Winter in Limpopo and as the sun switches off the lights on the day it throws a blanket of icy air across the northern bushveld.

Thank goodness for the roaring fire on the deck at Ka’Ingo then; a crackling blaze that can thaw the winter out of joints cold from the night air and put colour back into cheeks ruddy from the icy wind on the night drive.

An easy three-hour drive north of Gauteng in the corner of Limpopo near Vaalwater, Ka’Ingo Private Reserve & Spa is one of only two Big Five reserves in the region open to visitors, and part of a new breed of game reserves bringing conservation and eco-tourism to an area better-known for hunting farms and biltong makers. As part of the Waterberg Biosphere, which was declared a protected area by UNESCO in 2001, Ka’Ingo is also one of the fortunate few malaria-free reserves in South Africa, and is proving popular as a weekend getaway for stressed out Gauties.

Perhaps precisely because it’s aimed more at the local market, one of the wonderful aspects of a stay at Ka’Ingo is the refreshing lack of airs and graces. Instead of bowing and scraping to their well-heeled overseas guests (as you find at so many other reserves), Ka’Ingo offers down-to-earth luxury where the genuine hospitality of the staff makes you feel at home in an instant. And at the end of the day they’ll join you around the fire (the same one that’ll defrost the icicles off your nose) to swap stories about the day, before melting into the night to leave you to your romantic dinner for two.

While away the days

That down-to-earth feel carries through to mealtimes, where you can look forward to excellent home-style wholesome dishes — expect rich oxtail potjiekos where the meat simply falls off the bone into a rich gracy, delicate soups to add a touch of elegance to the meal and solid desserts where rich dark chocolate will have you licking your lips into the wee hours. After dinner, it’s back to the fireplace for a nightcap where the rangers magically reappear to regale you with tales about the starry night and the sightings you’ll see the next day.

Ka’Ingo is a Big Five reserve, so it’s not unusual to wake up in the morning to find an elephant on the driveway or lions roaring down the road. In fact, make sure you get down to the bottom of the garden during the day to grab the bench just inside the electric fence surrounding the lodge — it’s a great place to while away the heat of the day or soak up the winter sun while spotting game going about their daily business.

As at most reserves, game drives take place in the early morning and evening, and if you’re lucky you’ll spot one of the three three-year-old cheetahs which were released into the reserve in December 2006. If they’re too quick for you, there are over 4000 head of game to keep the Big Five company, including some rare antelope and 11 white rhinos.

It's not about the buck

But don’t just look out for the big guys; the highlight of my stay was spotting a normally nocturnal aardvark ambling down the road into the sunset, seeming oblivious to our presence, before wandering off into a cluster of Terminalia trees. Not one of the toothy, impressive animals of the wild, but surely one of the rarest sites you’ll see in the bushveld.

It’s not all about the animals though.

While Limpopo may be a new frontier for eco-tourism, it was also the gateway to South Africa for ancient tribes migrating south through Africa, and evidence of these ancient peoples — particularly the San and Pedi — can also be found on the cliffs of Ka’Ingo.

Not far from the lodge, delicate rock art paintings give a glimpse of the people who lived here before, braving cunning leopards and prides of lions in their legendary hunts through the bush. From the sundowner spot on a koppie a little way off it’s not hard to imagine the land as it was back then. In fact, bar a few fields of tobacco in the distance the bushveld is pristine as it stretches into the glimmering haze of an early winter sunset.

After such a stressful day, it’s no surprise that the Ka’Ingo Spa is a popular spot to while away the long lazy hours between game drives. Treatments on offer range from basic facials to specialised body therapies, including a wide variety of massages, body wraps and alternative healing such as Indian head massages and reflexology. Throw in an outside treatment room on an enclosed deck overlooking the small dam and you’ve got heaven on earth.

With regular specials making it an affordable escape for South Africans, Ka’Ingo is certainly one of the best value escapes around, offering all the luxuries of a Big Five lodge at a fraction of the price. It’s still not as cheap as camping on your own in Kruger, but for a luxury weekend or a romantic getaway from the big city it is certainly hard to beat.