Things to do at Camdeboo National Park

© Jacques Marais

At Camdeboo National Park, activities include game viewing, birding, hiking, stargazing, and experiencing the viewpoints at the Valley of Desolation.

Birding at Camdeboo

There are roughly 250 bird species that call Camdeboo National Park home. It’s a mecca for avid birders who can surround themselves in the cheer of birdsong or watch for raptors flying overhead. Keep your eyes peeled for African Goshawks, Rock Kestrels, and Verreaux's eagle. You’ll also get some stellar sightings at the hide close to the Nqweba Dam. Think Blue cranes, Black-winged Stilts, and Brown-hooded Kingfishers. 

Game Viewing and Exploring

The network of gravel and tarred roadways at Camdeboo National Park provide the perfect opportunity to explore the arid landscape. You’ll find the likes of buffalo, black wildebeest, and other grazers like gemsbok and blesbok out on the rolling plains just north of the Nqweba Dam, while klipspringer, Cape mountain zebra, and mountain reedbuck can be seen navigating the higher-lying rocky outcrops.

There are some superb 4x4 trails to tackle at Camdeboo like the Koedoeskloof and Driekoppe options. Don’t forget to admire the jaw-dropping 120-metre high dolerite pillars towering up through the Valley of Desolation.

Nqweba Dam Watersports

While there is a lot of dust and rock at Camdeboo National Park, you can still get your water fix at the Nqweba Dam. It’s a great spot for boating, canoeing, fishing, and windsurfing as well as providing a refreshing respite during those scorching summer days.

Head to the Babergat picnic area for a lunch break close to the dam wall, or cast in a line to haul in the likes of moggel common carp, African catfish, mullet, round herring and mosquitofish. Permit fees apply.

Booking Camdeboo National Park

South Africa Nature Reserves : Game Reserves and National Parks