While we were getting ready to leave the Prince Albert Olive farm we started chatting to our neighbouring campers, Bool and Sam Smuts who run the Landmark Foundation www.facebook.com/LandmarkFoundation . This is a Non-Governmental Organisation involved with predator conservation and they were in the area after collaring and releasing a male leopard captured on a nearby farm. It was most interesting but also depressing to learn that the majority of livestock farmers still employ lethal methods of predator control. In fact there is a factory in Prince Albert that still produces gin traps and poison!
After lunch at the CaféPhotoAlbert restaurant we were ready to leave town. We enjoyed our stay but were eager to get going again.
The first part of the trip took us through the spectacular Meiringspoort. Yes, more of the Swartberg Mountains, much to our enjoyment.
About halfway through the Poort there is an interpretave centre and a walk up to the Main Waterfall, just before Waterval Drift. It was absolutely amazing, with a plunge pool of note!
We stopped at the Oudshoorn Airfield to visit our friend Robin who was there at the time, after which we continued to Calitzdorp for the night. The campsite is at the old railway station and is disappointingly not in very good repair. We were not too fussed though as all we needed was a spot to park for the night.
Our destination for the next day was the Anysberg Nature Reserve in the Little Karoo which is also an IBA. En route we had the opportunity to have a good look at an immature Verreaux’s Eagle sitting on a hilltop. It was really far but I was lucky enough to get a picture.
The Anysberg Nature Reserve lies between the towns of Ladismith, Touwsrivier and Montagu. The scenery is typically Karoo with vast open spaces, beautiful night skies and amazing tranquillity.
We had to get to Cape Town for a flight back to Jo’burg and could only stay for one night. Fortunately the road went all the way through the reserve so we did not have to backtrack.
We were very interested to see random areas in the landscape that were covered with, or contained, stark white rocks and pebbles. On closer inspection these seemed to be quartz and had interesting succulents growing amongst the pebbles.
We did not see many animals, but it is such a vast area that it is quite easy to miss anything that is not close to the road at the time one passes by.
After all this time of just us and open space it was rather a shock to get to Sir Laurie’s pass. It was Sunday late afternoon at the end of the holiday period and everyone was heading home!
We survived and got to Ongegund Estate in Somerset West at around 17h45. The farm belongs to Gey van Pittious whom we met in Port Alfred. He kindly offered for us to leave Ufudu and the trailer there while we come back to Johannesburg and we gladly accepted. It solved a huge problem of storage and security and we are very thankful indeed.
Autumn has arrived in the Cape and we were rather chilly after the warm weather in the Karoo! We slept in the visitor’s parking area for the night and moved Ufudu to a more discreet space the next day before going to Cape Town International airport.
We arrived home in Rosebank just before 18h00 on the 5th of May.
Meiringspoort mountains are awesome I agree, but the pic of your Ufudu at the Anysberg campsite is amazing as the mountains in the background are even more beautiful. Love these posts xxxxxx