Wandering in the African Wilderness | The Wanderer Book

This is the story of two lifelong friends who had the courage to pursue their dreams in some of the last remaining wilderness areas in southern Africa. The days when you could freely explore the Dark Continent alone in search of great adventure were quickly fading when South Africans Hoffman Theron van Zijl and Gerhard Bolt reached adulthood and embarked on a series of adventures, both together and independently, in the 1970s and 1980s.

Their main aim was to hunt dangerous game, but they were equally passionate about exploring genuine, untouched wilderness. This book focuses on one such adventure: a safari they undertook to the Zambezi Valley in Mozambique in 1989. The friends booked their hunting trip with an outfitter but, true to their nature, once there, they strayed off and explored on their own - on foot, with only native trackers as their companions. What follows is a series of adventures involving elephants, irritable buffalo, and a charging lion, alongside a fascinating glimpse of a landscape and a people whose way of life would soon vanish forever.

The Mozambique journey is generously interwoven with flashbacks, in the form of stories from other adventures, shared around campfires and during tea breaks. These stories range from rescuing a fishing village from a marauding hippo to a humorous attempt to call in a lion with an electronic caller, to an encounter with a mysterious medicine man who may or may not have transformed himself into an elephant.

The author and his companion were both driven by a fascination with the unexplored reaches of their mysterious continent, Africa, and by admiration for the life led by the great hunter-explorers of the early twentieth century. As they matured, they came to see that their longing was for the spirit of the distant, untouched African bush as much as for the hunt itself. As their resources grew and their friendship deepened, their expeditions became increasingly ambitious and daring, yet more fulfilling. This wonderful book will make you wish you could join the two friends in their adventurous explorations.

Their main goal was to hunt dangerous game, but they were just as interested in exploring true, untouched wilderness. This book revolves around one of these adventures: a safari they undertook to the Zambezi Valley in Mozambique in 1989. The friends booked their hunting trip with an outfitter but, true to form, once they got there, they wandered off and explored on their own - on foot, with only native trackers as their companions. What follows is a series of adventures in pursuit of elephants, bad-tempered buffalo, and a charging lion, as well as a fascinating glimpse of a landscape and a people whose way of life would soon vanish forever.

The Mozambique trip is liberally spiced with flashbacks, in the form of stories from other adventures, told around campfires and during tea breaks. These range from rescuing a fishing village from a marauding hippo to a hilarious attempt to call in a lion with an electronic call, to an encounter with a mysterious medicine man who may or may not have transformed himself into an elephant.

The author and his companion were both driven by a fascination with the undiscovered reaches of their mysterious continent, Africa, and for the life lived by the great hunter-explorers of the first part of the twentieth century. As they matured they came to understand that their longing was for the spirit of the distant and untouched African bush as much as it was for the hunt itself. And as their means grew and their companionship deepened, their expeditions became ever more ambitious and daring, but more satisfying. This wonderful book will lead you to wish you could have joined the two friends in their adventurous wanderings.