Earth Day 2014 – Swartkops sunset

On 22 April (today if you read this post on the day it got posted) we celebrate Earth Day.  Earth Day is an annual event held worldwide to demonstrate support for environmental protection.  The day was first celebrated in 1970 with 192 countries now taking part each year. In celebration of Earth Day 2014 I'm posting a picture of the Swartkops River taken by fellow Geocacher Emile Hallaby, or Speedbird315 as he is known in Geocaching circles, just after sunset from Bluewater Bay.  I'm posting…

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An Incidental Tourist at Shark Rock Pier

Last week two fellow travel bloggers, Dawn Jorgensen (The Incidental Tourist) and Di Brown (The Roaming Giraffe) came on a four night Sho't Left trip to the Eastern Cape which I was very privileged to play some part in.  Unfortunately I was busy over the weekend otherwise I would have joined them on the trip.  I did get to meet the two of them and show them around a little bot of Port Elizabeth though.  Here Dawn is getting a…

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Discovering secret spots in the Tsitsikamma

Geocaching is the ideal activity for people who love to travel and discover new places.  Yes I know I've said it before and I will say so again many times in the future.  On a visit to the Tsitsikamma I went in search of a cache called Elands Delight (GCX2QF) and even though it was raining (yes we geocache come rain or shine) I was very keen to find it.  The coordinates took me onto the old road a couple of…

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River and dunes

Today is post #6 (and the second last) in this week's Sundays River Ferry seriesThe dunes at Colchester is part of the Alexandria dune field which is the biggest coastal dune field in the Southern Hemisphere and seriously high.  From the top of the dunes you get a fantastic 360 degrees view of the surrounding dunes, the river below all the way to the river mouth (picture to come tomorrow), Algoa Bay, St Croix Island and Port Elizabeth beyond.  After huffing and puffing…

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Stopping at the dunes

This is post #5 in this week's Sundays River Ferry series.A trip on the Sundays River Ferry is made up of two parts.  The actual cruise and stopping at the sand dunes to climb to the top.  Its difficult to decide which one of the two is my favorite part of the trip but I do have to mention that I was getting over bronchitis last time I went down the river with them and I still huffed and puffed up the…

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Looking down the Sundays River

This is post #4 in this week's Sundays River Ferry series.After cruising upstream to the Mackay Bridge the cruise heads downstream towards the river mouth to climb the dunes.  The river flows in a northerly direction with the villages of Cannonville and Colchester on the left hand side before turning east and seaward at Pearson Park.  Looking down the river you can see the sand dunes waiting with the ocean beyond.

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Beacon Isle view – Plettenberg Bay

My previous post was a picture from a scenic lookout spot in Plettenberg Bay looking towards Robberg.  I mentioned that the view to the left is of the Beacon Isle Hotel and the Piesang River Estuary.  This iconic spot is now under threat of a huge development that started out as an request for ideas for a small boat harbour which has ballooned to a multi billion rand development that will change the landscape of Plettenberg Bay for ever.  In my opinion, not for…

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Captain Les in control

Today is post #3 in this week's series on the Sundays River Ferry. "Permission to come on board Captain?"  Who would answer this question when you want to get onto the Sundays River Ferry?  Darn, suddenly I want to sing... "Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?"  This answer may be Sponge Bob Square-pants but that of the former would be Les Kingma.  Les and partner Maggie Mann are the folk behind the Sundays River Ferry with Les expertly steering…

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In our wake

This is the second post in this week's series about cruising on the Sundays River Ferry in Colchester.  The cruise from the jetty first takes one upstream to the historic Mackay Bridge before heading downstream towards the Sundays River Mouth.  Along the way you can see many of the different bird species found in the area, monkeys, jumping fish (like we did on this trip) and if you're lucky perhaps even a water monitor.

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The view of Robberg from Plettenberg Bay

Driving past Plettenberg Bay on the Garden Route means you catch a glimpse of the Keurbooms Lagoon with the bay beyond but you don't actually get to see much of the town and surrounds.  Plettenberg Bay wasn't originally called Baia Formosa (beautiful bay) for nothing and the best spot to enjoy a scenic view of the area is from the lookout reached by driving up Main Street from the town centre and turning left on San Gonzales Street.  The view point gives one a bird's eye…

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