Mountain
Lodge is a sophisticated harmony of avante garde and ethnic decor, superb cuisine
and warm, personalised service. The grand sweep of the horizon is burnished
with the sinking sun, flooding the lodge with golden light as guests descend
the hills for their evening game drive.
Your spacious split- level suite, with private lounge and en-suite bathroom, opens onto your personal deck over looking the reserve.
Here, at the top of the lavish bushveld world, savour panoramas
of the Ubombo Mountains, ridging away ash-blue to the Lake St Lucia coastal
plains.
"On Safari in South Africa's Phinda
Private Game Reserve, comfort and elegance are anything but elusive."
Architectural Digest
"Nowhere else in Africa can you find
the biodiversity of Phinda - from lions to rare reptiles."
Australian Gourmet Traveller magazine
Face-to-face with lions and rhino after breakfast, up close to a Whale Shark or battling sailfish after lunch. That's the Phinda experience, one of the most exciting safari destinations in Africa. Located between the azure waters of the Indian Ocean and the lush waterways of the World Heritage Greater Saint Lucia Wetland Park, Phinda's 17 000 hectares span seven unique ecosystems.
Nestled below the Lebombo Mountains of Northern KwaZulu-Natal, Phinda is a Zulu
word meaning "the return". In one of the biggest reintroductions of
game in Africa, Phinda was restocked with lion, rhino, buffalo, elephant, leopard,
giraffe and other big game in an operation dubbed "phinda izilwane",
return of the wild animals.Game drives are only one aspect of the Phinda experience.
There is little that can compete with our "Flight of the Fish Eagle"
air safari - soaring over a bay where the diversity of species rivals Australia's
Great Barrier Reef. Or floating past pods of hippo in a canoe or river boat.
Scuba diving, snorkelling and deep-sea fishing are just a hop away. And in the
evenings, immerse yourself in the ancient culture of Southern Africa's warrior
tribe, the Zulu.
Accommodation at Phinda is unique. Phinda is not only a luxury destination,
it is also a dynamic working model in wise land management and creative wildlife
conservation. The Phinda Story in the Vision section examines the background,
achievements and community projects of this remarkable reserve.
· Chosen as Best Hotel for Wildlife Enthusiasts
by Town & Country, January 2001
· Listed among the 101 best hotels in the world in UK Tatler's Travel Guide 2001
· All four lodges are members of Small Luxury Hotels of the World
· Voted by Association of Southern African Travel Agents (Asata) as "Best Game Lodge in Southern Africa" (1998)
· Winner of British Airways' "Tourism for Tomorrow" Award (S.Hemisphere) (1998)
Wildlife and Ecology
Landscape: Mountain Lodge rises high above Phinda's wetland paradise. The ash-blue silhouette of the Lebombo Mountains is an awesome backdrop to the exquisite Lake St Lucia coastal plains.
Game: Mammals such as the mountain reedbuck and chacma baboon are most
at home among rocks, but almost all larger mammals will move up and around the
hills from time to time. African elephant frequently climb in search of delicacies
such as Rock Cabbage Tree leaves and bark.
Phinda Mountain Lodge has an unsurpassed view of the unique bushveld vista.
Buffalo, white rhino, elephant, giraffe, impala, zebra and wildebeest roam the
plains while lion, leopard, cheetah, and hyena await their turn in the shadows.
Amphibious hippo enjoy the plentiful water pools and lakes and shy nyala antelope
feed on the tufts of grass between rocky outcrops. Spotted genets, porcupines
and bush babies (galago) awaken under cover of darkness.
The warm Indian Ocean coast near Phinda is the home of Whale Shark, Moray Eel,
Leatherback and Loggerhead Turtle, crab, starfish and iridescent nudibranch.
Unlike the reefs of the Caribbean, the Maldives or the Great Barrier Reef -
which are composed wholly of coral - the reefs at Sodwana are made of rock colonised
by solitary coral species.
Birds: An array of approximately 400 species of birds adorn the skies - Pied
and Pygmy Kingfishers, Goliath Herons, Great White Egrets, the elusive Purple
Gallinule, Pygmy Goose, African Fish Eagle and White-Faced "Whistling"
Duck.
Some common birds around Mountain Lodge are the White-bellied Sunbird, Black-eyed
Bulbul, Purple-crested Lourie (Turaco), Scarlet-chested Sunbird and White-throated
Robin. Giant Eagle Owls and Nightjars awaken at night.
Reptiles: Nile Crocodile swim through the abundant lakes and pools. Lizards
and other reptiles are common on rocky hillsides - while agamas, skinks (elongated
lizards) and geckos are all at home on the buildings of Mountain Lodge.
Fish: A short drive from Phinda - or an even shorter flight - and you're on
the shores of the warm Indian Ocean - home to a dazzling underwater ecosystem.
On the reefs of Sodwana, the marine species diversity rivals that of Australia's
Great Barrier Reef. Dazzling schools of colourful fish (some 1200 species) are
to be found, due to the northern tropical species mingle with fish from temperate
zones.
Flora: On the highest point, Broadleaved Camphor and Rock Cabbage are
distinctive, while Largeleaved Rock Fig and Redleaved Rock Fig grow in rock
crevices. At Mountain Lodge, large Mountain Aloe and Common Coral Tree brighten
up the winter landscape with their colourful blooms.
Impressive groves of ghostly yellow Fever Trees dominate the floodplains on
both banks of the perennial Mzinene River.
Habitats: Mountain Lodge is situated where the tail-end of the Lebombo Mountains breaks up into a series of hills rising above the savannah. The vegetation of the hills differs from the surrounding areas, with many plant species confined to these rocky slopes.