A leopard stalking a porcupine, three large male cheetahs in the road – but no lions. Will Frank keep his promise?

When guide Frank Watts promised a specially challenged little girl that he would show her a lion, little did he know that Mother Nature had a lesson for him.

Our national parks and reserves are certainly doing their part to protect our environment. So should you.

The sights, smells and sounds of the wild are something everyone, regardless of physical or sensory abilities, needs to experience first hand. To have a hot breeze fill your nostrils with the perfume of bush, hear a lion’s roar reverberate across the veld and watch the scene unfold at a watering hole. Here are five suggestions to get you into the wilds.

A braai is synonymous with holidays in the parks. Find out which wood is best for braaing – and good for the planet too.

Nature lovers with a 4x4 and a love of isolation and rugged scenery will be enchanted by the 50 km coastal strip between the Groen and Spoeg rivers in the Namaqua National Park.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that their sharp quills doom porcupines to a solitary existence. In fact, these animals live in groups, and pairs mate on a daily basis.

History isn’t confined to dusty textbooks, it’s alive in the parks and reserves around our country. Visit these sites of interest and take a trip through time.

Love in the animal kingdom is, in one word, wild. Here are our top five love facts. By Roxanne Reid