Afircan treasures - Swaziland

For many visitors to Swaziland, the highlight of the eZulwini Valley is Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary (daily dawn-dusk; E20), with its relaxed atmosphere and attractive, game-filled plains. The name Mlilwane refers to the "little fire" that sometimes appears when lightning strikes the granite mountains. As well as offering good game viewing and activities, Mlilwane is an easy alternative to staying in Mbabane or on the eZulwini strip. Given its popularity, it's wise to book ahead if you intend to stay overnight.

The reserve holds a special place in the history of wildlife conservation in Swaziland; it was here that Ted Reilly first realized his dream of a sanctuary for Swaziland's fast-disappearing wildlife . Mlilwane's animals are mainly herbivorous, and include giraffe, zebra, bountiful numbers of antelope and the sanctuary's emblem, the warthog. There's also the occasional crocodile and hippopotamus, which means you still need to be cautious if viewing the game on foot, bike or horseback.

Over 100km of road enables you to drive through the park to view game. Alternatively, guided walks and drives are available through the park office at the main restcamp; the best of the self-guided walking trails is the Macobane Hill Trail, a gentle, three-hour hike through the mountains. The more adventurous can climb to the top of Nyonyane, the "Execution Rock", which rises so prominently in the north of the reserve. The office can supply maps for all these. There are also guided mountain-bike tours (E60 per hour) and horseback trails (from E75 per hour), both fairly relaxed ways of taking in the park's attractions. For those with a little more horseback experience, various overnight trails involve camping in caves and rustic trail camps in the more remote parts of the reserve; for the really committed, the Lusoti "Real Africa" Horse Trails, organized by Swaziland Big Game Parks in association with Hawane Horse Trails, offer a seven-night cross-country expedition taking in Mlilwane, Mkhaya Game Reserve and remote rural homesteads. For details, contact Big Game Parks Central Reservations. If you're feeling less energetic, you can pass the time watching hippos wallowing in the hippo pool, overlooked by the Hippo Haunt restaurant at the main restcamp. The hippos are fed every day at 3pm.

Swaziland owes the creation and survival of three of its major wildlife sanctuaries - Mlilwane, Mkhaya and Hlane - to Ted Reilly , who was born in Mlilwane in 1938, the son of a British Anglo-Boer War soldier who had stayed on. As Reilly was growing up, Swazi wildlife and its natural habitats were coming under serious threat from poachers and commercial farmers. In 1959, Reilly lobbied the colonial government to set aside land for parks, but was defeated by farmers who wanted the land for commercial agriculture. Undeterred, he turned his Mlilwane estate into a park anyway, and set about cultivating a relationship with King Sobhuza II , who was having trouble himself with poachers at the royal estate in Hlane. After Swazi independence, Sobhuza became much more powerful, and Reilly's relationship with him lent weight to his nature conservation efforts.

Despite rickety finances, the Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary opened in 1963, and the re-stocking and reintroduction of species has continued ever since (the reserve today is ten times the size of the original sanctuary). Meanwhile, Sobhuza asked Reilly to help stamp out poaching at Hlane. Reilly's tough approach resulted in shootouts with the poachers, earning him the praise of some, but the enmity of many. Matters came to a head in 1992 when, with the help of the South African Police Endangered Species Protection Unit, Reilly tracked down a poaching unit that had been operating in Mkhaya. In the ensuing gun-fight, one poacher was killed and another paralyzed; criticism of Reilly's tactics intensified.

Reilly's dependence on royal connections has also generated controversy: critics claim it has prevented the development of a single parks board and a participatory, grass-roots involvement in conservation that is the key to long-term success. Some also assert that Reilly subordinates wildlife management principles to the needs of the tourist industry. Reilly's answer to his critics is simply to point to the three game parks his company runs. It's a powerful argument - without Reilly, the parks would not exist, and Swaziland and its visitors would be much the poorer for it