About Nambiti Big 5 Private Game Reserve, South Africa
Nambiti is on track to become the best Big 5 Private Game Reserve in Africa. This vision is driven by passionate, committed people with a deep love and respect for our African wildlife heritage. In years to come, with the establishment of successful breeding, research and skills development programmes, the conservancy will surely be an even more unique and astonishing place; benefitting and enriching the local people, offering guests the finest game viewing in Africa, and making meaningful and active contributions to conservation.
HOW NAMBITI CAME TO BE
While trout fishing Rob le Sueur shared his dream with friend Gordon Howard. His vision was for a Big Five game reserve, but he had not yet come across a suitable property close enough to Durban. As luck would have it, a year later in 1999 Gordon heard of a number of cattle farms for sale 23km east of Ladysmith and immediately thought of his conversation with Rob. One winter morning the two friends met for a horseback tour of the properties and, amazed at the outstanding beauty of the area, set about acquiring the land. In 2000 Nambiti Private Game Reserve was born.
Over the next five years, working closely with conservationists and wildlife experts, internal farm fences were removed, alien vegetation was cleared and the now game-fenced conservancy was restocked. Along with the endemic species driven out by farming practices, Rob introduced the Big Five and many other types of game. In 2005 a development application was made to develop lodges on the Reserve. Three more farms were absorbed into the reserve in the proceeding years, and superb lodges were built or renovated from existing farm houses. In 2007 the shareholders were informed of a land claim on the property which was happily settled by 2009. The community are now actively involved in the management and future development of the Reserve. This area at the top of the Tugela valley once teemed with an abundance of game and was one of the preferred hunting grounds of the Drakensberg Mountain Range’s indigenous peoples – the San Bushmen. The area was occupied by nomadic Zulu clans until the late 1800’s when white settlers claimed the land.
Situated only 3½ hours from Johannesburg and 2½ hours from Durban in the extraordinarily beautiful and geographically diverse KwaZulu-Natal, Nambiti Private Game Reserve is now one of Africa’s most exciting conservation initiatives.
