African Wildlife and Environment Issue 65

DESTINATION

DESTINATION

their hands and can show you some ‘lifers’ (for the non birders, that means a birds you just HAVE to see before you leave planet Earth). • If you’re old-style get your rod out (we mean fishing), if you’re getting cabin fever, pop down to the lagoon at the Umlalazi Nature Reserve, and on your way you must just visit the post office and grab a fishing permit! • Barge trips are a nice way to end off the day, so get hold of one of our local barge operators and float down the Umlalazi River for a while. Whichever way you look at it, a visit to this hidden paradise will enrich your senses and leave you with memories to last a lifetime.

is used mainly for environmental education but its excellent facilities are also available to groups looking for something out of the ordinary within a special setting. Other things to do in and around the area include: • Relaxing at the lagoon in the Umlalazi Nature Reserve at a picnic spot, or on the main beach (6km drive down the road from us). • For the slightly more active, try the 15 minute walk through our dune forest at Twinstreams to go chill out on the deserted beach. We unfortunately don’t have a pool at Twinstreams, but the nearby ocean is certainly big enough to accommodate your need to cool off. • Work off your meal by going on a few of our forest trails around the centre. The trails are not specifically marked out, but most of them go in a

circle so you really shouldn’t be getting lost (just be careful of our forest snakes! They camouflage themselves pretty well). • There are plenty of roads and single track routes through Mtunzini town and the outskirts, which mountain bikers and runners will just love! Just avoid sneaking into any of the fenced off mining areas as the mining company seems to get a little cranky! • Or to get back to one with mother nature on a day trip. Try a gentle stroll through Dhlinza forest in Eshowe which has a fantastic aerial boardwalk through the treetops, or alternatively take a drive to Umfolozi Game Reserve to go and spot the Big Five lazing around in the bushes! • We also know of some local bird guides who know all the surrounding areas like the back of

Kim Steinberg Administrator: WESSA Twinstreams Environmental Education Centre 035 340 1641 twinstreams@wessa.org

The Mtunzini forest board walk (Photograph: John Wesson)

Tidal mudflats in the Mtunzini Mangroves (Photograph: John Wesson)

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