Wild Coast News

Date: 13 September 2012

Photos from the 2012 edition of the Imana Wild Ride, which was held from 30 July - 2 August.

Date: 2 June 2012 | By: Audrey

Through the small back window I could see a long white trail of dust stretching far back along the dirt road behind us. As the sun started to set, I, my three friends from Rhodes, two Peace Corps girls we had just met, and three older African women bounced along in the back of a trailer on our way to Bulungula Lodge. For two and a half hours we rode across the Eastern Cape from where we had been picked up at our bus stop in Mthatha (a six-hour trip from Grahamstown in itself). Finally, we arrived at the lodge, well after the sun had gone down. We were shown around by the staff and then settled into our round Xhosa-style huts for the night...

Date: 18 May 2012 | By: Guy Rogers

NOMOKORINTE Nzondayipheli of Nkanunu village near Port St Johns says even without the bulk co-operatives that, when they come, will really unleash the potential of the Integrated Village Renewal Programme -- it is already bearing fruit.

She still has no fence, so livestock and "naughty children" are entering her farm garden, and causing some losses. "But this programme has made a big big change for the better in our household. Now I can sell a bag of oranges and go to buy paraffin for cooking and for light, and still have change. I can sell one orange for 50c and buy a pen for my child for school."

Co-ordinated by the Agricultural Research Council and the NGO Is'Baya, in conjunction with Wild Coast village communities, the programme is focused at present on 52 villages in the Port St John area....

Date: 05 May 2012 | By: Moray Combrink

Industrial development is in the pipeline. There is a proposal to mine titanium on this stretch of coast. Although a toll road through the Wild Coast and the mining are ostensibly two separate ventures, there are obvious links between the two. It won't be possible to exploit the mineral deposits effectively without good road access, and while government denies that it wants the road in order to facilitate the mining, the coincidence is more than curious.

At the end of November and into December this year COP17, the 17th Conference...

Date: 21 April 2012 | By: Dylan Kotze

I may have found what I'm looking for. Mkhambathi Nature Reserve in the Eastern Cape is one of the most photogenic and pristine places I have been to so far. There is much to admire about this relatively small 7 000-hectare reserve on the northern Wild Coast.

The reserve lies about 60km north-east of Port St Johns, protecting some of the most spectacular sub-tropical shoreline in SA. Calm inlets shelter sparkling beaches, offering respite from the booming waves. Emerald grasslands roll down to the shores, where...

Date: 20 April 2012 | By: Scott Ramsay

It was an icy dawn and a layer of mist covered the mighty Umzimvubu River in Port St Johns. The constant rumble of waves pierced through the morning stillness as we loaded our kit onto the boat. We had to conquer the surf to get out to sea. Skipper Steve Benjamin gently nudged the boat off the river bank and squeezed into the queue, waiting for his turn to tackle the surf zone. 'Right guys, lifejackets on, feet in the straps and hold on tight,' he instructed, sporting his characteristic grin. As he turned around, though, his demeanour changed. It was business time. He surveyed the sizeable waves and a final rise onto his toes confirmed we were in the clear. Down went the throttle. We punched over some whitewash...