The view of Champagne Castle, Monks Cowl and Cathkin Peak from Injisuthi Camp
Loskop and Ntabahlope
Loskop and Ntabahlope are two of the most substantial communities in Central Drakensberg. They fall within the Inkosi Langalibalele Local Municipality (KZN237). The area bordering the Injisuthi Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife Camp also includes a crucial traditional council area, the Amangwaan Traditional Council Area. The total population in this area is estimated to be some 75,000. These communities are critical generators of most of the staff of the various tourism services, timber plantations and farms of the Greater Cathkin Park area or an area fondly referred to as Champagne Valley.
Two fascinating tourist attractions exist within these communities: the Zimela Craft Centre and the Bata Factory Shop. The Bata Factory produces some four million pairs of Bata ‘Toughees’ school shoes a year and more fashionable shoes. This factory provides critical employment to this relatively impoverished community in KwaZulu-Natal.
Injisuthi
The name Injisuthi is a Zulu word that means place of ‘well-fed dogs’ or dogs that eat well, and this term may have been derived from an old gentleman, Mr Hodgson, who lived in this area in the late 1800s and looked after a ‘pack of well-fed’ dogs. It is also the name of the second-highest peak, Injisuthi Dome, in South Africa, which stands at some 3 408 metres. Mafadi, the highest peak in South Africa, is located to the right of Injisuthi Dome. This peak is an impressive landform feature of 3 450 metres.
Injisuthi is also one of the remotest and unspoilt camps in the Drakensberg and entrances to the Ukhlamba Drakensberg World Heritage site. The conservation agency manages it for KwaZulu-Natal, namely Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife. This camp provides both well-laid-out camping and self-catering cottages. It is also a base to the start of a series of hiking trails. These included a guided tour to the famous ‘Battle Cave’ San Rock Art Site. The streams in this area are also renowned for trout fishing.