Ben Alberts Nature Reserve

Cape Vulture in Ben Alberts Nature Reserve

The Ben Alberts Nature Reserve is set close to the town of Thabazimbi, virtually on Route 510 just south west of Marakele National Park in the heart of the Waterberg. Rated as one of the best birding reserves by avid birders, Ben Alberts is also well known for its Vulture Restaurant, where the endangered Cape vulture is one of the stars of the show and one can, by all accounts, feed these raptors.

Apart from this obvious attraction, the reserve is roughly 2 000 hectares with an impressive amount of wildlife, given its smallness - this could be attributable to the fact that the reserve was closed to the public for a while - but you can expect to see white rhino, kudu, blue wildebeest, giraffe, eland, zebra and warthogs.

The Waterberg is set within the heart of the bushveld - a region epitomised by low mountain ranges and open savanna. Gorgeous mountain landscapes predominate in this area that stretches 150 kilometres from Thabazimbi in the west, through Modimolle to Mokopane in the east. The over 3000 hectares that make up the Waterberg, of which Ben Alberts is a part, are filled with open grassland, steep gorges and crystal pools that invite game viewing, hiking, bird watching and mountain biking. Ben Alberts Nature Reserve is but one reserve lying within what is considered one of South Africa's foremost wildlife areas.