Pilanesberg National Park

Pilanesberg, located in the crater of an extinct volcano, was established as a game reserve in 1979. At that time the region was only a shadow of it's former self, due to extensive farming that had depleted the area of most wildlife. Over the next 15 years a major project, dubbed Operation Genesis, was undertaken to rehabilitate the land and reintroduced over 6,000 head of game.

The region's volcanic origins have resulted in an unusual geological structure, refereed to as the Pilanesberg National Park Alkaline Ring Complex. The varied terrain and mineral composition of this complex has created a rich diversity of habitat. This diversity allows for an incredibly wide variety of plants and animals to flourish here.

Today, the Pilanesberg Game Reserve boasts healthy populations of dozens of large game, including the Big Five (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant and buffalo, which can be viewed from game drives over 200 km of well-maintained roads.

ATTRACTIONS & ACTIVITIES AT PILANESBERG NATIONAL PARK:
- game drives (both self-drives and guided drives)
- Stone and Iron Age sites
- self-guided trail
- walk-in aviary (Manyane Camp)

SUMMARY OF WILDLIFE & FLORA:
Carnivores: lion, leopard
Herbivores: black and white rhino, elephant and buffalo, springbok, brown hyena, impala, giraffe, zebra, hippo
Reptiles: crocodiles
Birdlife: 300 species of birds
Vegetation: transitional Kalahari Lowveld, forested ravines, grasslands

DIRECTIONS TO PILANESBERG NATIONAL PARK:
- 60 km north of Rustenburg