Kangaroo Island Dreaming

By Pedro O'Connor: Kangaroo Island - the name alone should make any fair dinkum traveller want to go and tick off their bucket list. There is no other location in this wide brown land that shoulders the responsibility of living up to the most recognised of all Australia's endemic wildlife, like Kangaroo Island.

For an island that is little over 100 miles (160 km) long and 50 miles (80 km) deep, this destination is one of massive contrast that warrants a place on every visitor's must see and do hitlist when visiting Australia. Often described as Australia's Galapagos, it is deserving of the title; the spontaneous wildlife encounters when driving around this patchwork of quaint communities and national parks, are astounding.

On the serene North Coast, the rolling green hills with towering gum trees lining the roadside provide the keen photographer with quintessential Aussie scenery, possibly including a cute koala nestled in a nook and chomping on the leaves. A scurrying echidna or a soaring wedge-tail eagle are common sights. If secluded relaxation is what you are looking for, you need go no further than the Cliff House at Snelling Beach. (See the image below, taken from inside the living area).

If you'd rather the wind in your face, then head to the rugged south coast. Pounding ocean swells smash against towering cliffs topped with stunted wild flowers. These stark contrasts exude a raw beauty. The beaches here have no footprints; they are pristine with water of intense clarity and immense energy. When staying at the impeccably appointed Southern Ocean Lodge, like I had the pleasure to recently, you have this all on your doorstep.

It is revitalising to spend time here in nature's cathedral; I am going back next Sunday, even if it is only in my mind.

Please contact Pedro for more details, and to discover more Epic experiences on "KI" and throughout Australia.

Kilimanjaro Climbers Sponsor Students

By Rob Barbour: Below you will see images of Matipwili Secondary School and its students in rural Tanzania. These children would ordinarily not have been afforded a secondary education if it weren't for the generosity of recent climbers of Mt Kilimanjaro with Epic.

These climbers made the summit for another charity, the Humpty Dumpty children's charity in Australia (see Brad's blog post below), but their philanthropy didn't stop there. They are now sponsoring underprivileged children to receive a secondary education at various schools adjacent to the Kisampa Private Conservation Area in coastal Tanzania.

Through Kisampa's Tuende Pamoja Trust Fund (Tuende Pamoja means: Let's move forward together in Kiswahili), we have facilitated the sponsorship of children who would normally not have the means to go to secondary school because they are orphaned, from non-working single-parent families, or are deemed 'poorer than poor' (as decided by their own communities).

A secondary education in Tanzania costs USD 250 per child, per year, for five years at a government school. This includes their school fees, any accommodation allowances, food, a uniform, a pair of shoes and a solar light to study by at night as there is no electricity in the village.

Through the Tuende Pamoja Trust Fund, over 100 children are currently sponsored at three different secondary schools – all due to the generosity of clients coming to Tanzania. Epic has played a leading role in helping us attract some of this sponsorship, such as the Humpty Dumpty climbers.

If you would like more information about the schools and students supported, or indeed if you would like to become a sponsor, please contact us.

Epic Zambezi on Channel 7's Weekend Sunrise

Click here to view Simon Reeve's report from Epic Private Journeys' recent "Epic Zambezi Trek & Paddle" expedition, as featured on Australia's Channel 7 Weekend Sunrise.

More information regarding this Epic exclusive can be found in Brad's July blog entry.

(Channel 7 - Weekend Sunrise - Sunday, 20 September 2009)

Humpty Dumpty Foundation - Kilimanjaro

By Brad Horn: Rob Barbour and I recently returned from guiding another climb of Kili. This time around we had a great group of Australians climbing for a fantastic charity endeavour called Humpty Dumpty. Of the 23 clients that attempted the summit all were successful. We were blessed with the best weather I had experienced on the mountain. Our summit night was crystal clear and perfectly still. Further it coincided with a full moon. The sunrise from Stella Point was spectacular. I have attached a couple of pictures below.

After the climb some of the group extended onto the Serengeti for a short safari. We spent 3 days in a luxury mobile camp just south of the Mara River. It was an action packed few days. The migration was in full swing gravitating north. We were fortunate to see a crossing of the river by a large herd of wildebeest. We also saw a plethora of lion, hyena, elephant and buffalo and picked up quality leopard and cheetah sightings. The beauty of the far north of the Serengeti is that is rarely busy, unlike the Maasai Mara to the north and the central and southern parts of the Serengeti. We pretty much had the migration to ourselves, save for the odd other vehicle here and there. All in all it was a fantastic few days.

Climb of Kilimanjaro - Video

Click on the image below to view recent footage taken by Brad on his Epic ascent of Kilimanjaro. For more information on climbing the world's tallest free-standing mountain with Epic Private Journeys, please contact us.

Epic Kilimanjaro

By Brad Horn: Talk about going from the sublime to the ridiculous! A day after coming off the Zambezi I was on the slopes of Kilimanjaro with a small private group of six clients – 3 women and 3 men aged from their early 30’s to late 50’s. Dr Rob Barbour, one of my African business partners, joined to assist with guiding the climb. There is no better hand than Rob’s to guide you up the mountain. A medico by trade, Rob spent many years as the doctor to Australia’s elite Special Air Service Regiment.

We climbed via the Machame Route over 6 nights/7 days. In my experience this is far and away the best route up the mountain for a variety of reasons; firstly it allows good time for acclimitisation without spending too much time on the mountain. Secondly it is widely considered the most scenic route commencing in the west and finishing in the east. Finally there's less traffic than other routes given that any climb via Machame needs to be fully supported. To that end we have a dedicated camp and crew of staff and porters supporting us, physically AND mentally!

We were blessed with the most amazing weather conditions of any of my summits of Kili; a perfect clear, still and relatively warm summit night. I am proud to report that all 6 climbers summited with no incidents. I'm also proud to report that our record of success with clients on Kili over the years stands in excess of 90%.

Well that's it for me for the moment. I am off again next week for another climb. This time we have a much larger group heading up Kili for the sake of a charity for children’s hospitals, based out of Sydney, called “Humpty Dumpty”. I will let you know how we fare in once we get back.

The very best to you all,
Brad

Epic Zambezi Trek & Paddle

By Brad Horn: I have spent the past month guiding back to back safaris in Africa; one a walking and canoeing safari on the mighty Zambezi River and the second a climb of Kilimanjaro.

I rate this as one of my very best safaris ever; a truly incredible experience. It had everything; adventure, adrenalin, amazing game and a huge range of activities and challenges. We specifically hand crafted this trip (which incidentally is an "Epic” exclusive product) to deliver the ultimate African adventure experience. All of the clients who took part in this trip rate it as THE best safari they've been on.

In brief, we began with two nights in Hwange National Park. The aim was to acclimatise and shakedown for the walk component of the trip as well as indulge in some traditional safari viewing. We were rewarded with some great game sightings including cheetah, elephant, buffalo and a baboon show that had us in stitches one chilly morning. From Hwange we flew through to Chikwenya on the eastern side of the legendary Mana Pools National Park to commence our walk. Ask any African guide worth his salt and they will agree that there are few places in Africa that come close to Mana. It offers one of the most spectacular walking environments; a wide alluvial floodplain wooded with beautiful winterthorn (albida) trees, bordering the mighty Zambezi which is upward of a kilometre wide in parts. On the opposite side of the river is a range of mountains which form a breathtaking backdrop. It was through this amazing setting that we had the privilege to walk and canoe for six magical days.

The walk involved a traverse of 70 kilometres or so from the eastern to the western edges of the park. We were supported all the way by our own dedicated camp and crew, complete with the trimmings of comfy beds, warm bucket showers, a full bar and big Bob, Zimbabwe's own Masterchef! The camp was a wonderful retreat after the rigours of the day. Our campsites were located in stunning wilderness areas inaccessible to other operators. Each day we covered between 15 and 20 kilometres. We spent three nights on the trail before spending our fourth night basking in the extraordinary luxury of the new Ruckomechi tented camp. The camp's new location is incredible, as per the below picture. After our night of pampering at Ruckomechi we then took on the river and spent two days canoeing back down to the Chikwenya side of the park.

The river is a truly unique experience and environment. Our game encounters were many and varied. The highlights included bagging some great tiger fish and bream, numerous elephant and hippo encounters, one of which was very much up close and special (see below)! This experience will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Probably the highlight for us was the sighting of a pangolin on day 2. For those that don’t know this is considered the “holy grail” of African game-viewing. Guides can go through their whole life without seeing one of these. The pangolin is an "armoured" animal that nocturnally feeds on ants. Think something like an armadillo I guess in appearance. It is the rarest of the rare. Speaking of rare experiences we also encountered wild dogs and had the privilege of watching them hunt impala.

We plan to offer 4 departures next year; one in June, two in July and one in September. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you are interested in coming with us.

Northern Exposure, Queensland

By Pedro O'Connor: The "Best Job in the World" was recently won by an excited young Englishman. He has no comprehension just how amazing his next 6 months of living on the Great Barrier Reef is going to be. I have been fortunate to grow up with the reef as my playground and I am still blown away every time I spend a day on the water after 40 plus years.

I was privileged to have the opportunity to show off my backyard of Port Douglas, the Daintree Rainforest and Lizard Island to a small group of clients. The flight over the Ribbon Reefs, en route to Lizard Island, puts into context the immensity of the reef system, yet it is not until you place you head underwater that you start to comprehend its complexity. Descending onto Lizard Island, the undisputed gem in the crown, one client declared the main beach at the lodge as "the best I have ever seen" ... and there are 23 more like it scattered around the island!

Ranked as one of the top 5 dive sites in the world, you can’t miss the Cod Hole. My Brazilian friend (who had never snorkelled in her life) could not believe her eyes and stayed mesmerised by the natural splendour of the diversity of marine life. She was in a trance-like state for some time after! After a quick flight back to Port Douglas we lounged in luxury on a 72 ft yacht at Low Isles, while enjoying sunset drinks and some of the best and freshest seafood on the planet. Juxtaposing nicely, we then ventured to a typical Aussie pub for the weekly Cane Toad Races. Our illustrious leader from Los Angeles was fortunate to be drawn as a jockey but was pipped at the post and came in second after many anxious moments and laughs.

We 'hunted' and 'gathered' with local aborigines, and visited a world of tropical fruits of all colours, shapes, sizes and flavours unknown to most people. A sensory delight in so many ways, this is a must see on any North Queensland itinerary. As the ultimate refresher we then drift snorkelled down a pristine rainforest stream, floating through a wonderland of natural beauty.

I could continue to wax lyrical but I believe the email I received today from my new Texan friend says it all – “The landscape, water and wildlife are some of the most incredible I have ever seen. But far more important than that I had the pleasure and privilege of meeting some of the most wonderful people in the entire world. I can't even put in to words how much I appreciate the kindness that was shown me during my visit and have to tell you that in all my travels, because of each of you, this was by far the best. I look forward to working with you, and most especially to our next visit." I rest my case – come see for yourself!

If you would like more information on the islands of the Great Barrier Reef, the Daintree Rainforest, or Port Douglas and its surrounds, please contact Pedro O'Connor.