Dianne Tipping-Woods

Written by Dianne Tipping-Woods
On a challenging multi-day hike through Makuya Nature Reserve in northern Limpopo, Dianne Tipping-Woods and seven other women rediscover their wild natures.
Also read: 5 easy hiking trails in Cape Town
The more subtle you are, the more you’re going to fit into this landscape.’ Did naked in the Luvuvhu River count as subtle? I wasn’t sure, but Lowveld Trails Company guide Wayne te Brake, wasn’t around to ask. He’d given our group of eight loosely acquainted wome...

The sounds of squabbling baboons and squawking guinea fowl greet Tjavarekua Tjijahura as she rises to prepare breakfast and break camp. She is wearing the traditional clothes of Ovaherero women—petticoats, a voluminous dress with vibrant patterns, and a hornlike headscarf that pays homage to part of her identity: The Ovaherero people are historically cattle breeders, and raising livestock is a common way of life.
While the campsite is far from Tjijahura’s village, she says she feels an affini...

In the moment, it was simply water, breath, and wonder. I remember thinking: This is so beautiful I might actually cry through my snorkel. I did not think: this will make a great lede. I didn’t pitch a single piece. For the latter half of 2025, I traveled to Mauritius, the Western Cape, and Mozambique, but I didn't treat every beautiful moment as raw material to be sold. I stopped being a guest and started being a witness. Here is what I learned when I finally stopped writing.
In July 2025, I...

The lanky young man in skinny joggers grew up in the town of Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, but after completing school in 2018, Tukulo “TK” Mtshayelo returned to his mother's rural home in Black Diamond village, located in South Africa’s Eastern Cape in an area called Matatiele. It wasn’t an easy transition. The small, remote village and open landscapes felt unfamiliar, and worse—he felt like an outsider in his community. There were no job opportunities, running water, or internet access, a...

A deep dive into where, why, and how whales migrate – and how to protect their blue corridors.

From gray whales undertaking epic transoceanic journeys to minkes navigating shorter, seasonal shifts, whale migrations are deeply entwined with the arc of their lives and the health of the world's oceans...

Forging a life of mutual benefit in Botswana’s Eastern Okavango Panhandle
The elephants move quietly through the gathering darkness, but Tumisi “Shorty” Tlale can hear them. “Listen,” he says, his head cocked to one side as he tries to get a fix on their position. “They’re coming.” A farmer in the eastern panhandle of Botswana’s Okavango Delta, Tlale’s ears are attuned to the elephants’ low rumbles as they move through the bush. If his sensitive ears have given him an initial advantage though...

In that exquisite moment between day and night, the sky deepened into a magnetic blue—something richer and more elusive than twilight, yet softer and subtler than dusk. We had climbed through a hobbit door—a whimsical portal—emerging onto a fragrant living roof as though stepping quietly into another realm. Now, we watched as a deliberate moon climbed into view. My feet were bare, and the earth was warm. I could sense the planet’s gentle curve, hear the rivers murmuring, and almost forgot I was sitting on someone’s roof.

My admiration for Sharon Haussmann began with hyenas. New to the Lowveld, I heard about a woman obsessed with these fascinating, complex, and misunderstood creatures. We drove to the den site she’d been frequenting and watched baby hyenas wrestle. Sharon wasn’t yet the conservation powerhouse she has since become. Still, even then, it was clear that she was a woman whose intellectual curiosity combined rigorous observation with deep empathy for the natural world.

From the lapping waters of the Kafue River to the chorus in the woodlands, Kafue National Park is a deep dive into an ecosystem where birds reign supreme.

On the mudflats close to the town of Xai-Xai, Mozambique, where Africa’s mighty Limpopo River meets the Indian Ocean, 93-year-old Salimina João Mahiele joins about 100 women—mainly subsistence farmers from the nearby Mahielene and Zongoene Sede communities—to plant mangroves. They gather around Agostinho Nhanzimo, who helps run the local mangrove nursery established for this restoration project, as he explains how to space the young plants he has cultivated and how deep the holes should be.
A...

The slaughter of millions of American bison is one of the great tragedies in US history.
In 1870, an estimated 10 million to 15 million bison (or buffalo) roamed the Great Plains, where they maintained healthy ecosystems and supported Indigenous lifeways. But as European settlers and hunters advanced west, they massacred the animals for their hides, supplying a booming trade. At the same time, the US government and military backed campaigns to eliminate the species to subju...

The lechwe, emerged as the sun rose over the Busanga Plains,their russet backs catching the light and shadows taking form. At first glance, I thought I saw a small group, but as I looked longer, more appeared. Without binoculars, the distant shapes blurred into the horizon once again. “How many do you think there are?” I asked Chrispin Ndlovu, our guide from Mozhi Bushcamp. “Can you count the grass?” he replied.

Flatdogs Camp leads by example in South Luangwa with Fair Trade certification.
At the gateway to South Luangwa National Park, Flatdogs Camp has long been known for offering one of the most welcoming and authentic safari experiences in the valley. Now, it has another accolade: Flatdogs is one of the first safari camps in Zambia to achieve Fair Trade Tourism certification.

Why would you want to travel alone as a woman? We think the question should be: Why wouldn’t you? There’s a wonderful, wild world out there, with no limits to where confidence and curiosity can take you as you explore Africa’s Eden.