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Experience wild meerkats up close
Walk with meerkats in the Free State
Experience meerkats up close in the Free State
© Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve
Did you know?
Only the dominant male and female meerkats in the colony mate. All members look after the pups.
‘Most people want to know how long they live, the length of their gestation period and how many pups they have,’ says Shelton Kanyoka who leads the walking with meerkats experience in the Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve in the Free State.
Kanyoka has spent 5 years working with the meerkats here to habituate the 14 members of this colony to the point where they are comfortable around humans.
Meerkat tourism is an unusual wildlife experience because you can be 2 metres or less from these intriguing little creatures that have stolen the hearts of millions on TV series such as Meerkat Manor.
Kanyoka, who formerly worked with meerkats in the Northern Cape, has a way with them and understands their behaviour and their different sounds and calls. ‘Their social interaction is interesting because if a member of the colony is sick or the alpha female has had pups they bring them food and won’t move far from the burrow,’ explains Kanyoka, (adding that meerkats live up to 9 years, their gestation period is 75 days and they give birth to 2 to 5 pups).
To spend time with the meerkats, guests need to be in their territory by 6am in summer and by about 8am in winter as the meerkats emerge to sun themselves.
Kanyoka has habituated them not to be frightened of humans talking or laughing but he advises guests not to make any quick or jerky movements because if the meerkats sense danger they will make the alarm call and dart back into their burrows.
Moolmanshoek Game Reserve is situated in the Moolmanshoek Valley surrounded by the Witteberg Mountains that feed several mountain streams. It is rich in plains game, including springbok, zebra, black wildebeest, blesbok and ostrich and is home to 230 bird species. In addition to the meerkat experience and game viewing, hiking, horse trails, fishing and San (also known as Bushman) paintings are on offer.
Travel tips & Planning info
Who to contact
Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve
Isabel Arangies, marketing manager
Tel: +27 (0) 51 933 2220
Email: info@moolmanshoek.co.za
or
Walk with meerkats guide, Shelton Kanyoka
Tel: +27 (0)76 026 2012
How to get here
Moolmanshoek is 3½ hours' drive from Johannesburg, 4 hours' drive from Pretoria, 2½ hours' from Bloemfontein, and close to Ficksburg, which is on the Lesotho border.
GPS Reading in car park in front of the lodge:
28 37’58 S 27 59’56 E
From Gauteng (Johannesburg):
Take the N1 to Kroonstad. Look for the R76 towards Senekal, following the Steynsrus/Bethlehem signs. At Steynsrus turn right towards Senekal. Drive through Senekal on the N5 towards Bethlehem. +/- 5km after Senekal turn right on the R70 to Ficksburg/Rosendal. Exactly 10km past Rosendal turn left on a gravel road. Continue for 7.5km until you see the Moolmanshoek gate on the left.
Get around
Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve has game drive vehicles to take you to the meerkat colony.
On the reserve you can hike, ride horses or go on 4x4 drives.
What will it cost
The meerkat experience is charged at R110 per hour per person, and the experience is usually about 2 hours. Groups of up to about 10 people at once are accommodated.
Length of stay
Ideally, spend 2 to 3 days to take in the whole reserve.
What to pack
Warm clothes for those early morning meerkat sightings.
Where to stay
Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve has a luxury sandstone lodge with 15 en-suite bedrooms. The lodge cost from R600-R800 per person for dinner, bed and breakfast.
What to eat
Moolmanshoek Private Game Reserve has a good restaurant.