Thakazulu Game Reserve

Thakazulu Game Reserve

South of Vryheid, in the north-western parts of Zululand, lies an area of of rolling grasslands, bushveld and undulating hills. It is essentially cattle and game farm country although the Thaka River Valley and its intensely hot summers allow for the growth of some heat-loving crops.

It is the Thaka River, along with the Black Umfolozi, that together create a valley filled with lush vegetation, dense thornveld and patches of forest that make up what is pleasantly described in brochures as 'thick valley bushveld'. It is here that Thakazulu Game Reserve, a private reserve at the bottom of the valley, lies in what is regarded as a 'red-hot birding area'. The main attraction at the private reserve, other than the access to game such as zebra, giraffe, kudu, impala, nyala and the occasional leopard, is the Tangami Safari Spa that offers camping, bush camps and bungalows, and one of only five natural, mineral mud baths in the world.

And birding begins in the camp itself where the African green pigeon, golden-tailed woodpecker, scarlet-chested sunbird and purple-crested turaco all put in regular appearances. These are but a few of the over 250 bird species that make the reserve their home.

Where the water flows from the mineral baths, there has evolved an artificial forest that attracts red-capped robin-chat, African pygmy kingfishers, olive bush shrikes and terrestrial brownbuls. And still close to the camp, there is a pretty pathway that winds its way through the forest and onto the floodplain, where further bird calls rend the air that immediately allow time to slow and appreciation of one's environment to come to the fore.

And a range of eagles put in an appearance if you take the time to wait and watch. And in such surrounds, there is suddenly plenty of time for just that.