Blue Cape, White Waters & Red Dunes

[xelas]

Plenty of long, straight, empty roads also in this part of South Africa. My preferred TA lives in Hermanus; one day I will need to visit her.

@@michael-ibk , you looked quite fit at the biginning of this trip. Will you post one of your photos also from the end of the trip ?

@@AndMic you came well equipped only a good Tilley hat is missing. Maybe next trip?

[elefromoz]

 

@@xelas

@@michael-ibk , you looked quite fit at the biginning of this trip. Will you post one of your photos also from the end of the trip.

We have a saying in Australia "what goes on on tour, stays on tour".

@@michael-ibk, lovely flowers and Sunbirds, the Capetown area looks very pretty.

[xyz99]

I am so jealous....all we got at Kirstenbosch was mist and rain. Ohhh, and wind, of course. Still beautiful, but few birds, and not even one sunbird

[Alexander33]

@@michael-ibk

 

Michael, I'm glad to hear that Kirstenbosch got under your skin, as we say, just as it did mine. I could go back again and again just for the proteas, the sunbirds and the gorgeous surroundings. We spent almost a full day there, and I still wasn't ready to leave.

 

Even though the Cape Point tour can be kind of touristy and sometimes a bit crowded, I think it falls into the "must do" category, even if it is only the one time. You truly did get some beautiful weather, and I'm glad you mentioned the food in Cape Town. I could eat my weight in seafood there!

[Peter Connan]

@@michael-ibk, beautiful photos from Kirstenbosch and everywhere else, but that Familiar Chat! What a photo!

 

@@michael-ibk and @@Chakra, unfortunately I have never known why this is our national bird. I suspect it is only because this is probably our largest endemic (or at least nearly so) bird.

 

For me it is a very telling commentary on our priorities that we seem to be allowing our national bird to die out, with little attempt to prevent it's passing...

[Marks]

Beautiful work with the sunbirds!

[Kitsafari]

Your bird and flower pictures look really sumptious. Kirstenbosh gardens looks beautiful. After seeing your pix, I kinda regret I didn't do a morning trip for it but I just wanted to chill and take it slow and easy around the hotel, which I really did and enjoyed.

 

I'll save it for the next trip!

 

And Hi @@AndMic!

 

 

As always, a lot of them will be by secret lurker @AndMic . Say Hi, Andreas!

 

Hi !!!

 

[Treepol]

@@michael-ibk I'm just catching up with your TR this afternoon. The seal at the Waterfront made me smile as he looks so laid back.

 

Looks like you had near perfect weather for Cape Point - great photo of the sunbird and one of my favourites, a striped mouse. I think the Chapman's Peak road is one of the greatest scenic drives in the world and your photos certainly do it justice. Looks like you had a busy visit to Kirstenbosch, I agree that the backdrop is spectacular and its an excellent location for 'botanical birding'.

 

How were the breakfasts at Blackheath, and what plans is Anthony curently working on?

 

 

[screentraveller]

Cape Bounting: a wonderful portrait of a bird

[TonyQ]

Lovely photos- beautiful landscapes.

You certainly make the Botanical Gardens at Kirstenbosch look very appealing - those sunbirds are stunning.

[AKR1]

Michael,

 

Great report and pictures. Brings back lovely memories of the week we spent in the Cape Town after my very first safari a decade ago. Look forward to following along with you.

[SafariChick]

@@michael-ibk just finishing the Cape Town part, and this is totally taking me back to our trip in 2012 when we spent four days in Cape Town. We had one day of rain - you were lucky with the weather! We did most of the same things, though we didn't go to the Gold Club - thought about it though! I love the penguins and especially the one by the cars! And the seal in the tire is amazing! Looking forward to the rest.

[penolva]

@@michael-ibk Kirkenbosch gardens were on our list to visit before we head to the West Coast NP. After seeing your beautiful photographs, and those from @@Chakra we will definitely be going. Our last night is in a SANPARKS chalet at Cape Agulhas so also glad about that. Loving your trip report. Pen

[michael-ibk]

Many thanks, @@Safaridude , @@xyz99 , @@Chakra , @@xelas , @@elefromoz , @@Alexander33 , @@Peter Connan , @@Marks , @@Kitsafari , @@Treepol , @@screentraveller , @@TonyQ , @@AKR1 , @@SafariChick and @@penolva !

 

We really enjoyed Cape Town and surroundings, it is a fantastic place with tons of things to do. The reputation as "one of the most beautiful cities in the world" is well deserved. We are thankful the weather was cooperating - it was cold, misty and raining heavily when we would return to Cape Town (just to overnight before our flight North) two days later, and our stay would have been much less enjoyable under those conditions for sure.

 

 

 

Our last night is in a SANPARKS chalet at Cape Agulhas so also glad about that.

 

Pen, I think you will like those. Dantes said the accommodations there are his favourite Sanparks chalets, and I think he knows them all.

 

 

 

How were the breakfasts at Blackheath, and what plans is Anthony curently working on?

 

Anthony did not say anything about his plans, sorry. Breakfasts were outstanding, I particularly enjoyed the varied choice of fresh fruits and those oven-fresh bakeries. Mhm! I ordered an omelette the second morning - that thing must have consisted of about 10 eggs, at the least!

 

 

 

you looked quite fit at the biginning of this trip. Will you post one of your photos also from the end of the trip ?

 

Well, unlike Peter here

 

 

 

I'm glad you mentioned the food in Cape Town. I could eat my weight in seafood there!

 

I DID eat my weight in seefood (and other delicacies), so the only pictures you will be getting from now on are like:

 

 

Which also brings me to De Hoop, the next chapter. But not today - a GTG to prepare for!

[Hads]

Hi Mike , Great TR so far.

Looking forward to the Rest.

[michael-ibk]

Thanks, @@Hads !

[michael-ibk]

De Hoop Nature Reserve

 

We chose this reserve as part of our itinerary because we felt it would be a nice contrast to the arid landscapes of the Kgalagadi. The Southern-most nature reserve in Africa De Hoop is quite big - 350 km², and additionally a protected marine zone is going out to the sea for 5 km from the shore. On a regular shortish visit like we did, one does only get to see a small part of it, namely the western zone. Much of the reserve is not accessible by car.

 

 

As you can see on the map above the roads only cover one small area, mainly around the De Hoop Vlei, a large brackwater lagoon which serves as a very important waterbird protection zone. The Eastern part can be done on hiking Trips, mainly the Whale Trail, which is offered as a five-day hike (for groups of at least 6) through the mountainous and coastal areas from Potberg to Koppie Alleen. In the Potberg area there´s also a well-known breeding colony of the Cape Vulture, which I would have loved to see, but unfortunately this did not fit in our schedule.

 

All Accommodations (also a Spa and pool) are found at "The Opstal", right next to the lagoon.

 

 

Reception and Restaurant

 

 

The De Hoop Vlei

 

There are different kinds of suites, rooms, rondavels and cottages to choose from.

 

 

 

See rates here:

 

http://www.dehoopcollection.com/accommodation/

 

We had the Cottages, and liked them a lot - spacious, comfortable and spotlessly clean. Very good value IMO. Obviously the place can host a lot of people, but it was far from full - in the restaurant at the most four or five tables were occupied.

 

 

 

 

 

The cottages are designed for self-catering, but we had all our meals in the restaurant which is about 500 m away. No dangerous animals in the reserve so you can walk anywhere you choose - which I enjoyed a lot. The restaurant is really excellent, they are going a bit for "fine cuisine", and quite successfully. Everything was delicious, and nicely presented.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Since we arrived only 20 minutes before gate closing time, and left reasonably early to get to Bontebok NP, we effectively only had one full day at De Hoop, and we easily could have stayed much longer, it´s a beauitful and relaxing place. There´s three main things to do, game drives, the coast and the Vlei. One animal I was really hoping to see here was the Bontebok.



Which is not even a challenge, they are everywhere, and tame as cattle. They even like to graze very close to the cottages.



This is a species which already was on the verge of extinction - they were extensively killed as pests, and only 17 animals were left. They have since recovered up to a healthy population though they don´t really occur "in the wild" but only in managed areas or farms. There are actually more of them in De Hoop than in Bontebok NP, and several other parks are stocked with surplus animals from here.



The white stripes on the forehead make them extremely conspicous, you see them from far away, it´s really one of those designs where you can´t help but wonder what nature was thinking.

Edited June 13, 2016 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

Another prolific animal at De Hoop is the Eland. Remember, that skittish antelope which is almost impossible to approach in most places? Not here - you can walk them by within a distance of five metres, and they often won´t even bother to look up for you.

 

 

 

 

The third unusually tame animal here is the Ostrich. We passed this male on the way to the restaurant, and if you´re that close you really appreciate the sheer size of these birds - and he looked at us in a quite grumpy way, so I was slightly intimidated.

 

 

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Driving around at De Hoop is very easy, the gravel roads are in perfect condition, no need for a 4x4.

 

 

 

I especially enjoyed the background of the magnificent white dunes to the Fynbos vegetation.

 

 

 

 

Up on the hills Protea can be found.

 

 

 

The preferred habitat for one of my "target" birds here - the Cape Sugarbird.

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Given the diversity of the habitat, birding is very rewarding at De Hoop. Lots of colourful species to be found, especially around the reception area and the cottages.

 

 

Cape Spurfowl behave like Hens, you have to be careful not to step on them.

 

 

Bokmakierie, a kind of Bushshrike

 

 

Red-Wattled Starling, the most abundant bird at De Hoop

 

 

Southern Boubou

 

 

Cape Bulbul

 

I was particularly delighted to see an African Fish Eagle flying over. They just say "Africa" to me, and it was the only sighting of this trip.

 

 

But my main prize was this one:

 

 

 

 

Malachite Sunbird - a stunning little green colourwonder.

[michael-ibk]

What about other mammals at De Hoop?

 

Chacma Baboons are all over the place, and in fact visitors are warned not to leave windows and doors open, they are fearless of humans and will enter accommodations without hesitation.

 

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

While Bontebok and Eland are extremely confiding here, not all of the animals are. We had to work quite a bit to find two South African specials, and did not get particularly close.



Cape Mountain Zebra. The smallest of all Zebra species, and a very localised one - they only occur in montane regions of Southern Africa. Another mammal almost brought to extinction, their numbers were already down to a few 100. And not everybody was ready to do anything for their survival. According to Wikipedia the responsible minister answered to a plea to save them in the 30ies. ""No! They're just a lot of donkeys in football jerseys.” :-)

Even harder to find than the Zebra was the Rhebok, another animal I really wanted to see, but ultimately our patience was rewarded.

 

 

De Hoop is actually an unusual habitat for them -their prime areas are the montane regions of South Africa, but they can also be found here at the coastal belt. Their name is of Afrikaans origin (like with so many other animals here), and was actually given to them because of their superficial similarity to the European "Rehbock" (the German word) - the Roe Deer.

 

 

The Mammal list for De Hoop also includes Bushbock and Red Hartebeest, but Dantes said he has never seen them. Duiker and Cape Grysbok do occur, but are rarely seen - we did not. Leopard is also listed, but I don´t think sightings are a realistic possibility. I did an early morning walk (before sunrise) in the hope of maybe finding some nocturnal animals but without success. We did see some Yellow Mongoose and (probably) a Small Grey Mongoose, but no real photo opportunites (not for lack of trying, I was running after it. ) This Scrub Hare had more patience with me:

 

Edited June 13, 2016 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

The reserve also offers a boat drive for a few hundert Rand. This was a great, very tranquil and peaceful experience I enjoyed a lot. I also used the trail along the Vlei on the second morning - it´s beautiful seeing (and hearing) it waking up.

 

 

 

 

 

We were very lucky to have the boat all to ourselves, no other guests came along, just two staff members who were obviously trained by the "Captain", a very good and friendly guide (coming from Zimbabwe) whose name I unfortunately forgot. It lasted almost three hours, and snacks and drinks are included. Not sure if this is still being offered, we were explained that the authorities were considering shutting it down because it could disturb the birdlife, and the verdict was expected soon. So we were told we could be one of the last guests to enjoy this - and we did.

 

 

Grey Heron

 

 

Little Egret

[michael-ibk]

 

Black-Crowned Night Heron

 

 

 

We saw lots of different waterbirds, several kinds of Egrets, Cormorants, Gulls and Herons, Great-Crested Grebes, Little Grebes, Red-Knobbed Coots, Hamerkops and Kingfishers (Giant and Malachite - unfortunately out of reach).

 

We were delighted to see Great White Pelicans.

 

 

It was very cool to see them "hunt".

 

 

 

 

 

African Darter

Edited June 13, 2016 by michael-ibk