PITCH YOUR TENT
Dwesa Nature Reserve
Secluded campsites are rare on the “wild” part of the Wild Coast, in other words, from Kei Mouth north to Port Edward. The bigger towns usually have a caravan park, and backpacker places often have a spot where you can hammer in your tent pegs, but most of the more remote places to stay are self-catering.
Dwesa is the exception. The closest town is Willowvale, about 50 km away, and there’s a new tar road under construction, but for now you’ll have to kick up dust.
I drive through the reserve gate on a gloomy morning and pitch my tent in the rain. A forest looms behind me and the sea crashes in front. There’s no one else around, no games room, tuckshop, lapa or power either. There are just enough facilities to prevent you from feeling like you’re camping wild.
I have an old map of the reserve that indicates a few trails. The guard at the gate explains that the only route traversable in a 4x2 is the one to the Kobole River estuary,
