Southern Africa 4×4 – Off-road Trips & Vehicle Mods

The first trip in my new Land Rover Defender Hardtop TDi was a exploratory 4×4 trip up the North Coast of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa and entering Mozambique at the Kosi Bay Border Post where we explored the coastline around Ponta De Ouro, Mozambique.

Stop-over’s included:

• Ndumo Game Reserve (Maputoland, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa)
• Tembe Elephant Park (Maputoland KwaZulu Natal, South Africa)
• Kosi Bay Nature Reserve and Kosi Bay Mouth
• Ponta De Ouro, Mozambique

General Remarks:

Maputoland and the Elephant Coast on the Northern Natal Coastline is a paradise for any 4×4 enthusiast and a must-do for any 4×4 trip in South Africa. Many of the best spots on the Elephant Coast can only be reached by 4×4 vehicles, which not only ensures a measure of unspoilt beauty but also makes the experience of getting there just a little more rewarding.

Ponta De Ouro, Mozambique was definitely the highlight of the trip. Once you enter Mozambique the drastic changes in road quality; people and landscape, changes your mindset from travel to exploration! If you are planning a 4×4 trip to Mozambique ensure your expedition vehicle is in very good working order.

Trip Itinerary:

Sunday, June 14 2009: Durban to Richards Bay.

Distance is approximately 200 km – Driving time approximately 2.5 hours – Average Speed: 105km/hr.

Having lived on the Natal Coast for most of my life we decided to skip any stop-overs on this well known stretch of road.

Monday, June 15 2009: Richards Bay to Ndumo Game Reserve.

We left early the following morning to start the real part of the trip. Distance from Richards Bay to Ndumo Game Reserve is approx. 250 km/hr. and driving time took just under 4 hours. By now the Land Rover defender TDi was producing impressive feul consumption figures of 9.8l/100km.

From Richards Bay take the N2 North towards Pongola, take the Jozini turn off which is just before Pongola if you are coming from the South. Go through the town and across the dam wall then follow the road until you see the Ndumo sign posts.

Ndumo Game Reserve is best known for its diversity of spectacular bird life, and is home to the highest bird count in South Africa, some 430 species. This lush game reserve is situated near the Thembe Elephant Park on the Mozambique border.

The campsite caters for both caravans and tents and is situated in a beautiful setting under the trees near the main hutted camp. Be careful of the resident Rhino!

Note: Once you turn off from the main road there is a 20 km stretch road of gravel road. The road is very badly corrugated and the Defender felt as though it would rattle to pieces. Having the BF Goodrich All Terrain tyres with there 3-Ply sidewalls did not improve anything, as it makes their sidewalls very hard! On a gravel road like this; drop your tyre pressue down to around 1.8 bar which makes the road a little more bearable.

Tuesday, June 16 2009: Tembe Elephant Park.

Only ten vehicles are allowed into the park on a daily basis and these must be 4X4s to negotiate the sand tracks that form the road network; so we decided to leave very early on Tuesday morning from Ndumo to visit the elephant park for the day.

Tembe Elephant Park covers the area that was once known as ‘The Ivory Route’. For many years this ancient route linked the ivory traders of Mozambique and Zululand, today the park is home to last of the remaing largest elephant in Africa.

Wednesday, June 16 2009: Ndumo to Kosi Bay Nature Reserve

The Kosi Bay Nature Reserve lies on the coast in the northern part of KwaZulu-Natal and surrounds the unique Kosi Bay lake. This system consists of four lakes and a series of inter connecting channels which eventually drain via a sandy estuary into the Indian ocean.

We left Ndumo at 10h00 and got to Kosi Mouth Campsite just before 12h00, the road is very potholed and you must drive with extreme caution. A blow-out is not uncommon on these roads!

If you plan to visit the Kosi Bay mouth a permit is required! You can easily obtain a single entry to any of the beach routes from the Kosi Mouth Office. Note that a 4×4 is essential for most of this area.

Friday, June 18 2009: Kosi Bay Border Post to Ponta de Ouro

Ponta de Ouro(The Point of Gold), is the southern most resort on the Mozambican coast. The easiest entry is through Kosi Bay border post and Ponta de Ouro is 15kms from the border.  You can even leave your car at the border and arrange to be transferred to Ponta by one of the resorts in the town.

Once you get over the border into Mozambique everything changes!

Where there was once a reasonably well-maintained tar road, you now have 10 sand tracks leading into the bush. It is recommended that you drop your tyre pressure to 1.2 Bar for most of Mozambique.

Sunday, June 20 2009: Ponta de Ouro, Mozambique to Sodwana Bay

On Sunday we were very sad to have to say good-bye to our new home, Ponta de Ouro, but we had to make our way back into South Africa as I needed to back at work on Tuesday.

We decided to drive from Ponta to Sodwana. By now we had got accustomed to driving around 200 km a day. If you are planning a 4×4 trip to South Africa, try keep your average daily travel distance; it makes your trip far more relaxing and you are able to see so much more.

The reserve lies adjacent to Africa’s southern-most coral reefs. The Maputoland and St Lucia Marine Reserves are linked to each other to form a continuous protected area stretching 150 km from the Mozambique border southwards to Cape Vidal and 3 nautical miles out to sea.