By Katherine Graham
April 7th, 2008
You're a sucker for wide open spaces and the call of the wild. A trip to an Mpumalanga could be just the thing. But this time, why not try something a little unusual?
Truly unique?
There’s something revitalising about being in the bush. It’s as if the senses that you hardly use in an urban setting suddenly spring to life. You’re awake to smells, to the touch of bark and leaves. Your eyes are peeled for signs of wildlife while your ears attuned to bird calls or the lurking presence of predators.
This phenomenon probably explains why so many international tourists flock to the country every year for their slice of African adventure. And why locals forego holidays on the coast to immerse themselves in the bushveld. It is exhilarating to gaze up at a night sky throbbing with stars or to fall asleep hearing only the sounds of nature.
Despite the undeniable appeal of going on safari, the common complaint persists: It’s getting so expensive. How do you get value for money? And how do you find a lodge that’s truly unique?
Of course, it depends what your expectations are. If it’s a family holiday with a plethora of activities that you’re after, a good bet is Kwa Madwala Private Game Reserve in Mpumalanga. Located in 4 000 hectares of lowveld and a mere three-and-a-half hour drive from Jo’burg, the lodge boasts the Big Four – lion, rhino, elephant and leopard.
Disease-free buffalo are to be introduced later this year. As well as game drives and excellent cuisine, Kwa Madwala offers micro light flights, elephant-backed safaris and trips to a nearby Swazi cultural village.
Feeling of seclusion
When Gavin and I arrived, we were struck by how well the chalets blend in with the surrounding granite boulders. (Kwa Madwala, incidentally, means “the place of big rocks”.) The chalets are designed to look like gargantuan rocks and are neatly tucked away to give a feeling of seclusion. I couldn’t fathom why the staff were at pains to accompany us from our room to the dining area (because of the ‘wild animals’, of course) even though the shower was outside on the patio, where you were fair game for any prowling lion or leopard.
On our first full day at Kwa Madwala we met Mojaji and Tswale, the lodge’s tame elephants. Mojaji, a 19-year-old female, and Tswale, a 15-year-old male, were rescued from culling by Elephants for Africa Forever. After two years of training, they were brought to Kwa Madwala and now, under the guiding eye of Maryke Hastie, they are literally working for their lives.
After an interactive session playing memory games and touching their leathery, yet super-sensitive skin, we were taken on a short bush walk. Mojaji kept picking up sticks to hand to her trainer, who promptly rewarded her with a treat. We were amazed at how gentle these giants really are. As one ranger at the lodge put it, ‘They have no malice in their eyes. They’re completely benign.’
With my stomach perched in my throat, we took off
Later that day we visited the Matsamo Cultural Village at Jeppes Reef on the Swaziland border. This is not an animated recreation of Swazi life as it was a century ago; it’s a living community that resides on the property. We were treated to vibrant songs sung by the village women, followed by the men’s earth-stomping warrior dance. At the end, members of the audience were asked to come and join in the performance. A Turkish tourist stole the show. I thought she was Brazilian, so lively was her carnival style of dancing!
Micro lighting the following day was literally an out-of-this-world experience. ‘Who wants to go first?’ the pilot Craig Couzens asked. ‘Me!’ I volunteered. Let me do this before I lose my nerve, I thought. With my stomach perched in my throat, we took off. The ground rapidly receded and my waving husband soon shrunk to ant-size proportions. Of course I had flown before, but never like this – there was nothing separating me from the outside world. We whizzed over the tops of trees and elephants browsing unperturbed in the noonday heat.
“It felt as if we were going to shave a few hairs off the animals we flew over”
‘Look over there!’ I battled to focus on what Craig was pointing to. The wind was flapping inside my top and whenever I turned my head, it felt as if it was going to be blown off. Then, within minutes, I began to relax. It’s a comforting thought to know that Craig has been micro lighting for years and participated in the World Micro light Championship in the Czech Republic last year.
We flew along the Crocodile River on the border of Kruger National Park. There were hippos in abundance, crocodiles (obviously) and elephants. Gavin even spotted a buffalo. Just when you started to feel comfortable, Craig would swoop down to get a closer look. It felt as if we were going to shave a few hairs off the animals we flew over, but they continued to go about their business blithely.
As we headed back, Craig pointed out the mango plantations and the boundaries of the reserve. The perspective from the air was incredible. More than a bird’s eye point of view, it offered an eagle’s perspective on the lowveld. When we landed I was elated and out of breath. “That was amazing!” I screamed at Gavin, who wasted no time occupying the passenger seat.
After our micro lighting experience, it was clear that game drives were going to be something of an anti-climax, but we were fortunate to spot a lion up close. He had been separated from his lioness – who was hunting for dinner – and was stomping around in a cantankerous frame of mind. We saw him again the next morning, still sans partner, but the white rhino eluded us. A family of Swiss tourists insisted that we continue our search despite the rain, but mercifully we decided to turn back.
“For real greenies”
Conrad van Eyssen is Kwa Madwala’s marketing director. He says although 60 percent of guests are international, he does not want to ignore the local market. I asked him what future plans he has for the 12-year-old lodge. “We’re currently building a boma to have open-air dinners,” he replied. “We also have an elephant wedding concept that we’d like to introduce – for real greenies! The elephants bring in the rings and form a heart with their trunks.”
Our trip there was all too brief. We came back to the reality of city life with a bump: I couldn’t fall asleep because of light pollution (so accustomed had I become to the pitch black African darkness). Then at 2.30am a neighbour’s alarm went off. And didn’t stop. Welcome to the urban jungle, I thought. Given the opportunity to return to the bush for a holiday, I’d swap this city stress for the sounds of twittering birds, happy crickets and animal grunts – any day of the week.
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