Richtersveld National Park - Northern Cape South Africa

The Richtersveld National Park is situated in the Northern Cape of South Africa. Twisted and faulted, seared by a blistering sun, the 160 000ha or crenellated lava mountains and sandy plains of the north-western crook of the Orange River form southern Africa’s largest mountain desert park. The Richtersveld has become a tourist destination for those people looking for a tourist destination with a difference.

Though surrealistically harsh and as dry as a bleached skull, the rugged Richtersveld is a botanist’s living laboratory, nurturing some 30% of all South Africa’s succulent plant species. The home of the quiver tree (Aloe pillansii), the bastard quiver tree or bush tree (Aloe ramosissima), the "halfmens" (Pachypodium namaquanum) and "eight-day" or "miracle grass" (Enneapogan desvauxii), which germinates, flowers and runs to seed within eight days after rain and thereby ensuring its survival, the Richtersveld is one of the world’s most precious and fragile ecosystems.

With less than 50mm of rain annually, it harbours leopards, lizards, adventurers and a surprising number of indigenous people who, as goat herds, live lives unchanged from those lived by their hardy ancestors. Paradoxically beautiful, its weird rock formations shaped and sculptured by the wind and sun, it is a land for those keen to "rough it". You can explore it from the comfort of your 4x4 or paddle along stretches of river, taking in the awe-inspiring, seldom-seen purity of an unspoilt wilderness.