MATOBO HILLS - BULAWAYO
In 2022, my family and I were able to plan a trip to Matobo Hills--somewhere that we hadn't visited for many years, which is about 40kms from Bulawayo town.
Matobo Hills is well-known for its rocky outcrops of granite, also referred to as "kopjies". They have hundreds of rocks that are balancing one on top of the other, and look like they are just about to fall over! It really is something you need to see if you haven't already! Matobo Hills is also an UNESCO World Heritage Site for its abundance of the rock formations, much of which provides natural cover to the animals in the area. Bushmen used to live inside the caves, and they painted on the rocks--more commonly referred to as rock art paintings (pictured below). Over 2,000 rock art paintings have been discovered and recorded in Matobo Hills alone. Of course, we had to see one of them for ourselves.
One of the creatures that love to live in the caves now, are rock dassies (pictured below). Rock dassies are a medium sized terrestrial mammal, closely related to elephants. To give some perspective, they only get to about 22 inches (56 cm) in size and weigh up to 12 pounds (5kgs).
Amalinda Lodge uniquely have built their suites and family rooms within and around those kopjies (see image below), which makes you feel like you've gone back in time in a good way.
We visited in the winter, so it was fairly cold in the mornings and evenings, and especially when the wind blew! When we returned to our rooms in the evenings, you could feel the warmth that the granite had absorbed in the day.
We also visited Cecil John Rhodes' Grave up at World's View. Cecil John Rhodes was the founder of Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, and a prolific explorer in Southern Africa. Take a look at our Cecil John Rhodes' Railway Coach Blog (coming soon)! Matobo Hills is rich in history of the country and I'd need to write another blog on that, so keep an eye out!
Our guide for the entirety of our stay was Kevin, and he had a deep understanding of the history of the area and told it to us from an unbiased point of view. Kevin also took us on game drives and walks on the Amalinda consession. We learnt so much about the flora and fauna of the area. We appreciated the time and effort he put in to make our stay memorable.
Kevin also took us rhino tracking with a ranger. It was a humbling experience when you see just how enormous a rhino is! The rhinos did not make it easy--we tracked them on foot for over an hour when eventually we took a rest by sitting on one of the mountain sides so that we were safe, and they came running past! Rhinos are one of the Big Five as it's one of five most dangerous animals.
Follow along to read about more of our adventures over the years and where we have personally visited!
Until next time,
Michelle
Photo credits: Amalinda Lodge and Michelle Lawson
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