Looking back over the last year …….
Having enjoyed our time in July 2024 at The Baths near Citrusdal immensely, it was an easy decision when Andre and Geraldine (our daughter) invited us to join them again for a 10 day winter holiday visit to this most pleasant and relaxing resort set amongst hills with hot pools fed by a natural spring. Our two eldest granddaughters, both at Stellenbosch University, were ‘part of the deal’, making it extra special.
26th JUNE TO 7th JULY 2025
Getting there
With my webinar presentations (CPD for Quantity Surveyors) behind me on the Wednesday afternoon, we could start our packing and preparation in earnest for a Thursday departure – most of that was left for Thursday morning so I accepted that we wouldn’t be getting away until midday – fortunately our first day’s drive was around 300kms so not too onerous.
The roads were not too busy but light to heavy rain was the order of the day all the way to our overnight stop at Eikehof Farm near Worcester.
Snow on the surrounding mountains said just one thing – we were in for a chilly stay, but fortunately the chalet had a ceramic hearth and I at once set about getting a wood fire going before taking a short walk around the property.
Next morning we left at 10am with just 160 kms left to travel to The Baths so we took it super slow, ambling along at 90 or so and stopping twice, to make sure we arrived after check in time of 2pm.
Our first stop was in the charming town of Tulbagh, decided on the spur of the moment as we approached the turn-off. We were curious when we discovered that it happened to be a “Christmas in July” weekend organised by the town, so the place was buzzing with people and parked cars.
We chose Kole & Deeg restaurant for a coffee and Pasteis de Nata, which were so good we bought 6 more to take away. The drive itself was through beautiful scenic countryside and the traffic quiet until we reached the busy N7, the main road from Cape Town to Namibia.
Our second stop was at Kardoesie Padstal where we had lunch, before reaching Citrusdal and the last stretch of the trip to The Baths.
We had plenty of time to settle in and get our provisions and clothes sorted, leaving time to relax and get used to the feel of the place again.
The Daily rhythm
Our first full day at the resort was a template for the rest of the stay as we settled into a comfortable rhythm with some variations here and there.
A late lie in before making our first tea and coffee of the day accompanied by rusks. Then a visit to the hot pool for a relaxing ‘swim’ – if you can call standing neck deep in hot water and occasionally paddling about slowly ‘having a swim’. Very relaxing and takes away some of the aches and pains of senior life.
Morning tea and a light lunch out on the balcony, while watching the birds going about their own version of life in a resort – seems they have caught onto this relaxing thing as many of them seem quite laid back and accustomed to the presence of people around them.
Mid to late afternoon we head to the chalet ‘Willy’ just over a km away on the other side of the resort for some family time and the evening meal – mostly a braai – along with watching some Wimbledon tennis.
The Birding
Most of my birding was done while ‘stoepsitting’ on the balcony of our apartment which looks over a busy part of the resort where most of the accommodation is found.
Each time I went to sit on the balcony a few House Sparrows would arrive, looking for a dropped crumb or other morsel. Okay, so maybe I created a few crumbs with a slice of bread.
The balcony is flanked by trees and bushes on both sides and across the road the mountain dominates the view with a couple of large trees at the base.
Fiscal Flycatchers were next, followed by the regulars such as Cape Bulbul, Southern Masked Weaver
The African Flame Tree and Honeysuckle bush were draw-cards for the Cape White Eyes, Southern Double-collared Sunbirds and Streaky-headed Seedeaters.
Southern Boubous and Cape Robin-Chats were a bit more wary and the Familiar Chats kept their distance as well, ever on the lookout for a tiny insect to pounce on from a low branch or rock.
A Laughing Dove got into the act in its own gentle way
Passing birds added to the mix – an Olive Woodpecker chose the Namaqua Fig Tree to clamber through the branches, gleaning insects from the cracks in the bark and displaying its fine colouring.
An Outing into the Cedarberg
A chance meeting with old friends just before our trip, who recommended a visit to an area of the Cedarberg not too far from the resort, led to us undertaking a day trip to see for ourselves.
The route from The Baths took us initially back to the N7 near Citrusdal, then northwards towards Clanwilliam, taking a turnoff signposted Algeria (not the country!).
From there the road changed to dirt – good in parts, single track and bumpy in others, so the going was slow. Nevertheless, it was an interesting drive through the Cedarberg Wilderness area that we have heard many people talk about but have never experienced ourselves – mostly high mountains with rock and boulder strewn hills and an abundance of Proteas and other fascinating flowers.
After what seemed like a long drive but was just 20 kms we stopped at the Cape Nature offices at Algeria (a small settlement) for permits for the Caves we wanted to visit further on.
Moving on we headed through another pass and down into a long valley which surprisingly had planted vineyards alongside the road – they belonged to Cedarberg Wines which was our next stop to have a look around.
The wines on offer were mostly at premium prices – I like buying wines from places we visit so chose the more affordable Merlot-Shiraz blend on offer after a brief tasting session.
Having taken more time to get there than planned and being lunchtime, we decided to head to the restaurant that our friend had recommended as part of the visit. The turnoff to Kromrivier, where the restaurant is uniquely located was shortly after the winery and the road there followed a circuitous route across the ridges and into the next valley.
The road became single track in places with little visibility of oncoming vehicles due to sharp bends and scary drop-offs, so I was happy to reach the open valley without meeting any other vehicles.
The restaurant is part of a resort and the design immediately spoke of quality and attention to detail, which was borne out by the meals we ordered and enjoyed – quite amazing to find such a place in this very remote spot which apparently can be cut off for a week at a time by excessive rain. (One of the low water bridges we crossed had water lapping at the edges so would be impassable a day or two later after heavy rain fell over the whole region)
With lunch done it was close to our cutoff time of 3pm to make sure we got back to base before sunset, so we had to skip visiting the caves which had been the original idea – maybe next time! In any case we were all happy to have seen this part of the Cedarberg Wilderness before the forecast wet weather descended over the region the next day.
And just to end off, back at the resort a couple of winter blooming flowers caught my eye
Mostly Birding 