The Experience

There is something in our genetic code that remembers that Africa is where all of our earliest human ancestors first evolved 2 million years ago. Wilderness guide and psychiatrist Ian McCallum puts it so well when he says, “We have to remember that our identity is intimately tied to the earth itself. To lose ones sense of union with wild places is to pre-empt what I believe is one of the most over-looked conditions in modern psychiatry – homesickness. Often presenting as a restless depression, homesickness and a loss of wildness are the same thing. The cure to homesickness is to remember where we came from and where we belong.” And once we know where we belong it is our task to return to these places to receive their medicine.

Pafuri is one such place to come home to. It jogs your genetic memory and re-awakens your sense of belonging to wild places.

Despite living in this modern era, we are best adapted to living in a natural environment. It’s likely because 99,9% of our evolutionary passage was spent as hunter-gatherers and our minds and bodies are not sufficiently prepared for what the technological era expects of us. Despite the increasingly technologically connected world we live in, it seems modern humans feel more disconnected from others every day. The results are not difficult to see. Depression, anxiety and feelings of hopelessness plague the modern human. And the cure to this lies in healing the human-nature split. We invite you take precious time out from your busy life to deep dive into an awe-inspiring immersion of pristine wilderness and find your rightful place in it.

ABOUT PAFURI:

The private Pafuri concession – within the world-famous Kruger National Park – lies in a vast, almost inaccessible triangle of wilderness between the Limpopo and Luvuvhu rivers, along South Africa’s north-eastern frontier. Between them, the two great valleys embrace one of Africa’s most spectacular landscapes, with mountains and gorges in the west giving way to plains, pans, baobabs and fever tree forests in the east.

This ancient land, particularly the low-lying floodplains near the confluence at Crooks’ Corner where our camp is located, harbours an abundance of life. It’s a natural choke point for wildlife crossing from north to south and back, and forms a distinct ecological region. Huge herds of elephant, buffalo and other game congregate here, especially when the surrounding bush lies parched before the rains. Predators and scavengers, ranging from the great cats and hyenas to servals, genets, civets, caracals, amongst many others, find shelter here.

The area is also famous for its elephant herds in winter (when we are there), which come to drink from the Luvuvhu river.

The wildlife roams without the hindrance of borders in a trans-frontier park that spans 3 countries. The diversity also brings a profusion of birds, with numerous sightings in what bird lovers regard as South Africa’s most rewarding birding destination.

While comprising only about 1% of the Kruger National Park’s actual area, Pafuri contains plants and animals representing almost 75% of the Parks total diversity.

WHO IS THIS RETREAT AIMED AT?

This is an exclusive, next-level wilderness safari retreat, designed for those who appreciate an inner as well as outer journey, who enjoy the freedom that comes with periods of silence, & who can recognise beauty in both the small and large creations of nature. A medium level of fitness is required (we will walk between 6 – 12km per day at a gentle pace).