Amakhala has been acknowledged as a Safe Travels accommodation provider by the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA). Amakhala’s lodges are open following the lifting of the lockdown restrictions, and we are ready to welcome both local and international visitors to our magnificent Reserve, while encouraging all to stay safe.
It is our priority to ensure our Amakhala family and guests are protected given the current concerns surrounding COVID-19. Guided by several leading tourism bodies, health organisations and other resources, we are following the strictest health and safety guidelines to ensure we meet all required preventative measures. We have strict COVID-19 protocols in place and take every precaution available to us for the safety of all our staff and guests.
Around 70% of our staff have already received their Covid-19 vaccinations and by the end of the year, all our staff should be vaccinated. We can also arrange PCR tests for our guests to be done at the Reserve, before they fly out.
Conservation News
New Baby Rhino For World Rhino Day
Just in time for World Rhino Day on 22 September, Amakhala Game Reserve celebrates the birth of a precious new female rhino calf! Born on 17 August 2021, this little rhino is just
over a month old and has blessed Amakhala Game Reserve guides and rangers with amazing sightings.
“She is a very energetic bundle of joy - a handful for Mom to keep up with!” says Nico Nel, Amakhala Game Reserve’s Rhino Monitor. “Fortunately for Mom, her previous calf - big sister to the new little one - has decided to stick around, even though older calves are usually pushed away by the mother after the birth of the new baby.”
Every rhino is precious, and every rhino birth is momentous, given the constant poaching threat rhinos face. With just 5,500 critically endangered African Black Rhino and only 20,000 vulnerable Southern White Rhino remaining, World Rhino Day is an opportunity to spread awareness of the plight of the rhino and the incredible work being done to save this iconic species.
We are delighted to welcome this little bundle of joy to the Amakhala family and look forward to sharing this celebration with guests from all over the world when visiting the Reserve.
Amakhala Game Reserve Lodge News
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During the chilly winter months, Leeuwenbosch has been the perfect place to enjoy a cosy getaway, with decadent hot chocolate, great coffee and the finest red wine to enjoy around the log fires going all day, as well as in the warm winter sun on the
patios overlooking the beautiful green grounds.
We hosted many local South Africans for 50th birthdays, ladies’ luncheons and the Pam Golding Group outing, and were delighted to welcome two large international groups from the US. Our Veterinary group also stayed with us for two weeks, enjoying amazing sightings and opportunities to accompany Dr Fowlds performing veterinary procedures on the Reserve.
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Bukela Game Lodge recently lived up to its status as a sought-after wedding destination, with a sophisticated safari wedding that allowed friends and family to come together to celebrate love in the most beautiful surroundings. The wedding party was
accommodated across Bukela and Hlosi Game Lodges with guides and game vehicles on hand to transport guests between the different lodges for the festivities.
Over the course of the weekend, guests were treated to game drives, lunch at a popular lookout point on Amakhala, an intimate ceremony and a stylish reception, and magical mixture of sumptuous cuisine and breath-taking valley views.
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Guests at Woodbury Tented Camp who have braved the winter weather have been rewarded with sightings of one of Africa’s most peculiar and secretive mammals – the aardvark! These fascinating creatures are usually nocturnal, but this winter at least two
individuals have been seen on several occasions roaming the grasslands of the reserve in search of food during the day. This has afforded our guests some fantastic sightings as these strange beasts search out their favourite food: ants and termites. The Amakhala Horse Trails co-ordinator, Kat Barlow, has even seen these aardvarks up close from horseback!
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There’s an exciting new facility at Woodbury Lodge around the corner… a bird hide overlooking the waterhole! When complete the hide will offer guests the opportunity to view birds and animals at the waterhole in front of Woodbury Lodge from a close but
concealed vantage point while seated comfortably. The hide is being constructed with a thatched roof and a raised deck accessed from a staircase at the back of the hide. The side walls will be closed in while the front wall will have an opening along its length for viewing the waterhole, with a comfortable shelf for photographers to rest their cameras on.
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Amakhala Foundation News
Arbour Day
At Amakhala, we celebrated Arbour Day on 1 and 2 September as part of National Arbour Week, hosting 66 learners from nearby schools for a fun day learning about some of nature’s
“Super Plants”.
Grade 1 – 3 learners from the three local schools - Sidbury Primary, Lucebiso Primary and Alexandria Christian Academy - joined Amakhala Foundation and Amakhala Game Reserve staff as well as the Amakhala Volunteers to celebrate Arbour Day. By incorporating Spring Day into the Arbour Day theme, the focus expanded from trees to plants in
general and the theme for the day was “Super Plants”.
The learners rotated in small groups to attend three different “bases”, each revealing an amazing quality that plants possess, with at least two examples. Base 1 focussed on how smart plants can be, with clever ways they protect themselves, like the Venus flytrap, and their ability to “talk” to one another, like the Sensitive plant. Base 2 revealed how “magic” plants are, for example, healing us, disguising as animals and even coming back from the dead, like the
Resurrection plant. Base 3 focussed on how tough, big and strong plants can be, like the Corpse flower and Victoria water lily.
Get Your ‘Words From The Wild’
In support of the Amakhala Foundation, Mark Graham, a poet in the UK, has written a book of poems, 'Words from the Wild', all of which have a South African wildlife theme. The poems
are educational, many are humorous, and each one is illustrated or accompanied by a unique drawing, selected following a drawing competition among the various local schools in which learners could submit their pictures of an animal featured in the book.
Proceeds from the sale of the book are donated to Amakhala Foundation’s Conservation Education projects and programs. The Amakhala Foundation works with communities in and around the Amakhala Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape and aims to provide conservation education and literacy which instils a love and understanding for nature in children that remains with them for life.
It is a great vehicle for raising awareness of the plight of South African wildlife and a unique and beautiful souvenir of an Amakhala visit. A5 printed copies are now available in the UK and in South Africa. Locally, you can get a copy from the Amakhala Conservation Centre and some Amakhala lodges @ R150 each. In the UK, copies are available through Mark Graham's JustGiving page.
Poem 1 - Tongues
What colour is your tongue?
I trust you’ll find it’s pink
The same as other animals
It’s reasonable to think
But you’d be wrong so to assume
And I’ll ask you not to laugh
If you ever get a big blue lick
From a friendly old giraffe
Poem 2 - Top Cat
It’s lovely being a lazy lion
To lounge around all day
And let the ladies land the lunch
Then choose a choice entrée
But please don’t underplay my role
It’s tough to stay main man
Without a gym and protein shakes
I need a workout plan
On getting up I take a stretch
Then catch a yawn or two
Stand up and give my mane a shake
This usually sees me through
And done this way I stay top dog
Can you say that of a cat?
Anyway its worked till now
No arguing with that
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