Gamtoos Valley

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Visiting a cumcumber farm of all places

Visiting a cucumber farm probably isn't very high on anybody's list when you talk agritourism, but I'm always up for something new.  I  was in the Gamtoos Valley as part of a media tour recently and Gamtoos Tourism organized for us to visit Malan Cucumbers.  This isn't a technical post so I just want to tell you about the experience.  We were met by the farmer and his daughter who took us on a walk around the facilities situated just outside…

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19/01/2015
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Sweet juicy red strawberries at Mooihoek Farm

Sweet juicy red strawberries.... I don't need to use any more fancy words to get your mouth watering.  Actually, you just need to have a look at the pictures in this post and not read anything at all.It's always great to get an exclusive behind the scenes look at something and in this case it was a tour around the Mooihoek Boerdery strawberry farm. Mooihoek is situated next to the Gamtoos River outside the town of Hankey in the Eastern Cape.  Back in…

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09/01/2015
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Patensie panorama

The town of Patensie in the Gamtoos Valley is surrounded by beautiful scenery.  Rolling hills, distant mountains, citrus and vegetable farmland, valley thicket, guest farms and some of the friendliest people you will find anywhere.

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30/12/2014
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Scenic views of Patensie and surrounds

A couple of weeks ago I spent a couple of days touring around the Eastern Cape with a group of journalists and one of our stops was in the Gamtoos Valley town of Patensie.  After a visit at the Malan Cucumber Farm we were taken up to their new cucumber tunnels on a koppie outside town and I snapped these pictures of the view.  The Gamtoos Valley truly is a very scenic and undiscovered area with most visitors just heading…

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09/12/2014
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The 2014 Gamtoos Tourism Adventure Drive – undignified fun

On Saturday we headed into the Gamtoos Valley for the annual Gamtoos Tourism Adventure Drive.  This year the event took place around the towns of Loerie and Hankey and it was a heck of a lot of fun, to say the least.  The Adventure Drive takes the form of a 60km round trip which gets completed by following directions given at the start of the race.  Along the way there are 9 stops with challenges that need to be completed. …

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05/10/2014
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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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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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A panorama of Hankey in the Gamtoos Valley… and some history

As visitors approach the town of Hankey in the Gamtoos Valley from the east, they have to pass Vergaderingskop before entering town.  This little koppie is the final resting place of Saartjie Baartman and worth a stop even if its just to enjoy a view of the surrounding valley.The town of Hankey was established in 1826 (four years after the founding of the mission station in 1822 under the guidence of Dr John Philip ) and is the Gamtoos Valley's oldest…

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13/09/2014
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Hankey’s berg window at Vensterhoek

Every time I visit the Gamtoos Valley and drive through Hankey, I look up the cliffs on the western side of the town at the Bergvenster (Berg Window) thinking that I must really make a plan to climb up there one day.  That opportunity came when we spent a Shot Left weekend in Hankey staying at the The Milk House.  I told the Damselfly that I'm heading up there come hell or high water.  She asked why and the answer was…

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31/07/2014
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Spending the weekend at The Milk House in Hankey

The Gamtoos Valley west of Port Elizabeth is often just seen as the entrance to the Baviaanskloof yet its a tranquil and very scenic farming area.  I visit the valley a couple of times a year to participate in the annual Gamtoos Tourism Adventure Drive, the Citrus festival and the Patensie Boere Basaar.  This also means that I spend a lot of time in the Patensie area so when Carol Pearson of The Milk House contacted me to invite us…

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16/07/2014