Travelling in Northern Province (Limpopo)
Discover Limpopo via the Ribolla Open African Tourist Route.
Explore the magical bushveld chosen by the Venda ancestors for its sacred waters and fearsome guardians.
The Ribolla Route stretches from Louis Trichardt (Makhado) in the West through Elim and onto Giyani, then turns to the north towards Thohoyandou and back, exploring the magical bushveld chosen by the Venda ancestors for its sacred waters and fearsome guardians.
Mythical figures, legends, and traditions strongly influenced by belief in a connection with the spiritual world, defines the vales of the Venda culture. This cultural route includes VaTsonga, VvhaVenda, BaPedi, English, Swiss, Afrikaans and German communities of origin. The Ribolla region is rich with artistic talent and is home to world renowned artists such as Noria Mabasa and Jackson Hlungwani.
Pottery, drum makers, wood carvers, bead workers and textile and fabric cooperates are all linked to the route. The many natural attractions of the area complement its rich cultural heritage and provide fascinating examples of myth.
The Holy forest of Thate Vondwe, amidst giants hardwoods and streams, is an ancient burial place for chiefs of the Thate clan. According to legend a white lion haunts these woods, protecting the graves of the chiefs.
In this forest is the sacred Lake Fundudzi, South Africa’s only true lake, locally believed to be the home of the white crocodile and a giant white python who is the god of fertility. The Dzata Ruins, dated back to 1400AD, a VhaVenda royal village, is believed to be one of the first VhaVenda settlements.
The 105-year old Elim hospital, founded by a Swiss Mission doctor, and the first place in the area to get telephone and electricity, still stands in the town of Elim. Phenomenal bird life and various San rock art sites are also amongst the attractions of the route.
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Discover Nylsvley, the largest floodplain in South Africa
The recent rains in the Limpopo region, replenished the floodplains at Nylsvley and have encouraged he return of many wetland bird species.
The Nylsvley floodplains is the largest inland floodplain in South Africa, covering nearly 16 000 hectares.
The Nylsvley Nature Reserve located within the area boasts a fantastic range of Acacia Woodland, Broad-Leafed Woodland and Grassland species. Top ten species recorded of 426 bird species are Cape Turtle Dove, Gry Lourie, Rattling Cisticola, Red-backed Shriek, Swainson’s Franklin, Ford-tailed Drongo, Spotted Flycatcher, WillowWarbler, Crested Barbet and Neddicky.
Amongst the wildlife the reserve holds, threatened animals such as African Rock Python, Jalla’s Sand Snake, Greater Dwarf Shrew, Kuhl’s Bat, Honey Badger, Selous Mongoose, Aardwolf, Brown Hyeana, Leopard, African Wildcat and Aardvark are inluded. Breeding of endangered Roan antelope, which use the floodplain extensively, and rare Tsessebe is another of the conservation priorities and appealing features of the reserve.
The system also plays an important role for frogs and fish, which gather in large numbers to breed when the floodplain becomes flooded. Most of the fish are small species called "ghillieminkies" of the genera Barbus and Aplocheilichthys. It feeds on mosquitoes, midges, mayflies and their larvae. There are two Labeo species in the Nyl, a small cichlid called the southern mouth brooder, two Tilapia species and two species of catfish or barbell, the largest fish found in the Nyl.
The floodplain comprises extensive reed beds and grassveld that is adjoined by broadleaved woodland and bushveld. Habitats include short grassy plains, reed beds, stands of long rice grass, open water patches, marshes, acacia savanna and broadleaved woodlands. The Nylsvley Nature Reserve is situated in the upper reaches of the Nyl River near the town of Naboomspruit in the Limpopo Province.
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Kruger Park
The Kruger National Park is South Africa's biggest game reserve covering an area of roughly 2,000,000 hectares.
Its best known for the Big 5 - lion, elephant, leopard, buffalo and rhino although there is a myriad of other species to spot too. Accommodation ranges from camping to luxury cottages and bush lodges.
Choose to explore this beautiful park from the comfort of your car or arrange to join one of the many guided tours.
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Mapungubwe National Park
Visit South Africa's youngest national park
South Africa’s youngest National Park, Mapungubwe (meaning a place of the stone of wisdom), was previously known as Vhembe Dongola National Park, because it comprises the Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape and the Mapungubwe World Heritage Site.
It is situated 60 km west of Musina and about 230 km from Polokwane, the capital town of Limpopo Province. Covering 28 000 hectares, it provides a sanctuary to endangered large mammals, such as the black and white rhinoceros, wild dog, and the African elephant. Its history stretches far back into history. Archaeological escavations revealed a full set of successive stages of a geographical cultural community to an advanced community of traders who exchanged hides, gold and ivory with Islamic traders of the Indian Ocean Islands for glass beads and ceramics that derived from as far a field as the Indo-Pacific region, including India, Indonesia and China.
Artefacts unearthed from Mapumgubwe hill includes the famous Golden Rhino, evidence of the capabilities of the people of that time in both mining as well as art. From this very hill is a panoramic view over the Limpopo plains and Mapungubwe’s impressive landscape…red sandstone koppies with rock figs clinging to its ridges, plains dotted with Mopani and 24 different species of akasia, alternated with the mighty baobabs and “moon landscapes” from generations’s erosion of sandstone formations. Karoo fossils, San Art sites (including unusual depictions of locusts and giraffes) and ancient rocks nearly three billion years old, add to its diversity.
The silence of the sunset over the joining Sashe and Limpopo rivers, with Zimbabwe and Botswana on the opposite side, is only broken by the rustle of the leaves of the Nyala Berry, birdsong and the occasional splash or snort of a hippo.
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Click on the regional link below to get great advice on more Top South African Travel Destinations.
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