L&S Lif
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LOCKDOWN FEVER Steve Honeysett
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this stage of our lockdown, a lot of us have serious cabin fever and are itching to get away from home and out of town for a bit of a break.
WELL, I AM NO EXCEPTION, and having not been anywhere since the March lockdown was enforced, I got a last-minute-dot-com invite to go and check out some potential surf spots up North. Leaving as the 04h00 curfew lifted, we drove up to Mbazwane, which is the turning point to Sodwana Bay, Mabibi and the Sibiya Lake District. We made our way to Rock Tail Bay and Island Rock were we wanted to retrace the steps we had taken two years back when we had ridden our fat bikes along the coast, spotting some potential surfing spots along the way. Island Rock is situated about 30km North of Sodwana Bay, part of an inshore reef system that is completely submerged on the high tide but becomes a rock island that stands high and dry out of the water when the tide is low. The spot is incredible for snorkelling and the movement of sand on its Northern side builds a nice surfing wave that, given the right wind direction, is very similar to Ponta do Oura in Mozambique.Rock Tail Bay is a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Ballito. There are two ways to get there. The longer route is on tar about 30km past Mbazwana on the road to the Mozambique border, then a further 20km down a dirt road/ sand road which will bring you to the Parks Board office of Amanzingwena. Alternately, you can take the last traffic circle in Mbazwana and turn down towards the lake, driving on the lake’s seaward side for 30km along the coastal dune forests up to Amanzingwena.
