Ulitmate Sharks, Reefs and Big 5 Safari
Sharks, Reefs& Undergound Hides
- Information
- Tour Dates
- Tour Plan
- Gallery
- Additional Info
- Similar Tours
What's included
- 3 meals daily daily, plus early morning tea
- Accommodation on a sharing basis
- Airport transfers
- All park and conservation fees
- Assistance with photographic and post processing on a casual basis
- Two dives a day (possible third)
- Two game drives a day, or options for game walks
- All domestic fights
- Any additional meals other than stated
- Dive Insurance
- Extra activities not mentioned
- International Flights (if not part of Tour)
- Items of personal nature
- Overweight on domestic flight for uw camera gear
- Staff/Guide gratuities
- Travel insurance
- Travel visas
Aliwal Shoal Marine Park
Jacques Cousteau calls Aliwal Shoal one of the top ten dive sites in the world. The Shoal is a rocky reef which is the remains of an ancient sand dune approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The reef is inhabited by many kinds of hard and soft corals and other marine invertebrates, and a variety of tropical and subtropical fish species. Aliwal Shoal was named after the near-sinking in 1849 of the three-masted vessel Aliwal, captained by James Anderson. There are two wrecks near the reef that are popular recreational dive sites. The Norwegian bulk carrier MV Produce sank in 1974, and SS Nebo sank in 1884. Aliwal Shoal has diverse marine life, including large predators, and is popular as a recreational scuba diving destination.
Shark dives
The baited shark dives at the Shoal are one of a kind, and something that must be done at least once during your time here. With baited drums full of local sardines and fish oil, the drums slosh in the current creating a scent trail that the resident oceanic black tip sharks follow in to investigate. During the summer months (Nov- March) tiger sharks are seen frequently and can be accompanied by a shy bull shark at times. Hammerheads can be seen as they migrate past in the summer months, as well as the odd great white shark!
The Cathedral
Quite possibly the most well-known site at the Aliwal Shoal, the Cathedral is on ALL our dive bucket lists! Sitting at 27m, this is an advanced dive site. A photographer’s dream – often filled with raggies, it creates the perfect spot for some shark photography. The Cathedral is often filled with ragged-tooth sand tiger sharks (seasonally), schooling yellow and black striped coachmen and a few resident potato bass.
Sodwana Bay Marine Park
Sodwana Bay is considered to be among the premier dive sites of the world, it is home to the southern most tropical coral reefs on the planet which are further south than the Great Barrier Reef. The reef has an incredibly dense coral cover and wide diversity of fish, crustaceans and more with over 1200 species having been recorded in the area.
Conditions range from idyllic to challenging depending on the wind and the current. The sites vary in depth between 10 meters and depths only suited to technical deep divers.
The reef’s at Sodwana Bay are named by the distance they are from the launch site, Jesser Point.The major reef’s are split up into Quarter Mile, 2 Mile Reef, 5 Mile Reef, 7 Mile Reef and 9 Mile Reef. And each of these reefs have their own dive sites. There are also a few isolate reefs fringing the main reefs, some of these are Stringer and Bikini.
The bio diversity in the area is phenomenal from the big to small. Seasonal visitors include humpback whales and manta rays, others such as dolphins, turtles and whales sharks appear year round. There are also incredible macro opportunites including paper fish, pipe fish, seahorses, nudibranchs, frog fish and a host of many others.
Zimanga Private Game Reserve
Zimanga, in KwaZulu Natal, is the first reserve in Africa designed for avid safari enthusiasts whilst simultaneously satisfying the needs of modern wildlife photographers of any level, both who prefer a deeper appreciation of the bush and crave an unhurried exclusive experience. Spread over nearly 70 square kilometers of pristine Zululand bushveld, fever tree forests and rolling hills, Zimanga is bisected by the Mkuze River and home to a splendid variety of animals and birds. Species including lion, elephant, leopard and cheetah roam freely across the region and can with luck be tracked down for unparalleled game viewing and photographic opportunities.
There are currently nine photographic hides on Zimanga, including 2 bird hides, with Umgodi and Tamboti Overnight Hides currently being the only hides custom designed for large mammal photography. The bee-eater hide is a mobile unit that can be placed in close proximity to where white-fronted bee-eaters nest and produces stunning results for these colourful birds. Scavengers Hill has been likened to being in a wildlife documentary, whilst our Forest and Tower Hides were built to experiment in photography of the Fever Tree forest’s feathered inhabitants. Each of the hides is designed for its potential subject whether it is a large mammal like a giraffe or elephant or the smallest of birds like waxbills and twinspots. The photographers are invisible to their subjects behind specially imported one-way glass so as not to startle the subject with any movements or sounds.
Photographers are seated on comfortable executive-style chairs, which glide effortlessly and quietly on across the wood laminate flooring. The hides are spacious and soundproofed with carpet on the walls to muffle the sound. Benro GH2 Heads and tripods are provided at all seats (1 per chair) but guests can bring their own support systems along if they prefer to do so. Arca Swiss plates can be collected at Main Lodge’s reception at no charge to guests.The hides allow photographers a non-intrusive method of wildlife photography and although the subjects are free-roaming, and hence no sighting is guaranteed, the hides tip the balance heavily in favour of the photographer to get that amazing shot. Where possible Zimanga’s hides harness the power of the sun, with all the electricity demands for the hides met by solar installations.(All images supplied by Zimanga – Copyright the respective photographers)
2023
May 2023
- Day 1
- Day 2-5
- Day 5
- Day 6-9
- Day 9
- Day 10-13
- Day 14
Arrival Durban
Arrival in Durban marks the start of this incredible tour. Our personal transfer will collect you from King Shaka Airport and take you to our base in Scottburgh. The Blue Marlin Hotel will be where we base ourselves while working on the Shoal. depending on time of arrival, we will gather for introductions in the afternoon and discuss the week ahead, get to know everyone's needs and wants, and schedule our operations accordingly.
Shark diving on Aliwal Shoal
We start off our Tour by diving into the deep end! Days on Aliwal start a little later due to the fact that we are out until after sunset. It is a whole day on the boat diving, then working with sharks on the surface for the afternoon.
We start off by planning 2 dives on the Reef. Hopefully conditions are in our favour, and we can dive places like Raggies Cave, Cathedral and other popular spots to get the shark images we are searching for. After 2 dives, with the necessary surface interval, we head to the shark swim area on the reef and will start work on getting the sharks around the boat. The afternoon is then spent photographing sharks, working until after sunset.
Transfer to Sodwana Bay
Day 5 can either be a transfer day, or everyone is keen, we can try squeeze in an early dive on the Shoal, before packing and heading north to Sodwana Bay.
It is a 4hr drive to Sodwana Bay, with a couple of pit stops along the way.
On arrival, we will settle into our new accommodation, where we will be based for the next 3 days. Kitting up and gear will be sorted for the first dives the following day.
Diving at Sodwana Bay
Diving at Sodwana Bay ranges from incredible wide angle reef dives, with the possibility of seeing sharks, mantas, turtles, dolphins and whalesharks ( some are seasonal). Incredible macro opportunities are abound.so dives can be planned according to what everyone would like to shoot.
Generally first dives are around 8am. But we will have our own boat, so diving, and times, can be planned the evening before and then kit up according to what is wanted. We either head out for a 2 tank (which often nets some dolphins playing behind backline while we complete our surface interval), or we can return to the beach after each dive.We generally head to the far reefs for the first dives, and possibly finishing off on 5 Mile or 2 Mile reef before heading to shoe for a break, and new cylinders.
As the boat is ours, we can head out for a third dive all depending on wind, and how people are feeling.
Afternoons are then spent going through our images, and discussing options for the following day.
Transfer to Zimanga
On Day 9, we can once again get in an early dive as we do not have far to go to Zimanga Game Reserve.
After finishing our dive, packing up our kit, we head to Zimanga which is about 1.5hrs drive from Sodwana Bay.
We will plan our arrival so that after checking in, we can jump on our first game drive in the afternoon, and head out in search of our first wildlife images.
Safaris at Zimanga
Zimanga Game Reserve offers the wildlife photograph numerous options to get some incredible wildlife imagery, as well as just an all-round extraordinary safari experience.
Our 5-night all-round safari package include:
- 5 game drives where the highly sought after game species are tracked down and afford us perfect opportuntuies to get some great photos.
- 1 birdbath hide session
- 1 lagoon hide session
- 1 vulture hide session
- 1 Umgodi overnight session
So all opportunity is offered to get those shutters going and get some incredible wildlife images.
Between drives and hide sessions, we will sit down and discuss images, compare notes and assist where help is needed.
Transfer to Durban - Tour Ends
Our final day will possibly end off with an early morning drive, a hearty breakfast on return, and then our transfer back to Durban. Depending on flight times, , transfers will be arranged to get you to King Shaka International Airport in time for either your International departure, or if you flying from Johannesburg, you domestic departure.
More about this tour
Photography
This trip has been designed with photography in mind, no matter your level of experience, your equipment, or your level of computer knowledge. We have tried our best to cater for this on each part of the trip, with dive boats and game drive vehicles.
Although there will be no formal “training or classes”, I will always be on hand to discuss , go through your images, and assist where required, be it on the boat, camera preparation, or afterwards during informal discussions if people wish to go through their images. Assistance with Lightroom or similar can also be done during these discussion periods.
However, we also appreciate that some guests prefer to see through their eyes, not a camera, so fear not, whether you travel with or without a camera this trip has something for everyone. Be it the shot or the eye to eye experience with a predator at a hide, you will leave this trip with fantastic images and memories to take home.
