#capevidal

Cape Vidal

Cape Vidal lies within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park World Heritage Site about 30 km north of the town of St Lucia. It is a three-hour drive from Durban. Cape Vidal offers the best of two worlds – it is situated on the exquisite Zululand coast with all its amazingly rich marine life, and it provides direct access to the Eastern Shores Nature Reserve with its populations of elephant, rhino, buffalo, crocodile, hippo and reedbuck to name but a few. The beach and off-shore areas at Cape Vidal fall within the St Lucia Marine Reserve which is visited seasonally by humpback whales during their migrations, as well as loggerhead and leatherback sea-turtles that come to the beaches north of Cape Vidal from November to February to nest. Other marine “big game” includes the huge whale shark, marlin, sailfish and dolphin. Cape Vidal lies on the edge of the St Lucia Marine Reserve which extends from 1 km south of Cape Vidal to the Mozambique border, and three nautical miles out to sea. Six loop roads off the main St Lucia to Cape Vidal road provide excellent game viewing and bird watching. Cape Vidal is the site of the wreck of the wooden barque “Dorothea” which struck the reef during a storm in 1898. Artefacts from the wreck may be seen in the bay at various times, and these include a massive piece of chain that lies on the reef, and a steel mast tube lying against the inner, shallow part of the reef. The sheltered bay is a designated launch site for ski-boats, and offers good rock and surf angling. Salt water fly-fishing is a popular pastime. Cape Vidal Resort is set in a bay sheltered by a rock reef that is completely exposed at low spring tides, providing a multitude of rock pools and prime snorkelling areas. On either side lie kilometres of deserted, unspoilt beaches ideal for long walks, while inland there are self-guided drives around the fascinating wetlands and rich coastal forests. Source: http://www.kznwildlife.com Photo credit: http://www.zululandtours.co.za Cape Vidal Beach Safaris The waters of Cape Vidal are warm, thanks to their being part of the Indian Ocean, and are teeming with marine animal- and plant life. The snorkelling safaris are paired with a game drive to ensure that visitors get to see the maximum number of species and the most variety during their excursion. The game drive is conducted in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, in an open safari vehicle to ensure that passengers are able to see as much as possible, while remaining safe. An experienced guide takes the lead and offers interesting information and experience to add value to this adventure. Once visitors arrive at Cape Vidal, they are given snorkelling equipment and invited to cool down and see what lies below the surface of the waters. These waters may be dangerous at times due to tides. This means that a qualified guide is absolutely essential. After a dip in the water, enjoy a barbecue on the beach, along with a game of Frisbee or a relaxing suntan on a towel under the warm South African sun (sunscreen is always essential). The peacefulness of the water and the variety that lies beneath its surface is a very special sight, and demands that guests to Lake St Lucia who embark on this safari never forget the beauty that they have experienced. This adventure takes the best part of a day, and is fantastic for groups of friends or families that want to enjoy the area in a way that is personal and exciting. A briefing session before the safari and the permanent guide mean that it is safe, and that visitors are informed at all times. It is an activity that can be done all year around, thanks to temperate weather conditions, and does not require snorkeling experience.

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Turtle Tours

A chance to see the ancient nesting rituals of Loggerhead and Leatherback turtles, which nest nowhere else in Africa. The coastline of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park is the only remaining major nesting site in Africa where Loggerhead and Leatherback turtles still lay their eggs. These important breeding grounds have been protected by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, the conservation partners of the Wetland Park Authority, for over 50 years. This ancient nesting ritual starts early in November every year. The female emerges from the surf and rests in the wash zone alert for danger – at this point she is easily disturbed. She then moves above the high tide mark to find a suitable site, where the laborious process of digging a nest, down to 1m in depth, commences. After laying a batch of 80-100 eggs, she carefully closes the nest and conceals its presence from foragers like jackals, genets, honey badgers and ghost crabs. The cumbersome journey back to sea follows. The eggs can take up to 70 days to hatch, with the hatchlings emerging at night and making their way to the sea from January through to March every year. Approximately 4 hatchlings from every 1000 are estimated to reach maturity. Recent evidence suggests that female turtles return to the beaches where they hatched. How they know the route back to the spots they hatched on remains a mystery. Turtle tours operate from November to March every year from St Lucia and Cape Vidal (Shoreline Boat Safaris & Turtle Tours; Thompsons Tours), Sodwana Bay (Phinda and Ufudu Tours), Mabibi (Thonga Beach Lodge), Island Rock (Rocktail Beach Camp) and Bhanga Nek (Community guides). source: isimangaliso

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The Elephant Coast

KwaZulu Natal’s Elephant Coast stretches from the world heritage site of Lake St Lucia in the south to Kosi Bay, virtually on the Mozambique border. The Elephant Coast is an extraordinary, untamed area fast growing in popularity for its incredible variety of habitats and eco-systems that combine into an unforgettable blend of adventure, unspoilt scenery and unique experiences. Called the Elephant Coast after the country’s largest herd of indigenous African elephants that have lived in sand forests in this region for centuries, the Elephant Coast extends inland across to the Lubombo Mountains in the west, and includes the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Reserve, the oldest game park in Africa – home to the big five. It is not hard to understand why the Elephant Coast is regarded as the ecotourism mecca of the Zulu Kingdom. Sand dunes blend with swamps, coastal forests, rocky shores, coral reefs, mangrove swamps, woodlands, savanna grassland, and the largest protected wetland in southern Africa, iSimangaliso Wetland Park (the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park). Getaways to this coastline are rich in adventure, and if you’re not game viewing, birding, paddling, snorkelling, hiking, on a horse trail, or diving then you’re surely out on a boat to see dolphins and humpback whales, or watching turtles lay eggs on the beach. Highlights of the Elephant Coast include Cape Vidal (wonderful beaches for deep-sea fishing and famous for whale watching); Sodwana Bay Nature Reserve (the mainstay of scuba diving); Kosi Bay (one of the most unspoilt regions with numerous lakes where you can watch local fishermen); and of course both the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve and the iSimangaliso Wetlands Park are highlights of the Elephant Coast, for obvious reasons. POPULAR TOWNS IN THE ELEPHANT COAST Hluhluwe The village of Hluhluwe is in the heart of Zululand on South Africa’s east coast, home to the Zulu kings Dingiswayo and Shaka, who allegedly prompted the very first conservation laws and the oldest game reserve in the country – the Hluhluwe and Umfolozi Game Reserve, established in 1895. Only a two hour drive from Durban and four hours from Johannesburg the entire area around the Hluhluwe Reserve, right down to the Greater St Lucia Wetlands Park, now a World Heritage Site, has been given over to animal conservation and game farms and visiting the region provides one with an abundance of Big Five viewing, over 350 species of bird and a variety of other wildlifeincluding rhino, giraffe, wildebeest and many antelope species. The main attraction of the area is without doubt the Hluhluwe Umfolozi Game Reserve. This low-risk malaria park is famous for rescuing the white rhino from the brink of extinction and its ongoing protection of both the white and black rhinoceros. The park covers about 96 000 ha and game aside, contains an incredible diversity of fauna and flora. The park provides a couple of self-guided auto trails over and above game viewing and guided walks are also available. The first Iron Age communities are reputed to have settled along the coast and in the lower-lying river valleys in Hluhluwe from 300 AD and there is evidence of metal working sites that date back to 1000 AD in the reserve itself. The Greater St Lucia Wetlands Park has five distinct eco-systems that range from sub-tropical seas, coral reefs, sandy beaches and lush forests to grassy plains, dry savannah and reed and papyrus wetlands. An aerial view of the Maputoland coastline gives one an indication of the amount of water and natural forest in the area. The inland lakes and estuaries are home to hippos, crocodile and fish and the beaches of St Lucia, Cape Vidal and Sodwana Bay are easily accessed from Hluhluwe, providing whale and dolphin spotting as well as scuba diving and other water activities. Ingwavuma Ingwavuma is a small rural town, nestled deep in the countryside of the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. Part of the Umkhanyakude District Municipality, Ingwavuma enjoys the hot, humid conditions typical of this part of South Africa for some of the year. However, being situated in the mountains and 700 metres above sea level, the climate can be cooler and more extreme than along the balmy coastline. As one scales the Lebombo Mountains to find Ingwavuma, it becomes clear that these scenic vistas are unrivalled in terms of their natural beauty, verdant lushness and enormous scale. This little town was established in 1850, and was burnt to the ground during the Second Boer War in 1899. It was re-established the following year. Thanks to the rich Zulu culture and the fascinating history of British and Boer settlers, Ingwavuma continues to be full of heritage; inviting visitors from South Africa and all over the world to come and learn about the people and the place. Ingwavuma occupies only 1.74 square kilometres and is home to about 1 500 people. It has a number of schools, a hospital and a small shopping centre. The entire area is rural, however, and the facilities and services remain compromised by a lack of funds. Jozini Jozini, a small town in North Eastern KwaZulu Natal on the main route to Mozambique, is synonymous with the dam of the same name – the Jozini or Pongolapoort Dam. This huge dam, on the Pongola River, provides a rather dramatic doorway into Maputaland and the river supports a massive population of fish, hippos and crocodiles as well as the people who live in the area. The Jozini Dam lies in between the majestic Ubombo and Lebombo mountains on the Elephant Coast and covers over 16 000 ha. The dam was originally designed to irrigate over 80 000 ha of farm land supporting products such as sugarcane, rice, coffee and various sub-tropical fruits. Many have compared it to Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe and it is fast becoming the mecca of many wild game seekers as farmers convert vast tracts of land around the dam back to their virgin bush in the bid to realise a dream to return this area to its former wild life kingdom. Lake Jozini, as the dam is now called, has become very popular as a Tiger fishing destination and because the dam borders with the Pongola Nature Reserve and Game Reserve, you

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Snorkeling Cape Vidal

The waters of Cape Vidal are warm, thanks to their being part of the Indian Ocean, and are teeming with marine animal- and plant life. The snorkelling safaris are paired with a game drive to ensure that visitors get to see the maximum number of species and the most variety during their excursion. Cape Vidal Snorkeling precautions Please take note that their are strong rip currents in the bay at Cape Vidal, South Africa. Should you like to go snorkeling at Cape Vidal then it is advisable that the following should be noted. Snorkeling should only take place 1 hour prior and 1 hour after low tide. This is when one can enjoy the very best snorkeling in the protected bay of Cape Vidal. The conditions (currents) are most favorable between these times and are therefore the safest as well. Please ensure that you do have a tide chart so that you make sure that your timings are correct. Snorkeling Gear Cape Vidal Bay is a semi protected bay and therefore makes for some incredible snorkeling opportunities. Gear Needed: Mask & Snorkel Fins (if possible) Sunblock a must During low tide it is not imperative to have fins as their is not much current one can therefore enjoy the bay to ones leisure. Due to the warm Indian Ocean a wetsuit is not needed. Where to Snorkel at Cape Vidal Once you arrive at Cape Vidal, you will see on the far right the reef starts. It is from their that one can enjoy snorkeling all the way towards the end of the reef. One will also see a pole sticking out at the end of the reef. This not only marks the end of the reef but is also utilized for the Boats Launching from Cape Vidal. Please at all times be on the look out for Sea going vessels are not only do they launch from the same site but also return through the same area. Ezemvello usually have someone with a whistle notifying you that you are swimming or snorkeling in the wrong area. Please adhere to them at all times. Scattered reefs and rocks are to be found within the bay, be on the look out for the mast of a old ship as well as this makes for some interesting shelter for the fish. Numerous fish species can be witnessed while snorkeling in Cape Vidal not to mention the odd game fish and crayfish. Please note that crayfish are not allowed to be removed as this is a protected area (isimangaliso wetland park). During winter its is common for the bay to sand up a bit and by summer the sand will once again be moved by the dominant currents. Credit: .stluciasouthafrica.com

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