The beauty of Ongoye Forest is its combination of textures - the velvet-like grassy hills fringed by tall dense forest with great granite domes emerging at random along the ridges.
The 3 900-hectare forest runs for about 10kms on a high ridge parallel to the ocean and is about 4kms wide.
Botanically rich as it contains plants from the temperate Eastern Cape forests as well as the forests of tropical Africa, Ongoye is a 'must' for the discerning nature lover.
The forest is also home to rare and endemic animals and birds such as the red squirrel, the Green Barbet, the yellow-streaked Bulbul and the green butterfly. It was also home to the magnificent giant Wood's cycad (Encephalartos woodii) which has been extinct in the wild since the early 1900's.
The many tree rarities include magnificent giant umzimbeets (Millettia sutherlandia), forest mangosteen (Garcinia gerrardii), forest waterberry (Syzygium gerrardii) and the Pondoland fig (Ficus bizane) amongst others.
There are no fewer than nine varieties of fig growing in the forest and this abundance of fruit could be the reason the Green Barbet can only be found in Ongoye Forest.
Good birding can be enjoyed by walking along the tracks through the reserve and there is usually a lot of activity in the first 2kms.
Access to the forest has been greatly improved with concrete strips leading to the forest but sections of the road between the R102 and the forest are severely potholed and a robust vehicle is recommended. Pockets of the Reserve in the west can accessed on a good tar road from Obanjeni on the P240.
There are narrow tracks which lead from one side of the forest to the other but they can be obstructed by fallen trees. Unless travelling with a guide, it is best to park outside the forest and walk along the tracks through the forest.
There are also plans to introduce visitor facilities and open more hiking trails. The completion of these projects will make this beautiful sanctuary a lot more accessible to visitors.
• Accommodation in the forest is available for birders in a three-bedroom hut. Contact Zululand Birding Route for further information.

The officer in charge of the Reserve is resident in Ongoye but does not have a telephone due to the remoteness of the area.

Gate opening & closing:
06h00-18h00

On arrival visitors must report to the office where a minimal gate fee and community levy can be paid.