Things to Do in Northam

Tee off on a scenic bushveld course on the greens accompanied by lovely ancient trees, abundant wildlife and birds. Situated alongside Ben Alberts Nature Reserve and just eight kilometres from Thabazimbi on the Rustenburg road, Thabazimbi Golf Course is home to the annual Billie of the Bushveld Tournament. The 9-hole course is designed by Glen Strydom and renowned Peter Matkovich, featuring bent grass greens, 18 Kikuyu tees and kweek fairways. Practice facilities, a mini pro shop, carts and caddies are available. Visitors are welcome to play a round or two every day. Open Monday to Saturday 07:00 – 20:00, Sunday and Public Holidays 08:00 – 18:00. For bookings call +27 (0)14 777 1839.

Visit one of Limpopo’s wildest secrets Situated in the Waterberg Biosphere, a leading South African wildlife area, this small 2 000-hectare reserve is home to impressive amount of wildlife. At Ben Alberts Nature Reserve you can easily spot white rhino, giraffe, kudu, blue wildebeest, eland, zebra, warthog and an awesome variety of birdlife including the endangered Cape Vulture. A visit to the Vulture Restaurant is always exciting, especially if you get involved in feeding these large raptors. Characterised by low mountain ranges and open savannah, Ben Alberts Nature Reserve and the Waterberg features grassland, steep gorges and crystal pools. The entire environment is perfect for game viewing, hiking, bird watching and mountain biking.

Are you up for an exhilarating 50 km challenge in prime mountain biking heaven? Whether its single track, a roller-coaster downhill, a demanding zigzag uphill, a technical climb, or a pioneering riverside and kloof tracks, Grootfontein has it all! Book a stay at Grootfontein Private Nature Reserve and ride for free. R100 for day visitors.

Lying on the border of the North West Province, Atherstone Nature Reserve offers an exciting game viewing experience. Black rhino and elephant are the biggest highlight for many visitors to this 23 500-hectare wilderness. Characterised by extensive savannah plains with bushveld and Kalahari grasslands eco-systems, Atherstone supports a great diversity of wildlife and birds. Besides antelope, zebra and giraffe, buffalo and rare sable can also be seen. Feathered friends to get twitchers ticking off boxes are the large number of grassland birds including the Kori bustard and secretary bird.

The recently built Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in the North West Province is a multi-purpose venue that played host to the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 and 2010 FIFA World Cup. Improvements to the stadium have increased the seating capacity to 40,000 and provisioned it with state-of-the-art electronic scoreboards and floodlights. The stadium is named after the Royal Bafokeng community, a group who manage the world’s richest platinum mines and who exclusively funded the sports grounds in the North West Province. Rustenburg lies on the edge of the Magaliesberg Wilderness area and is not too far from the awesome Madikwe Game Reserve, the Pilanesberg Game Reserve and glitzy Palace of the Lost City - a great escape for revellers and gamblers.

The Kgaswane Mountain Reserve is a place of special beauty, an escape into a mountain range of great natural appeal and an ideal destination for a days outing.There is a self drive route on tarred roads which link a number of picnic sites and view points.It is also a great place to walk and enjoy the wildlife - and especially the resident sable antelope.Twitchers will have much to twitch about with over 320 species having been recorded including a breeding colony of cape vultures. Nesting pairs of martial and black eagles are also of great interest.Walking on the wild side The reserve caters for a wide range of interests and is famous as a hiking destination. Two trails are open to the public.These overnight trails are extremely popular and early booking is essential.The Summit Route is 25,3km and, for the first time, includes the Natural Pools in which swimming is permitted.The Baviaanskrans Route is 19,5km and includes the Waterfall View and the Garden of Remembrance. The trails have amenities to accommodate 12 hikers.The Peglarae Trail is a day excursion of approximately 5,5km over fairly steep and rocky terrain.The shorter Vlei Ramble, just 2km, takes visitors to a viewing hut on the vlei - a favourite spot for the many birders who enjoy the reserve.Need to know? Gate Times05:30 - 19:00 Summer06:00 - 18:30 Winter

Zebula Golf Course offers a superlative golfing experience on a Peter Matkovich designed golf course. Teeing off on this pristine 1 200-hectare bushveld estate is a considerable pleasure with its wildlife spectators, tranquility and vast open spaces. Giraffe, zebra, eland, kudu, gemsbok, Nyala, impala, Red Hartebeest, Blue Wildebeest, warthog, bushpig and many more species could be watching while you hit an ace. Combining the wonders of golf with wildlife and the quintessential African environment is the fulfilment of a long standing dream for Peter Matkovitch. Designed to blend unobtrusively into the bush, Zebula also adheres to eco-sensitive development guidelines. Other celebrated Peter Matkovitch courses are Leopard Rock, Spier, Steenberg and Arabella, the highest ranked new course in South Africa. Zebula Country Club also features a restaurant, cocktail bar, TV lounge, swimming pool, fully equipped gymnasium, Jacuzzi, squash court and tennis courts.

Spot the Big Five in a malaria-free reserve in the Waterberg Mountains. Conveniently situated, Mabalingwe Nature Reserve is an easy two-hour drive from Johannesburg or Pretoria – a great escape from the stresses of urban living. Gripping sightings of elephant, white rhino, leopard, hippo, giraffe, hyena and sable antelope are routine on this lush Limpopo game park. Spread over 12 500 hectares of pristine wilderness, the rolling hills of the reserve is the birthplace to 32 species of wildlife. Birders will be kept busy ticking off numerous special sightings with more than 250 bird species on record. Visit Mabalingwe at any time of year and discover some of life's forgotten pleasures - it's definitely worth a trip!

Tee off on the world first Biosphere Golf Course in the Waterberg The combination of 18 championship golf holes and the untamed wilderness of Africa promises to be an exceptional playing experience. Against a stunning backdrop of hills and nestled in the valleys, the course is divided by numerous gorges and water features on the magnificent estate. Entirely sensitive to the natural bushveld, the well-manicured USGA standard greens, bunkers and tees provide an attractive contrast to the wilderness. The Waterberg Biosphere Course is an outstanding addition to golfing in Limpopo and this unique concept will see the integration of a championship par 62 golf course with the Biosphere Nature Trail. Keen golfers will be able to play this course in less than three hours and see wildlife en route.