Balule will grow with 4500 hectares!

Fantastic news from point of nature conservation:

Jejane joins Balule
Jejane Reserve (The game reserve on your right driving north from Hoedspruit, about five km from town almost to our railway gate) is taking down its fences with Klaserie and joining Balule Nature Reserve, adding nearly 4500 hectares of very well managed game country to the mix. As a result our railway gate will soon be moved closer to Hoedspruit and located where the Jejane gate is now.


Best regards from the bush,
Corné van Dongen.
http://www.amukela.com/

Municipal rates & taxes Hoedspruit - Maruleng.

Municipal Valuations for Rates and Taxes

The Maruleng Local Municipality is busy with re-evaluation of property values known as the “General Valuation Roll for 2011-2016” for municipal rates and taxes. Having looked at the list for 2007-2011 we were surprised to see that values were generally lower than we have expected. This means one of two possible things, even with a global recession the values have risen over the 5 year period or the values were understated in 2007. What that means is that we expect that property values will go up on the Valuation Roll this year. Not good news for home owners already feeling the financial pinch. Currently the municipality is busy with valuations so expect a call if you haven’t had one already.

Looking at the Valuations roll for 2007-2011 a couple of exceptions did stand out for us. On one particular estate the average stand value is R553,000 however actual sales are well below that. We would estimate it to be 50% of that value in fact. The value in 2007 was not calculated incorrectly, this is what people paid for those stands. The valuations come from actual selling prices. However prices have come down drastically on this particular estate and I’m wondering if the municipal valuation will reflect this? Other areas within a well know reserve open to the Kruger Park are very understated. Are they going to value each property? Probably not! The valuers have not got the resources to get to these properties. They do not have maps, vehicles or money to pay the gate fees to visit these reserves. In one reserve, with all portions of the same land size, values can vary by as much as 300% depending on location (river, views) and improvements. Even if they valued the reserve as a whole, inaccuracies would occur. If however a “broad paintbrush” approach is used across various reserves for property valuations and lets say they increase values by 20%, then inaccuracies are certainly going to continue.

However all is not doom and gloom. Should your value be incorrect you are able to lodge a complaint and get it re-valued. And yes, they do make corrections. We all want a low Municipal Valuation for rates & tax purposes, however when we attempt to sell our property we hope for a much higher selling price. Sellers justification for a high selling price comes from a myriad of valuation methods. Some might say well “I bought it for R1million, paid duty for R50,000, paid levies for 5 years worth R200,000, spent R100,000, I must make profit of R150,000, thus it is worth R1,5 million.” Thus the a Agent must sell it for R1,6 million to cover their commission.  Not so.

The price is what a willing buyer will pay for it! The fact is, buyers control the prices in the real estate market, sellers only control whether or not they will sell. In todays market we are seeing buyers offers are well below what sellers want to hear.

If you are unsure about the value of your property you can discuss it with on Estate Agent in the area.  Alternately of you have a fair idea of values in the area, you can do a self test. Ask the following question:

1)       What would I pay for my house if you were to buy it today?

2)       What would I sell it for today?

If the your answer is the same, that is probably the correct value of your property

If the municipal valuation is higher there is merit in requesting a re-valuation. However if the municipal valuation is lower than yours, I suggest you pour yourself a cold beer or glass of wine, sit back and enjoy the sunset in the bush.

Regards

Rob and the Century 21 Wildlife Properties team

Big Tusker 'Duke' has died.

One of the oldest tuskers in the Kruger National Park (KNP), Duke, passed away on October 1, 2011 seemingly of old age.

The elephant was discovered lying on its side along Makambeni spruit near west of the S28 road, five kilometres from Crocodile Bridge Camp. Crocodile Bridge Section Ranger, Neels van Wyk became worried when he noticed that there was no movement from Duke's collar signal for a few days, went to investigate; only to find Duke's five day old carcass along the Makambeni stream.

"Although Duke was old, we are very saddened by this magnificent bull's passing as he was very popular and had avid followers who always asked about him. In the past few years, there had been enquiries as to whether Duke was still with us; so when news of his passing came through we assumed it was rumours doing the rounds again" said William Mabasa, HOD: Public Relations.

Duke had already lost both his tusks and in 2010 was fitted with a tracking collar in an effort to check up on him and track his whereabouts. He was estimated to have lived in the KNP bush for over 55 years. As is normal practice, the head, tusk remains and possibly skeletons would be recovered and then stored for possible display purposes.
Emerging tuskers are named after previous rangers and field rangers who have made notable contributions to conservation and the KNP.

Duke was named after the ranger, Thomas Duke who was based at Lower Sabie between 1903 and 1923. His home range was between Lower Sabie and Crocodile Bridge Rest Camps but could also be seen roaming around Tshokwane and Metsi Metsi Trails Camp.
Though the Emerging Tuskers competition has been temporarily suspended, the KNP continues to add new tuskers to its ranks through photographic submissions of guests. Photographs and video material sent in by visitors are used to understand the habits and movements of tuskers in an attempt to learn more about them.

For more information on the tuskers, how and where to submit photos etc, please visit http://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/elephants/ or enquire at the Elephant Museum in Letaba Rest Camp (013 735 6664).


Here in Balule we also have a Big Tusker, maybe a descendant of one of the magnificent 7? We name him Kambaku (Old big elephant). Have seen him often, a relaxed Big giant.

All the best from the clouded bush,

Corné van Dongen.

For sale: 7500 hectares in Big-5 Greater Kruger Park.

The property market is an ongoing business. Despite the global financial crisis this market is still on the go.

Recently the following came on the market:

All properties can be incorporated into Balule Big-5, Kruger Park, and made into a private Big-5 reserve, an exclusive property development with 130 stands, commercial lodges, or the ultimate Big-5 hunting farm.

Lodge 1: 16 normal beds existing, full title 1800 ha with rights for a 130 stand development and one lodge, R29 Million.

Lodge 2: 24 good beds  existing , full title  4900 ha with game. R49 million.

Lodge 3: 60 luxury beds existing , ''remaining lease'' for 28 years, 856 ha with full ownership of game, vehicles, tourism business, furniture.  price R27.190.000,  this property is on the Olifants river.

Total price R106.190.000.

With the Rand weakening this is a rare and interesting opportunity. To conserve nature one needs money, so please let me know if you want more information?

Best regards from the sunny Lowveld,

Corné van Dongen.

Hail storm in the bush!

A week ago we had an interesting phenonemon in the bush: hail! I remember last year we also had an hail storm and it is quit uncommon.

It started as a normal day, a bit humid and around 32 degrees (Celcius). The sky changed into a dark blue curtain and you could just feel something was about to happen.
Before I knew hail the size of tabletennis balls came flying down: bombarding the pool, lawns and veld. With danger of getting myself injured -and for your pleasure- I took some great pictures:

After a minute or 15 the hail switched to rain, and we got a total of 20 mm! Now, a week later the veld is already turning green.

When the rain passed away I went out and saw a beautiful rainbow over my boma:

From the rainbow nation,

Corné van Dongen.

Is an elephant a movable item

Since beginning of 2011 I work as a freelancer for Century21 wildlife properties Hoedspruit. My colleague - Rob Severin - had an interesting story to tell:

Recently I sold a house, and at the time of showing the potential buyers the property there were two elephants, 30 yards in front of the porch, at a water hole. Since selling property can be an emotive process, I appealed to the buyers’ emotional side by jokingly saying, “And it comes with these two elephants”.

The buyers were ex New York traders, ‘trading’ in the city life for a more relaxing and stress free existence, away from the rat race, noise, pollution, traffic, crime , stocks, derivatives,……….  you get the picture.

No doubt they have weighed up the risks, calculated the up side potential, the time value of money and decided that this was the safest investment that they could make. They are right of course. Real estate in our market has weathered the global financial storms, and even increased in value. Coastal properties can be found all over the world. What we have is not coastal, and only a small blip on the earth, but a very popular one at that.

The deal went through without a glitch, money moved across continents, with lots of zeros and ones. When occupation took place my chuffed buyers face turned to concern. They demanded to know where their elephants were. I was somewhat shocked, stuttering for words … “Well, um … they move around you know.”  Was the only answer I could come up with. 

Now the ex New Yorkers were quite correct, they had bought the property, and elephants are included in the deal. In fact there is the “Big 5” which also includes Lions, Rhino, Leopard and Buffalo and this was all included in the deal.

However the “Big 5” including the elephants are free to come and go. They are moveable items included in the sale. However, they are not listed as movable items in the purchase agreement. There was also no mention of Giraffe, Zebra, Wildebeest, Kudu, Impala, Hippo, Cheetah, Hyena and Warthog which were also included. These movable items are in fact not so movable at all. Try relocating an elephant and you will know what I am saying.

Now if I’ve lost you, let me explain. The ex- New Yorkers had purchased a 54 acre plot in a game reserve which is open to the Kruger National Park in South Africa. There are no fences between the Kruger Park and their property. Animals come as go as they please. There are several land owners owning the private reserve, and the animals belong to every one, but actually, no one. Nobody derives direct financial benefit from them, but they are there to be enjoyed by all. The city slickers had traded in their iPads for sketch pads, Long Island Ice Tea’s for G & T’s, Central Park for Kruger Park and Star Bucks for Water Buck.

So if you to buy a piece of Africa and live among wild animals, we will include the elephants, but don’t expect them to be in the listed as movable items.

Century 21 Wildlife Properties specialize in selling houses, land and commercial game lodges in game reserves, wildlife estate and conservation areas, in and around the Hoedspruit and Kruger National Park area in South Africa.

For more information, photos and You Tube Videos on living in a game reserve go to http://www.century21wildlife.co.za/

Regards from the bush,

Corné van Dongen.

Amukela Game Lodge.

http://www.amukela.com/

Cheetah, big cat under threat

One of the most distinguished big cats of Africa is the cheetah, Acinonyx jubatu. This predator is well known for its speed; it can reach speeds of up to 112 /120 kilometres per hour.

History.

It is also the most endangered cat in Africa. In the early 1900s it was believed that there were about 100,000 wild cheetahs. More recent estimates in1990 put the total population down to 12,000 cheetahs left in the wild, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Up to 2,500 of those live in Namibia with other, somewhat smaller, groups in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe and even smaller numbers in the surrounding areas. Historically cheetahs have been known to thrive in almost any arid environment with the exception of thickly forested areas and wide expanses of sand. Local studies have indicated that in at least some areas of Africa the population is stable, meaning that the numbers are not going down and the occupied range is not getting smaller. However on a global scale, the total cheetah population is decreasing.

Faster then a Ferrari.

The cheetah is a large-sized feline (family Felidea). The cheetah is the only extant member

update wounded cheetah

The wounded cheetah that was seen next to the R40 three weeks ago is spotted back in Balule, Olifants West again and seems to be healing well.
According to the game warden she looked healthy enough and seems to manage to get food.
We are happy that she is recovering on her own.


Regards from the bush
Corné

No lion hunt in the Balule Nature Reserve!

A while ago it has come to my ears that a hunting permit was allowed for a lion in the Balule.
It was about Mazinio, a big and old male lion who formed a companion with Bigboy, the other big male lion.

Bigboy seen on an Amukela lodge game-drive in Balule.

For more then 9 years these 2 lions are the dominant males
over a pride of more then 20 lions.
Their territory runs from the York-Tshukude fence to the Olifants river, the fence at the R40 and further eastwards.
This year 3 new young male lions came into their territory and challenged both Mazinio and Bigboy. Altough they were able to fight them off, maybe next time the outcome will be different...
The main function of a leading male lion is to reproduce and protect the pride. Normally the hunting is done by the most experienced females, although when a big animal like a giraffe or buffalo is taken down, he might be involved.
In the wild normally (but this can vary) male lions lead a pride for 5-7 years. In this case one could say that the Balule lions have had their function.

Mazinio seen on the Marula-drive in the Balule.

From an objective point of view you could say that now is the time to allow for a commercial hunt on one lion. The revenue would be around R500,000 and that is money which could be well used for futher conservation in the Balule.
However, from a financial point of view it is not necessary to earn this extra income and therefore it has been decided not to hunt a lion in Balule. I think that it is good thing, after all why do we have a nature reserve? To preserve nature, and interefere as less as is possible.
That is what nature conservation is about.
Last night I heard the lions roar, and wandered if Mazinio was also one of them....

Best regards from the bush,
Corné van Dongen.

Property market in the Balule Nature Reserve.

As property consultant for Century21 Wildlife Properties I would like to bring under your attention the properties which are currently for sale in the Balule Nature Reserve.


The Balule is made up of autonome reserves who all have their own entrance gate, game-warden, security staff, constitution and unique features. As a buyer one can choose to become a member of the nature reserve which is recommendable. Every reserve has a levy system. Olifants North is a share-block company, all the others are privately owned land.

In the following Balule reserves we have properties for sale:

Olifants West Nature Reserve.

 Parsons Nature Reserve.

Grietjie Nature Reserve.

Olifants North.

Olifants West Nature Reserve.

Olifants West is the largest reserve in Balule,
comprising of 8800 hectares of pristine bushveld. The entrance gate (Olifants West Gate - Balule ) is located on the R40 about 16 km. north of Hoedspruit.
Mixed woodland bushveld. Leadwood, bushwillow, marula, knobthorn, tamboti, weaping boer bean tree, buffalo thorn, fig tree, cork wood. Dry riverbeds, rocky outcrops, good mountain views. The Olifants river flows through this reserve. Large dams. 250 birding species. Big-5. Plains game, cheetah and wild dog.

Winter in the bush.

June & July are the coldest months in the bush. Temperatures can vary enormous, we had 0,4 Celcius on monday 27 june, 06:15. Later that same day I saw that it was 24,6 Celcius at 14:30.
A difference of more then 24 degrees in one day, that is a lot. Most of the times we have deep blue skies during the day, almost like we are living closer to heaven:

Blue skies of Balule.

And that is off course the reason why it cools down quickly in winter, there are no clouds to

The history of the Balule Nature Reserve.

How the Balule Nature Reserve was created.

In the early 1990’s various landowners in the present Balule Nature Reserve came to appreciate the need to drop fences between their properties.
 These properties, most of them inherited and used for gamefarming in the widest spectrum, were not viable as cattlefarms. In the past –before the western boundary fence of the Kruger Park was erected in 1961 –  an annual migration took place between the Kruger and the private farms on the west, mainly of zebra and wildebeest.

Zebra and wildebeest, often seen together.

When this fence was removed in 1993, the old migration
did not re-establish itself, probably because there were nog longer any surviving animals in the Kruger Park populations that had retained the migratory behaviour and, more likely, the APNR (Associaton of Private Nature Reserves –of which Balule is one-) was no longer an attractive habitat for wildebeest and zebra.
By removing the fences between the farms in Balule the animal gene pool was extended, overgrazing was avoided and it allowed for movement of animals over a far greater area. The very absence of fences was aesthetically pleasing to landowners and the shared animals meant that game that had never been seen in a particular area was now present.

By the end of the decade, almost all the landowners had voluntarily joined in this venture. The hunting was curtailed and the animals became less skittish. With the presence of game-vehicles bearing tourists armed only with photographic equipment, the animals became relaxed and were photographed regularly.

Big male lion, seen in the York Nature Reserve on a game-drive.

The two reserves to the east between Balule and the Kruger Park are Olifants Game Reserve and Klaserie Game Reserve. The fence between Kruger and Klaserie Game Reserve came down first and the Kruger authorities soon realized that this was the way to go. It was recognized that the fence on the tar road between Phalaborwa and Hoedspruit was the obvious place to have the western boundary of Kruger Park. Once all the fences were correctly equipped with high voltage capacities and as soon as the authorities were satisfied that Balule was ready for incorporation, it was a matter of months before the fences were removed between the Klaserie and Olifants Game Reserves. Balule was thus incorporated into the most famous Game Reserve in the world. An impressive 40 000 hectares were added to Kruger Park!

Location.

The Balule Nature Reserve is situated in the Limpopo province, South-Africa. Southwest of Phalaborwa, and north, northeast of Hoedspruit. The Olifants River flows for about 20 kilometers through the center of the reserve. Balule forms –together with the other private reserves- the Greater Kruger Park ecosystem. Because all fences are dropped the animals are allowed to roam freely between the Kruger Park and the private reserves on its western boundaries.

Large numbers of lion, cheetah, leopard as well elephant, buffalo and rhino now move freely between Balule and the western border of the Kruger Park. More then 250 bird species occur in the area.

Beautiful colored: the Lilac Breasted Roller.

Balule is located in the subtropical lowveld. Because the lowveld has different eco-zones there is a variety in the flora, where trees dominate the bushveld. The Kruger park alone has 336 tree species and the Big-5 under trees are:

• Baobab
• Fever tree
• Knobthorn
• Marula
• Mopani
Typical lowveld acacia tree: the Knobthorn.

Balule Nature Reserve figures and facts.

The Balule Nature Reserve  (BNR) is located in the south-east of the Limpopo province.

BNR  is a registered member of the Assocation of Private Nature Reserves (APNR) which are the Private Nature Reserves (Timbavati-Klaserie-Umbabat-Balule) bordering the Kruger National Park.

The total size of the APNR is approximately 185,000 hectares.

BNR consists of several autonomous game reserves:

• Olifants West Nature Reserve.
• York Nature Reserve.
• Parsons Nature Reserve.
• Grietjie Nature Reserve.
• Olifants North.
Olifants West -Balule- entrance gate.

Most affordable game-lodge in Balule.

The Amukela Game Lodge -Dutch owner/managed- was built in 2004. This intimate and rustic game-lodge is located in the Balule Big-5 Private Nature Reserve.


For only R495 per person (or Eur 55,-) including dinner & breakfast you can stay and unwind on this unique location.


Beeing only 22 km. from Hoedspruit, 35 minutes from the Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre, 40 minutes distance to the Moholoholo rehabilitation centre adn 45 minutes to the Kruger Park, this lodge is perfect to use as a base for several activities.

Elephant smells the beer!

Off course you can also unwind on the terrace, under 2 big weeping boer-bean trees. From here you overlook a waterhole and
the bushveld.


Or drive the scenic route to Graskop, which takes you to some great views in the mountains: Bourke's Luck Potholes, the Blyde River Canyon, the 3 Rondavels, God's Window etc.

3 rondavels viewpoint.



The game-drive is a 3 hour drive in an open game-vehicle. Under the guidance of a professional guide you go out and look for the animals.

Lioness seen from the game-vehicle.

In the evenings -after dinner- we gather around the campfire in the boma. If skies are clear we'll put up our 254 mm. telescope.

Explore the nightsky and listen to the voices of Africa!



Jupiter and the moon, seen from the Mercury-stardeck.

You stay in traditional African-style rondawels, but with warm water and airco. Ensuite bathroom.

traditional rondavel under tatch-roof.

romantic on the inside.

Here some panorama photo's of the lodge, which gives you an idea how the layout is. On the left the boma, ablution block, bar and terrace, swimmingpool.

Panoramic view.

Swimming pool in the winter. Watch that beautiful blue sky! In the background the boma.

Pool and reception. In the back the pathway to the bridge and rondavels.

Comfortable seats at the terrace. On the back left the pool, on the right the entrance to the boma.

From the lodge you can see a variety of game: impala, giraffe, warthog, duiker, jackal, porcupine, civet but also animals of the Big-5!

Lion seen from the stardeck.

Big bull elephant, just outside the main-gate of Amukela.

Herd of buffalo, seen from the stardeck. Gathering around the waterhole.

Come and enjoy the african bush combined with Dutch hospitality, good food and great sightings! Contact us on: info@amukela.com

Rhino poaching in South-Africa.

Schoolkids on safari.

When I was 11 years old –in 1980 in the Netherlands- my teacher told us schoolkids that rhino’s would be extinct in 2000… and that only some would survive in special created nature parks, but not anymore in the wild.  Big schock for us innocent school children! But then immediately the good news came: we were going on a schooltrip to the biggest nature park in the Netherlands –Safaripark the Beekse Bergen, 120 hectares- to see those rhino’s. In that special created safaripark we also saw lions, elpehants, giraffe, zebra, monkeys, leopard and much more. It was a great day to see al these special animals.

At home I told my parents, and my father showed me in his somewhat dated book –‘Africa and Asia’ pictures of the rhino, and other animals. Then I read about South-Africa and the Kruger park, which was then 2 million hectares big!

Crossborder conservation.

These days we speak of the Greater Kruger Park: the Kruger National Park together with the private nature reserves on the west,
Gonarezhou in Zimabwe –north- and the Limpopo park in Mozambique –east- of the Kruger park. An enourmous crossborder conservation area, which has become a safe haven for the animals. At least that is what we like to believe.

Wounded cheetah next to the R40

Wednesday morning at app. 08:25, estate agents of Century21 Wildlife Properties saw a wounded female cheetah limping next to the road.


Action was taken immediately: the head warden of Balule was contacted, he arranged a deputy warden to come and monitor the situation.


Unfortunaly the cheetah (named Century by the estate agents) run off when a vetinarian came to dart her. But good news: yesterday (Friday) I heard she went back into the Balule again. If they find here, she will




After good nursing and recovering of her wounds, these 3 cheetahs will be placed in a boma in Balule, after which they can be rehabilitated in the wild again. I shall keep you informed.