Activities

Phongolo Nature Reserve: KZN Wildlife
Falling from the heights of the Lebombo Mountains down across the Phongolopoort Dam (also known as Lake Jozini) to typical African savannah in the west, this reserve is the oldest proclaimed conservation area in Africa. Proclaimed on the 13th of June 1894 by President Paul Kruger and reproclaimed in 1903, ostensively to protect declining game numbers, but in reality as a strategy for the old Transvaal Republic to gain access to the sea, the reserve contains a large number of special ecosystems and habitats. These include the unique veld type called Golela, which is an important Suni antelope breeding habitat. The area boasts a bird list of over 300 species and a range of game including white rhino, giraffe, blue wildebeest, kudu, impala, nyala, warthog, waterbuck, common and mountain reedbuck, zebra and the roaming elephants. The dam has large populations of hippos and crocodiles and fish species that include tiger fish, the focus of a number of fishing competitions through the year. There is a picnic site for day visitors. There is one launch site close by for people wishing to go boating or angling on the dam.

Mkuze: KZN Wildlife
Mkhuze is renowned as a mecca for bird lovers, with more than 420 bird species on record. The reserve has an astonishing diversity of natural habitats, from the eastern slopes of the Lebombo Mountains along its eastern boundary, to broad stretches of acacia savannah, swamps and a variety of woodlands and riverine forest. A rare type of sand forest also occurs in the reserve. Two beautiful pans, Nhlonhlela and Nsumo, home to communities of hippo, crocodile, pink backed and white pelicans, as well as a diversity of ducks and geese which gather in spring. This 40 000 hectare reserve was proclaimed a protected area in 1912. Mkhuze Game Reserve constitutes the northwestern spur of the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park, a World Heritage Site. The Mkhuze River curves along the reserve’s borders with a stretch of fig forest along its banks. Fish eagles swoop over the pans, snatching prey spotted from their perches in the fever trees. Other animals include Black and White Rhinoceros, Elephant, Giraffe, African Wild Dog, Leopard, Buffalo, Nyala, Blue Wildebeest, Warthog, Impala, Kudu and other smaller Antelope. Rare species occurring are Cheetah, Hyaena and Suni. Visitors enjoy excellent sightings from the three hides.

Hluhluwe: KZN Wildlife
Set in the heart of Zululand, the oldest game reserve in Africa where Zulu kings such as Dingiswayo and Shaka hunted and put in place the first conservation laws, where today the “big five” of African legend stalk the verdant savannah. Established in 1895. Viewing hides overlook waterholes enabling visitors to see animals at close range. As the home of Operation Rhino in the 1950s and 60s, the Park became world renowned for its white rhino conservation. The Park covers some 96 000 ha and contains an immense diversity of fauna and flora.

Ndumu: KZN Wildlife
Ndumo Game Reserve is perhaps best known for its magnificent bird life with the highest bird count in South Africa, some 430 species. Situated near the Tembe Elephant Park on the Mozambique border, the Usuthu River forms its northern boundary and the Pongola River flows along the eastern boundary to its confluence with the Usutu. Ndumo boasts many beautiful pans set about with yellow fever trees and extensive wetlands and reed beds as well as acacia savannah and sand forest. This varied habitat hosts an astonishing range of aquatic birdlife such as black egret, pygmy geese and flocks of pelicans. The prolific birdlife includes many tropical East African forms at the southern limit of their range. Special ticks for birders include Pel’s Fishing Owl, the African Broadbill, and southern banded snake eagle. Game species such as nyala, bushbuck, impala, red duiker, suni, black and white rhino, hippopotamus and a very large population of crocodiles. Ndumo is of particular interest to entomologists with a very interesting array of insects including 66 recorded species of mosquito.

Tembe Elephant Park: KZN Wildlife
Where the world’s largest elephants roam wild with other Big 5 species.  This remote park, deep in an area of sand forests, pans and wetlands in northern Tongaland, lies on the border between Kwa-Zulu Natal and Mozambique. Sandy tracks so only fit for 4×4 vehicles. Arranged drives: Tembe Safaris take our guests at 10am for a 3 hour drive. Bookings essential. Lunch at the camp can be arranged in advance. R1500 per vehicle and R100 per person which is very well worth it. Gate Fees: R100 p/vehicle + R70 adult R35 child. 24 Hour notice required. Enquire at Reservations.

Ithala: KZN Wildlife
This magnificent reserve, tumbling from the heights of the Ngotshe Mountains a thousand meters down into a deep valley, carved over the eons by the Phongolo River revealing the world’s oldest rock formations, is a game viewers paradise. Situated in the rugged, mountainous thornveld of northern KwaZulu-Natal, the reserve’s multitude of habitats host a spectacular array of wildlife species. Its scenic beauty aside, Ithala’s most characteristic feature is perhaps it’s astonishing geological diversity. Some of the oldest rock formations in the world are found here, dating back 3 000 million years. With a topographic profile varying from 400m above sea level in the north to 1 450m near Louwsberg in the south, Ithala’s terrain extends over lowveld and densely vegetated riverine valleys to high-lying grassland plateaus, ridges and cliff faces. The area now proclaimed as Ithala has been occupied by man for thousands of years and there are many sites littered with stone age spear and axe heads dating back some 20,000 years. There has even been a middle Stone Age tool discovered by archaeologists which pushes the date back to anything up to 200,000 years. More recently, in the last few hundred years, with the advent of the Nguni people, iron smelting took place in Ithala and there are a number of smelting sites adjacent to deposits of banded ironstone which was crushed to provide the iron ore. Ithala has provided the setting for many historic events, from Shaka’s reign and those of successive Zulu kings, to a number of gold mining enterprises in the early years of the 20th Century.