Mount Etjo Special

This one is not really about the driving, and the operator says so. Ten days based at Mount Etjo in Namibia, working alongside the reserve’s conservation team on rhino, elephant and leopard, with a Suzuki Jimny per pair of guests to get around in.

The work is the substance. There is elephant tracking with the team, a helicopter drop-off for a walking safari and rhino tracking with armed rangers, and two days spent with the reserve vet darting and treating animals from a helicopter while others follow in 4x4s. There is also time helping care for an orphaned rhino, leopard tracking and a night drive. It is closer hands-on access to working conservation than almost anything else in the catalogue.

The driving is deliberately limited and well judged for it: a self-drive from Windhoek of about two and a half hours finishing on bush tracks, off-road lessons on a custom-built course, and a final day exploring the reserve alone in your own vehicle with satellite tracking keeping an eye on you. There is a visit to the local school and a hike on the Etjo plateau.

KALMAR provide the vehicle, all overnights, all meals and non-alcoholic drinks, airport transfers, a satellite or GSM data connection, their coordination and every activity described. Flights to Windhoek and alcohol are separate, with an optional charter flight from Windhoek available. The price is per person based on two sharing. For anyone who wants their time in Africa to amount to something beyond photographs, this is a genuinely unusual ten days.