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.

 

For more information or if you have any questions about these measures, feel free to call us on +27 (0) 41 450 5658 or email: [email protected]. You are also welcome to download our COVID-19 Precautionary Measures document HERE.

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.

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.

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.

 

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

 

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