Mountain Zebra National Park and Cradock

Declared In 1937 When About Eleven Cape Mountain Zebra Were Left Alive On Earth, And Now Holding Several Hundred Of Them Along With Cheetah, Buffalo, Black Rhino And Lion Reintroduced Since MALARIA FREE Karoo Hill Country Above The Town Of Cradock, Whose Victorian Streets And The Olive Schreiner House Make The Pairing Worth The Detour Off The N10 · Cradock, Eastern Cape

When this park was declared in 1937 there were about eleven Cape mountain zebra left alive on earth, all of them on one farm in these hills. There are several hundred now, and every Cape mountain zebra anywhere descends from that handful - which makes this park the exact equivalent of what Hluhluwe-iMfolozi is for the white rhino, and almost nobody knows it. The country is Karoo hill: grassland and dolerite koppies above the Wilgerboom valley, with long views and clear air. Cheetah, buffalo, black rhino and lion have been reintroduced since, so this is no longer the walk-anywhere park it once was and the rules at the gate have changed accordingly. It is malaria-free, twelve kilometres from Cradock, and the town is worth the pairing: Victorian streets, the Olive Schreiner house and a restored nineteenth-century street of cottages you can actually sleep in make the detour off the N10 worth taking.

In the Karoo hills 12 km west of Cradock, 250 km north of Port Elizabeth on the N10, Cradock, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Gates open at first light and close at dusk with times that move through the year, so take them at the gate and treat them as absolute. Entry is the daily SANParks conservation fee or a Wild Card. CHEETAH, LION, BUFFALO AND BLACK RHINO HAVE ALL BEEN REINTRODUCED, so the walking trails and the walk-anywhere character the park once had are now restricted - confirm the current rules at the gate rather than relying on an old guidebook. Guided cheetah tracking on foot is offered and booked at reception, which is the park's signature activity. There is a rest camp with chalets, a campsite, a pool and a restaurant. In Cradock the Olive Schreiner house and the small museums keep daylight hours and most close one day a week. Cradock is on the N10 about three hours from Port Elizabeth, and the whole area is MALARIA-FREE.

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