Eastern Cape Archives - Page 5 of 6

FRIENDLY STRANGER

In a previous life the premises was a small surfboard factory, but was given a new life and was turned into a popular eatery situated in the friendly city of Port Elizabeth away from the tourist strip. That is what makes it so nice to visit – you meet the friendly citizens of The Bay while having breakfast or lunch or a beer or whatever you fancy at that moment. My daughter took me for an early Sunday breakfast and what a nice surprise! The mixed décor creates a fantastic relaxed atmosphere to create just the right mood to have something delicious from the varied menu. A first for me was the “craft” juice – something to the likes of craft beer, but a healthier option. But do not forget that they also serve some craft beer here! This is not just a coffee shop but much more. It was… Read more >

LONG AND WINDING ROADS

It was already late in the afternoon when we left home base on 31 December 2013 with our bikes to spend New Year’s eve somewhere in the quiet Karoo. The road will lead us to Rietbron. As everyone was heading for the coast the roads were busy, but luckily we were heading in the opposite direction to Rietbron – never been there before, so we did not know what to expect! Our first break was in the beautiful Meiringspoort. It was hot. Time for a drinks and smoke break while taking a short breather. Soon after exiting the poort we turned right and were on the back roads of the Karoo. No traffic and only silence. A 100 kilometers of gravel roads lay ahead of us before we reached Rietbron. It started off with a nice gravel ride with views over the wide open veld . Further into the ride… Read more >

THE FOREST VILLAGE

Hubby spoiled me with a quick, but welcome, road trip while he was on his home break from his bush work somewhere in Africa. We zippied along the N2 in the Garden Route and through the green Tsitsikamma forests to the adrenaline filled little village of Storms River situated halfway between Port Elizabeth and George. Walking in the village you cannot imagine that yellowwood was actually used for railway sleepers in this forest community in the early 1800’s. At the turn of the 1800’s Frank Mangold purchased several properties in the village and built a house and established several other businesses. Today there are still not a lot of businesses in the sleepy village, but if you are an adrenaline junky this is the place to do a canopy tour and maybe catch a glimpse of the rare Knysna Loerie with its reds wings gliding from tree to tree or… Read more >

SANCCOB PORT ELIZABETH (PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS SAMREC)

SAMREC (SA Marine Rehabilitation and Education Centre) is Port Elizabeth’s marine rehabilitation centre situated in the Cape Recife Nature Reserve. At the centre you can interact with some African penguins, (also known as the jackass penguin and black-footed penguin) a ganet and cormorant or whatever type of bird that they rescue and is on the road to recovery. Once extremely numerous, the African penguin is declining in numbers due to a combination of threats and is classified as endangered. (In fact more endangered than our precious rhinos). Penguins mate for life and they recognize each other according to the amount of black spots on their chests – it works something like the human’s fingerprints – not one penguin’s marking is the same than the next one. Penguins have an average life span of 10 to 27 years, but in captivity they easily reach the age of 30. The African penguin is only found… Read more >

GRYSBOK TRAIL @ NMMU

It was an early rise and shine on a Saturday morning for a walk on the Grysbok trail. The whole of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) campus was declared a Private Nature Reserve in 1983. The 830 ha is dominated by the St Francis Dune Thicket vegetation. This fynbos vegetation is highly threatened due to agricultural clearing and coastal development. Despite some problems with invasive Australian Acacias the vegetation is in very good condition. The trail meanders through the reserve, providing opportunities for observing the exciting fauna and flora of the area. Do take time to visit the reserve on different times of the year to experience the whole spectrum of the flora and fauna. There are two trail options that can be walked, a 3.2 km or a 2.5 km loop. Both trails cover relatively flat terrain and are suitable for moderately fit people and no bundu… Read more >

MAZEPPABAAI, TRANSKEI

Hierdie naweek gaan ons Mazeppabaai toe! Waar is dit sal jy my vra? Kom ek neem jou op my reis. Laataand pak ons die bakkie en vat die pad met ‘n nodige padkossie, maak ‘n vinnige slapie in Port Elizabeth by ons dogter, dan weer vroeg die volgende oggend in die pad, want jy sien ‘n mens ry nie na donker in die Transkei nie. Op die pad na Mazeppa trotseer jy baie dinge – beeste, varke kinders, hoenders, bokke, onpadwaardige voertuie en onverskillige bestuurders – maar so elke nou en dan vir ‘n vlietende oomblik bewonder ons die mooi natuurskoon van die Oos-Kaap. Vroegoggend is die verkeer nie te sleg nie met die gevolg dat ons bietjie te vroeg in King Williams Town gaan wees vir ontbyt. Soooo, dit beteken ons kan ‘n geocache of twee voor ontbyt inpas! Ons eerste geocache vat ons na die ou staalbrug oor… Read more >

A WALK IN ST GEORGE’S PARK

Today we opted to walk instead of drive in our exploring stint. A leisurely afternoon stroll (actually in search of a geocache) took us to the historic St George’s Park and surroundings to learn and appreciate a bit of history. Our first stop was at the historic Port Elizabeth Cricket Club (PECC) which was established in 1859 where a club match was underway. The grounds boast a couple of unique achievements such as: being the second oldest cricket club in South Africa; being the venue for the first cricket test the first women’s international Test the last Test before South Africa was expelled from world cricket the first ever test series win against Australia the first Rebel test was played here and last but not least it is the sixth oldest cricket ground in the world In 2003 it was only the second season that PECC and Crusaders Rugby Club… Read more >

Tag Archive: Eastern Cape