Weenen is a small agricultural town in KwaZulu Natal South Africa. Of late it starting to emerge as a tourist destination for those of you looking for a little more excitement. Weenen offers tourists white water rafting on the Tugela river, horse safaris through the Tugela Biosphere, canal trips, game viewing, 4x4 safaris, mountain biking, abseiling and rhino tracking by foot. This hidden little gem called Weenen is starting to make its mark as a tourist destination not to be missed on your trip to South Africa.
Weenen Game Reserve is administered by the KwaZulu Wildlife and covers an area of typical inland KwaZulu-Natal acacia grassland with occasional thickets. There are extensive game viewing facilities, guided walks and environmental education in the Weenen Game Reserve. More than 230 species of birds have been recorded (there are two hides overlooking a dam) and the park is an excellent example of how a severely degraded habitat can be successfully rehabilitated. There are three picnic sites. Mammals in the reserve include rhino, giraffe, hyaena, jackal, bushbuck, reedbuck, steenbok and porcupine. The Weenen nature reserve has a small two bedroomed cottage with braai facilities and its own trail and waterhole. There are 12 caravan and camping sites and a picnic site. There is a guided walk of 8kms and three self-guided trails which pass dams.
The rugged cliffs overlooking the Tugela canyon provide dizzying abseil sites. Face your fear or watch other participants step over the edge! Experienced guides are there to provide reassurance and to ensure complete safety.
The major summer activity is white-water rafting, and the most exciting time to do this is between November and May. The 30km stretch of river known as the canyon provides some of the most thrilling white water in the country. The South African leg of the Camel White-Water Challenge took place at Zingela and the venue received rave reviews from participants and organisers. A wide choice of river-rafting packages is available - from half a day to four days on the river. One man Kayaks, two man crocs and eight man rafts are used on the river, in accordance with water levels and the groups abilities. Safety is a priority, and all guides are trained by SARA. No previous rafting experience is necessary.
A relaxing option is the Weenen canal where with a river guide you paddle down the canal which passes through the bottom of the Weenen Game Reserve. This is not really adventure but rather pure relaxation and is great for bird watching
Weenen Game Reserve was established in 1974 and through extensive land reclamation in combating erosion, has become one of the areas most enjoyable family and wildlife enthusiasts holiday destination. Its white rhino population exceeds 50, making it one of the most densely populated rhino reserves (per sq.ha) in South Africa.
For those enthusiasts looking for an intimate wildlife experience, Weenen ’s exciting activity of Rhino tracking is guaranteed to inject a generous dose of adrenaline as you track the second largest member of the Big 5 in the company of qualified guides and trackers. Hugely popular with local and international student groups, visitors who choose to seek out this amazing mammal will have the opportunity to meander through the shifting vegetation and other numerous game species that occur in abundance within this gem of a game park.
John Rich runs the best and probably the most well respected off-road driving school in the country, called Stoney Ridge. Stoney Ridge is the only 4x4 training facility I personally endorse and I, during the rare times that I do off-road driving training, use this venue and this man to do most of the training. My experiences of most off-road driving training facilities as that while they demonstrate off-road techniques the visitors leave feeling good, having had a great time, but take away very little in the way of good off-road techniques. This is not the case at Stoney Ridge. Learners leave having been challenged and taught, and with them goes a sound understanding of off-road principles.
Stoney Ridge is located near Weenen in KwaZulu Natal, about four hours from Johannesburg and two hours from Durban. It is set in a shallow valley on the Blaukrans River. The huge game farm teems with animals and the tracks range from a pleasant climb up the mountain to extreme tests of driver and vehicle. Stoney Ridge is large enough to accommodate the GPS training courses held there while most of the 4x4 training grounds are in fairly close proximity to base camp. There is also a runway suitable for STOL aircraft and micro lights.
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