St. Lucia, South Africa
The St. Lucia estuary is filled with some of Africa's most dangerous animals. Paddling kayaks through it on safari is probably one of the craziest things I've ever done.
Just do a Google search for "most dangerous animals in Africa" and see what pops up.
Yup. In almost every Top 10 list, you'll find Crocodiles, Sharks, and Hippos.
And we were about to go kayaking with all three. Yay!
In fact the big ol' fat Hippopotamus is Africa's MOST dangerous animal. Turns out they happen to be just a bit faster than they look...
The iSimangaliso Wetland Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, renowned for it's diverse wildlife and swamp forests. The park is actually located in three different countries: South Africa, Mozambique, and Swaziland.
Not Your Typical Kayaking Trip...
I've done a lot of kayaking over the years, in both lakes & whitewater rivers. But I've never kayaked alongside wild animals that could easily kill me if they wanted to.
This was going to be a completely new experience!
Before we began the adventure, our guide from St. Lucia Kayak Safaris warned us not to get too close to the animals. They are unpredictable, after all.
While we knew about the crocodiles and hippos that we'd likely see, he failed to mention that the estuary is also home to Bull Sharks... which was probably a good thing, as everyone was already a bit nervous about the other creatures.
It wasn't until we were out on the water, and Wandering Earl saw a shark fin swim by him, that we were briefed on this other minor detail.
But if you think about it, what's one more lethal animal swimming with us anyway?
There was no turning back now. :D
Chased Down by Crocodiles!
After Earl saw the shark, crocodiles were the next monsters we encountered. Their evil-looking eyes peering at us from just above the water, or out sunbathing along the shore.
I counted about 6 of them during the 2.5 hour tour.
We would paddle up towards them -- only to have the prehistoric creatures slither away and dive into the water. It seems the crocodiles were more afraid of us than we thought.
All except one...
One of the beasts disappeared under us, only to suddenly reappear right behind us. He then proceeded to follow our kayaks!
Luckily Earl & Rachelle from The Travel Bite were in the rear, so if anyone was going to get eaten, it would be them. :twisted:
But eventually the croc lost interest and disappeared again.
Most Dangerous Animal in Africa?
Next we glided our boats into hippo territory. The Hippopotamus kills more people in Africa than Lions, Elephants, Snakes, or Buffalo. You'd never suspect this when looking at it from a distance. At first glance it's big, fat, vegetarian, and pretty awkward.
But underestimating a hippo can easily get you killed.
Those tiny legs can propel the rest of it up to 20 MPH, they are extremely territorial, and they have a mean temper! A hippo's mouth is also full of jagged ivory teeth covered in toxic bacteria.
Not to mention the beast weighs as much as a large SUV at 2-3 tons...
For the most part they are easy to spot though -- we kept our distance while watching them play, grunt, and show off their ugly smiles.
But extra caution was needed while kayaking around the thick grass & reeds along the riverbank, just in case a few were hiding nearby.
Most hippo attacks occur when people get in between them and the water. They search for food on land in the evenings, and stay in the water during the day to keep cool & protected from the sun.
We were actually able to witness some of their aggressiveness the day before when a large male hippopotamus charged our tour boat with over 20 people on board.
Incredible St. Lucia Kayak Safari
In addition to crocodiles, a shark, and the hippos we encountered, there were plenty of colorful birds to see. We spotted the bright red eyes and strange upside-down nests of the African Golden Weaver, as well as the funny looking Yellow Billed Stork.
While leaving in a truck after our kayaking adventure, a poisonous Forest Cobra snake slithered across the road in front of us!
St. Lucia's estuary is absolutely filled with interesting wildlife.
It was a pleasure to spend a few hours exploring the beautiful iSimangaliso Wetland area via kayak -- especially since we all made it back in one piece.
Because getting eaten by wild animals will ruin anyone's day. :D
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Company: St. Lucia Kayak Safari & Julnic Tours
Cost: $35 US
Packing Guide
Check out my travel gear guide to help you start packing for your trip. Pick up a travel backpack, camera gear, and other useful travel accessories.
Book Your Flight
Book cheap flights on Skyscanner, my favorite airline search engine to find deals. Also read my tips for how I find the cheapest flights.
Rent A Car
Discover Cars is a great site for comparing car prices to find the best deal. They search both local & international rental companies.
Book Accommodation
Booking.com is my favorite hotel search engine. Or rent local apartments on Airbnb ($35 discount!). Read my post for tips on booking cheap hotels.
Protect Your Trip
Don’t forget travel insurance! I’m a big fan of World Nomads for short-term trips. Protect yourself from possible injury & theft abroad. Read more about why you should always carry travel insurance.
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READ MORE SOUTH AFRICA TRAVEL TIPS
I hope you enjoyed my guide on the iSimangaliso kayak safari! Hopefully you found it useful. Here are a few more wanderlust-inducing articles that I recommend you read next:
This adventure was made possible with help from South African Tourism. However, as you probably know by now, all opinions & thoughts are my own.
