Mapelane is situated on the south bank of the Mfolozi river mouth in just South of the Lake St. Lucia estuary, the reserve is very popular with fishermen, for fish, crayfish, oysters and mussels. The road to the reserve is 40km long, sandy and not suited to saloon cars.
The topography includes dune forest (the camp is backed by the gigantic Mjakaja dune), floodplain flora and swamp forest. Wildlife Small buck, monkeys, mongoose and red squirrels occur in the forest and hippos and crocodiles are found at the water's edge. As a result, bathing is strictly prohibited.