Hiking

Garden Route Trail. Mark Dixon is the highly qualified nature guide behind this operation. Excursions include guided day walks and multiday hikes in the forest and around the lakes and beaches of this beautiful part of the world. His signature offering is the five-day guided Garden Route Trail, starting at the Ebb and Flow Restcamp at Wilderness. The trip takes you east along the coast, with long beach walks and coastal forest included, before ending at Brenton on Sea near Knysna. The emphasis is on the natural environment rather than covering great distances, with Mark's expert guiding along the way. The trip is catered and portered, and you do some canoeing in addition to hiking. Another popular offering is the Moonlight Meander on the beach at full moon. Wilderness, Western Cape. 044/883–1015; 082/213–5931; www.gardenroutetrail.co.za.