Tag Archives: prince albert

Birding South Africa, Flowers, Holiday Trips

Prince Albert – Birding and other Delights

December 2, 2024 Don Reid 8 Comments

Always on the lookout for a chance to get away for a few days, Gerda’s birthday seemed like a good excuse and Prince Albert a good option being just a couple of hours away yet much more in terms of “a change being as good as a holiday”

Wednesday 11^th September 2024

Packing was left to the morning of our departure and went smoothly albeit slowly and by midday we were heading to our first stop – no prizes for guessing – our favourite Eight Bells Inn for a light lunch in the enclosed patio (bit too windy and cool for outside) with the familiar views and friendly staff.

On the way to the R328 we stopped at the Hartenbos Vleis for a quick scan of the birdlife and came up with an African Jacana – still a Western Cape Rarity – and African Swamphen among the usual Teals and Ducks. A Ruff was an interesting sight being one of the early palearctic migrant arrivals.

African Jacana (Western Cape rarity), Hartenbos Vlei

A number of Spoonbills on the far side of the vlei took to the air, providing an opportunity for some in flight photos, one of which I used for the heading image above after tweaking it to darken the background.

Back on the road after Eight Bells, we enjoyed the rest of the classic road trip through the Robinson Pass and Meiringspoort then along the hills and dales of the beautiful stretch of road heading to Prince Albert through the Kredouw Pass and the Prince Albert Valley

We hadn’t been to Dennehof Guesthouse before, but it was easy to find on the main road just before reaching the town proper and we were met by Albert (not the Prince) who showed us the room and provided info on dining options and things to do.

We have been to Prince Albert many times but there are always new places and eateries to hear about in this quiet yet dynamic Karoo dorp. Dennehof has a nice feel to it – not too pretentious with a mix of simple whitewashed buildings in the Karoo style making up a pleasant complex.

There was time before dusk to sit on the stoep and soak up the atmosphere, watched by the resident Spotted Eagle-Owl

The passing bird life included –

White-backed Mousebird
Purple Heron flying overhead probably to its roost
Sparrows, Cape and House, flitting about energetically
Karoo Thrush singing its cheerful song at close of day

Pied Barbet calling plaintively

Dinner was chicken and salads that we brought with us.

Thursday 12th September 2024

Albert had said we could arrive for breakfast up to 9.30 am so being Gerda’s birthday we did exactly that. The setting is a delight – out in the garden in a glazed conservatory (where so many murders happen apparently) with a view of the adjoining wetland busy with Red Bishops and Masked Weavers doing their thing.

The breakfast was above average and imaginative with a fruit and muesli mix that had us licking the bowl, followed by a herby omelette as good as they get – if for nothing else, I will return for that omelette. The coffee wasn’t half bad either.

That set us up nicely for the day which we planned as we went, starting with a slow drive down the main street of Prince Albert, followed by a short trip to the Olive farm north of the town which took us through some of the greenest Karoo countryside we have ever seen.

Along the way we stopped at the sewage works (as birders are wont to do) and at the low water bridges which, for the first time in our experience, had water flowing over them. The first of the two was productive for my atlasing list, adding half a dozen species in quick time –

Chestnut-vented Titbabbler
Karoo Scrub-Robin
Pririt Batis

Fiscal Flycatcher
White-throated Canary that came to drink from the shallow stream

Even a Three-banded Plover unexpectedly dropping in for a wade

We were treated to the unusual sight (for this arid part of SA) of water flowing over the low water bridges on the outskirts of the town

Just after the second bridge we turned into the Olive farm and, as it was lunchtime, we ordered tea and a waffle which we enjoyed outside under the trees (all part of the birthday celebration of course).

On the way back we turned off at the Karoo View signpost and drove a few kms to see the remnants of the flowers still in the open veld, then made a short stop at Karoo Souk which is a small group of craft shops, before heading back to Dennehof for a welcome rest.

Later, still in celebratory mode, we ventured out for a meal at the Yellow House restaurant which was up to the occasion and provided a nice ending to a very pleasant day.

Friday 13th September 2024

Another nice breakfast although we didn’t go for the full monty after last night’s big meal. After breakfast I added a few species to the atlas card including Alpine Swifts and Palm Swifts flying by and a Long-billed Crombec moving through the garden. That made four Swifts in all after seeing Little and White-rumped Swifts on the first day.

We had decided to drive to the fig farm at Weltevrede but first followed Albert’s suggestion of a drive along the ‘Bush pub’ road in search of a Karoo Eremomela. The bird eluded us but we did see a few other area specials such as –

Mountain Wheatear

Lark-like Bunting
Dusky Sunbird
Rufous-eared Warbler

And no less than three species of Canary –

White-throated Canary
Black-throated Canary
Black-headed Canary

It was time to head to the fig farm, so we turned back to town and took the road past the cemetery signposted ‘Weltevrede 25 km’.

We took it slow, stopping for birds – and flowers – and there were plenty of both to attract our attention.

At around 6 kms the road passes between tall rocky cliff faces which, according to Albert and Inge, is a site where Ground Woodpecker has been seen.

We spent some time stopping to scan the rocks carefully for any sign of the Woodpecker and even more so on the way back, to no avail. The spectacular drive made up for that mild disappointment and we arrived at the farm where we found we were the only visitors – very different from our previous visit which was during the peak of fig picking and drying.

After treating ourselves to fig tart we headed slowly back – Black-headed Canaries were the most frequent sightings along with Pale Chanting Goshawk and Karoo Chat.

Pale Chanting Goshawk, near Prince Albert

We weren’t particularly keen to go out that evening but after a relaxing time at the room we had a bit more energy and ‘lus’ for Jeremy’s Restaurant which was a great choice and suited to our reduced appetite. We both had Taglietelle puttanesca not having ever had it and it was wonderfully simple and delicious, cooked by Jeremy himself. We treated ourselves to Spekboom ice cream which was different but not overly so and we left in a good frame of mind.

Saturday 14th September 2024

Up a bit earlier to fit in packing and breakfast before checkout time, we enjoyed the fruit and omelette once again, then greeted Inge and Albert like family and set off through town to Gays dairy for some of their lovely cheeses before heading out on the road back. This time we had time to stop and savour the flowers and birds – often both at the same spot.

Lunch venues are limited on this route so we looked for a place in De Rust, ending up at Herries which is the local pub and turned out to be a good choice even though we just had tea and a sandwich in a venue that almost demands you have at least a beer or two if not a klippies and coke.

The rest of the trip was uneventful with stops in George at the nurseries and a ‘koffie vir oulaas’ at Elvis Brew, a favourite coffee spot near the George Airport, before heading homewards, well satisfied yet again with our choice of Prince Albert for a short breakaway.

Atlasing, Holiday Trips, On the Road

Mossel Bay to Pretoria – not just a Journey

April 19, 2022 Don Reid 9 Comments

One of the benefits of reaching that age where they automatically give you a pensioner’s discount at the supermarket check-out without asking for an ID, is having the time – and the good sense – to turn a potentially mundane trip into a mini-holiday.

And this is exactly what we did when travelling between our Mossel Bay and Pretoria homes during March this year – instead of rushing to complete the 1250 kms road journey in 2 days with one overnight stop, we decided to stretch it out with a two night stay in Prince Albert, Western Cape and a further night in Springfontein, Free State, turning it into a four day, three night adventure.

Day 1 Thursday

After spending most of the morning packing, loading and preparing our Mossel Bay home for a lengthy hibernation, we left around lunchtime and set off on the familiar route to Prince Albert via the scenic Robinson Pass then through the town of Oudtshoorn and the winding road that takes you through the spectacular Meiringspoort. No matter how many times we drive this route, I still end up driving through Meiringspoort with my jaw in a dropped position – it is that special.

But this time there was a twist – just beyond the last of the 25 river crossings (it’s the same river each time) we encountered the first of many swarms of locusts that filled the air and pinged and ‘thunked’ against the grille, windscreen and roof of our SUV as we drove. The arid parts of South Africa have been plagued by swarms of biblical proportions through the summer, due to good rains after years of drought conditions.

This video was taken after stopping at the roadside and gives an idea of the numbers of locusts – a tiny fraction of what we drove through for tens of kilometres

Once we reached our destination I spent half an hour carefully prising locust bodies from every nook and cranny of our car, at the same time providing a veritable feast for an army of ants that descended on them as they dropped to the ground.

Our usual B&B in Prince Albert was fully booked so we had booked into one we had not tried before – De Bergkant Lodge – which turned out to be an excellent choice – lovely spacious room, good breakfast, efficient management and a super 15m pool which I immediately tried out as the temperature was hovering in the low 30’s (deg C)

De Bergkant Lodge, Prince Albert – our room was the one in the corner

After the swim and relaxing a while we had dinner at the Rude Chef (No – he/she wasn’t) restaurant. Prince Albert has always had an amazing selection of quality restaurants for a small Karoo town, but like so many other places Covid has had a devastating effect on the tourist industry which is only now recovering. So the choice of eating places has reduced but the quality is still there.

Day 2 Friday

After breakfast at the pool we set off late morning to visit the Weltevrede Fig Farm about 30 kms outside Prince Albert, along a gravel road that made its way through the mountains in spectacular fashion providing beautiful views over every rise.

Road to Weltevrede Farm, near Prince Albert

Weltevrede appeared at the end of the road, like an oasis in the arid countryside, the fig trees spreading up and down the valley in a broad green ribbon.

We had a look around then settled at a table under a tree and lingered over a light lunch and coffee, just enjoying the ambience while farm workers carried out tray after tray of prepared figs and set them out to dry in the pure Karoo sunshine, where the air is dry and devoid of any pollutants.

Weltevrede Farm – prepared figs drying in the sun

Weltevrede Farm – their Fig Tart is delicious!

We took our time travelling back to Prince Albert and relaxed for a while before I set out to add some species to the pentad list that I had begun the previous afternoon with mostly the species visiting the garden. Heading out of town in a northerly direction I soon found Pririt Batis, Namaqua Dove, Pied Barbet and White-necked Raven and a swing past the small Waste water treatment works added SA Shelduck to take my pentad list to a modest 30.

After another invigorating swim we walked across the road to La-di-dah restaurant for a meal – our first choice was grilled Karoo lamb chops but disappointingly they had just sold the last ones and we had to revert to other meat dishes.

Day 3 Saturday

A longish drive lay ahead so we left after breakfast and made good time via Prince Albert Road where we joined the N1 National road to Beaufort West, Richmond and Colesberg, with comfort and coffee stops at Three Sisters, Karoo Padstal and Chargo Farm Stall at Colesberg.

As we left Prince Albert a Booted Eagle flew over the road ahead and I quickly added this welcome raptor to my pentad list.

We reached our overnight stop – Prior Grange farm near Springfontein – just after 5 pm and settled in to the Garden Cottage.

Prior Grange near Springfontein Free State

It was time for my birding/relaxing walk to stretch my legs and with not much daylight left I headed straight to the dam behind the farm house and found it fuller than I had ever seen it, in complete contrast to our last visit before Covid when it had held a fraction of the water it now had.

The dam had a single Grey Heron and small numbers of Red-knobbed Coots, Moorhens, Cape Shovelers, Yellow-billed Ducks, Red-billed Teals, Little Grebes and SA Shelducks, while the reeds were busy with Bishops and Weavers and a single African Reed Warbler which had me puzzled for a while as it was making an unusual sound (for me, probably not for him)

Heading back to the cottage I added Karoo Thrush, Pied Starling and Fiscal Flycatcher before dusk fell, taking my pentad list to 32 after an hour’s atlasing, leaving the next morning to complete the two hour minimum atlasing to count as a “Full Protocol” card. Dinner, served in the cottage, was roast lamb and veg – what else on a Karoo farm?

Karoo Thrush *Turdus smithii* Geelbeklyster, Prior Grange

Pied Starling *Lamprotornis bicolor* Witgatspreeu, Prior Grange

Day 4 Sunday

I was up early to complete the pentad card with a walk around the garden and along the road, adding Cloud Cisticola, Lesser Kestrel (on the same pole as I had seen it a few years ago), Cape Glossy Starling and Anteating Chat.

The grassland next to the road was waterlogged in places after substantial summer rains

On the road out after a full English breakfast I added a few more including a Black-headed Heron at a mini wetland in the town, taking the pentad total to 44 and raising my personal tally for the pentad to 98 species after completing 6 cards since 2014.

All that remained was a drive of around 550 kms to our home in Pretoria – we arrived just after 4 pm, glad to be ‘home’ (Pretoria version)

Holiday Trips

A Frog’s tale

March 24, 2015 Don Reid 4 Comments

Prince Albert – gem of the Karoo

Since our first visit to this charming Karoo town a number of years ago, Gerda and I have made a point of stopping over in Prince Albert on our way back from Mossel Bay to Pretoria, particularly in January after our annual long stay in the Southern Cape. We generally try to stay at least 2 nights so that there is a full day to explore the town and it’s attractions.

We have tried a few B&B’s but keep going back to the one that fits our preferences best – Saxe-Coburg Lodge in the main street, which is run by Dick and Regina and offers pleasant rooms set in a long narrow garden with big trees and a pool. The rooms have aircon (essential in this part of the world) and all the other comforts you would expect of a decent B&B as well as a patio which is perfect for relaxing with a book or magazine in the afternoon when you have done enough exploring.

Breakfasts are served in the main house – a Victorian style cottage from the mid 1800’s – and Dick and Regina are always there to chat and advise on the best restaurants and places to visit.

One of our visits was in January 2013, when we had booked to stay 2 nights at Saxe-Coburg Lodge and then proceed to our next overnight stop between Colesberg and Springfontein at the Orange River Lodge, a convenient halfway stop on the way back to Gauteng.

We had settled into our room at Saxe-Coburg and I had placed the potted plants, which we had bought in Mossel Bay and were taking with us to Pretoria, on the patio of our room so that they would enjoy some shade. I was doing some birding in the garden when I noticed a small frog on the patio, also sheltering from the hot sun and took a photo with the intention of identifying the species from the frog book that I usually have with me on trips.

Cape River Frog on the patio, Prince Albert — Cape River Frog (I think) on the patio, Prince Albert

I thought was able to ID the frog as a Cape River Frog, a common species in this part of SA, and once I had a photo, I let him get on with his existence.

Next morning we did the round of Prince Albert’s attractions, which includes some excellent restaurants, speciality shops, an Olive farm a liitle way out-of-town, a small wine farm in town that produces some good fortified wines and Gay’s (that’s her name, to avoid confusion) Dairy for some really good cheeses and yoghurts, rounding off the day with a dinner at the Karoo Kombuis which serves a small selection of basic but very tasty dishes. On Saturdays there’s a market with fresh produce and other goodies.

Array of pumpkins at the Saturday market, Prince Albert

Birding is always interesting in the area around Prince Albert :

A Frog’s Perspective

So there I was, a young frog finding my way in the world with not a worry other than the one many of us face on a daily basis – where is my next meal coming from?

I was getting to know my surroundings, since escaping from that pond where I seemed to spend an awfully long time just swimming around, waiting for my legs to grow and let me start exploring the garden in which I found myself (see, even frogs can avoid the trap of ending a sentence with a preposition).

It being a typically hot summer’s day in the Karoo, I made sure that I stayed in the shade as far as possible and found that one of the rooms had a nice shady patio with some plants to shelter under (OK, you can’t always avoid that preposition trap). I duly found a nice cool nook in and amongst the foliage and used this as my base for the next day or two…..

Next Stop Orange River Lodge

After breakfast under the vines the following day, we packed our vehicle, with the plants being the last to go in so that they would not get damaged, said our goodbyes to Dick and Regina and set off on the road to Colesberg and beyond, a distance of some 600 kms, where we arrived at Orange River Lodge, close to the N1, by about 5pm that afternoon.

As this was a short overnight stop, I left most of our baggage in the car and just unloaded the essential bags as well as the plants which I placed outside the car so that they could get some fresh air …………

The only thought that went through my head was that the people in the room were quite considerate in placing these fresh young plants on the patio – how did they know this was my home and that frogs just love cool foliage to hide behind.

Next day was quite pleasant – a bug or two came my way and the plants provided a good spot to while a way the hours.

The following day seemed as if it would be a repeat and I found a great spot in one of the pots itself where the soil was moist and cool. The day had hardly begun when I found myself and the plant that I had made my new home being lifted up and placed in the back of a large vehicle and very soon after we were on the road to goodness knows where ……..

Just as I was putting one of the plants down, I noticed a small frog, partly concealed by the foliage and on closer investigation I realized it was the same frog I had found and photographed on our patio at Saxe-Coburg Lodge!

Not wanting to take him even further from his birth place, I looked around the garden for a suitable spot and found one near a dripping garden tap which was grassy and moist.

If he ever has grandkids this frog will have a memorable tale to tell of the day he went for a drive across South Africa.

There was still time to fit in some birding in the gardens and surrounding typical Karoo habitat :