Knysna - Day 5

Because of it's quasi-tropical climate and steady tourism industry, Knysna finds itself perfectly situated to host a number of animal sanctuaries, so today we checked out three of them.

At the elephant sanctuary we saw five elephants that had been rescued from bad situations and will eventually be reintroduced to the wild in national or private game reserves. We were able to walk with them with their trunk in the palm of our hand and learn all about them from their trainers. They are magnificently intelligent and emotional animals - it was an awesome experience.


Only a half a kilometer away was MonkeyLand, which hosts nine primate species (both indigenous and exotic) within a 25 acre enclosure that you walk through with a guide. We saw seven of the nine species, many of which were feet (if not inches) away. (One baby squirrel monkey even jumped on my leg long enough to make a face at me and then ran away). All of the monkeys within MonkeyLand have been rescued from laboratories or were abandoned pets - the facility is world renowned for its rehabilitation of monkeys. It also featured South Africa's longest suspension bridge, which took you through the treetops at 50 feet above the ground. Below is a gibbon (the only ape species at MonkeyLand) and two Capuchin monkeys.


Immediately adjacent to MonkeyLand was Birds of Eden, which is a gorge covered in a giant series of netting, in which over 180 species of birds from around the world live. (By our count, we saw approximately 64 of them). You walk through the gorge on a series of wooden walkways that start off at ground level and then gradually meander to the top of the gorge, during which you pass through streams, ponds and canopies, all covered with curious birds flying about and feeding. One parrot was even so bold as to jump on each of our shoulders for a very temporary ride...


We passed but did not stop at a snake sanctuary and a wold sanctuary (there's always tomorrow). We hadn't heard anything about those and they didn't look as reputable, so perhaps we won't chance it. I'm not sure walking alongside wolves or through pits of snakes is my cup of tea - maybe Jen's.

On our way back to Knysna from the sanctuaries (about 50 km), we stopped at Plettenberg Bay to check out the town and grab a bite to eat, then it was back to relax at our luxurious and beautiful accommodations at Villa Afrikana before heading back down to the waterfront for - yes, you guessed it - a repeat appearance at JJ's.