The rich and varied Waterberg region offers a diverse variety of unspoiled habitats. More than 50 mammals, 300 bird species and 2,000 plant species can be found within these habitats.
The savannah areas of the Waterberg consist of rolling grasslands and a semi-deciduous forest. The mammal population in Welgevonden Game Reserve, situated within the Waterberg region, boasts all of Africa’s renowned Big 5, as well as cheetah, giraffe, crocodile, hippo, brown hyena, honey badger and a whole lot more. Welgevonden Game Reserve also contains the world’s biggest concentration of the highly endangered white rhino on private land. The Reserve’s renowned anti-poaching unit has ensured that not one of these gargantuan grazers have ever been lost to poaching – which is an incredible feat on a continent where the practice is endemic.
The wildlife and wilderness habitats make Mhondoro Safari Lodge & Villa perfect for safari game drives. Our private rangers are professional and knowledgeable and can tell you everything about the flora and fauna of the African bush. Their love of the wilderness is contagious and their anecdotes are plentiful, informative and thoroughly riveting.
Game drives take place in the early morning, before breakfast, or in the late afternoon after tea. During the morning game drives your ranger will choose a pleasant spot for a refreshing cup of coffee or tea and pre-breakfast nibbles. On the afternoon or evening game drives, you can toast the magical bush sunsets with a sundowner accompanied by snacks.
You might find yourself magically atop a mountain ridge, amazed at the majestic beauty of the African landscape, while holding a glass of South African wine or a gin & tonic in one hand, and a typical African snack, like biltong (a local version of beef jerky), in the other.
Our rangers will take you on adventures in their 4×4 game viewing vehicles, giving you the perfect opportunity to spot the Big 5 – lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard and rhino – or at other times, to track the Little 5 – elephant shrew, leopard tortoise, rhinoceros beetle, buffalo weaver and ant lion.
You may also encounter giraffe, kudu, warthog or large herds of zebra and antelope along the way, to name just a few of the many species found around the lodge.
