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We once drove down a no entry road near Satara. We had family staying at a research house, this place is called Monza. After being on this road for about 10 min we realised that we were on the wrong road. I was very curious at being on this No Entry road in Kruger and decided on going the whole way to see where we ended up. The road was not very good, just a very bad dirt track not used to often, the game down this road were not too happy to see us, they more than likely, stay away from the main road's, they seemed much more skitish. We did see a White Rhino which made the trip worth it,we eventually ended up on the S40 near the Girivana Dam. Have any other member's done the no entry road's for what ever reason . Some Three or so years ago Lions killed something down a no entry road near Satara and these Lions spent the whole day feeding on this kill . The police cop heard about the kill and from the camping area at Satara, he could see cars driving down this road, to go and get a better view. As soon as someone went down the road he would quikly, jump into his van and go and give them a fine, he made a fortune for National Park's on that day.

Regard's Tim

Mimondzo (Monza) from outside the fence




Otherside the fence , inside the camp (in the centre of this pic) ...



This pic was taken .


Upper reaches of the Lubye Lubye which drains into the Sabie

I have driven on many of these......for various reasons, all official. They seldom lead anywhere really interesting, most are for maintenance purposes, access to fire breaks, etc. The animals are usually skittish because there are not many cars on the tracks, and the condition of the tracks is often poor too, adding to the vehicle noise.

Remember too that sometimes these roads or unmarked tracks lead to ranger posts or stake-out areas, and you could be jeopardising things by travelling on them.

I think most visitors are very curious about what happens behind those "no entry"signs... and tempted. May be "they hide" the big 5 or some exotic scenery .... Thanks eco-junkie for clarifying. I accept - "nature" also need some privacy.

The official folk who use the no entry roads do so in suitable vehicles to minimise the impact on the environment. So by going down the roads without permission, one is not aiding the ego system either.

Down the no entry roads is where the animals hide when you see nothing

Only once was I tempted to go down one. On my last trip there I saw a leopard emerge from one as we drove past on the Voortrekker road. In the 53 years he went to Kruger, my dad saw precious few, and he missed it. I reversed to where I had seen the leopard and on instinct I turned in and went about 50 metres until I saw an ele grazing in the bush. We didn't see the leopard again.

Going on no entry roads:
1. Against the law - do not do it.
2. If you have a break down you can have big trouble.
3. You can potentially interfere with management activities such as walks, game capture, animal studies, burns, etc.
4. You are travelling on a road which is not designed for heavy traffic, and can contribute to environmental degradation.
5. Nowadays, you risk being seen as a potential poacher.

Whilst I am always curious about what is down a no entry road, I sometimes feel I don't want to know. When I see the pictures of buildings or see the infrastructure that there is in Kruger down these unknown roads it breaks down my illusion of Kruger being "wild". I know that there are many buildings and "camps" that is used by the staff in their duties, but I want to remain oblivious to these. I want the mysticism to remain in Kruger.

The road to Monza is also down a No Entry road and is about 3or 4 Km off the tar road,down a dirt track, it happend to be the next no entry turn off,which we eventually found and by the way we came across 3 very big male lions on this road very near to the house, no other cars.

Tim

I have been down "no entry" roads many times while attending courses run at the Sand River bush camp. They are no more interesting than the official routes. If anything, the official routes are kinder to the body, as they have been comfortably worn down by frequent use..

Good for the cop, NO ENTRY means just that unless on official business which all those people were not on.

I absolutely agree with you, Foxy. No entry means no entry for a visitor, no matter what.
Don´t know why a few people always want to go beyond the rules.

It happened last year in May . We saw these people driving down the no-entry road , took this pic , and reported it at Satara desk .

Last year while driving down near the bottom of the S28 we came to the No entry road that cuts left down to Croc Bridge and we could see something lying quite a way down it, so out with the binos and what did we see, a lovely pride of Lions!
Very frustrating but despite lots of urgings from Jock to nip down there for a quick pic, we never did.
but it was very tempting.

Just keep in mind that some of the eco trails do have no entry signs.The first time i saw car exit i
was shouting at these people cant they read only to later find it to be the mananga trail