Sport Relief anticipates that thousands of people across the UK will swim, cycle or run this weekend in order to raise money for worldwide projects including those in the UK and Africa.
Over the last few months we have witnessed incredible sporting feats from a number of high profile celebrity figures from Davina McCall’s extraordinary ‘Beyond Breaking Point’ (pictured), to Alan Shearer and Robbie Savage’s ‘Battle of the Backsides’. Every year the challenges seem to get more extreme, making for great entertainment and ultimately exaggerating that feeling within us, “If they can do that, then I can do something for charity too.”
If this year’s Sport Relief has sown that seed in you then maybe one of the following African sporty adventures might just fit the bill? Maybe you have run or are about to run the London Marathon, and fancy the Big Five Marathon next year? Or perhaps you have conquered Snowdon and are ready for another peak.
Or perhaps Sport Relief has simply awoken a curiosity in you about Africa and its communities. We are passionate about the community and conservation projects that we directly support via The Real Africa Trust and are delighted that many of our clients choose to spend a morning or afternoon visiting one of the projects while on safari. It adds a completely different and thoroughly enriching dimension to your trip to Africa – the school visit in the Masai Mara, where we are funding the building of a new classroom, is especially popular with families.
If any of our projects are of interest to you, then do give us a call or check out our Real Africa Trust page on the website.
We hope you feel inspired by the following suggestions for experiencing Africa is a more sporty way!
Run Africa
South Africa has many competitive running events including one of the most highly rated, the Big Five Marathon which takes place in the dry and cool month of June. The 88km course winds through classic Big Five savannah country in the private Entabeni Game Reserve west of Kruger National Park.
Climb Africa
Tackle Africa’s highest peak, and the world’s highest walkable mountain following the scenic extended Machame Route to the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. One day climbs also available at Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru.
Bike Africa
Mountain bike amidst the animals in Kenya’s dramatic Hell’s Gate National Park, combining a thrilling ride with a gorge walk. Or get out of the 4×4 and see Lake Manyara’s shimmering scape in Tanzania from the saddle.
Hike Africa
Hike the forested slopes of Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park or Uganda’s Impenetrable National Park in search of endangered mountain gorillas.
Paddle Africa
See Botswana’s game from a different perspective by taking to a canoe on the tranquil waters of the Selinda Spillway. Five day guided canoe safaris combine bush camping with exploration of truly remote and beautiful areas.
You can find out more about Real Africa’s challenges at our website.
You can find out more about Sport Relief here.
By Sara White
