The Big Tree │Tsitsikamma
Tuesday, 2nd February 2016
A trip to Tsitsikamma on the Southern Cape coast of South Africa will show you a side of Africa and South Africa that you never imagined existed. The name of this coastal region of South Africa is “The Garden Route” – so named for the indigenous Fynbos that is the world’s smallest and most diverse of all the floral kingdoms and the dense natural forest of the Tsitsikamma.
Standing guard over the treetop canopy in the heart of the forest is The Big Tree – an eight hundred- year-old Yellowwood. This majestic tree towers over the rest of the canopy; standing 36+m tall and with a trunk circumference of 9m – this is a giant among giants.
The National Road to Tsitsikamma runs through the dramatic Garden Route (between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth) – edged by the indigenous forest and Tsitsikamma Mountains on one side and coastal cliffs with seaside inlets on the other. The Big Tree is close to the charming little village of Storms River where one can stay nestled in the forest, book a zip-lining excursion, blackwater tubing or Segway adventure tour and also close to the magnificent Storms River Mouth – a jewel of the Tsitsikamma National Park that offers excellent hiking opportunities, snorkelling, swimming, scuba diving and kayking into the ancient Storms River Gorge.
