"Place of Lots of Water " a Tsitsikamma Nasionale Park Travel Page by Waxbag

Tsitsikamma reminds me a lot of Maine. It is has a rugged coast line, crashing waves with hillsides covered with beautiful forests. The national park covers 100 km of coast line between Nature's Valley and Storms River mouth. The marine portion of the park protects the coastline out to 5 km of ocean. This area is just bombarded with water whether from the ocean's waves or the constant rainfall. This region gets some of the highest rainfalls in southern africa around 1200 mm per year.

The biggest attraction here is the 42 km Otter Trail that follows the rugged coastline from Nature’s Valley to Storms River Mouth. It is considered by some as one of the best trails in the country and can be booked up one year in advance. There is also the less popular Tsitsikamma trail (64 km) that runs parallel to the Otter Trail up into the mountains.

There are several nice hikes that you can do around the main park. The floral here is fascinating with stinkwood trees, yellowwood trees, evergreens, fynbos, proteas, lilies, and ferns. Animals such as the blue duiker and baboons can be seen. The Cape clawless otter is a bit difficult to spot.

A swing bridge crosses the Storm River and leads up to a nice view point.

The rainforest trails are very interesting and informative.