Springbok Diaries - 6 December 2020

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Next on our route was another safari. This time not in a National Park, but a private game reserve with the name Nambiti, barely 100km away the battlefields. Nui by now accustomed to African style driving steered our Nissan safely over dirt and potholed tared roads to the reserve. African driving suited her much better than what she experienced in Switzerland, Austria or Croatia. Road conditions and driving style were more like Thailand. Already the check in procedure showed us what the difference is of the two concepts (Krueger vs private game reserve). In Krueger you still can feel a pioneer spirit of unpredictability. When going out on safaris you never know what you will run into. Krueger is a big piece of territory where all animals roam freely and hunt freely. Even the most experienced guides will not know where to find the rarer animals. In Krueger the guide is allowed to follow with the game viewer (that is the common name of the jeep) into the bush. In a private game reserve this is strictly forbidden. One can say you are in a giant zoo where animals roam freely hunt and are hunted, but the parks management oversees the ecological balance of the flora and fauna. Guides know roughly where to find the animals, like lions, cheetahs rhinos, so photo shootings are assured but the spirit is tame, for Nenad at least.

Nambiti was founded 2001 with a concession of 22'000 acres of land, equaling to app. 90 km2. In comparison Krueger's size is that of the surface of the state of Israel. The topography of Nambiti is very diverse, with bushland, canyons, lakes, waterfalls and savannah type open spaces. The game reserve started as a place of sanctuary for orphaned elephants. Soon after, as the elephant population began to grow, the internal fences were removed as well as the alien vegetation, in order to create what would be the Nambiti Game Reserve. A Game fence was then erected to house the 22 000 acres of the reserve. Following this the area of the reserve was then stocked with naturally occurring game, which had been driven out by the farming. In 2005, there was a proposal to build lodges within the reserve. This proposal was taken on and 3 more of the surrounding farms were added to the reserve. In 2007 there was a claim for the land by the local African tribal communities. The matter was settled and now the community is actively involved in the upkeep of the reserve. Land disputes are one of the biggest problems facing South Africa in the post Apartheid era. Large pieces of land owned by Whites are contested by local Black Africans, based on their historic (pre-settlers time) right. The ANC Government has difficulties to withstand such claims, although lot of these properties have been lawfully acquired by these white citizens. Such historic rights of the Xhosa and Zulu can often be disputed as well, as their tribes themselves in previous centuries have push out with violent campaigns the actual aboriginals of the land, the Khoisan. This however is conveniently brushed aside by politicians and public. Often the seller to today's White land owners was the formally legitimate White Government of South Africa, which subsequently became an international pariah. Once again, we see the complexities history is presenting, especially if claims are based on past perceived rights, instead of cooperation of inclusion and future visions. Nambiti is an example that gives hope the resolution of this problem is possible.

On the Nambiti Reserve there are 9 different lodge complexes. We chose the Springbok Lodge. It received its name after some of its investors, former players of the South African Rugby team, which is nick-names Springboks. We slept in large tents. Not scout type tents, but bungalow size structures made out of tent material supported by wooden structures and mounted on a wooden platform. With all luxury in it. At night especially very early in the morning the noises of the savannah and the bush could be heard loud and clear, giving an atmosphere of inclusion in nature. Showers are outside the tent. As the camp is secured by electric fences from the rest of the reserve, we could move freely within the compound with little risk of wild animal encounter. The reserve is easily accessible from Durban 2.5h and Johannesburg 3.5h by car, making it a popular weekend outing for South African families.

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Photos

Welcome to Nambiti
I am your Kudu host

lovely landscape
on 1'500 m altitude

Strict hygiene protocols
Covid is here too upsetting the usual

spectacular light shows
every morning and evening