The game experience in the Northern Cape is far removed from the very strong focus you’ll find on predators and the Big Five in traditional game viewing areas. Whether you’re being driven on an organised game drive through the Richtersveld National Park or Bushman’s Kloof, or self-driving through Goegap Nature Reserve, the first thing that will strike you is the flora, so different to much of what you see in South Africa. Chief amongst the flora is the quiver tree, its bulbous trunk supporting a bulb of aloe leaves that seem to be silhouetted against every horizon. In terms of game, mountain zebra, eland, bontebok, red hartebeest and the mighty gemsbok with its famous towering horns, all call various parts of the region home, and a real pleasure of a game drive will be learning about these animals, without the pressure to push on in the hope of seeing the Big Five, as that’s just not the way things are done here!