We'll Be Back, Kosi Bay!

Once you’ve visited Kosi Bay, you’ll return again and again.

- Leon Botha

Kosi Bay evokes images of sand and 4x4 action for most people. Still, it’s not as secluded as it sounds – you can even get there with an SUV and road caravan.

Here in the far north of KwaZulu-Natal, the Mozambican border lies just a few kilometres farther, and the tar road that leads to it skirts Kosi Bay. It is therefore tar all the way until you turn off, and then the road varies depending on the campsite you’re heading to: from a normal dirt road to a sandy trail.

We stopped off at Utshwayelo near the lake’s mouth of Kosi Bay and at the Kosi Bay Resort by the lake. The two campsites are 8 km apart as the crow flies, with Utshwayelo closest to the sea (3,4 km).

But your travel adventure starts a good 100 km before you even get to Kosi Bay.

THE N2 IS THE EASIEST route to get to this part of the world, wherever you come from. From Pongola’s side (the town close to the Golela- Swaziland border post), you also travel between vast sugarcane fields – with no fences along the way. Don’t be in a too much of a hurry as tractors crawl up and down the road with their sugary cargo.

The turn-off to Kosi Bay from the N2 is right next to the Pongolapoort Dam, which incidentally is also the hunting ground of the fearless tigerfish. The narrow tar road winds around the southern end of the dam and then you need to get ready to engage your towing vehicle’s lower gears to get over a short but steep mountain pass. The town of Jozini lies just beyond the mountain while the lovely view to the left over the water will have you catching your breath. This water eventually worms its way ahead of you through the gorges to the dam wall in Jozini.