Limpopo is characterised by large sections of Lowveld with baobab trees, mopani forest and a spectacular faunal assemblage including the big five. But it`s the deep, inaccessible, misty, mysterious and mythical mountains that give this province its unique character.

The Drakensberg reaches its northern extremity in the Wolkberg Wilderness Area, a pinnacle experience for mountaineers. Farto the west, the Blouberg trails take serious climbers on long and challenging routes on solid quartzite. .

The Waterberg and the Soutpansberg, or Vhembe Mountains, however, are definitive. The Waterberg, rising from the plain like a hippo in a shallow pool, is the centre of a biosphere reserve that conserves some wilderness areas andthe cultural landscape of intriguing farmlands. .

In the Soutpansberg, named after a salt pan that has been mined for centuries, the mystic ThatheVondo Forest shelters the ancestors and spirits of the Venda people, guarding them with sacred and mythical animals. Deep in the forest,the possibly even more magical Lake Fundudzi with its resident python spirit, is honoured by young maidens regularlyina sinuous ritual dance. .

North of here, the world heritage site of Mapungubwe has been incorporated into a national parkanda trans-frontier conservation area that straddles Botswana and Zimbabwe. .

Further south, Magoebaskloof, also called Duiwelskloof (Devil`s Gorge), cuts through another mountain with more indigenous forests interspersed with hiking trails.Modjaji, the legendary rain queen of the Lobedu people, guards a sacred forest of ancient cycads, some of them thousands of years old. Also close by, the world`s biggest and probably oldest baobab tree has been converted into a pub. .

To the east is the Kruger National Park, at the forefront of the world`s greatest reserves of wild fauna and flora anda sanctuary for vast herds whoroam in their natural environment, freely crossingthe border into Mozambique.