From 1997 to Now

In 1997 the new South Africa was new. Not just new, but new new. The country was on an upward trajectory and there was great optimism in its future. South Africa was the darling of the international community and tourists were beginning to flood back in. On their agenda, most visitors included Cape Town, the Garden Route and Kruger National Park.

Around the same time, Chris Leggatt was starting a new chapter in his life. Newly married, he was looking to move out of the city and into the countryside, where he could start a family with his wife, Louise. After looking at various locations, they decided on Wilderness, in the heart of the Garden Route, where Chris’s grandparents had settled 50 years earlier. It was an area Chris knew well from holidaying at his grandparents, and it would make an ideal spot to bring up the kids.

Natural beauty abounds in Wilderness. Approaching from the west, a narrow line of golden sand stretches off into the distance, marking the boundary between the warm waters of the Indian Ocean and the verdant afro-montane forest that is common along that piece of coastline. Rivers, lakes and mountains round off the panoramic scene. For Chris this was paradise. He had started guiding on the Orange River in 1991, before expanding to the Doring River in the Western Cape and later the Kunene River between Namibia and Angola. He had also been working as a mountain guide around Cape Town, specialising in abseiling and kloofing.

Eden Adventures grew out of this passion for the outdoors. Chris and Louise wanted to introduce visitors to the beauty of the Wilderness and surrounds. Initially starting with an old VW microbus, 6 canoes and 8 mountain bikes, their first scheduled tour began with a walk at the Big Tree in the Woodeville forest behind Hoekwil, followed by a downhill cycle from the “Map of Africa” viewpoint to the Wilderness lagoon, and then a canoe trip to the end of the navigable section of river and back. This excursion, which lasted all morning, was soon followed by an afternoon abseiling tour next to a gorgeous waterfall, and later by a couple of different kloofing options.

As the business became more established, they introduced tours further afield, taking in more of the Southern Cape including Oudtshoorn, Knysna and Plettenberg Bay, but often on the days these tours took place, the requests for other activities in Wilderness continued to come in. To solve this problem, Chris began a canoe hire business which could keep guests happy while he was out on other tours. However, with an expanded fleet of over 50 canoes and kayaks there was “no more space on the lawn”, and it became apparent that new premises was needed.

The move to more spacious premises at Ebb and Flow in the Wilderness Section of the Garden Route National Park, saw further expansion for Eden Adventures, especially in the teambuilding and school camp markets. Off course this involved training more staff and getting them accredited. Struggling to find the necessary qualifications for flat water paddling in South Africa, Chris compiled the original syllabus used by the African Paddling Association (APA) to train flatwater guides.

While based in the national park, Eden Adventures established themselves as the top adventure specialists in Wilderness, and as the request for locally based activities continued to grow, some of the more remote tours fell by the wayside.  It was during this time that Chris and Louise also parted ways, with Chris continuing to run Eden Adventures.

After 10 years in the park, Eden Adventures moved premises again. This time it was straight across the river to the Fairy Knowe Hotel, the grand dame of Wilderness (now 100 years old). The move was prompted by South African National Parks’ (SANParks) plans to run their own canoe hire business, but the result worked out well as the business could, in conjunction with the hotel, expand further. Chris had also met a new partner, Liz Bazin, who with a background in business, finance and conservation was able to apply a wealth of knowledge to the company.

Sadly, COVID 19 had a different agenda, and as the world tourism market came to an abrupt halt, the future of Eden Adventures became uncertain. Initially thinking the break would be 3 weeks, contingency plans were put in place. The situation became dire when weeks turned to months and the doors remained closed, and Chris was forced to relook at his business model. Not wanting to let any staff go, he managaed to find ways to keep them all on through these dark months, and emerged on the other side with a stronger team, focused and eager to get going once again. It was also during this time that the Fairy Knowe Hotel, having been with the same family for almost 100 years, was sold to a new investor, who, with great sensitivity, began restoration of the premises. The hotel’s new status has initiated further growth and Eden Adventures is happy to share the journey with them.

Having survived through COVID, Chris is grateful for his staff that stuck with him, and the whole Eden Adventures team approaches life with renewed verve. Now primarily focused on canoeing and kloofing, Eden Adventures still run teambuilding events in the Southern Cape, and with 28 years of adventuring under the belt, they are eager to see what adventures lie ahead.