When I travel in KwaZulu Natal I travel with purpose and on a preplanned itinerary that is put together months in advance. Locations and routes need planning to maximise my time and ensure that I get the most from my journey. I also do the same when planning for and with others. Yes, this can prove to be tiring, but it is also hugely rewarding. It enables me to be able to relay firsthand knowledge to help fellow travellers get the very most from their holidays. I am at Jozini Tiger Lodge and Spa wondering what to do with myself as I was staying a little longer than I normally would. Ryan, the lodge manager, had simply said to me, relax and enjoy yourself, that’s what our guests do. So here I am, best described as lake and leisurely, sitting on my balcony looking down at Lake Jozini, reading The Conspiracy Tourist by Dom Jolly. So, this is what people do on their holidays.
I should mention that my room, leading to my balcony was perfect. Spacious and large in size, with ample storage for a lengthy stay with couch, table, additional seating and king size four poster bed. The tea and coffee station came complete with a drink’s fridge. The ensuite bathroom was also a good size with both bathtub and shower. All this with a great view of Lake Jozini.
To get in the holiday mode here at the lodge does not take much thinking about. I had been given a full tour by assistant manager Gugu so knew where to find everything. I was tempted by the Mangwanani African Spa and the treatments on offer, and I regret not indulging myself, but my stomach told me to check out the lunch menu. I need to take more interest in my body and not just my stomach. I did opt though for a healthy lunch, Greek salad, an excellent choice on a very hot afternoon taken on the restaurant veranda looking down onto the lake below. Every meal here felt like an event. Breakfast and dinner were feasts with huge choices put together by chef Sabelo and his dedicated team. In the mornings I started with healthy options including locally sourced fresh fruit salad before moving on to the cooked options. It’s not often you get three choices of sausages plus meatballs along with crispy bacon, zhuzhed up baked beans and a near menu of egg variations. Dinners were buffet and braai, (barbecue), affairs. Chef Sabelo talked me through the buffet options on the braai night and it took him nearly two minutes. Home made breads, freshly prepared salads and dressings, mealiepap, (a local speciality), rice, potatoes, sheba or chakalaka, a local spicy vegetable sauce dish, plus other choices of vegetables. Then comes the meat, chicken, boerewors and pork chops. On other nights the buffet included traditional roasts with all the trimmings, stews and curries. As a curry fan I have to mention and recommend the excellent curries. I also have to admit that I could not face the dessert selection. What I can say is that you will not go hungry here and there is something for everyone.
It never gets cold up here around Lake Jozini and the hotel swimming pool and surrounding decks were busy places. At times there was a party atmosphere that I have rarely seen on my travels in South Africa. There was also a real blend of people, conference attendees, business travellers and holidaymakers including many families. Along with missing out on the spa I also missed out on the lodge’s giant two hundred- and twenty-seven-meter-long water slide. With there being so many others, both using the slide and the surrounding decking, I did not want to expose my food full white body to others and spoil the fun. I must stress there is no shortage of fun here if that is what you want.
With the lodge situated in northern KwaZulu Natal, within an area known as the Elephant Coast, there is a host of activities and excursions available. The iSimangaliso Wetland Park, UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with many game reserves including Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, Mkuze Game Reserve and Tembe Elephant Park are all close by. The lodge itself offers hiking trails and birdwatching. But the main draw, for me, here was the lake itself. From the lodge cruises are available taking in the magnificent scenery and breathtaking sunsets. But I wanted to try my hand at tiger fishing, yes there are tigers, but only here in Zululand.
The lodge booked me an early morning fishing trip and even gave me a lift to the boat by golf cart. Here I met my guide and tutor Bongani and after a brief chat we headed out. I should point out before we get into the fishing, I am not a fisherman. On fishing trips here at home in England I take the role of camp cook. But I wanted to explore and see more of the lake and felt that this was the best way to do so. Bongani drove us out to our first bay where we anchored up. He got the rods ready and baited and then offered me some tips before I threw out my first cast. He continued to offer advice and coach me throughout the hours we spent on the lake. Along with this we just chatted and took in our surroundings. It is a truly spectacular destination enveloped by steep slopes, some rock, and some covered in thick lush green bush. Torrential rains a week or so before my visit had washed silt from those slopes into the water turning it brown from its normal blue. This Bongani told me made tiger fishing difficult. And so, this was proved as not a single tiger was landed as we moved from bay to bay trying our luck. Heavy rains had also raised the water level meaning it was too deep for hippos and made spotting crocodiles very difficult.
Just to give an idea of scale Loch Ness, home of the Loch Ness monster, measures fifty-four square kilometres. Lake Jozini comes in at one hundred and thirty-two square kilometres. The vast size means I still have plenty of lake to explore and return to, to try again to land my first tiger fish. It of course also means more time to be lakeside and leisurely. And just to mention, like Loch Ness, Lake Jozini has its very own monster. The inkanyamba, a giant serpent, is said to live in the vast expanse of water. Maybe it was this beast that scared the tiger fish from our fishing grounds?
