Zorbing

Is it a giant golf ball? A floating overgrown dandelion? Or perhaps a tiny moon, fallen from the sky? No. It is a craze that originated in Rotarua, New Zealand. It has taken the United Kingdom, USA and most of Europe by storm.

This recreational activity is usually enjoyed on a gentle slope or even a series of less gentle slopes. You can also zorb on sand or water. Some facilitators even have metal ramps in place for the more daring enthusiasts. Most spheres accommodate a single rider, but we have heard others are being designed to contain two adults.

We have yet to track down an activity provider for zorbing in South Africa. If you have heard of someone in the Western Cape who is doing it, please send details this way. Entrepreneurs out there take note, you could play up the ball shape and cash in on all the tourists headed this way for the soccer world cup. You have less than a year so get cracking, please.

Paintball

It’s the middle of the week you may be sitting at your desk wondering if the week-end will ever arrive. It will and if you’ve had a stressful time book a paintball session to release all your tensions from the week.

Paintball frees the spirited rascal in anyone. You can stalk and hunt in this survivor style game. The thrill of the hunt runs deep in our veins. Gear up with headgear, helmet and a thick suit, with your hands on a paintball gun and let rip. The rules are simple and there are at least 5 or 6 common versions of play to accommodate all tastes.

A thorough session of paintball will get your adrenalin gushing, smooth the creases on your brow and eliminate the knots in your neck and shoulders. This is an adventure to be pursued on Friday afternoons, so as to ensure you will be able to truly hang loose for the balance of your delicious weekend. Though I’m willing to bet you’ll most likely want to head back for more by the time Sunday rolls around.

Jumping for Joy

We cannot agree on a name, but around the world this sport has been embraced by every name ever given. Bungi jumping also known as Bungee and Bunjee or even Bunjy jumping is really here to stay as a classic amongst extreme sport options.

We all know it is good to push our boundaries and try something new every so often. So if Winter is getting you down and you need a boost to remind you how much fun there is to be had, I suggest falling, just dropping at pace and then dangling while you try to recall why your heart is racing like the energizer bunny on red bull!

You just have to be willing to toss your body into the never-never and just when you wish you had not, the elastic bungee cord will pull tight and whoa, wasn’t that awesome? So whether as a dare or a simple personal challenge grab onto this one with both feet!

Holiday Adventure

Take some time out in Northern KwaZulu-Natal this holiday. You can wind down and simply revel in long walks and the wide open spaces. Before long I am sure you will want to turn up the heat and give in to the tempting adventure activities available at African Wanderer.

If you like your feet on dry land the game drives through Hluhluwe-Imfolozi are always rewarding and hikes are also an option. Try a kayaking safari where you could spot healthy hippo and gnarled crocodile. The birdlife in this are is diverse and you’ll surely spot a prize fish-eagle.

Heading towards the ocean, the beaches nearby are awesome and mostly unspoiled. Boasting some really sizeable dunes. Make a splash with your snorkel on or dip your paddles from a kayak. This natural holiday spot is packed with adventures for you.

Adventure above the tree-tops

Get your adrenalin pumping on a zip line over tree-tops. Feel like an eagle soaring above the forests. Although it is more exciting for you as your brain frantically calculates the gravity, mass, speed ratio which of course greatly exceeds that of an eagle. Humankind has eternally been fascinated with flight. This is a really fun way to play at being a bird.

After skimming along between six to ten platforms roughly 30m above the land, your appetite for adventure should be satisfied for a while.

The vistas you will behold are magnificent. Canopy tours were originally designed by biologists to enable them get a better look at ecological systems in forests. This a view of our natural world from a dramatically different vantage point. This adventure is well loved around the world. The reasons are obvious.

Snow is Falling

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Get your own

Seasonal and therefore well worth the drive. Our fun times in the snow can be brief but are eagerly awaited and the memories are always safely treasured. In South Africa, when it snows, everybody wants to be there. We become highly creative toboggan engineers. Anything from plastic sheeting to masonite is stuffed in the boot to be used on arrival for sliding down snowy banks.

Snowball fights are great family fun, pretty good when you need to exact revenge on a sibling. A well aimed snowball which is swiftly delivered can serve up quite a sting. The pain of course, is short-lived at those very low temperatures that accompany snowfalls.

Somewhere bogged down in abundant snow right now is Shumba Valley Adventure Farm. If it is snow you want, they have loads. You can adventure around on quad bikes, enjoy the fire inside or go along with them on a skiing escapade nearby. This is the season to be merry in the snow

Surf Adventure

The 2008 Mr Price Pro Ballito happens for the first time at it’s new venue. Ballito promises all the same excitement previously on offer, from the 27th June to 5th July 2009 you are going to want to be there!

A total of 19 countries will be competing at the 6 Star ASP World Qualifying Series event, with all eyes on the legendary surfing powerhouses South Africa, Australia and Brazil.

Foreigners number 130 international men and women against our contingent of 68 locals yet South Africa has the highest number of recorded entries per country, with 49 men and 19 women officially entered. Former ASP World Tour campaigner and present WQS Number 8 Travis Logie (Durban) is the top rated South African in the men’s event.

With almost 200 surfers from across the globe surfing their hearts out for a most prestigious title, the heat is on this winter.

Sardines Shoals On The Run

When the sardines run and the excitement is high please remember safety first. Keep in mind that you should only swim at beaches that have shark nets, between beacons, never at dawn or dusk, not in brown water, alone or with an open sore which could be a ‘shark magnet’. We really do want you to survive and enjoy your next adventure.

The Natal Sharks Board carefully monitors the sardine run so that they can remove shark nets ahead of the shoals and allow them to pass freely. Be sure you stay in touch. Look for those beacons and check with lifeguards before you make a splash. The sardine run updates are available on 082 284 9495, save this now and use it.

Sardine Run Adventure

This annual event is an adventure for more than the silvery shoals of sardines moving up the coast. Observe the effect on various predators that pursue this shoal safely from the shore or by diving, boating or flying overhead.

Sardine shoals can extend up to 30km in length. These sardines are herded by an estimated 20,000 dolphins as well as sharks that are eager to consume more than their fair share of the tasty bait on offer. There are always plenty of viewing facilitators about.

Divers may be lucky and spot Ragged Tooth sharks, who will be gathered for their mating season. Also to be viewed are massive brindle bass, moray eels, rays, turtles, Humpback and Southern Right whales amongst others sharing in this adventure escapade.

Scuba Diving

Breathe underwater and you can see how our aquatic friends live. Scuba diving is fun for everybody. See a world you have never seen before when you go scuba diving, trained scuba dive experts will teach you and test your ability before you get out into the big blue. Safety is vital, adhere to all controls and then you can relax and have a blast underwater.

Even in winter, scuba diving is great. Slide into a wet suit and the lower temperatures will be no bother. If you have never tried this adventure sport you are missing out. Beach holidays are still fun in winter. Make your holiday extra special by learning to scuba dive. Just go for it!

Elephant Adventure in Africa

Safari magic! What a fun adventure. This has got to be an awesome experience. What could be more amazing for safari enthusiasts, than the opportunity to see these beautiful massive elephants up close and personal?

Forever this herd have trampled the same path each marula season, to enjoy chomping on their favourite berries. When this new building was erected smack on their path they were not in the least deterred from pursuing their pleasures. We clearly have living proof that elephants never forget, not even when perhaps they should.

To date this seasonal, daily event has not resulted in any harm whatsoever to either elephants or humans.

Ballooning in Africa

I want to be a passenger on a hot air balloon over the Serengeti, Tanzania. This must be the ultimate safari. Imagine giving up all control and allowing an enormous balloon to carry you away on an exhilarating adventure. That must diminish all worldly cares as you surrender to pure pleasure and abandoned awe.

Ballooning way up in the big African sky will ignite emotions unlike any other adventure. While below you life plays out according to it’s ancient and natural rhythm. The beautiful landscape may change form and color under the artistic hand of the mobile herds.

Buck at a waterhole may scatter momentarily at their first glimpse of you in a strange unidentified flying object. Settling soon, as they trust again, that you pose no imminent danger.

This dream adventure is well worth holding onto with two tightly clenched hands. Revisit it often so that it can be molded into an absolute reality.