After all the rain we had late last year the Maitland Nature Reserve trail was a little overgrown when I did it in December. What was nice though was the fact that everything was green and there were lots of flowers. We did have to bundu bash a bit every now and then, but it was worth the effort.
The Maitland Nature Reserve's 9km trail is one of Port Elizabeth's lesser known trails. I got to do it for the first time a little while ago and although it was very overgrown (not sure if its been cleared yet) I really enjoyed it. Most of the trail goes through indigenous bush and coastal forest with great views of the Maitland dune and coastline at the turning point.
This time of years the long summers days and the fact that most people are on holiday (and I say most because not everybody is as fortunate as the rest of us though) give one the opportunity to get out and do some outdoorsy stuff. As the last post for 2012 I decided to post a view of the magnificent coastline on the Sacramento Trail between Schoenmakerskop and Sardinia Bay. The trail is only about 4km each way making a total of…
Storms River Mouth is truly spectacular. Over millions of years the river has carved a deep gorge down to the ocean and thus creates a very striking river mouth. It's this spot that are reached by taking the one kilometre Mouth Trail from the Tsitsikamma National Park's main rest camp. Over the years the suspension bridge over the river mouth has become a main feature in the park and pictures of it has become synonymous with Storms River Mouth. In 2007 a fire…
I was very impressed with the Maitland Nature Reserve Trail when I got to do it for the first time a couple of weeks ago . Even though it was very overgrown after all the rain we've had these last couple of months its wonderful to be able to walk through the coastal forest and still only be a stone's throw from the city. At its turning point the 9km trail has a couple of view sites down the valley…
A week or so ago I got the opportunity to venture into the Maitland Nature Reserve for the first time. It wasn't that I've never wanted to go there, its more a case that I just never had the opportunity. The reserve is made up of mostly indigenous coastal forest and is located just up the road from the giant Maitland sand dune. There are two shorter trails (3km and 4km respectively) as well as a longer 9km hike. The short 3km…
I know that not everybody loves arum lilies like I do, but I just can't get enough of them specially when they grow wild somewhere in a forest or next to a stream. This one was growing next to the Storms River Mouth Trail in the Tsitsikamma National Park.
After a couple of hours hiking through the Plaatbos Nature Reserve we emerged from the forest close to where the old pass road crosses the Storms River. We headed straight down to the river, kicked off our shoes and soaked our feet in the cool, soothing water. Just what we needed at the halfway mark of our hike.When the pass was originally built the road went through the river with the low water bridge only being build by soldiers during the Second…
I find forests to have some kind of therapeutic effect on me, hence the fact that I will find any excuse to go and spend some time around forests. It's no surprise then that I found myself and Family Firefly on a family outing in Storms River Village in the Tsitsikamma. Three days around the forest for me is probably comparable to somebody from Gauteng spending a week at the beach. I did make it clear to the family that I wanted…
The cannon in Schoenmakerskop at the start of the Sacramento Trail is one of the cannons recovered from the wreck site of the Sacramento in 1977 and points towards the site where the ship went down in 1647. The Sacramento was a Portuguese Galleon on its way back to Portugal when it ran aground in a storm about 1 kilometer from where the cannon is mounted. 72 survivors made it ashore and had to walk from here to Delagoa Bay (present…