My aim with this blog is to show retired people and those who are considering retirement how easy and rewarding it is to retire in Southern Africa by traveling and camping the National Parks and private game reserves of mainly three countries, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia My focus is on the "Baby Boomers" who may be looking for a wonderful, adventurous way to spend their retirement.
From Sodwana Bay o Phinda Game Reserve Phinda Forest Lodge
We finally got the opportunity to visit two of Phinda Game Reserve's safari lodges. We never went to any of these private safari lodges, but decided we should bite the bullet and go to find out what it is that make people go to these places at the seemingly very high prices they charge.
When we received notice from my son that we must go to andBeyond's Forest and Rock Lodges for one night each and that our expenses have been paid for, we immediately grabbed the opportunity and started preparations.
When we finally arrived at Forest Lodge, we received a royal welcome from the manageress and another staff member who were waiting or us.They asked us to pack our bags with everything we will need on a waiting platform and to hand them our car keys, since they will from then on take care of us and all our belongings. They took us right away to their very luxurious guest area where a hearty and very tastefully prepared lunch was waiting for us.
The other guests were already there and prepared for the afternoon game drive that would follow shortly after lunch.
After a great lunch we were then seated in an open safari vehicle and the safari that would end after dark, commenced.
There were about four or five such vehicles, some of which carried a family and another a group of friends. There were also some with only two couples to each of them. We were grouped with another very friendly couple and we enjoyed their company to the hilt.
Soon we saw some Rhinos.
And a little while later, Cheetahs. Three of them, all brothers.
The Cheetahs were in a very healthy condition, mostly due to their speed and good hunting skills.
We stayed with the three cheetahs, since it appeared as if they were preparing for a hunt.
It was getting dark, however and we decided to leave the cheetahs and to enjoy a sundowner in the bush. The ranger and tracker team was quick in setting up a table with all kinds of delectables and drinks of all sorts and brands.
While enjoying the food and drinks, we chatted about the cheetahs and other animals we saw and watched the sun set over the forest in Phinda. A real wonderful experience in the company of the andBeyond staff. Both the ranger and the tracker were outstanding in their knowledge of the bush and the animals. They surely also know how to treat and spoil their guests.
Arriving at the very luxurious lodge, the staff was waiting to spoil us and we were seated and given the choice between an array of wonderful dishes - a real pity one cannot have it all. Afterwards we joined in an interesting conversation with our ranger and some of the guests about the conservation efforts being practiced at Phinda Game Reserve.
Finally we decided to move to our suite. We only then realized that we did not even see our suite yet, since we were kept busy and adrenaline pumping the whole time.
A very friendly security guard accompanied us to our suite and told us on the way that they saw a leopard between the suites earlier on in the day.
The suite was extremely luxurious, with every need, big or small, well catered for. The bathroom was wonderful and those beds and bedding! I began to understand why people are queuing to spend large sums for time at these game lodges.
At sunrise we received a call from the staff to prepare for the morning safari and to come to the main guest area for tea or coffee and cookies or biscuits and other snacks.
We met up with our friends of the previous day and were glad to hear that we will do this safari together again.
Again on the Safari vehicle, we first came across a group of Giraffes with our ranger explaining the effect of the height of these animals on their heart and blood pressure.
Our ranger told us before we left that there is a lioness with four cubs in the vicinity and that they have been keeping an eye on her and the cubs. They told us that she left the previous day, leaving her cubs in her mother's care and that we will be going to see if the cubs and grandmother is still ok.
And, lo and behold, there she appears on the way to the kids and grandma. We followed her for a while to make sure she is heading for the den and then proceeded to bundubash to the den to await her appearance. I realised then again why people save a whole year to be able to spend two nights at a place like andBeyond's Forest Lodge. It is a bargain at any price, so start saving.:-)
We were booked in at Sodwana Bay Lodge for a week and we were looking forward to the luxury of having your own bathroom within a few yard's distance. We love the vegetation and climate in this area, since it is normally quite warm when the rest of the country is in winter conditions.We also liked to be able to work on our Bushdrifters website and our other back office stuff.We can recommend this Lodge. It has quite a high standard and we loved their restaurant and also the tame Nyalas and Bushbuck that roam freely there.We decided to stay another week, but the lodge was fully booked or the weekend, so we went camping at Sodwana's huge camping area in the forest for the weekend, before returning to the lodge.We can recommend Sodwana for the laid-back atmosphere, the diving, the camping and also for the places where you can eat and drink, swim and other activities normally associated with a very popular beach area. There are also a few Lodges that caters for non-campers and between camps campers .
From St Lucia, we had a day to spare before we could clock in at Sodwana Bay Lodge, so we searched for a camping spot on our Tracks4Africa electronic map and Voila! There it was. Some distance from a town on a farm with a pool and accommodation, including camping. Just what we needed here: S28.08202° E32.29193°
We reached the place and was further surprised. It has a number of cottages and two camping areas. One near a dam where a few Nyalas came to drink, The other on the other side of the complex. Both spots are good, but we chose the one near the dam so we could see the animals as well as the birds from this area.
The people were very friendly and accommodating, they told us to be there when the Bushbabys are being fed. We later on came to watch them and were pleased to them being so near to us.
We recommend this place for an overnight and also a place to rest and relax for a day or two.
The Bushies camping again after St Lucia's stay in brick and mortar.
From Richards Bay, we traveled on the the Isimangaleso Wetland Park. A large area stretching right up to Sodwana Bay. We stayed in St Lucia's campsites and did a day visit to Cape Vidal. This area is a foresty, green leafy and wetland area where one should strictly stick to the roads or get stuck in the mud.The campsites and accommodation in both St Lucia and Cape Vidal are usually full during school holidays and one should book early or visit out of season when it is normally rather empty and place to overnight or longer is easy to get.The campsites we visited have many rather tame antelopes like the Natal Steenbok and Bushbuck. Banded Mongoose travel in waves through the campsites hunting for food. Birds are everywhere and this is a real pleasure to have all this wildlife around you.The trip to Cape Vidal was great and we saw many a wonderful vista as well as mammals like Buffalo, Hippos, Kudus, Rhino and smaller animals.This area is one of South Africa's most beautiful and is a must-see on any longer trip through the country.
Natal Steenbok
Hippos in the wetland area
Buffalo drinking water in the wetland park between St Lucia and Cape Vidal
More wetlands between St Lucia and Cape Vidal
Towards the Cape Vidal beach
Playing in the rock pools at Cape Vidal
Lanching fishing boats at Cape Vidal
Some of the wetter areas between St Lucia and Cape Vidal
From Mtunzini to Richards bay was a short trek and we were surprised with the camping sites at Richards Bay Caravan Park. We recommend it for an overnight stay and also if you have to stock up near good shops.
Umlalazi Nature Reserve again proved to us the fact that the coastal areas of Kwazulu-Natal has some of the most beautiful nature areas and also some of the best natural camping and holiday places. There are two camping areas in Umlalazi and we camped in the smaller one. This was a good spot and there were quite a lot of campers enjoying the weekend. They were all well-behaved and true nature lovers.We tackled the hiking route along the river towards the beach and passed through a mangrove forest with, strange to us, plant growth and also places that are inhabited by lots of crabs that we saw maybe only two of.Once we reached the beach, we realized that this walk should not be done without ample water, since it was quite hot and the trail somewhat longer than we expected. Just as a caution to others who plan to do this very rewarding walk. It was nothing serious and we reached the place where we must climb over the dunes back into the forest and to our campsite.We recommend this place for two nights so that the hike can be done at leisure during one full day.
The lagoon on the left and the forest on the right.
