Tracking turtles on Mabibi Beach

Claire Keeton and Marianne Schwankhart have some surreal animal encounters at a turtle nesting site

Imagine a beach paradise - deserted sand, warm surf with coral reefs below, sand dunes and coastal forest - and you would have a picture of Mabibi beach in northern KwaZulu-Natal.

Plus it has turtles, in nesting and hatchling season from November until March.

Loggerhead and leatherback turtles migrate thousands of miles across oceans in summer to lay their eggs on the beaches where they themselves hatched, and Mabibi is one of these nesting sites.

Mabibi is in the Isimangaliso Wetland Park, formerly the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park.

A female will lay eggs roughly three to five times a season, digging a hole with her flippers and laying dozens of eggs.

The Thonga Beach Lodge at Mabibi runs turtle tracking tours and, hoping to observe this natural wonder, Marianne, another friend and I visited last month.

Surprisingly, Marianne and I didn't see any turtles on land - it was still early in turtle season and there was stormy weather - but I swam alongside a loggerhead while diving.

Our friend stayed longer than we did and saw two turtles coming out of the Indian Ocean, preparing to nest, as well as a lone turtle digging a nest as darkness fell.

From now onwards, guests are likely to find the females laying eggs and hatchlings breaking out of their shells and making their desperate crawl to the ocean. The tiny turtles are particularly vulnerable to predators, including birds and ghost crabs, and their odds of surviving to adulthood are estimated at roughly one in 1000.

Thonga Beach Lodge is committed to the conservation of turtles and supports efforts to monitor their numbers and tag them when necessary. Even though turtles are the star attraction in summer, this lodge has much more to offer guests, with diving among its most popular activities.

Conveniently the dive instructor at the lodge offers refresher courses in the pool as well as resort courses for those with no prior scuba experience.

Our first day at the lodge was windy - perfect for kite surfing, as two of their staff showed us - and the sea was too rough to launch the boat, so we did our pool sessions.

Later under drizzling skies, we went for a walk in the dune coastal forest, a protected habitat that offers shelter to creatures from rare chameleons and golden orb web spiders to bush pigs and duikers.

We also scrambled up a sand dune for some amazing views, north to Mozambique, 50km away, and towards the diving destination of Sodwana Bay, 26km south.

Our dives, launched from the beach in front of the lodge, were as mesmerising as any dive I've ever had at Sodwana.

As we dropped down to Slinger's Reef, we saw a range of tropical fish and luminescent corals below us.

The stripey devil lionfish with poisonous spines was one of our first sightings and later we saw a poisonous stone fish almost completely camouflaged.

Clown triggerfish, coachfish, the funny shaped trumpetfish, a moray eel, emperor angelfish and many more shimmering creatures drifted through corals, sponges and sea fans as we descended to 19m.

The second dive that morning on Gogo's Reef was shallower, about 12m, but had more surprises.

Apart from a graceful turtle tearing at sponges while floating along with us, we saw a huge potato bass.

When I saw it, I thought I was hallucinating, and wondered if mermaids would be my next apparition. This fish was at least 1.5 to 2m long. Hovering above its blueish bulk, I estimated it was roughly the same size as me. The enthusiastic dive instructor, Calvin Botes, took a photo, so I've got proof.

Unfortunately for Marianne - who has climbed many sheer rock walls in the world - swells are her downfall. She gets seasick so she didn't join me.

Despite this, both of us would come back to Thonga any time.

Apart from its exceptional access to the turtles and reefs, it's the ultimate romantic destination with its secluded beach and sunsets.

• Claire and Marianne were invited guests at Thonga Beach Lodge

. GREEN ROOMS

The thatched chalets are eco-friendly and well concealed from the beach, yet close enough to hear the crashing of waves. The lodge has a marine centre for diving and ocean operations and a spa.

. DECK DINING

The cooked breakfasts range from the usual English fare to more exotic omelettes or combinations, such as eggs with smoked trout and rosti. The lunch buffet caters for diverse tastes . Starters for dinner included camembert spring rolls and salmon and cream cheese tarts. Main dishes included roast mackerel and red Thai curry .

. RATES

Forest view R2630 pp/pn sharing; sea view R2990; 3-night turtle package R7490 pp sharing forest room. Turtle drives are R410 pp.

Mabibi Point, managed by SA Nature Reserves, has 10 rustic campsites at R80 per person per night.

. CONTACTS

For Thonga, phone 0354741473; e-mail res@isibindi.co.za or visit www.isibindi.co.za. For information, visit: www.nature-reserve.co.za and select iSimangaliso St Lucia.