It’s the start of the Easter Holidays in South Africa, and we kick it off at Ithala Game Reserve, one of our favourites!
Kicking off the Easter 2016 holidays!
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Category Archives: Kwazulu Natal Province
Our 2015 in pictures
Looking back at the marvelous places we stayed at while exploring South Africa’s wild places in 2015 😀
Glen Reenen, Golden Gate Highlands National Park, December 2014
Comfortable log cabin accommodation at Forever Resorts Loskop Dam
Glen Reenen at night (April 2015)
Kamberg, May 2015
Camping at Kgaswane, May 2015
Cabin 18 at Cape Vidal, iSimangaliso Wetland Park
Mpila cottage 17
Lower Sabie Tent 26, July 2015
Sweni Wilderness Trail hut, July 2015
Thendele Chalet 23
Ntshondwe Unit 15, Ithala Game Reserve, September 2015
Mopani bungalow no3
Mockford Cottage, Pafuri Border Camp
Lower Sabie cottage 93, December 2015
Olifants Rest Camp, unit 14, December 2015
Shingwedzi Cottage 29, December 2015
> Glen Reenen, Golden Gate Highlands National Park, January 2015
> Forever Resorts Loskop Dam, Loskop Dam Nature Reserve, April 2015
> Glen Reenen, Golden Gate Highlands National Park, April 2015
> Kamberg Nature Reserve, uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park, May 2015
> Kgaswane Mountain Reserve, May 2015
> Cape Vidal, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, June 2015
> Mpila, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, July 2015
> Lower Sabie, Kruger National Park, July 2015
> Sweni Wilderness Trail, Kruger National Park, July 2015
> Thendele, Royal Natal National Park, uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park, August 2015
> Ntshondwe, Ithala Game Reserve, September 2015
> Mopani Rest Camp, Kruger National Park, October 2015
> Pafuri Border Camp, Kruger National Park, October 2015
> Lower Sabie, Olifants and Shingwedzi, Kruger National Park, December 2015 (trip reports to follow soon!)
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Victory
Two plains zebra stallions battling it out in Ithala Game Reserve.
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
Ithala fight for dominance
“Victory” is the theme for this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge
The joys of spring at Ithala
We’ve been singing Ithala Game Reserve‘s praises on this blog for a long time and our recent Heritage Day long weekend visit to this South African treasure further cemented our belief that Ithala is one of our country’s prime conservation areas.
Colourful spring flower displays were in evidence all over the reserve, despite not receiving much rainfall yet. With over 900 plant species at Ithala, including some extreme rarities like the pepper-bark tree and Lebombo cycad, Ithala is a botanist’s delight. Unfortunately we don’t know the names of most, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t enjoy the show just the same!
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom (Hypoxis flower)
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
Ithala in full bloom
The giraffe is Ithala’s emblem, and we were lucky to enjoy several encounters with these curious animals.
The giraffe is Ithala’s emblem
The giraffe is Ithala’s emblem
The giraffe is Ithala’s emblem
The giraffe is Ithala’s emblem
Most large game species were eradicated from the area before the reserve was proclaimed in 1972, and Ithala therefore had to be restocked. Today it is home to all the species that occurred here historically, with the exception of lion, and all-in-all provides sanctuary to 83 mammal species.
Impala sprint
Mountain reedbuck
Plains zebra
White rhinos dwarfed by Ithala’s grandeur
Impala ewes
Impala ram portrait
White rhinos in long grass
Kudu cow and calves
Well-hidden kudu bull
Curious Kudu
Plains zebra profile
Plains zebras are so photogenic!
Vervet monkey
Warthog
Dusty zebra
Blue wildebeest
Warthogs on the run
Nah nah nah nah nah!
“Lean on me”
Black rhino sunset
Ithala’s a bird-watcher’s paradise, with a list of 318 species recorded in the reserve. While we didn’t tick quite that many species during our visit – most of the summer migrants have not yet arrived – we were very thrilled with our close-up sighting of a pair of blue cranes shortly after arriving. Being South Africa’s national bird, it seemed a particularly special treat for Heritage Day!
Golden-breasted Bunting
Blue Cranes
African Pipit
Rufous-naped Lark
Black-winged Kite
Red-billed Oxpecker climbing into a zebra’s ear
Bar-throated Apalis
Southern Black Flycatcher
Martial Eagle
Cape Rock-Thrush (female)
Cape Batis (female)
Golden-tailed Woodpecker
Ant-eating Chat
Little Bee-eater
Secretary Bird
Ithala’s not only about the big and obvious birds and animals, and closer inspection will reveal a multitude of insects, arachnids, amphibians and reptiles. We even encountered three of the reserve’s 41 snake species while walking around Ntshondwe Camp; they pose no danger as long as you don’t threaten them and true to form all three moved away very quickly and quietly.
African Monarch – With so many flowers in bloom, the abundance of butterflies is no surprise
Barberton Girdled Lizard
Natal Flat Lizard female
Solifuge a.k.a. Sun Spider
Talking about Ntshondwe, we just have to mention again how beautifully the accommodation units are placed into the natural vegetation, offering privacy and a really intimate nature experience.
Ntshondwe Unit 15, Ithala Game Reserve, September 2015
Its faunal and floral diversity aside, Ithala is richly blessed with amazingly diverse scenery. The reserve extends over 30,000 hectares, its area ranging in altitude between the 1,450m peak of Ngotshe Mountain to 400m above sea level along the Pongola River. The reserve’s vegetation ranges from grasslands to woodlands to dense riverine forest.
Ithala sunrise
Impala sunrise
Ntshondwe mountains
View over Ntshondwe
Ngubhu Loop snaking its way through Ithala’s hills
Pongola River
Pongola River
Dense vegetation along the Dakaneni Loop
Ithala sunset
Ithala sunset
Suspension Bridge at the Pongolo Picnic Site
Stream crossing
Stream crossing
Stream crossing
Pongola River
Ithala scenery
Where else but Africa?
We’re already making plans for our next visit to Ithala in early 2016, and you can probably see why!
Ithala Game Reserve is managed by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, and lies a 500km drive to the South-East of Pretoria.
Pretoria to Ithala
(drawn with Google Maps)
Till next time, Ithala!
Our long weekend in Ithala was, well, too short!
Thanks to this glorious sunrise it was really hard driving away from this beautiful reserve and its hospitable staff this morning…
We’ll share more photo’s from our latest trip to Ithala Game Reserve in an upcoming edition of de Wets Wild!
Rhino sunset at Ithala
With World Rhino Day still fresh in our memory, this distant sighting this evening of a black rhino cow and her small calf was all the more special.
Nah Nah Nah Nah Nah!
Heritage Day at Ithala
South Africa celebrates 24th September as Heritage Day, and of course the de Wets will use that opportunity to revel in our country’s diverse natural heritage. We’ve made a long weekend of it, and find ourselves back at beautiful Ithala Game Reserve, where this laid-back plains zebra‘s expression sums up perfectly our own relaxed mood.
Monochromatic
Zebras reflecting in the water of the Kumasinga Pan, on a hot December day at uMkhuze Game Reserve.
“Monochromatic” is the theme for this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge.
Connected
Joubert communing with nature, at Ntshondwe in the Ithala Game Reserve:
“Connected” is the theme for this week’s WordPress Photo Challenge
DeWetsWild 