Ndumo Game Reserve
KwaZulu-Natal

The Ndumo Game Reserve lies west of the Tembe Elephant Park on the border to Mozambique thus being the remotest nature reserve in KwaZulu-Natal. The great natural beauty of this 10,000 hectare park is nevertheless worth a visit. The rivers Usutho in the north and Pongola in the east provide widespread wetland areas, lakes and pans, picturesquely lined by fig trees and the greenish-yellow fever trees, which were in the olden days falsely believed to cause malaria. Between the wetland areas mainly lies grassland, Acacia bushland and forest.

In the lakes and swamps live large populations of hippos and crocodiles. And there are buffaloes, giraffes, back and white rhinos, impalas, nyalas and many other antelope species.

Remarkable is Ndumo's abundance in birds. More than 420 species were registered here, including birds from tropical East Africa, several kinds of kingfishers, rare palm vultures, fish owls and many water birds.

Large parts of the park are passable for normal cars. There are a couple of comfortable hides for game observation. The park management also offers safari drives in an open Landrover and wilderness hikes under the guidance of experienced game rangers. One can spend the night in the Ndumo Rest Camp in the eastern part of the park, either in a chalet or on a campground.