“All you have to do is stay in the vehicle, because the predator will think you’re a big animal and won’t hurt you,” is all I can think of from the first few days of game viewing on safari, as I now ride through the South Africa wilderness on an e-bike. It’s not every day that you go on a bike ride following a guide who carries a rifle, just in case. Needless to say, I hadn’t slept so well the night before – knowing that I’d be without the safe haven of a vehicle to jump into quickly in a place where lions, leopards, cheetahs, rhinos and buffalo are around.

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As we glide quietly and gently past millennia-old trees, the sun casts playful shadows through the dense canopy and the light breeze as we drive makes the humid heat of late summer more bearable. I’m in Africa’s endangered sand forest at “Phinda Private Game Reserve”, the birthplace of the international luxury tour operator andBeyond. About a year ago, they first introduced their “ebike adventure”, one of their immersive experiences for guests who want to go beyond the usual game drives, and are now slowly rolling it out to other lodges.

My guide, Jess Botha, is accompanied by Thabiso Sydney from the neighboring village who’s responsible for the whole operation, from maintaining the e-bikes to keeping the routes intact. All proceeds go to the local Makhasa and Mnqobokazi communities.

In the end, it was actually a very beautiful experience to explore Africa’s last remaining sand forest in this way, focusing on the native plants, rare species and little insects that bring the forest to life, and that you might otherwise miss in the rush to see big mammals like giraffes or rhinos. Or as Botha said: “Don’t let the fear of stumbling across an animal keep you from enjoying the experience”.

Would love to write about this for Condé Nast Traveler, similar to this article: https://www.cntraveler.com/story/coastal-foraging-cape-town

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More images available here: https://adobe.ly/3GJM9vW