Happy Hunting Grounds

Can’t decide between a bush or beach holiday? You can have both on this route from Joburg. Plus this week-long adventure costs less than R10 000 for two

- Melanie Van Zyl

 'To Make Them Brave Enough to hunt a lion, the warriors smoked marijuana. They had to get the lion angry – angry enough to attack. Then they had to be quick – quick enough to turn around and face the lion. Then, when it attacked, lie down just in time to get it in the belly with a spear.’

So says Sonnyboy Dlamini, the manager of Swaziland’s Hlane Royal National Park and a proud citizen. No prouder than the day I visited, in fact, for he was preparing the camp to host King Mswati III on his 50th birthday. The king’s milestone was also used to announce the renaming of the country: 19th April 2018 was the day that Swaziland became the Kingdom of eSwatini.

Surrounded by glowing paraffin lanterns on the deck at Hlane’s modest restaurant, after a monster plate of impala potjie, sonnyboy and I swapped stories. He told me how his grandfather recounted old hunting tales to him as a child; how a school trip to Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary (and in particular, a fantastical herd of giraffes) inspired the conservationist in him; and that only three rhinos had been shot in Swaziland since 1992. Of course, there had been attempts since then but all were thwarted.

Growing up in Johannesburg, I spent many holidays in the bush, but calling Jozi home also makes me a Vaalie – so I never say no to a coastal trip. It just never occurred to me to combine the two. Steamy Durban is Joburg’s closest beach in terms of drive time (as the crow flies, it’s actually Maputo), but the Elephant Coast in northern KwaZulu-Natal offers both sand and safari in satisfying spades. Connecting South Africa’s first World Heritage Site, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, with Hluhluwe-iMfolozi, Africa’s oldest game reserve is an easy itinerary. But to create a dinkum bush break, my route would have to take a detour through another country and include SA’s biggest national park too.