There’s just something so very special about Ithala Game Reserve that causes us to return year after year. Maybe it is the spectacular scenery or the amazingly diverse wildlife. Maybe it’s the friendly, hospitable staff members that makes us feel so welcome. Whatever the reason (and we suppose it has to be the entire package), there was no way we couldn’t include Ithala in the itinerary of our “summer in the bush” December holidays.
Ithala’s only 197km from Chelmsford Nature Reserve, and we arrived in the morning of the 15th of December under heavily laden skies. In fact, we’d see very little sunshine during our three night stay in comfortable Ntshondwe, Ithala’s award-winning resort.
Ntshondwe, Ithala, December 2014
The reserve has a good network of all-weather gravel roads, and the rain did not interfere with our game-viewing to any large degree, although we weren’t able to enjoy quite as many picnics as we had hoped to. While we didn’t have any sightings of the predators that roam Ithala’s diverse habitats (mostly at night) on this trip, the numerous herds of large herbivores were a sight to behold.
The elephants at Ithala are shy and seldomly seen, so we count ourselves very lucky to have had two sightings of them on this trip. One sighting was of a big herd near Ngubhu Picnic Site, moving along a drainage line some distance away. The second sighting however was a thrilling affair as we happened upon two young bulls right in the road, near gate closing time, around a bend between the Ngulumbeni Loop and camp. One of the bulls hightailed it deep into the bush as soon as we appeared around the corner, but his companion decided to give us a good show for quite a while, not prepared to relinquish his spot on the road to let us pass.
Whenever there was a break in the rain, we’d undertake short walks around Ntshondwe, enjoying the opportunity to get closer to some of Ithala’s smaller and more delicate inhabitants.
Ithala in summer is a bird-watcher’s delight, and even us, relatively novice “twitchers”, managed to seek out and identify a wide variety of the reserve’s feathered denizens, despite the mostly inclement weather.
Before leaving Ithala for uMkhuze Game Reserve, we took a short, final early morning drive towards the gate and Onverwacht Loop, and were rewarded for our effort by a herd of giraffe moving serenely along the horizon, dark clouds and the sun struggling to break through providing a dramatic background to the scene.
Reason enough to return to Ithala? Absolutely! Not that we need an excuse, this place has had us under its spell for so long we won’t be able to stay away.
DeWetsWild 
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WOW! I am so inspired to travel to your neck of the woods someday. Until then, thank you for allowing me to travel there through your photos.
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And we are always thrilled that you do!
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Great collection de Wets! Such a cute baby zebra, the Kudu is dramatic. Also like the close-up of the tsessebe.
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Thank you very much Michael!
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Another round of absolutely breathtaking photos. Love the zebra and the elephant and the giraffes. Just love them all. Question about the front-facing picture of the second tsebesse — is there a horn missing from the top middle of his head or is it just a shadow?
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Thank you very much for the kind compliments Linda!
As far as the tsessebe’s concerned, what you see between his horns is the bump at the back of his head, they have very sloping faces.
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Great to see such variety, and the little critters too. The dung beetle shot is a classic, showing up it’s comparative size to the bounty of that ball. The giraffes at dawn look splendid shot against the skyline.
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Thank you very much Wilf!
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I love the photo of little zebra! I am rather fond of them 🙂
… and giraffes. Beautiful shots against the rising sun. At first glance, I thought it was a setting sun until I read your commentary. I loved them!
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Thanks a lot Joanne!
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What a stunning array of photos! Thank you so much for sharing your experience.
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Thank you for visiting Ithala with us, Lisa!
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so nice to see the animals looking so healthy. the ones in zoos look so sad.
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That’s something we also often comment on; it’s amazing to see how much healthier animals appear in the wild, despite the excellent care they receive at most zoos.
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Another feast for the eyes. There’s so much to see here I’m going to have to take my time to peruse all at my leisure. Even though the weather didn’t cooperate it looks like you still saw lots of game and had plenty to photograph. Another excellent post dear de Wets. I just love visiting. Enjoy the weekend 🙂
Joey
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Thank you very much Joey! Spend as much time as you’d like, you are always welcome here :-D.
Lekker naweek vir jou en Marks ook, dankie!
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I love the elephant holding his own on the road. So sweet.
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Thanks Lois! He was quite adamant about it, believe you me 😀
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The last few shots of the giraffes are breathtaking! Not that the others aren’t great, but these are just wow 🙂
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Thank you very much Mia! Beautiful animals and beautiful scenery, I can’t take credit for all of it 😉
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As usual, I am delighted and amazed. As I scrolled through all the photos, I started telling myself, “Oh this is my favorite.” But I ended up saying that about so many of the photos that I decided I could not decide! Thanks.
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Thanks for another wonderful compliment Patti, you’re as generous as always!
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The silhouetted giraffes are especially nice! We’re also fond of that little dung beetle! 🙂
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Thank you very much you two!
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Every photo is lovely nut I especially love the giraffe shots – such gorgeous colours!
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Thank you Jen! Helps being in the right place at the right time 😀
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Wat ‘n heerlike visuele toer saam met julle. Ek dink dit moet ongelooflik wees om in die voertuig te wees waarin julle ry. En die lekker blyplekke! Ek hou baie van die Tsessebe foto en natuurlik die kleiner insekte/diere is ook pragtig. Die kameelperde uitsonderlik! DAnkie.
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Dankie dat jy Ithala saam met ons platgery het Spokie!
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What a wonderful gallery of photos. I enjoyed this post. 🙂
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Thank you very much Kathy!
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Not one bad photo among them all…. brilliant…
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You’re extremely kind, thank you Rob
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Oe dis mooi! Dankie weereens vir ‘n pragtige blog.Ek hou vreeslik van jou kameelperde in die laaste foto’s.
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Ons voel altyd so lekker na jy kom kuier het Dina, baie dankie!
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Great shots =)
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Thank you very much Ana, and welcome here!
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