-bone steak for mains. The chocolate cheesecake for desert is the stuff of dreams. Despite the gorgeous linen and comfortable bed I am awoken a few times during the night by the eerie cry of jackal. We are up at 5 am and after a quick breakfast its off to Orpen Gate for a full day game drive, exploring the wonders of the Kruger National Park.

Within minutes of entering the Park we encounter a group of six lions. Michel's knowledge of the Park and its treasures is exhaustive and he knows more than the best game rangers I have come across. He talks and explains the behavior of the animals we encounter almost non-stop as we drive –antelope, giraffe, elephant, rhino and a myriad of other animal as well as the birds, savannah biomes, plants, shrubs and the entire interaction of the lot. He does not waste a syllable and we are mesmerized. We stop for a lunch picnic under a tree in the blazing 38-degree heat. Michel has obtained special permission for us to traverse an area of the Park where other vehicles are not allowed so we have the luxury of getting off the vehicle. We encounter two male lions and spend about an hour with these magnificent beasts, getting up close and personal.

We arrive at the camp at about 7 that evening – hot, hungry and tired to the bone yet still exhilarated by the experience. We jump into the cool, welcoming water of the swimming pool and lazily float below the stars in the dark sultry night. We fall into bed like zombies after dinner and deep sleep follows in seconds.

The following morning it's off to Klaserie and a lazy trip boat trip on the Olifants River with Olifants River Safaris. A huge heard of buffalo crosses the river in front of us and we see crocodiles, a rare couple of beautiful klipspringers (a small species of antelope) and a lion on the banks of the river. Back at camp for lunch, Michel tells us about the cheetah-breeding program, which he is very closely involved with.

Luxurious tent accommodation to delight your nights

Since 2003, the Camp has welcomed several scientific missions to help endangered species to breed, as infertile cheetah hosting non-profit company C.R.E.S.A.M. (Conservation and Reproduction for endangered South African Endangered Wild Species). Artificial insemination has already succeeded and other research programs to help endangered species to breed are being conducted. The objective is to reintroduce these endangered species into their natural habitat.

While Michel takes the others on a game drive to the nearby Tshukudu Game Lodge to see the bred cheetah in their natural habitat, I finally get a chance to relax by the pool and the peace and serenity of the bush envelops me, as the breeze blows like butterfly kisses. After a nap that feels like a well-deserved coma, I walk around the camp in the setting sun and relax by the boma with a gin and tonic, marveling at the magnificent sunset. Peace – at last...

Nokana is not for the faint of heart and if you think you are going to sit around and do nothing, you have another thing coming...

It's a superb, unique, high-octane adventure and I urge you to tick it off your bucket list.

A typical week at Nokana:

Monday:

BIG FIVE GAME DRIVE on 12 000 Hectares of the THORNYBUSH PRIVATE GAME RESERVE, 1 hour's drive from Nokana

- Nokana Safari Camp Game Drive or Bush Walk.

- Nokana Safari Camp Walking Safari.

- Optional Horse Back Safari at extra cost.

Tuesday:

Full day drive from early morning to late evening in KRUGER NATIONAL PARK – 90 minute drive from Nokana - Possibility to use private 4x4 trails far from the public roads allowing guests to exit the vehicle

Wednesday:

*BIG FIVE GAME DRIVE on 12 000 hectares THORNYBUSH PRIVATE GAME RESERVE, 1 hour's drive from Nokana.

- Nokana Safari Camp Game Drive or Bush Walk.

- Nokana Safari Camp Walking Safari.

- Optional Horse Back safari at extra cost.

- Option to sleep over at BATELEUR BUSH CAMP at extra cost and come back to Nokana the next morning for horse riders and other clients.

Thursday:

- Rest and late breakfast – brunch at Nokana Safari Camp. Conservation program for endangered species developed at Nokana Safari Camp.

- Afternoon until dark BIG FIVE GAME DRIVE on 5 000 Hectares TSHUKUDU GAME RESERVE including the Lion Breeding project.

Friday:

Full day drive from early morning to late evening in KRUGER NATIONAL PARK – 1 ½ hour drive from Nokana Safari Camp -. Possibility to use private 4x4 trails far from the public roads allowing guests to exit the vehicle

Saturday:

BIG FIVE GAME DRIVE on 12 000 hectare THORNYBUSH PRIVATE GAME RESERVE, 1 hour's drive from Nokana.

- Nokana Safari Camp Game Drive or Bush Walk.

- Nokana Safari Camp Walking Safari.

- Optional Horse Back Safari at extra cost.

Sunday:

- Rest and late breakfast – brunch at Nokana Safari Camp. Conservation program for endangered species developed at Nokana.

- Afternoon Private Boat Safari on Olifants River coming inside KRUGER NATIONAL PARK. 1 hour's drive from Nokana Safari Camp.

- Traditional South African Bush Dinner Braai under the stars at Nokana, weather depending or outside dinner at Nokana Safari Lodge as every night, weather depending.

Contact:

http://www.nokana.co.za/

http://www.mopayasafari.co.za/ French Market.

Getting there:

Flights: South African Airways introduced direct flights between Beijing and Johannesburg in 2012. Go to http://www.flysaa.com/za/en/flyingSAA/News/Saa-introduces-non-stop-flights-to-beijing-china.html.

From Johannesburg's OR Tambo Airport, Ashton's Shuttles offers return trips to the Kruger National Park and surrounding areas in relative comfort. The duration of the trip is about 6 hours and it is much cheaper than flying. Contact them at http://www.ashtonstours.com/