Hluhluwe Imfolozi
Game Reserve
At
96 000 ha (960km2/370mi2),
Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve (formerly Umfolozi)
is a reasonably sized wildlife area with a good road network that will
take you a few days to cover.
Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve
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The
map below allows you to zoom in closely (use the controls in
the left hand corner or double click with your mouse) to
identify all the important features of the reserve. Click on the icons
to get a description of what it depicts.
The
satellite imagery is amazing. It's so detailed that you can actually
see the roofs of the chalets that you might stay in on a visit to Mpila
restcamp. Zoom in on the camp to see for yourself...
Hluhluwe
Imfolozi Game Reserve Map
View Larger
Map
Hluhluwe
Imfolozi
Distance Calculator
Based on an average speed of 30km/h (19mph)
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The
distance calculator on the right works out the
travel times and distances between all the main restcamps and gates.
This
is important for your game drive route planning in the reserve because
you need to ensure that you are back at camp before the specified gate
closing time.
There
is only one main road that is tarred, stretching from Memorial Gate to
about 6km (3.7mi) west of Mpila Camp. The rest of
the roads are all gravel and in good condition except around the area
of Bhejane Hide where the road has some ruts in it due to water erosion.
But
it's still navigable with a normal sedan vehicle; you will just have to
drive very slowly.
Imfolozi has a large section of wilderness in the south which is
reserved for trails so there are no roads there.
Something
that might appear strange at first is the fact that there is a major
provincial road, the R618 to Mtubatuba, running right through the
middle of the park. This road was built when the corridor still
separated the two reserves and remained when the parks were joined in
1989.
History
of the Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve
This
can be a confusing
reserve to visit due
to the fact that some parts of it are managed separately and some as a
whole. The park's rich history explains why this is the case.
It
actually started out as
three separate
reserves. Hluhluwe Valley Reserve in the north and Umfolozi Junction
Reserve (now known as Imfolozi) to the south were proclaimed separately
in 1895 (making them the oldest reserves in Africa).
The
Hlabisa Game Reserve was
sandwiched in
between the other two parks but it was deproclaimed in 1907 because of
pressure from farmers in the area, which meant that for many years
Hluhluwe and Imfolozi operated independently with a corridor separating
them.
Then
in 1989 the Corridor
Game Reserve was
proclaimed which finally amalgamated the two separate reserves into one
and soon after that it was rechristened as the Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game
Reserve.
But
because they had
functioned apart for
such a long time there are still some things that are managed
separately such as the fact that costs and times for activities like
game drives and guided walks are not standardized across the whole game
park.
Also,
electricity in the
Imfolozi section of
the park is supplied with a generator from 8am until 10pm (gas keeps
fridges and stoves in operation between times) while the Hluhluwe
section is powered by the national grid constantly.
But
these are negligible
differences and it
won't negatively impact your experience of this amazing and varied game
reserve at all.
Best
Time To Visit
The weather here is travel friendly for most
of the year. Even at the height of winter day temperatures are warm but
the nights can drop to below freezing (0°C/32°F) so be
prepared for that.
Winter runs from April to September and
little to no rain falls during this time. Summer stretches from October
to March and there is a reasonable amount of thunderstorm activity to
contend with. Temperatures go above 30°C/86°F regularly
in summer.
In terms of game viewing, the best time to
visit Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve is between July and October when
the vegetation is less dense due to low rainfall and animals start to
congregate around waterholes and pans.
Temperatures are also milder then as the
heat can become pretty intense during mid-summer.
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