Our final destination, on this particular road trip, hidden deep inside the KZN Coastal Forest was Chinderera Eco-Lodge and what a gem it turned out to be. Run by Bill and Pam Kelland, there are only 2 chalets, one that sleeps two and a family unit that sleeps 4.
The whole lodge was hand-built by Bill and his eye for detail can be seen in every room and his love for all things African is obvious on every wall.
The entire lodge is run on solar power and does not rely on ESKOM at all…if only we could all be like that! It would leave that incompetent electricity giant exactly where it should be…with electricity to sell and no one wanting to buy it.
The lodge is situated east of the town of Kosi Bay and aside from just chilling at the lodge, they do offer a variety of excursions that enable the local population to make a living.
COVID hit them hard, but it allowed them to refurbish before accepting guests back.
The meals that we enjoyed were prepared by Pam and her kitchen staff and were a sort of Afro-fusion with a twist. And DON’T get me started on the breakfast, which was beyond delicious.
Bill and I spent time chatting about a variety of topics from lodge building to photography and almost everything in between.
Euphaedra neophron, or the gold banded forester, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in eastern and southern Africa.
When I returned to Johannesburg, I discovered that this species in the cover photograph on Steve Woodhall’s Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa (published by Struik Nature)
My wife was so taken by several of these that seemed to appear every morning when she walked to breakfast that she now has a tattoo of one on her shoulder.
A walk through part of the nearby Raffia Palm Forest as the beginning of our final excursion was shorter than expected, but it did produce some interesting facts and images.
Spiral orb webs are what most people associate with spider webs. They are the large, circular webs that have a strong resemblance to wheels. They are easily recognizable by their spoke-like segments that meet in the middle of the web.
Spiders make their webs from silk, a natural fibre made of protein. Not only does spider silk combine the useful properties of high tensile strength and extensibility, it can be beautiful in its own right.
There is a water feature near the dining area that used to be a swimming pool, but the owners figured out that 90% of their guests did not swim, so it has been changed into a series of eco ponds that attract frogs, fish, birds and a variety of water-borne insects. (Like the flotilla of Pond Skaters that I spent time watching).
The forest is alive with sounds…from birds and monkeys to the most raucous toads I have ever heard.
With the water turned off the silence is almost deafening and it got my creative juices flowing. I found myself waxing lyrical about things that I normally don’t ‘wax’ about.
The afternoon silence was unceremoniously shattered by the sounds of these Red-legged Kassina frogs that decided to turn the space into a cacophony of noise that continued long after dinner was done.
It seems that all the boat rides (several private companies offer them as well as some of the lodges have their own watercraft) start at the Kosi Bay camp on the northern side of Lake Nhlange.
From the launch site, we headed south to the Raffia Palm forest and then northeast to see the hippo before heading north through the various channels to see the fish traps and do some snorkelling in the crystal-clear waters.
Once on the water our guide Lucky came into his own and we spent time with pods of hippos, weaving in and out of the fish traps and kraals and even having a chance to snorkel in the crystal clear water in a channel that is not frequently used by the boats of the fishermen.
Depending on who you talk to there are 4, 5 or 6 lakes in this system. However only 4 are actually classed as lakes, one is an estuary and the final one does not have access to water flowing in and out which would make it a lake. I also learned that the estuary only has two tides, high and low and each one lasts 7 weeks! Go figure.
The lakes from North to South are as follows:
Right on the Mozambique border is Lake Zionde
Next up is Kosi Bay Estuary, which is not a Lake and it has the Khalu Inlet on the western shore
The KuSifungu channel joins the Kosi Bay Estuary to Lake Mpungwini
The Mthando channel connects to the largest of the water bodies, Lake Nhlange
And finally, there is Lake Amanzimnyama, which is closed to visitors.
And the biggest surprise? An Olive Sunbird is nesting INSIDE the reception area. When we were there she was sitting on her third clutch of eggs. The previous ones had been mysteriously eaten during the night, although she had raised two lots of chicks successfully.
Many thanks to Pam and Bill for being superb hosts. I am hoping that more people will discover this hidden gem and, like us, will hopefully return here regularly.
This trip saw us on more sand roads than tar, and when we did get onto the latter, I was certainly a much happier driver. Between the sand, the mud, the cows and the local pedestrians, driving to and from the various lodges was a challenge, but it did allow us to see some of the countryside that we would not have otherwise visited…
For those that were not aware, there is an extension to the Travel & Things Blog in the form of ‘In conversation with‘ a YouTube channel hosted by David Batzofin and filled with a plethora of interesting interviews with a variety of people.
To visit the channel, click on the ‘In conversation with’ image above.
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