Eastern Cape

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Ziplining in Addo on the longest double zipline in Africa

The first thing people think of when they hear the name Addo is elephants.  On that front the Addo Elephant National Park is doing an awesome job attracting people to the Sundays River Valley.  But the Addo area is so much more than elephants and the rest of the big 5.  More than just animals for that matter.  The whole Sundays River Valley is a beautiful area with scenic drives and views, history, great eateries and a wide variety of accommodation…

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30/09/2014
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World Tourism Day – Nothing more fun than a Sho’t Left.

September is Tourism Month and on 27 September every year we celebrate World Tourism Day.  Tourism is one of South Africa's biggest export products and with that I mean its something that brings foreign tourists and thus also foreign money into the country.  Tourism is an important player in our economy as it creates a job for every 12 tourists visiting the country.  But I'm not here to talk about the economy.  Over the last couple of years SA Tourism has…

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27/09/2014
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Tsitsikamma Lily

My three favorite flowers are aloes, proteas and arum lilies.  All flowers you can see in gardens and parks but at their most beautiful when you see them out in the wild.  Aloe flowering in the Karoo, proteas in the Fynbos on a mountain side and lilies growing wild in the forest.  This lily I found next to the path on the way to Kerneels se Klip in the Tsitsikamma National Park.  I was hoping to find one in the sun…

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26/09/2014
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Hiking the Bushbuck Trail in The Island Nature Reserve

Port Elizabeth has some excellent short hiking trails that are perfect for a morning or day out in nature yet still within a stone's throw of the city.  As an outdoor enthusiast and avid Geocacher I've had the opportunity to do most of the trails around the city with one of the exceptions being the Bushbuck Trail through the Island Nature Reserve.  For this reason I was very excited when I got a call from Erenei Louw of Nelson Mandela Bay…

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25/09/2014
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Hillside village in the Ciskei

The road (R72) between Port Alfred and East London runs through what used to be the former independent homeland of the Ciskei.  All along the way one sees small Xhosa villages scattering the countryside.  Coming from the East London side just before the Keikamma Pass there is a little village on a hillside on the left.  I've always wanted to snap a photo of it and the chance finally came on my last trip to Slummies.When you look at a scene…

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24/09/2014
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Crossing the Kei River by pont

Most South African travelers and road trippers have probably heard of the car pontoon at Malgas in the Overberg, but I wonder how many actually know that there is one across the Kei River in the Eastern Cape as well.  In years gone by the Great Kei River was the border between South Africa and the homeland of Transkei.  Today crossing over means leaving behind what you know and heading to a land of country side villages, friendly people, beautiful scenery, rugged…

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23/09/2014
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Citrus orchids in the Gamtoos Valley

The Gamtoos Valley in the Eastern Cape is prime citrus growing country and for city folk the rows and rows of citrus trees are always a sight to behold.  This picture was taken outside of Hankey in the valley.The citrus range from different types of oranges and easy peelers to naartjies and, in this case, lemons

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20/09/2014
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Karoo Heartland Churches

Looking through everything I have that still needs to be posted I decided to take three Karoo churches and make up one Random... Karoo churches post.  Just about every small town in the Karoo Heartland of the Eastern Cape has a remarkable church of some sort.  Cradock must have one of the most memorable Karoo Heartland churches there are.  It stands at the top of Church Street and is known as the ``Mother" Church.  The church was completed in 1868 on the same site as the…

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19/09/2014
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Farm worker fishermen in the Gamtoos Valley

Spending time in a place is more than just staying in accommodation establishments, eating in restaurants, visiting attractions end enjoying beautiful scenery.  The buzz word these days are experiences and an experience doesn't necessarily have to be an formal one.  Sometimes you see something interesting and making a quick stop can turn into a whole experience on its own.  Spending a weekend Shot Left in Hankey in the Gamtoos Valley while staying at The Milk House we ventured out on the Saturday…

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15/09/2014
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Koffiebus and Teebus

 The Karoo has a beauty that some admire in awe while others tend to just want to pass through as quickly as possible.  I love the Karoo landscape with its big skies, Karoo koppies, windpumps, sheep, karoo vegetation and its interesting people.  Returning home after a trip to Johannesburg I decided to drive via the Gariep Dam, Steysnburg and Hofmeyer before the last stretch from Cradock.  Outside Steysnburg are two very well know Karoo landmarks.  Teebus and Koffiebus, two Karoo…

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14/09/2014