Hey, good looking!
Text: Lisa Johnston. Photography: Cameron Ewart-Smith
Source: This article is taken from the September 2011 issue of Getaway Magazine.
The Limpopo’s 1,5-million-hectare Waterberg offers brooding good looks, a rugged body and a sunny disposition. It’s no wonder Lisa Johnston fell for its charms.
The more you visit the Waterberg, the more its magnetism increases. First you find yourself drawn by its good looks: magnificent landscapes, rugged physique and pristine habitats, not to mention to-die-for blue-blue peepers. Then by its profound depth: magical reflections of red-hued mountains on crisp, clear waters and dazzling, deep, dark nights with a bazillion flecks of golden starlight. The berg’s good-natured humour doesn’t go unnoticed either: friendly townsfolk and quirky farm stalls are quick to raise a smile. Soon you’re so smitten, you’re happy to overlook its black moods: difficult days at the end of winter when the rivers turn to trickles and much of the landscape is dry and burnt out.
It’s a gentle seduction, but before long you find yourself acting like a human dowsing rod, being drawn unconsciously again and again to the source of mountain happiness. For Gautengers, the pull is particularly strong. It’s only three hours from Johannesburg and the roads are mostly excellent.
It doesn’t really matter how you like your mountains, the Waterberg is so vast and encompasses such enormous biodiversity, there’s bound to be something to suit all tastes. There are luxury lodges of every shape and size, golf estates, old-fashioned family resorts, farm stays, rural villages and comfortable family-friendly cottages and tented camps.
The region stretches in an arc encompassing Thabazimbi in the west, past Modimolle (Nylstroom) to Mokopane (Potgietersrus) in the east and includes other main towns such as Vaalwater, Lephalale (Ellisras) and Bela-Bela (Warmbaths). Despite many of the new names having been in place for years it still gets confusing. Locals often refer to towns by their old names, as do many shop fronts and even official signboards.
Not that it really matters, the Waterberg has been called many things by many people over thousands of years. It’s been a stomping ground for successions of humanity, from the Stone and Iron Age people to the hunter-gatherer Bushmen and Khoi-khoi herders. Evidence of their passing through has been left in the form of rock art, pottery shards and stone and iron tools.
Later European visitors nearly destroyed it, killing wildlife in the 1800s and early 1900s. Vintage photos of hunting expeditions show one- to two-metre-high piles of ivory, skins and horns. Once the animals were gone, the land was opened up to tobacco, maize and citrus farming. However, the soil is sour and farming is difficult in these parts, which is why it’s slowly reverting back to wilderness, with a resurgence of game farming, ecotourism and controlled hunting.
It’s a logical way forward. The fairly recently proclaimed Waterberg Biosphere Reserve is home to 129 mammal, 350 bird and more than 2000 plant species, with a number of endemic or Red Data butterflies, fish and reptile species, making it a very important conservation area.
A well-known son of the Waterberg, the late Lex Rodger, wrote: ‘The Bible speaks of a balm in Gilead and I have always maintained there’s a balm in the Waterberg which restores men’s souls and makes them whole … Waterberg means so much to me and I have a vision of what it yet can be. It can bring peace and solace to so many, bind up wounds, heal and restore, renew and build, and above all, inspire people to even greater achievements.’
That vision is slowly unfolding as more of the Waterberg is released from farming and the binds of fencing and opened up for more to enjoy.
Things to do
Saddle up
A gentle, but exhilarating way to ease into the beauty of the Waterberg’s natural spaces is to enjoy game viewing on horseback.
Savannah Horse Trails offers rides and safaris through adjacent private reserves. Rates are R400 for a two-and-a-half hour ride and R600 for a four-hour ride.
Tel 014-721-9901, email.
Sit tight
Lindani Game and Lodges is open to day visitors (07h00 to 18h00) to explore their 3800 hectares by mountain bike. A distance of 50 kilometres is easily achievable without repeating any tracks or loops. Bring along a packed lunch and enjoy a picnic at any of their four sites (the risk of fires is high so braais aren’t allowed). Bring a bike or hire one for R100. Day rates are R50 a person and booking is essential.
Tel 014-7554959, cell 083-6315579, email, website.
Guests at Kololo Game Reserve can also view game by bike. See Travel Planner.
Say cheese
Learn all about cheese making on a tour at the Geluksfontein Goat Cheese Farm between Modimolle and Vaalwater. The cheeses are made daily, breakfast and lunch are available at the Goatino Pub and Grill (booking is essential) and there’s a shop selling delicious products. The farm is open to the public from Monday to Sunday 08h00 to 17h00. Goats are milked daily at 15h00.
Cell 083-704-4229, website.
Here birdy birdy
The Nylsvley Wetlands are home to the largest number of water birds in Southern Africa. The overall species list numbers more than 400, of which more than 200 can easily be spotted in a single visit. Entrance is R10 an adult.
Tel 014-743- 1074, cell 082-806-2204, website.
Get starry eyed
The unpolluted heavens of the Waterberg are perfect for viewing the splendours of the night sky. Waterberg Cottages offers a dramatic view of the Milky Way, nebulas, galaxies and clusters in their entertaining Star Tours. The use of a modern telescope and an astronomical video camera means participants can experience a full-throttle tour in another dimension. It’s R150 a person (minimum R900).
Tel 014-755-4425, cell 078-207- 8570, email, website.
Stop, shop and takeway at Zeederberg’s in Vaalwater.
For more, see Roadside Rendezvous on page 40.
Travel planner
Who to contact
For information on the fauna, flora, history and geology of the Waterberg Biosphere, as well maps and details of the Waterberg Meander .
The vehicle we used
The new Nissan Navara V9X’s three-litre turbodiesel engine means even though you’re driving a one tonner, you won’t feel the weight. It’s powerful and overtaking is a breeze. It’s also low on emissions.
But it’s the interior that really lets you know you’re driving a luxury vehicle. It comes with mod cons such as power steering, aircon and CD/ MP3 player. We drove the top-end 3.0 V6 dCi 4×4 (V9X). From R545 000. website.
The vast Gnu Ranch is perfect if you’re wanting a romantic bush break, a family holiday or a raucous bachelor’s party.
The savanna, bush and bird-rich wetlands are particularly beautiful in summer when it’s lush and green, but winter makes it easier to spot the farm’s 21 species of plains game.
Accommodation ranges from six-sleeper thatched units and treetop cabin to a luxury treetop tent (sleeps two). High-season rates range from R300 a person sharing a night to R450.
Cell 082-579-5649, email, website.
Waterberg Bushveld Retreat has plenty to keep kids and adults entertained, including game drives and spa treatments. Three self-catering cottages are well equipped and there are four spacious safari tents.
Rates vary according to the number of people. High-season rates start at R350 a person a night in a tent and R450 a person a night in a cottage.
Tel 014-755-4244, cell 083-460-2982,
Rietbokspruit Farm Cottages offers two rustic cottages, perfectly suited to privacy seekers. There’s no electricity, so evenings are enjoyed in front of the fire. Top House (sleeps four to 10) is one cottage and three rondavels, which are let out as a unit.
The Boekenhout Bush Cottage (sleeps two) is romantic with whitewashed walls and a king-size bed.
Rates range between R250 and R350 a person sharing a night.
Tel 014-743-2525, email.
Kololo Game Reserve offers comfortable self-catering chalets for South African citizens from R1 250 (sleeps two) a unit a night to R3200 (sleeps six) a unit a night, which includes game drives as well as use of the heated swimming pool, hiking trails and mountain bikes (from which you can spot game too). Foreign passport holders pay full-board rates starting at R1 400 a person sharing a night. Accommodation in the comfortable tented camps is fully catered and rates start at R950 a person a night.
Tel 014-721-0920/9910, cell 079-694-0410, email, website.
For more accommodation in the Waterberg area, see our Places to Stay guide on page 174.
Reserves in the Waterberg
- The 50000-hectare Marakele National Park in the Waterberg Mountains close to Thabazimbi is in a transitional climate zone between the dry western and moister eastern regions of South Africa. Towering cycads and tree ferns can be found, as can yellowwoods and cedars. One of the largest colonies of breeding Cape vulture (more than 800 breeding pairs) have settled here. You’ll find all of the Big Five against a backdrop of magnificent mountain landscapes. website.
- The 36000-hectare Welgevonden Private Game is a Big Five park which hosts a number of exclusive lodges. You can spot 50 species of mammals, including brown hyena, aardwolf and aardvark. The grassy plains teem with antelope. Birders can expect to see up to 250 species, including the rare blue crane. Private vehicles aren’t allowed and there has never been hunting on the reserve so the wildlife is relaxed, ensuring excellent sightings. website.
- The exclusive Shambala Private Game Reserve covers about 12000 hectares to the east of Welgevonden and boasts wild dogs as well as plains and other large game species. The Douw Steyn Dam on the property is home to hippos, crocodiles and various fish species.
- Lapalala Wilderness was established in the early 1980s as the first serious conservation area in the Waterberg. It covers more than 36000 hectares of prime bushveld habitat and is an important black rhino sanctuary. This reserve is in one of the wildest areas of the Waterberg and is bisected by deep canyons, created by the fast-flowing Palala and Blocklands rivers. website.
More info on the area of Waterberg | More info on the Limpopo area |
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