South Africa

JUNE 2022

Although we said goodbye to Rob in part 1 of our South African adventure we welcomed two more friends almost simultaneously. No sooner had we dropped Rob off at departures we were joined in the hotel by our good friends Carole and Olivier. They had just completed a lengthy journey. First they flew from Montreal, Canada to London, England. Then after a long lay over, from London to Johannesburg, South Africa. They were a bit jet lagged but had enough energy for a couple gins and a bite to eat in the pub next to the hotel before retiring to try and get their body clock sorted out.

The next day was a long drive south, from Johannesburg down to the Drakensberg Mountains. The scenery was fairly flat and uninteresting for the first part of our 4 hour trip but as we got closer to the mountains it improved considerably. This was the first time Carole and Olivier had been in South Africa so everything was a new experience. The first of those experiences was our shop en-route for groceries.

Getting ouf Johannesburg, 4h00 of not so interesting scenery

On the way to the Drakensberg

Once we left the main road for the final few kilometres to our accommodation, just outside Winterton, the road condition deteriorated. Still tarred but with massive potholes. Avoiding them was a challenge, made worse when not following a local who knows the road.

Local road in the Drakensberg

Home for the next six nights was a delightful cottage, just outside the town on Winterton and with great views of the mountains. We had stayed at the cottage before so everything was familiar and just as good as we had remembered. This is winter in South Africa so it wasn’t a surprise to see snow on the top of the mountains (see Drakensberg Mountains below) which contrasted with the warm sunny conditions we were enjoying below.

Our Cottage in Drakensberg

View over the Drakensberg from our Cottage

Everyday was warm and sunny, which gave us the opportunity get out and explore.

Hiking in the mountain foothills occupied three of those days. The fresh mountain air and beautiful scenery made us feel good and provided an excuse to indulge in the local food and drink afterwards.

Giants Castle section of the Drakensberg

Sterkspruit Falls walk

Beer tasting

Drakensberg Scenery

Monk's Cowl hike in the Drakensberg

The rock on the left side is the Monk's Cowl

When not hiking we would investigate other attractions the area had to offer, museums, art & craft galleries and local markets. On the Sunday we had a Braai at our cottage, a typical South African thing to do. Beautiful cuts of meat with fresh vegetables, washed down with Savannah Ciders.

Firing up the Braai

The Old 19th century shop who is now a museum

Step back in time a the re-creation of a local shop

One of the non hiking days we visited the local town of Winterton. An experience that exceeded our expectations.
We were first welcomed to the town by the car minder, as he directed us to a vacant parking space in the high street. He then assured us the vehicle would be safe under his watch, hoping to be rewarded for his work, which he was.
Across the street was the Post Office, the main reason for our visit to the town. The postmaster was very helpful and somewhat entertained by the number of postage stamps we needed to purchase. He enquired where we were from and hoped that we would return to his establishment soon. It was heart warming to see how proud he was of his Post Office and the service he offered, something that is rare these days. Even if the postcards took six months to arrive.

High Street Winterton

On leaving the Post Office we spotted a little shop selling Biltong. Biltong (see below) is a favourite snack in Southern Africa and as Carole and Olivier had never tried it, this seemed the ideal opportunity to introduce them to it. Inside the shop there was a vast array of flavours to choose from and the shop owner kindly explained each of them. Following a sample tasting we left with a selection to munch on.

Biltong selection

Biltong Shop

Next stop on our Winterton tour was at the museum. Another warm welcome was offered on our arrival and the curator seemed very pleased to have foreign guests once more. Spread over two floors with some larger items outside, the museum documented the history of Winterton and the surrounding area. Photo’s, documents and artefacts bought the whole thing to life and was fascinating to look around.

Winterton Museum

Winterton Museum

What was meant to be a short stop in Winterton ended up taking a couple of hours. By this time we were hungry and thirsty so a short drive to a local farm restaurant was called for.

As mentioned earlier, this was the first trip to Southern Africa for Carole and Olivier and to my mind it wouldn’t be complete without going on safari. So with this in mind we altered our itinerary to incorporate this. The only problem was we weren’t in the right part of the country to achieve this. Having assessed our options we decided our best bit was to return to the Kruger National Park.

The distance from the Drakensberg to the Kruger was too far to comfortably do in a day so we decided to overnight on route. Our plan was to get the bulk of the journey done on the first day which would allow time to travel to the Kruger and an afternoon in the park on the second.

The small town of Carolina was our chosen destination for the overnight stop. Nothing there of note except for a comfortable Bed & Breakfast to stay at. We arrived in the late afternoon and after a bit of relaxation went out for dinner.
Our hosts at the B&B had informed us that there was only one restaurant in town so that is where we went. Coalers Restaurant and Pub was just off Carolina’s main street accessed by an alleyway. We parked outside and assessed our options. On one side of the building was the pub, with music pumping, fruit machines flashing and full of cigarette smoke. On the other was an empty room full of tables and chairs. We choose the latter and entered. This was obviously the restaurant as used cutlery and crockery still lay on the tables. A lady quickly appeared, showed us to a table and cleared up the mess left by the previous diners. At this stage we didn’t know what to expect but as the evening progressed we were treated to a very pleasant dining experience. Our waitress, who had obviously had a hard day, soon relaxed around us and became very welcoming even teaching us some Zulu phrases. The chef ran the kitchen on his own and served up some very tasty food, which we washed down with beer and cider. An unexpected but very enjoyable evening.

B&B in Caroline on our stop over from Drakensberg to Kruger

The Coalers Pub Menu (not to share)

The following day, after a hearty breakfast, we were back on the road again heading north towards Hazyview. Hazyview would be our access point into the Kruger National Park and we had three nights booked on the same estate we stayed with Rob.
By early afternoon we had unloaded the car and dinned on the veranda of the accommodation. We were now ready to go on safari. The excitement was building as this was Carole and Olivier first African safari and I always love going on safari. Unfortunately that excitement soon turned to disappointment when we arrived at the entrance gate. A sign reading “No entry, park quota reached” was what we were greeted with, the first time ever we had not been granted access. However, we turned that disappointment to renewed vigour and went back home to plan our safari’s for the next two days.

It had not been light for long when we awoke the next morning. We had planned an early start to ensure entry to the park and were pleased we had, when we joined a queue of cars at the park entrance. It took almost an hour to get in the park but once in the wait was worth it. It was a beautiful day and the wildlife was plentiful. We spent the whole day watching wildlife, only breaking for a late breakfast at Skukuza Camp.

Central Kruger

Cape Vulture

Oxpeckers on a Giraffe's back

Spotted Hyena and Pup sharing a meal

Spotted Hyena finshing breakfas

Spotted Hyena mother feeding her young

Lioness on the prowl

Impala

Lilac Breasted Roller

Gaggle of Oxpeackers

African Squirels

Nile Crocodile

Elephants

Buffalo herd crossing

Filled with enthusiasm the next day was more of the same, albeit in two different locations. Another early start and another good morning’s wildlife watching. We then returned to the cottage for lunch and to wait for our afternoon/evening activity to start.
We wanted Carole and Olivier to experience a night drive and as we couldn’t self drive in the Kruger after dusk, we booked one with a private game reserve. Our choice was the Sabi Sands Game Reserve which has an unfenced border with the Kruger National Park. Around 14:00 we were picked up from our front door and driven into the Sabi Sands reserve, about an hour and a half by tarred and dirt road. Once in the reserve there was time for refreshments before the game drive began. We were joined in an open safari vehicle by four Americans, which made a party of ten when you added the driver/guide and a spotter perched on the front. Wildlife spotting for the first two hours was enjoyable but not that notable (for us as seasoned safari goers).

Driver and spotter on our night drive

Bateleur's Eagles

Elephant rear end

However, just before dusk the excitement levels rose considerably when three White Rhino’s, a family of mother, father and baby, were spotted amongst some bushes. We ventured over to get a better look and spent around 15 minutes in their company before they disappeared out of sight.

White Rhino

It was now getting dark and time for our sundowner so we parked under a tree, disembarked and had our sundowner drink. A nice sunset even if the catering wasn’t up to the usual standard.

Sunset

If the late afternoon drive hadn’t been that spectacular it was all about to change as night fell. Firstly, we were almost joined on our sundowner experience by a Spotted Hyena that was out on recognisance. He or she glanced over at what we were doing before continuing on, passing about 10 meters from the back of the vehicle.
Back in the vehicle we didn’t have to wait long for more excitement. Negotiating a narrow track through long grass we came upon a Leopard out looking for a spot of dinner. Unsurprisingly our company was not welcome and it disappeared into the long grass a few minutes after being spotted. We searched with spot lights but it wasn’t going to hang around for our pleasure.
Still buzzing from the Leopard sighting, news came over the radio that a male Lion was chilling out by the side of the road not far from us. We raced to the location and joined two other groups parked a respectful distance from the Lion. He didn’t seem to mind the company and continued to doze while we attempted to take photo’s. After a while he needed to stretch his legs, just in case the girls needed his assistance in the evening’s hunt, and strolled off roaring to announce his presence. We all followed until he settled down again. He still didn’t seem to mind our presence, which couldn’t be said of the Impala which made a hasty retreat when we all turned up. In all we probably spent about 30 minutes in his company before leaving him in peace.

Lion on the move

Lion at Night

Lion

After that sighting we all felt it couldn’t get any better, but it did. Almost back at camp we came across another Leopard. This one was bigger and bolder than the last, and tolerated us for some while as we followed it along a narrow path. Eventually, enough was enough and it disappeared into the undergrowth.

Leopard

Leopard

Surely that was the end of the excitement for the night, but no. With the camp lights looming in the distance another Spotted Hyena crossed our path. It disappeared in to the undergrowth but not before we got a good look.
With so many sightings at the end of the day we were late back to camp but we hadn’t missed our dinner, which had been delayed for our return. A beautiful meal then followed before we met up with our driver for the return journey back to the cottage.

Even now the excitement was not yet over as we met a herd of Elephant by the side of the road. We cautiously tried to pass only to be sternly told to back up by an ear flapping matriarch. We duly did as requested, soon finding out what had annoyed her. The kids were still on the opposite side of the road and we were not allowed to pass until they had crossed. We waited a few minutes until all were present and correct, then was permitted to continue our journey. What an amazing evening.

The following day was a bit subdued after the excitement of the previous night. Added to it being our last day in South Africa and other than a bit shopping, the only activity for the day was the drive back to Johannesburg Airport. The drive complete and the hire car returned, all that was left was to board the plain for the flight back to the UK. On the bright side, Carole and Olivier were joining us on the flight and would spend a few days with us before returning to Canada.

Personal Observations & Interesting Facts

Mode of Transport
We hired a Nissan X-Trail with 4x4 option for the entirety of the the trip. This gave us enough room for 4 adult, luggage and provisions. The 4x4 mode wasn’t needed but we were pleased to have the safeguard.

Weather
In the Drakensberg we had no rain. Most days were sunny with temperatures ranging from mid 20’s C during the day and circa 2-6 C at night.
In the Kruger & Hazyview it was sunny every day and a little warmer than in the Drakensberg.

Drakensberg Mountains
The Drakensberg is the eastern portion of a mountain range known as the Great Escapement, that stretches northwards up as far as the Limpopo Provence. In KwaZulu Natal, where we were staying, the Escarpment reaches its greatest elevation of almost 3,500 meters. It also forms the border between South Africa and the tiny country of Lesotho. In fact Lesotho occupies the plateau on top the Drakensberg Mountains and is completely surrounded by South Africa. Waterfalls tumble down the sheer cliffs of the Drakensberg and form many important rivers in South Africa. One of these is the second highest in the world. The Tugela Falls has a total drop of 947m and is only surpassed by Angel Falls in Venezuela with 979m.

Local People
Meeting local people allows us to better understand the country we are travelling in. Although we don’t seek out interaction we encourage it when it is offered. Although almost all conversations are informative and interesting, some individuals leave a greater impression than others.
The Postmaster in the small town of Winterton who was so proud of his Post Office and so pleased he could deal with our postcards for us. He even asked us to call again when we were next in the area.
Then there was the lady making baskets. Her shop front was a bus shelter at the side of the road which also doubled up as a workshop were she created her baskets. It was also her child care centre as she had two young children to look after as well. Her work was of the highest quality and priced very reasonably, so we were happy to buy a few to bring home. Although a bit shy to engage in conversation we did have a brief chat and she was very pleased with our custom.

The Weaver workshop

Basket Art Gallery

Biltong
Biltong is a form of dried, cured meat that originated in Southern Africa. Various types of meat are used to produce it, ranging from beef to game such as ostrich or kudu. The cut may also vary, either fillet of meat cut into strips following the grain of the muscle, or flat pieces sliced across the grain. It is related to beef jerky in that they are both spiced, dried meats; however, the typical ingredients, taste and production processes may differ. The word biltong is from the Dutch bil ("buttock") and tong ("strip" or “tongue").

MAY/JUNE 2022

Having signed off as full time travellers in 2021 we are in the process of reinventing ourselves as part time travellers. Our initial plan was to get this new lifestyle underway in 2022 but we soon realised that this was in conflict with our plans to renovate our house. Therefore a staged approach has been adopted. House renovation will take priority in 2022 and the new part time travelling lifestyle will be launched in 2023.
However this is not to say we won’t be leaving these shores in 2022, it will just be not so regularly.

Which brings me to the start of this new adventure. A taxi from Hove and a flight from London Heathrow deposited us (Anne, me & Rob) to the warm winter sun at Johannesburg International Airport, where our latest South African adventure was about to start. But not before we had completed the entry formalities, which were well organised and reasonable swift. The lack of foreign tourist obviously helped, but even with the Covid checks we were soon through immigration and ready to collect our hire car.
With the paperwork completed and in possession of our hire car keys we headed north along the N1 and into the Limpopo province. A fairly flat landscape gradually turned more mountainous as we approached our first stop of the day. We had chosen the town of Polokwane and its “Mall of the North” for lunch and to shop for provisions. Then with bellies and shopping trolleys full we continued our journey, this time east and further into the mountains, passing the strangely named town of “Nobody”.
Finally, high up in the Magoebaskloof Mountains we turned of the main road and continued along a dirt road that cut its way into the Woodbush Forest. Somewhere along this “road” was our accommodation for the next five nights. Our host had said the accommodation could be accessed by a saloon car but we were very relieved to have 4x4. However, the bumpy journey was worth it, our palatial villa with stunning views was idyllic.

Veranda at our villa

Bedroom 1 in the villa

Inside the Villa

We had five nights and four full days in the Magoebaskloof Mountains and spent each day exploring the area. Generally the weather was warm and sunny each day, which evidently hadn’t been the case the week before.
We broke ourselves in gently on the first day with a look around our nearest town, Haenertsburg. A quaint town at the bottom of the mountain pass with a few shops and restaurants. We started with a bit of shopping then retired to the outside dining area of a charming restaurant for a late lunch.

Haenertsburg main street

The next few days followed a regular pattern. We would start with a leisurely breakfast on our veranda with just the forest and bird life for company. Then head out for our daily hike. Each day would take in a different terrain. The mountain foothills one day, into its dense forest another and a combination of the two in a local botanical gardens. They all were very enjoyable with their own charm. We either had rolling hills and forests laid out in front of us or we were immersed in those very forests, so dense the sky was barely visible.

Breakfast on the Veranda

Relaxing on the Veranda

View over the Magoebaskloof Foothills

The Haenertsburg circuit hike

Some muddy part of the circuit

Funny on the walk

Botanical Garden in the winter

Forest hike in the Magoebaskloof Mountains

Forest hike in the Magoebaskloof Mountains

Scenic view over the Magoebaskloof Mountains range

By mid to late afternoon our activities were normally complete and we would return to our villa in the forest. There were many reasons not to stay out later. Firstly, we wanted to enjoy the villa and its surroundings. Especially the visits from a troop of rare Samango Monkeys, which are endangered and not found in many parts of South Africa any more, together with its varied birdlife. Secondly, the forest road to the villa wasn’t easy in the daylight so avoiding it in the dark was a priority.

Knysna Lourie

Knysna Lourie

Samango Monkey outside our Veranda

Samango Monkey

Samango Monkey

From the mountains we drove east and into the Kruger National Park. We had booked a cottage in Letaba camp in the more northernly section of the park. The cottage was comfortable and had views down to the Letaba River just a short walk away.
Each day we would head out into the park to explore the surrounding area and see the wildlife it supports. Although we had some amazing sightings the animal population in this part of the park didn’t seem so plentiful as we had experienced further south. Maybe they were there but the thick foliage blocked us from seeing them. South Africa has had good summer rains this year, which they were in great need of, which meant the foliage was very thick and very green.

Sunset at Letaba Restcamp

Lilac Breaster Roller, in total, it has around 8 colours: green, white, black, yellow, turquoise, dark blue, reddish-brown, and lilac

Grey Hornbill

Waterbuck,crocodile and lion avoid preying on waterbuck because of their unpleasant smell

An elephant trunk has up to 40,000 muscles

Klipspringer :this pint-sized rock hopper can jump onto a spot the size of an Oreo cookie.

Impala

One thing we hadn’t encountered before in the Kruger was having a flat tyre. Fortunately the tyre stayed inflated enough to get us to camp and they had a garage that could perform a repair. In fact because the hole was so big we needed a second repair when the first started to leak. The second repair still leaked a little bit, but did the job and got us through the rest of our stay in South Africa.

Tyre repair

Tyre repair

Tyre Repair

Repaired Tyre

On the forth day we traveled through the park to get to our next destination, the small town of Hazyview. And what a day. We probably had the best wildlife sightings we ever had in the Kruger, which included amongst many others, Spotted Hyena, Lions, Leopard and Wild Dog. What also enhanced the pleasure was that the park wasn’t as busy as usual, far fewer foreign tourists.

Oliphant River

White Crested Helmet Shrike

Grumpy Yellow Billed Hornbill

Zebra are closely related to horses but they are not the same species

Oliphant river view from Olifant Restcamp

Zebra grin

Elephant have 4 toenails at the front and 3 at the back

Giraffe towering above the trees, world tallest mammals

Baobab Tree, probably over 2000 years old due to its size

Giant Kingfisher

Southern Ground Hornbill , The adult male has an extensive brilliant red face and throat wattle. Prey can include rodents, snakes, lizards, frogs, bird eggs, nestling birds and insects.

Hippo mummy and baby, look at the front of the mother

Male Ostriches . A group of ostriches is called a flock. Flocks can consist of up to 100 birds. The most we saw at a time was 4

Giraffe are at they most vulnerable when drinking. These 2 after hesitated for 10mn decided it wasn't safe enough and left

Southern Ground Hornbill. They are only 1500 left in the world , all in South Africa, the species is classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

Spotted Hyena pup. they Live in social territorial group call Clans

Natal Spurfow, used to be called Natal Francolin but change name due to it's spur claw

Hyppo - as a group called a Pod of Hyppo

Spotted hyenas - Hyenas are not members of the dog or cat families. Instead, they are so unique that they have a family all their own, Hyaenidae

Leopard in the shade

Hazyview is a sub-tropical farming town renowned for its large banana and macadamia nut industries, contributing about 20% of South Africa's bananas and 30% of macadamia output. It’s located just west of the Kruger National Park, and at the foot of the Blyde River Canyon massif. The town's name is derived from the shimmering haze that occurs during the heat of summer.

During our stay we split our time between exploring the Blyde River Canyon area and day visits to the Kruger.

Access to the Blyde River Canyon area requires a steep drive out of Hazyview up a mountain road, avoiding the many large potholes and past the numerous banana plantations. Usually this takes about 30 minutes, but during our stay the journey was substantially longer due to road works en-route. Although designated as road works the hold up was for rock blasting. Many of the rocks in the cliff above the road had become dangerously loose during the summer rains and needed to be dislodged before they fell on any passing motorist. We queued in an open mountain tunnel with other motorist, most of them got out of their cars which created a bit of a social event whilst we all waited patiently. This unusual event caught the attention of a group of vervet monkeys who briefly came to investigate what was going on.

Blasting the road warning

Waiting for the blasting to be completed

Road after the blasting

Once clear of the hold up we were able to continue to the top of the canyon. Blyde River Canyon has many natural attractions and we are fortunate enough to have visited most of them on previous occasions. However, two of our favourites hadn’t been visited by Rob, so these were the ones we selected.
First stop was Graskop Gorge. Situated at the bottom of sheer cliffs and fed by an impressive waterfall is a pristine sub-tropical forest. Originally almost inaccessible it can now be reached via a lift. The bottom of the gorge is a nature reserve where we followed a circular boardwalk to explore the indigenous flora and fauna. The boardwalk provides access to the thick foliage as well as protecting it from foot traffic. Although only small, there was enough to see to keep us amused for an hour or so.

Scenic from the lift down to Graskop Gorge

View over Graskop Gorge and waterfall

Lift down to Graskop Gorge

Boardwalk at Graskop Gorge

Having extracted ourselves from the gorge and taken lunch in the town of Graskop. We proceeded out of town to our second stop: the Graskop Pinnacle, a 30m quartzite tower protruding up from the valley floor and fringed by the dense forest of the Driekop Gorge. The tower was covered by brightly coloured aloes which is a major attraction for the bird and insect life in the area. Cliff top platforms provided us with panoramic views and good photograph points. There were no other tourists so we had the place to ourselves, which made exploring even more enjoyable.

Pinnacle View

Of course they had to beyond :-)

In addition to some shopping in Hazyview, we managed to fit in two day visits into the Kruger National Park. As is usually the case when on a self drive safari, the wildlife sighting were variable. You can spend a lot of time driving around without seeing anything of note and then your luck is suddenly in. Which was the case on these two days. Amongst the memorable sighting were a large pack of Wild Dog (Painted Wolf), Spotted Hyena and our first ever sighting of Civet.

King of the road

Lions chilling out next to the road in the Kruger

Close encounter of the furry kind. I had to use my mobile phone , it was so close my zoom wouldn't work

Flying Vulture

Painted Wolf: They only have four toes per foot - other dogs have five toes on their forefeet.

Cape Buffalo

Mum and pups cuddling and feeding time

Spoted Hyena and pup

Painted Wolf are critically endangered but numbers are improving due to conservation efforts

Wild Dog or Painted Wolf, their scientific name is Lycaon pictus – which translates directly as painted wolf and reflects their mottled caramel and brown fur

studies have shown that hyenas kill 66-90% of what they eat and when it comes to the actual hunt they are extremely versatile and successful hunters

African Fish Eagle

Bee Eater

This pup is probably no more than 3 weeks old

African Civet have an omnivorous diet includes carrion, rodents, birds, eggs, reptiles, frogs, crabs, insects, fruits, and other vegetation. Poultry and young lambs are sometimes taken.

African Civet and young,Despite their cat-like appearance and behaviours, the African Civets are not felines at all but are in fact, more closely related to other small carnivores including Weasels and Mongooses

African Civet. A nocturnal animal, this is the first time we had a good sighting of it

Young Spotted Hyenas with very young pups

It was now time to drive back to Johannesburg airport and say goodbye to Rob. His holiday was complete and he needed to fly back to the UK and return to work. A straightforward journey with some nice scenery to begin with, then turning to a less interesting flat area full of mining operations. It also completed the first part of our stay in South Africa. We had an overnight hotel stay at Johannesburg airport before continuing our travels south (see South Africa 2022 - Drakensberg & Kruger).

Personal Observations & Interesting Facts

Covid-19 in South Africa
During our stay in South Africa we found Covid-19 restrictions were still in place. Before entering any public indoor area you were required to sanitise your hands and wear a face mask at all times, except if you are eating in a restaurant. This was not an issue and seemed very sensible as the virus is still with us and vaccination rates amongst the South African population is lower than ours in the UK.

Pronunciation
We struggled with the pronunciation of the region for our first stay so we asked a local how to say it. Magoebaskloof is pronounced as Ma-huber-klouf.

Mode of Transport
We hired a Nissan X-Trail with 4x4 option for the entirety of the trip. This gave us enough room for 4 adults, luggage and provisions. The 4x4 mode wasn’t needed but we were pleased to have the safeguard.

Our wheels

Weather
In the Magoebaskloof Mountains were lucky to have very little rain, it had been very wet the week before we arrived. Most days were sunny with temperatures ranging from low 20’s C during the day and circa 5-10C at night.
In the Kruger & Hazyview it was sunny every day and a little warmer than in the mountains.

Local People
Meeting local people allows us to better understand the country we are travelling in. Although we don’t seek out interaction we encourage it when it is offered.
Although almost all conversations are informative and interesting, some individuals leave a greater impression than others. During this part of the trip two stand out amongst the others.
People of the small town of Haenertsburg seemed very proud of the environment they lived in and went to great lengths to encourage us to explore the mountains paths around them. Details of where to go, where to park and then enquiring how we enjoyed it, helped us plan the activities during our stay. A waitress took the time to help us pronounce the name of the mountains (see above), even though our attempts were poor and it delayed her.
Then there was Alec at the tyre repair shop in Kruger’s Letaba Camp. Dedicated to get our tyre fixed using only the most basic tools and materials, which initially didn’t fill me with much optimism for success. His workplace was a concrete slab and his tools were basic, looked on their last legs and stored in a plastic shopping bag. Yet he had faith in his ability and equipment and did a job that would see us through the rest of the trip. Even when the first fix wouldn’t hold, our second visit didn’t phase him. He just doubled the size of the hole plug and reluctantly took a small payment, claiming he should have fixed it on the first occasion. We left the camp feeling very grateful for his help and wished we could have done more to show our appreciation, if I could have called in at a hardware store I would have bought him new tools.

Tyre repair

JUNE 2019

After a long drive along the southern coast, we turned north and headed into the Drakensberg area of western Kwazulu Natal. Our first stop was the small town of Howick, an overnight stop before heading into the Drakensberg Mountains. Howick’s claim to fame is that it was the place Nelson Mandala was arrested in 1962 and from which he began his long incarceration. At that time he was on the run from the police, known as the Black Pimpernel and disguised as a driver for a white friend of his.
The next day we travelled west into the southern section of the Drakensberg Mountains and to our base for the next three nights, the little town of Underberg. As is the norm we didn’t go directly there, we sought out a couple of highlights on route.
The first was easy to find, as it was Howick Falls, just on the outskirts of town. Here the Umgeni River falls over 90 meters into a pool below. Legend has it that a massive serpent lurks in that pool, ready to devour any one who gets too close. However, like the Loch Ness monster, no proof of its existence has ever been found and it is believed that it was just a very large river eel that had been spotted. It does have a rather morbid reputation though, as it seems to be a popular place for suicides.

Howick Falls

Howick Falls plaque

Full of enthusiasm after our Howick Falls experience we sought out another falls a bit further away, Albert Falls. This turned out to be not such a success, as we drove round the town of Albert Falls several times before locating the site and then couldn’t go to the actual falls themselves as a traditional ceremony was taking place, well you can’t win them all.
Underberg is a small town at the foot of the Southern Drakensberg Mountains and was an ideal location for us to explore the area. However, it wasn’t the surrounding that caught our attention when we first arrived it was the cold. We had been used to lovely warm weather over in the east, but now at the foot of the mountains it was a different matter. At night the temperature dropped to close on freezing, so a roaring fire was needed in the cottage to keep us warm. By day, once the sun was up, it was pleasantly warm, but it took several hours for the frost to go and for us to venture out from under our bed blankets. Both days we ventured into the foothills, for a short walk on the first day and longer hike on the second. Both days provided stunning scenery and a perfect temperature for hiking.

View over the Drakensberg in Underberg area

View of part of the Drakensberg

Drakensberg Scenery at dusk

Huge herd of cattle going for milking blocking the road. You can see the line going on and on in the back ground

Drakensberg walk near Underberg

Walk in the Drakensberg near Underberg

Hike in the Drakensberg

Our next location was further north and in the Central Drakensberg Mountains. Our base here was a beautiful cottage in the Champagne Valley, about 20km outside the nearest town of Winterton. From the cottage grounds there was a great view across the rolling hills to the Drakensberg Mountains in the distance.

View from the cottage in Central Drakensberg

Our main aim whilst here was to do another mountain hike, and the route to Nandi Falls looked particularly attractive, but first we thought we would have a touristy day. There were lots of things that intrigued us, and all were situated along the Champagne Valley road leading to the mountain. They also didn’t seem to be in keeping with the surroundings, which made them even more interesting.
First stop was Ardmore, the makers of very detailed and colourful ceramics. But not their posh upmarket gallery, that sells items for thousands of pounds to customers all round the world, but to a cottage industry run by some of the original founders (hence still going by the name Ardmore). This famous ceramic’s business started in Winterton, very close to where we are staying, and a few of the original crafts persons still produce items locally. The premises may not be so fancy and the items may not have quite the same finery, but are still very good and are sold at a fraction of the price. We started by looking around the museum then progressed to gallery and finally each made a purchase.

Ardmore Ceramic

Next stop was the Negosie Museum, not well known outside the area, but very interesting none the less. The museum is an old shop displaying items from a bygone era, which brought back many childhood memories.

Inside the Negosie Museum

Negosie Museum in the Champagne Valley

By now we were getting a bit hungry so we moved on to the Village Bakery. Now this is not the small establishment that the name may suggest, but a big building with plenty of parking, a shop, a restaurant and children’s play area. However, we were here just for the bread, which has a very good reputation in the area, but as usual left with more, biscuits and jam this time.
This visit made us even more hungry, but we restrained ourselves and moved on to find our lunch elsewhere. Our next location was a converted aircraft hanger complex with a number of small businesses operating out of the site. Food came first, followed by beer tasting at a local microbrewery, and then finishing off with a bit of shopping for local produce.

Beer tasting in the Champagne Valley

Next day was the more serious, and healthier, business of a hike up into the mountains. We stuck with our plan to hike to Nandi Falls and weren’t disappointed. The start was a descent through woodland, before emerging to great views of Cathedral Peak. We then gradually climbed up a gorge following a river until we reached Nandi Falls. A fine ribbon of water fell from a plateau above us into a pool with a rainbow at its base, a truly beautiful spot. The return journey took us along the bottom of a rock face with nice views across the valley below.

Nandi Falls Walk

Nandi Falls

Nandi Falls

Nandi Falls walk

We decided that after all that exercise we deserved a treat, so called in at the Valley Bakery on our way back for tea and cake.

Continuing north along the Drakensberg Mountain range our final destination was another beautiful cottage just outside the town of Bergville and just inside the Royal Natal National Park protected area. Our cottage sat overlooking a small valley where we regularly spotted Eland (Africa’s largest antelope) on the opposite hilltop. The plan was for two days of hiking and with perfect weather conditions that is exactly what we did.

Our cottage in Northern Drakensberg

During our drive north on the previous day we had encountered a lot of smoke. This was the result of firebreaks being created, and our hope was that this wouldn’t impact on our enjoyment of the area. Fortunately on our first day’s hike the fires were in the distance and not likely to effect us in any way.

Fire break

The mountains seemed to have got more spectacular as we travelled north and as we entered the Royal Natal National Park, the location for our hike, this was even more evident.
Today we had decided to explore the northern section of the park. Our route first took us through forest, following the Mahai River, before emerging at some cascades. It now got much steeper as we continued on to a lookout high up on the mountain slopes. The views from here were magnificent and the flat rock formation was a good place to sit and get our breath back. The hike now levelled out as we passed through more forest, eventually arriving at Tiger Falls. The hiking pamphlet we were following spoke of a magical curtain of water failing from the cliff edge, but today it was more like a dripping tap due to the season and reduced rainfall in the area.

Tiger Falls Walk in the Royal Natal NP

Tiger Falls Walk in the Royal Natal NP

Tiger Falls (not much of a fall)

Baboon encounter on the Tiger Falls Walk in the Royal Natal NP

Our route now began to descend the mountain slope and eventually arrived back at the start. At which time we realised that our timing had been perfect, as smoke from the firebreaks had now engulfed the area we had enjoyed only a few hours earlier.
The hike for the following day was in the southern section and the most iconic part of the park. Iconic because it affords the best views of the incredible amphitheatre, a concave wall of rock that sits on top of the mountain face some 3,000 meters above us.

The Amphitheatre

We started with a gentle but long climb up the Thukela (also known as Tugela) gorge with the amphitheatre becoming ever closer. Our target was not to complete the whole hike, that would take over 6 hours, but to get the best views possible and maybe even see the Thukela (also known as Tugela) Falls. We knew that seeing the falls was a bit of a big ask, as water levels are low this time of year and at best it would just be a dark line down the mountain face. However, it was worth a try as the falls are the second highest in the world, at 948 metres. From our final vantage point and with the use of binoculars we thought we could see them, but with Anne and I pinpointing a different spot on the mountain face we couldn’t be sure. Having enjoyed the fantastic scenery, got a good view of the amphitheatre and maybe seen the falls, we turned around and retraced our steps back to the start.

Ampitheatre walk in Royal Natal NP

View during the Amphitheatre walk in Royal Natal NP

We were now at the end of our first three weeks in South Africa and had to say good-bye to Rob. As unlike us retirees, he had to return to work in the UK, whilst we continued our travels. Therefore we left the Drakensberg Mountains and drove to Johannesburg airport to drop him off, and then overnighted before continuing our journey.

Craft sellers outside the Royal Natal NP

Now just the two of us, our southern Africa journey continued east towards the Mozambique border. Our destination was the town of Nelspruit, the capital town of the Mpumalanga Province. Nelspruit is a busy and relatively prosperous town, due to its administrative functions, farming and magnesium industries, and we were staying just on the outskirts. Our home for the next four days was a one-bedroom cottage set in the most amazing grounds. The property had what is best described, as its own botanical gardens. These spread for several acres over a hill side and provided great views of the valley below and mountains in the distance. The cottage was small but very well fitted; and with the weather so nice we were able to make full use of the outside furniture.

Our accommodation in Nelspruit

Back garden of our accommodation in Nelspruit

Double Collared Sunbird taken from the garden in our Nelspruit Accommodation

Having got behind with our planning and travel admin, this was a great place to catch up. It was also so comfortable that some days we didn’t even go out, just relaxed in the beautiful surrounds. However, we did explore the area a bit, but only a couple of forays to check out the town and a visit to its botanical gardens. With our own botanical gardens on our doorstep we almost didn’t bother with the official one, but were glad we did. The Low Veld Botanical Gardens is located to the north of the town and are dissected by the Crocodile River. Containing most of the local flora it is also home to a wide variety of bird life. We spent a few hours there, exploring the trails and admiring the nature all around us.

Lowveld Botanical Garden in Nelspruit

Purple Turaco in the Lowveld Botanical Garden

Refreshed after our relaxing stay in Nelspruit, we were ready for adventures new, a different country in fact.

Personal Observations & Interesting Facts

Drakensberg Mountains
The Drakensberg Mountains run south to north across eastern South Africa, starting close to the Indian Ocean in the Eastern Cape and ending right up in the north of the Limpopo Province. The range runs for more than 1,000 kilometres, with its highest peaks in the south (several over 3,000 meters) were it forms the border between South Africa and Lesotho. Amongst it’s many amazing features is the Tugela Falls, the second highest waterfall in the world and the highest in Africa, which tumbles of the Lesotho escarpment down into South Africa and eventually forms the Orange River.
However, there is now some debate as to whether the Tugela Falls may actually be the highest in the world. At 948 metres they are only around 30 metres lower than that recorded for the Angel Falls in Venezuela, currently the highest in the world. Due to a potential flaw in the original measurement of the Angel Falls a Dutch geologist believes their true height is in the region of 930 metres, which would make Tugela the highest. For the moment though, the debate continues and it may be some while before it is settled. In fact, such is the effect of climate change; both may dry up before that.

Tagula Falls (courtesy of the internet)

JUNE 2019

After a slow and congested drive from home we finally arrived at Heathrow for our trip to South Africa. Having secured good seats on the plane, the 11-hour flight was reasonably painless. Then with a smooth route through customs and a swift rental car pick-up, we soon found ourselves heading east out of Johannesburg with our destination of Piet Retief only three and a half hours away.
Piet Retief was only an overnighter, to break the journey to St Lucia in the southeast corner of Kwazulu Natal. We (Malc, Anne & Rob) had a comfortable room and had a nice meal in “Munch”, which was all we needed to refresh us for the onward journey the next day. The journey from Johannesburg to Piet Retief was through fairly flat mining and agricultural land, but the route on to St Lucia was much more interesting. The land was more undulating now, as we travelled south through the Zulu heartland with the country border of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) not far to the east. Finally we arrived at the massive iSimangaliso wetlands (see below) and its entrance town of St Lucia. St Lucia, and a very pleasant river front apartment, was the base for our six nights and five-day stay, enough time to fully explore the area.
Most days were spent in the iSimangaliso Park sampling its incredible diverse landscape and watching its varied wildlife. But this wasn’t all game drives, there were short hikes to view points, long sandy beaches and rock pools to discover, plus we got on the water for a lake cruise. The lake cruise was primarily to get up and close to some of the 800 Hippo’s that live in the area but also to spot other lake residents, which include massive Nile Crocodiles, African Fish Eagles, etc.

Cape Vidal Beach

Grey headed gull

A few Cape Buffalo

Walking along Cape Vidal beach

Mission Beach at high tide

iSimangaliso Wetland Park road network

Red Duiker

Male Kudu

Herd of Zebra in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

A tower of Giraffes in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

Trumpeter Hornbill

Crowned Hornbill

Zebras

Dragonfly

Caution signs

View of Lake St Lucia

View from top of viewing tower in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

White Rhino in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

One of many Rock pools on Mission Beach

Mission Rock Beach at low tide

Warthog greeting

View over iSimangaliso Wetland Park

African Fish Eagle

Cruise boat in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

happy Hippo

Hidding Hippo

Alpha male of the hippo pool yawning

Sunset and Hippo pool

Hippo taking to the water

Our next location was just a one-hour drive from St Lucia. Our route took us past small towns and villages and required a high degree of concentration to avoid the goats and cattle that wondered into the road without warning. All successfully negotiated we arrived at our next destination; South Africa’s oldest protected area, the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park. Covering an area of almost 100,000 hectares, the park is home to some of Africa’s most endangered and iconic wildlife, which was immediately obvious as we were greeted by a couple of Elephants at the entrance gate.

First sighting of Elephant at iMfolozi entrance gate

The Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park was once two parks but is now joined by a wildlife corridor to create its current form. We had four nights in the park, first staying in the iMfolozi section then moving to Hluhluwe. Our stay in iMfolozi was at a bush camp called Mpila and in a nice self-catering cottage with views over the surrounding landscape.

View over iMfolozi

Blue Wax Bill

Colourful lizard

Being a bush camp meant there were no fences so we had to be mindful of what could walk through the camp at any time. During our stay we only had Impala, Warthog and Vervet Monkeys for company, but some guests had encountered Hyena’s trying to steal meat from their Braai (BBQ). Our two days in iMfolozi was spent doing self-guided game drives along the gravel tracks that provided access to some parts of the park. The weather was great, albeit a bit nippy early in the morning; the scenery stunning and the wildlife sightings pretty good. It was nice to spend time with some of our favourite African creatures and especially good when an African Painted Dog (formally African Wild Dog) tolerated our company for about 20 minutes whilst he selected his dinner for that evening. African Painted Dogs are a rare sighting (they are on the critically endangered list) and normally found in packs, but this one was on its own, so we assumed he was acting as a scout for the rest.

Giraffe

Glossy Starling

Male Impala

Female Impala

White Rhino

Sleeping White Rhino

White Rhino relaxing by a mud hole in iMfolozi Park

Male Babboon

Mouse Birds

Blue Wildebeast

View of the river iMfolozi

Painted Dog in iMfolozi

Painted Dog in iMfolozi

Painted Dog in iMfolozi

Painted Dog in iMfolozi

Painted Dog in iMfolozi

Our two days flashed by and we were on the move again, but only into the other side of the park. Our next two nights were at the Hilltop Camp in the Hluhluwe section. Hilltop is a fenced camp with more facilities, restaurant, etc., and our accommodation was in a split-level house with magnificent views from our windows and terrace. Although fenced, Nyala, Impala, Baboon, and Vervet Monkeys still seemed to find their way into the compound.

Vervet Monkey on our balcony

Sunset from our balcony in Hluhluwe Park

Our accommodation (third chalet on the right) in Hluhluwe park

View over Hluhluwe

Activities here were pretty similar to iMfolozi, with plenty of game drives amongst the beautiful wildlife and in more amazing scenery. Again the gravel roads gave us access to a reasonable amount of the park, but we were glad we had hired a high clearance vehicle, as some sections were quite tough to negotiate. All in all it was a very enjoyable stay, but especially memorable for a 24hour period right near the end (see below).

White Rhino at water hole

White Rhino scratching an hitch on a log

Red Billed Oxpecker

Cape Buffalo

Blue Wildebeest

Hluhluwe View

Black-Tip Mangose

Elephant at water hole

Giraffe on the road in Hluhluwe

Elephant drinking at water hole in Hluhluwe

White Backed Vulture

Sadly our time in the park was now over and we were off on fresh and very different adventures. We now travelled right across to the other side of the state and to the Drakensberg Mountains (see Western Kwazulu Natal Blog).

Personal Observations & Interesting Facts

South Africa and the State of Kwazulu Natal
The Province of Kwazulu Natal sits on the eastern side of South Africa and is about the size of Portugal. Kwazulu means the place of the Zulu people and Natal is the name of the old province that once occupied part of the area. To the south the land falls away into the Indian Ocean and is the location of its biggest city, that of Durban. To the west it buffs up against the Drakensberg Mountains, with peaks of over 3,000 meters. To the east it borders the countries of Eswatini and Mozambique and to the north can be found South Africa’s largest city Johannesburg.

iSimangaliso Wetland Park
The park is situated on the east coast of Kwazulu Natal and runs almost from the Mozambique border in the north to the St Lucia estuary in the south. It is South Africa’s third largest protected area, covering 3,280km2, and became its first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1999, because of its rich biodiversity. The area combines lakes, rivers, open plains, forest, dunes and the Indian Ocean coast, to provided a home for a great variety of flora and fauna.

Rhino Crisis
The population of the African Rhino species, along with their Asian cousins, has plummeted by over 90% in the last century. Now, with the exception of the African White Rhino, all are on the verge of extinction. A few decades ago the population of African White (but not the northern sub-species) and Black Rhino’s had stabilised and was beginning to increase. But in recent years this trend has taken a massive turn for the worse. Today, approximately three Rhino’s a day are poached to feed the insatiable Chinese and Vietnamese appetite for Rhino horn. And this is even with the vast increase in Anti-Poaching units that now patrol African parks. With Rhino horn more valuable than gold the poaching operations are very well funded and heavily armed. This makes the job of the Anti-Poaching units very dangerous with many individuals losing their lives.
So what can be done? Most importantly, change the mind of the consumer. Buyers in China and Vietnam believe that Rhino horn is the cure for many ailments, none of which have any scientific proof. In fact, the demand is so great at the moment; most of the Rhino horn in circulation isn’t Rhino at all, its ground Water Buffalo horn sold as Rhino, further disproving the medicinal claims. But until the consumers see sense, interim measures are being put in place to deter the poachers. These deterrents come in many forms; the one chosen by the iSimangaliso Park is de-horning, whilst the Hluhluwe- iMfolozi Park with its more sophisticated Anti-Poaching operation, was able to avoid this. These are amongst many drastic actions being taken throughout South Africa to ward off the extinction of Rhino in the wild, but all have their drawbacks and none are considered ideal.
To understand the plight of the Rhino more fully, the film documentary “Stoop” is a must watch.

White Rhino de-horned in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

White Rhino with his horns in iMfolozi

Beautiful White Rhino with Horn in iMfolozi

White Rhino in iMfolozi

A very memorable 24 hours
It all started with a night drive, this time organised by the camp and with a driver/guide (you are not allowed to self-drive in the park after dark), and it was only Malc and Rob, as Anne didn’t fancy the cold, which is guaranteed in the back of an open 4x4 when the sun goes down. The drive was fantastic, with some great sighting of nocturnal activity, that was until an incident right near the end and with the camp in sight.
We had just passed a very large single tusked bull Elephant walking along the edge of the road in the opposite direction, when we realised another large bull (with both tusks) was coming down the road towards us, The guide soon realised that these two were in the process of having a fight, and when the first bull turned around, knew we were now in the middle of it. With an aggressive Elephant in front of us and one behind, it looked like we would be squashed in the middle. The guide decided that the only course of action was to get off the road into the bush, but not too far as the ground fell away steeply, and hope that the Elephants would ignore us. This worked to an extent, but neither bulls were happy with our presence, both in turn getting very close to the Land Cruiser, with their tusks almost touching the roof, ears flapping aggressively and their breath wafting all around us. We thought any minute now we are going to be tipped over or crushed. At this stage the guide radioed the camp for help, and in a few minutes another Land Cruiser arrived on the scene. After a bit of a stand off, a lot of engine revving and Elephant trumpeting, the Elephants were persuaded to leave the area and disaster was averted. Back at the camp, shaken but not stirred, we relayed the story to Anne, who had heard the commotion form our terrace but couldn’t see the action because of the dark.
The following morning started in a similar fashion to the ones that had gone before, an early morning game drive followed by a late breakfast. But what was not normal was the smoke that started to appear from the hillside woodland about 200 meters below our house. That smoke then began to spread across the hillside with flames becoming very visible. We considered preparing for evacuation, but because the staff attending the fire seemed pretty relaxed by the whole situation, we decided it wasn’t anything to be concerned about. We watched men in yellow jackets with water tanks on their back spraying the burnt ground (a very similar arrangement to a weed killer unit used in Europe) and assumed the fire was under control. Fortunately by early afternoon the flames and smoke had disappeared and all was back to normal. This was our queue to go out for the second game drive of the day.

Fire in front of chalet

A few hours later we were back, very pleased with our sightings and ready to relax before dinner. However, it wasn’t long before we heard rumblings and tree branches breaking just outside the house. Then, low and behold two young bull Elephants appeared, in what was effectively, our back garden. They progressed to eat the tall grass and young trees right outside our bedroom window and provided us with a great view from our terrace. It was a wonderful and rare experience to see wild Elephants at such close range and with the safety of a solid elevated viewpoint.

Elephant in our "back garden"

Elephant in our "back garden"

Elephant in our "back garden"

Elephant in our "back garden"

But our wildlife close up encounters hadn’t finished yet. Whilst viewing the Elephants from our terrace we were joined by a couple of inquisitive Vervet Monkeys, never getting too close just looking for food. What was more of an issue was the large male Baboon who wanted to also get in on the action. So we had to chase them all away before going back into the house, the Elephants had now moved on. But that wasn’t the end of it, the Vervet Monkeys were soon back and looking in through our glass door. This we ignored, until they started to pull on the door handle. Fortunately we had locked the door, otherwise we would have had two unwanted guests running riot inside the house.

Vervet Monkey at our window

From then on things returned to normality, but left us with a very memorable 24 hours.

OCTOBER 2017 – JANUARY 2018

From the Cederberg Mountains we headed south and back into the northerly section of South Africa’s Western Cape wine region. Our destination was the historic town of Tulbagh and our accommodation was in a farm cottage just outside of town. With the exception of our first day, our stay in Tulbagh was pretty relaxed. A gentle hike through an apricot orchard in the foothills of the Witzenberg Mountains occupied one day, exploring Tulbagh’s historic Church Street another and a day doing nothing completed the local activities.

Tullbagh Mountain

Hiking in Tullbagh Mountain via Apricot Orchard

Tullbagh Historical main street

Drying apricot in Tullbagh area

Looking for shade in really hot place Tullbagh

So back to that busy first day. You may recall from the previous blog, that Anne’s camera had stopped working and that Olympus Customer Services were looking for a solution. Well, part of that solution was to deliver the camera to an Olympus agent in Cape Town, for them to send it off for repair. So our busy first day was a trip to Cape Town and back, almost 300km and 4hrs driving. We had the address and it was in central Cape Town, this first meant negotiating the traffic congestion then finding a parking space. This achieved, we made our way to the shop, only to find that customs issues would prevent them helping us. So, disappointed we retraced our steps back to Tulbagh and contacted Olympus again to find another solution.

From Tulbagh it was a shortish drive southeast to our next destination of Montagu. Tucked away in a valley amongst the Langeberg Mountains, Montagu is an attractive town full of historic buildings. Our accommodation for the 5-night stay was in one such building, a small but beautifully presented thatched cottage, not dissimilar to the one we had in McGregor. Montagu was ideal for us, the cottage was comfortable and allowed us to self-cater, the town had good amenities and the Montagu Mountain Reserve was 1km away, which offered plenty of hiking opportunities. Needless to say we hiked almost every day, once through a river gorge, once into the heart of the Montagu Mountains and once to a viewpoint overlooking the town. Because of the heat, all these hikes were done in the early morning, leaving the rest of the day to relax or do some of those admin jobs that are essential for this kind of lifestyle. I had to do my online tax return one afternoon, a simple exercise, once you manage to acquire all the various codes needed to access the forms.

Badskloof Trail in Montegu

View of Montegu from Nature Garden

Hiking in Montagu mountains

Blue House Montegu

Very steep walk worth the effort for this pretty waterfall

Montagu Mountain Reserve

Five nights was just about right for Montagu, we loved every minute, but it was time to move on. So we did, next stop Swellendam. A little house on the outskirts of town would be home over the Christmas period; the hosts even put a Christmas tree in it for us. Our time in the area followed a common pattern for us, a couple of visits to the Bontebok National Park (one hike, one drive) and a hike in the Marloth Nature Reserve kept us amused. We did however follow tradition on Christmas Day, eating and drinking too much, and watching a lot of TV.

Our lovely accommodation in Swellendam

Local Wildlife

Bontebok NP

Still in the winelands, we next headed west back towards Cape Town to the village of Franschhoek. An enjoyable drive, avoiding the N1, took in some spectacular scenery, cumulating in the accent and decent over the Franschhoek Pass. Franschhoek is a very smart and a moneyed type of place. It was definitely the most touristy we had been in since we left Hermanus, at the start of the trip. Our accommodation for the first few nights was about 10km out of the village, at the Bellingham Homestead. We had a room in a converted period manor house, dating back to the 18th century, with a two century old Sumatran four-poster bed to sleep in. The manor house was set in 5.5 acres of manicured gardens, which would have been beautiful if it wasn’t for the flies, which in turn was within the grounds of the posh Anthonij Rupert Wine Estate. We had to go through the estate security gate to get in and out each day.

Bellhingham Homestead

Bellingham Homestead Wineyard

Franschhoek Lavender field

Our bed, a 18th Century from Sumatra a gift to the King from France supposedly

Apart from a shopping trip to Somerset West (Anne’s iPad had died on us so we went to try and get a replacement – no luck unfortunately) our activities were as usual, hiking in the surrounding countryside. Now I am sure everyone reading this will say not another hike he is raving about, but this one does deserve a mention. It was in the Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve, just outside Franschhoek, about 10km long and called the Uitkyk Trail. The trail started at the Reserve office, already spectacular as it is situated at the top of the Franschhoek Pass, then winds up into the Franschhoek Mountains. At about one third distance it branches off into a hidden valley full of Fynbos (flora endemic to the area), at which point the only sounds we could hear were the birds above our head, the baboons on the hill side and the gravel beneath our boots. We continued to climb up into the valley (very hot now, as we were sheltered from the wind), following the Perdekloof Stream until we reached the Uitkyk summit. And the summit view was the icing on the cake; incredible views of the secluded Wemmershoek Valley lay before us. And what made it even better was that we had it to ourselves, the early start paid dividends.

Uitkyk Trail Mt Rochelle Nature Reserve

Hiking on the Uitkyk trail in Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve

Meeting with local on the Uitkyk Trail

Uitkyk Trail end at a magnificent view point

Uitkyk Trail end

On our way back from the Uitkyk Trail

Vista Trail Mt Rochelle Nature Reserve

Early View of Franschhoek Valley from Mt Rochelle

After leaving the Bellingham Homestead we remained in Franschhoek, but this time in the village. Some friends we had met almost a year ago in Chile, Neil and Nikki, had invited us to go and stay with them for a few days, an offer we gladly accepted. They were at the end of an incredible one-year journey that had taken them from Cape Horn (at the bottom of South America) to the Cape of Good Hope (at the bottom of Africa). A journey that they had done by land mostly, through South America, North America, Asia (mainly Russia), North to South Europe and then North to South Africa (missing some of the dodgy parts). To celebrate that achievement they had rented a villa in Franschhoek and invited friends and family to join them, luckily for us not everyone could make it so there was room for us to. What then followed was five very enjoyable days socialising and having fun with 11 people we had never met before (we had only met Neil and Nikki briefly in Chile), but were good friends by the time we left. Our stay with them coincided with New Year, so that was a good occasion to get to know each other and celebrate together. We also hiked together, explored the wine estates together and were all there to see Neil and Nikki cross the finishing line at the Cape of Good Hope.

King (or Giant Protea) the South Africa official Flower

Hottentot Holland Nature Reserve

Hiking in the Hottentot Holland Nature Reserve

Posh Place where we had a great time with Friends in Franschhoek

Preparing for the Festin du Nouvel An

Time to eat all the food

CapetoCape at Cape of Good Hope their final destination

Our journey continued from Franschhoek on to the sleepy coastal village of Betty’s Bay. Here we had rented a house up in the hills, with views of the ocean from the front and the mountains from the back. It seemed very quiet after the villa, just the two of us, not thirteen. Although we both agreed that, as much as we love just being the two of us, being with other people did us good and was very enjoyable. Maybe we were also lucky that they were such a good crowd.
We had a week in Betty’s Bays, to the surprise of many locals, but it had been planned to be one of our chill-out stops, and that what is was. Most of the time we spent relaxing on the balcony admiring the view, as well as getting a few admin jobs out the way. But it wasn’t all down time; we did get out and explore the area on foot and by car. One such occasion turned out to be very memorable.
The day was cool, after the previous day’s rain, so we decided to go for a hike. Our location choice was the Kogelberg Nature Reserve and the route was the Palmiet River Trail. It was a beautiful hike alongside the Palmiet River with mountains towering above us on all sides. The outwards section of the hike took us along the river edge with the return section along a jeep track about 100m above the river. It was along the jeep track that we had an encounter that will stay with us forever. Unbeknown to us, just on the edge of the track lay a Cape Cobra. It wasn’t until it reared up, with hood spread wide and hissing that we knew of its presence. It was on my side, so I jumped away quickly shouting “Oh my goodness”, or something similar, whilst the snake returned to the ground and slide of into the undergrowth. In the end it was quite an amazing experience, as none of us got hurt and we got a very good sighting of a Cape Cobra in the wild. Another one to add to our dangerous snake encounters list (more of that & Cape Cobra facts below).

View from our accommodation in Bettys Bay

Kogelberg Nature Reserve

Protea

Palmiet River

Dragonfly Gold

Dragonfly Red

Dragonfly Yellow

hiking in Bettys Bay Area

View of Bettys Bay

Cape Cobra - as seen on our hike in the Kogelberg Nature Reserve

Our final stop before returning home was in the heart of Cape Town. Here we had a small but comfortable loft apartment, with panoramic views over the V&A Waterfront out the front and Table Mountain out the side windows. The first thing we noticed, although not intrusive, was the noise. We had been in quiet remote places for most of our stay in South Africa, so it was a change to hear city noise.
Although we were in the city centre, it was relatively easy to get out of town to the attractions on the city boundaries. This meant that we had a mix of activities, in and out of town. A visit to the V&A Waterfront one day.

Unusual advertising in Cape Town, the Q is do you think it is in order of importance?

Waterfront Cape Town

Street Musicians in Cape Town

Nelson Mandela

A hike in the Cape of Good Hope National Park the next.

Olifantsbos Bay - Table Mountain National Park (Cape of Good Hope Region)

Chacma Baboons feeding on shellfish (a behaviour believed unusual in primates) at Olifantsbos Bay

Chacma Baboon feeding on shellfish at Olifantsbos Bay

Female Chacma Baboon with baby

Bontebok feeding near the oceans edge

Rock arch on the Olifantsbos circular hike

Followed by a plateau walk on Table Mountain

Table Mountain Cable Car

View from the Table Mountain plateau - circa 1000m above sea level

View from the Table Mountain plateau

View from the Table Mountain plateau

View from the Table Mountain plateau

View from the Table Mountain plateau

Rock Hyrax on Table Mountain plateau

Table Mountain plateau flora

View from the Table Mountain plateau

View from the Table Mountain plateau

View from the Table Mountain plateau

Table Mountain from Bloubergstrand

and a finally few self guided city walks to explore Cape Town’s hidden secrets.

Prestwich Memorial, the bones of Cape Town's forgotten dead

Historic Tram Tracks the remainder of an almost forgotten transport network started running in 1863 and used until 1930

The Slave Church Museum South Africa oldest mission church were missionaries came to educate not preach religion to the black community

Mullets Optometrists South Africa first Optometrist housed in a beautiful Art Deco building

We are still here memorial to destitute children

Each plaque contains the destitute child details and a request from family to reclaim the child within 6 weeks of the add. If not the child future didn't look bright (semi enslavement)

We Are Still Here memorial A mosaic memorial to destitute children of Cape Town

Wooden Cobbles dating back more than 150 years

Jetty 1

Breakwater Prison Treadmil

Then this amazing journey was over and we caught our flight back to the UK, to start the next adventure.

V&A Waterfront with Table Mountain backdrop

Personal Observations & Interesting Facts

Supermarkets
During our stay in the Eastern and Western Capes of South Africa, we have found the supermarkets to be not dissimilar to those in the UK. However, one thing that did stand out as a difference was their product display policy. In the UK, and throughout most of Europe, complementary products are displayed together. This is not necessary the case in South Africa. Shelf space is at a premium so every gap must be filled. This results in some unusual combinations, we have found pasta with the toiletries and hair products with the tinned fruit. At least this makes you visit all the aisles, not just where you might expect to find the product you want.

Christmas
Christmas is celebrated in South Africa just the same as in the UK, but not with the commercial overkill. You see a few Christmas promotions in the supermarket, but more as a reminder than a ploy to make you buy more than you need. There are no Christmas trees or lights in public places, which would probably seem out of place anyway. And there is no Christmas orientated advertisements on TV, this is especially noticeable by the lack of advertisements targeted at children. It’s all quite refreshing really; back to the old values of Christmas dare I say? (Especially as I am one of the least Christmassy people you can meet). Oh, but there still is Christmas music playing everywhere, so they haven’t got it totally right yet.

Hitch Hiking
Hitch Hiking is illegal on major roads in South Africa, and there is a road sign to indicate this. However, on minor hitching a lift is allowed. The usual method is to stand by the side of the road, extend one arm with a hand displaying a thumb whilst using the other to display a 20 rand note (just over one pound sterling).

TV Bleeps
The use of the word “God” is taken very seriously in South Africa (“thaw shall not take the lords name in vein”, sort of thing). This is followed through on TV programs aired. For example, you will hear “Oh my bleep” or “For bleep sake” or “Bleep only knows”, which on some occasions can become a bit annoying.

Water Shortage
The Western Cape, and in particular the Cape Town area, have a severe water shortage. Poor winter rains for the past three years have left the reservoirs very low and with demand rising all the time, the situation has got serious. We passed one of the major Cape reservoirs in the area, on our way to Franschhoek, and it was only 22% full. There is a possibility that water will have to be tankered into Cape Town by February 2018 if the imposed restrictions don’t work.

Reservoir almost empty

The Cape Cobra and Dangerous snake encounters
The Cape Cobra is a large venomous snake with frontal fangs and can grow to a length of about 1.5m. It lives predominately in the Western Cape but can be found much further afield in South Africa. It is active during the day and generally preys on rodents.
Only about 10% of the 151 snake species found in Southern Africa are dangerous to humans. Very few human deaths from snakebite are recorded annually in Southern Africa, with a figure of around 10 fatalities per annum usually quoted. Most of these deaths are caused by bites from Cape Cobras and Black Mambas.

During our many years of travelling, we have encountered dangerous snakes on three occasions.
The first was in Swaziland, where we inadvertently crossed the path of a Black Mamba. It reared up, looked very displeased, but fortunately went on its way.
The second occasion was in the Amazon Jungle where we were staying with a local tribe. This time it was a Fer de Lance (the most venomous South American snake), which had come into our shower through the floorboards. Unfortunately our hosts had to kill it, otherwise it would keep returning.
The third occasion was of course today, with our Cape Cobra encounter.

Table Mountain
This iconic backdrop to Cape Town was voted one of the “New 7 Wonders of Nature” in 2011, a title it truly deserves. Table Mountain was formed by igneous and glacier action about 520 million years ago, making 6 times older than the Himalayas and one the oldest mountains in the world. The Khoi/San, the original inhabitants of the region, named it “Hoerikwaggo” meaning “Mountain of the Sea”, but its modern name originates from its flat top.
The mountain’s famous tablecloth is a meteorological phenomenon that causes cloud to tumble down the mountain slopes like billowing fabric. The Khoi/San thought this to be the mantis god pulling an animal pelt down to extinguish mountain fires.
At its highest point, it is 1,085m above sea level (Maclear’s Beacon – the focus of our recent hike). The flattish top is accessed, either by a step climb up its side or by a cable car. The cable car was installed in 1929 and an estimated 26 million people have used it to date.
At the top, provided there is no tablecloth, you have magnificent 360-degree views over Cape Town and the surrounding area. A must for anyone visiting Cape Town.