Primitive Trails as a Model of Regenerative Tourism

The History of Primitive Trails

South Africa’s history involving wilderness trails dates back to the 1950s when an American game ranger introduced the concept of “wilderness” to the legendary conservationist, Dr Ian Player.

In 1957, Dr Player teamed up with the phenomenal game tracker, Magqubu Ntombela, to create the Wilderness Leadership School after recognising that there was a void in the connection between humans and nature. It became Africa’s first non-profit organisation dedicated to offering people from all walks of life an authentic wilderness experience.

Within a few years, wilderness areas were designated in part of Lake St. Lucia and half of what is today known as the iMfolozi-Hluhluwe Game Reserve, becoming Africa’s first game reserve.

By 1959, Dr Player and Ntombela took the Natal Parks Board trail into the iMfolozi wilderness area, marking the beginning of wilderness trails where humans could experience a fully immersive journey into the wild without leaving a trace.

Today, various companies like Lowveld Trails Co. offer primitive trails for people to experience these one-of-a-kind trips.“

A Wilderness (or primitive) trail … is not a hike. It is not a safari. It is not a personal endurance test. A Wilderness Trail is a deeply profound experience that is very difficult to articulate. It is a chance to return to your natural habitat. A digital detox. A deep experience of our own connection to the natural world. A chance to re-wild yourself and get inspired by the rhythm of nature.” From https://www.wildernesstrails.org.za/

How Do Primitive Trails Serve Regeneration?

Primitive trails qualify as regenerative on one of the most basic levels: each trail gives back more than it takes.

If you’ve researched a few different primitive trails, you’ll notice that the majority of companies support ecological or social initiatives from the general such as providing the community with an income from using their land to the more specific such as sponsoring members of the local community in achieving guiding qualifications.

Primitive trails are low-impact tourism, support the conservation areas on which they are run, and provide an income to the communities and reserves. So, these trails contribute to nature, the economy, society and usually support local culture.

An expert on regenerative tourism says for a form of tourism to support regeneration, it needs to adhere to “the three relationships.”

These relationships are the following:

• The relationship with oneself
• The relationship with others
• The relationship with the Earth

These guidelines show that a travel experience should make a difference to the traveller, to those around the traveller (the local community), and that there should be a closer connection between the traveller and nature. By all accounts, primitive trails tick all these boxes.

So, How Do Primitive Trails Feed Into Regenerative Tourism?

Primitive trails serve as a model of regenerative tourism in the following ways:

• They awaken and encourage a deeper connection and understanding between the traveller and the natural world.
• Primitive trails take you back to the simplicity of nature, which rewilds the human imagination.
• These trails generate revenue to keep natural (and often threatened) resources protected.
• Primitive trails discourage infrastructure development and the use of fossil fuels.
• They promote zero-waste, circular economies.

Primitive Trails and Relationships

Primitive trails offer an alternative to the endless pursuit of happiness, where our busy lives often let us move away from our sense of self and our ability to reflect and grow insight.

Here are some of the ways in which primitive trails can help you deeply grow on a personal level:

• They take you into a space where your subconscious mind and psychological needs can be met.
• A primitive trail provides an opportunity to establish a sense of belonging and a place where you can find your tribe.
• Primitive trails help you to rediscover the true meaning of relationships
• They give you the space and experience to redefine how you look at nature, yourself and your relationship with nature.

Why Could Primitive Trails Be a Model of Regenerative Tourism?

A primitive trail breaks the mould of what one would expect from a traditional safari. There isn’t extravagant spectatorship – instead it is a far more participatory experience. A primitive trail encourages individuals to explore, conserve, and engage with themselves, others on the trail and the nature around them.

Some of the characteristics of primitive trails that serve regenerative tourism include the following: 

• Primitive trails require little to no infrastructure to serve the tourism industry.
• The trails provide economic justification to keep wild spaces undeveloped.
• Primitive trails offer circular and regenerative economy models. Both of these models serve ecological, social, and psychological benefits.

Final Thoughts

If you have any doubts about whether to go on a primitive trail, our resounding advice is do it! It is our hope and belief that you will feel a deep, almost indescribable, connection to nature and your environment.

As some recent returnees from a trail wrote, “the reason they like primitive trails so much is the contrast between a trail and everyday normal living. The complete disconnect from phones, social media, email. You get back to basics, it feels raw and real, and you end up feeling more connected to nature and yourself. It’s an adventure that encourages you to push your personal boundaries – whatever they may be.”

You will return home changed, and for the better. The fact that primitive trails also serve regenerative tourism only makes this activity that much more appealing.