Garden Route, Botlierskop and Klein Karoo – Helga Ferg and Gisela Siebert -- 16th - 22nd Nov. 2009

This Tour was very similar than the Tour with Ute and Dirk Haspel.
The main difference was it had to be shorter, so we stayed for one
night at the Private Game Lodge, Botlierskop,
near Mosselbaai and came
back via Agulhus, the most southern Tip of Africa! At Botlierskop we
stayed in some lovely luxury tents and could hear the night sounds of
animals, very exciting. We saw only two elephants, three Rhino, many
Giraffe, Zebra and some of our many antelope species, eg. Eland,
Waterbuck, Impala, Springbuck.
So, if you do not need to see the BIG FIVE and need to make a shorter
trip, then I can take you on a similar trip over 5 days.

ROVOS RAIL --- AUGUST 2009

Rovos Rail through SOUTH AFRICA --- What a Fantastic Trip!

ROVOS RAIL --- It is known as
"THE MOST LUXURIOUS TRAIN IN THE WORLD"!

For seven weeks I travelled through South Africa visiting family and friends and then the cherry on top was the Rovos Rail train trip back to Cape Town. If you ever have the money, book it through me it is worth all of it and I can give you some deduction on the price.
We left Pretoria with a steam engine in the afternoon on Friday and traveled very slowly through the cities of Pretoria, Germiston, Johannesburg and Krugersdorp. The steam engine was changed to electricity somewhere on route, but it still was traveling slowly
through our lovely country. The city houses seem not to end too quickly, but if you find nice people on the train and start drinking and chatting to them, time flies. Before dark we got into the lovely Savanna fields (grass and thorntrees) of the Old Transvaal! Until dark we were all sitting in the lounge, wagon at the end of the train with tea, coffee and cakes or later anything from the bar.

Then we had to go and dress up smartly for the evening supper. The dining room was really special with all the lovely woodwork of the days gone by, the old colonial times.
We met new people and the food was absolutely exquisite. In French style and a four course meal was something special. At night one could sleep well with the rocking of the train through the country-side. If you do not sleep well like that the train also stands still for 4 to 5 hours (I could not sleep again once it was standing). The rocking train puts one to sleep, I found.

The next morning, (Saturday) after a too large breakfast, we stopped in Kimberley and spend about three hours with a good guide at The Big Hole of the Kimberley diamond mines. Very interesting Video of 20 minutes showed us also more of times gone by a long time ago. Back on the train we could sit down for a lovely lunch and perhaps a little sleep afterwards in our cabins or rather suites. Each suite has a specific name. We were in the Umkomaas suite, just next to Tutu. Some others had animal names like Kudu, Impala and Springbok. Now we were traveling through the Groot Karoo. A lovely way to see the Karoo. Right at the back of the train was an open area to sit and take photos. The Karoo had so much rain that it is very green at the moment. At sunset there were thunder clouds coming up and some heavy rain came down for a while and we had to go back inside to rather have a drink and a chat at the bar.

For supper it was dressing up again. I do not know if it was for woman's day or always done, but when we arrived in the dining room, a red rose for the men and a pink rose for the ladies where put onto our dress to beautify the occasion of the last night on the train. There were people from the UK, US, Singapore, New Zealand, Ireland and of course many from South Africa (mainly Jo'burg, one lady from Rustenburg) on this train.

The Sunday morning the train stopped at 8h00 at about 5km before Matjiesfontein. It was fantastic sunshine weather after the rain in the previous night. Those that wanted to walk could take a walk of 5km into Matjiesfontein, while'st the train carried on. We were about 20, (half of the tourists) getting out to do that walk. After all that eating for two days it was really good to do such a walk. I really enjoyed that. We took about one hour to do this walk.
In Mastjiesfontein there is the Museum at the station and also a car and train museum to look at and the whole village is really a museum of bygone colonial times. The train started moving again towards Cape Town at 11h00.

Now we started entering one of the most beautiful areas of the Cape. The high mountains started to appear in the distance. The Hexriver Mountains, then the highest peak of the Boland, Matroosberg, full of snow, the Drakenstein Mountains and then the Bainskloof Mountains as we were traveling passed Worcester, Ceres, Thulbach and Wellington. As it was getting dark we also came passed Paarl with the Paarlberg and soon after this the icon of Cape Town, Table Mountain, became visible. We arrived on the Sunday at 18h00 at the Cape Town Station and were kind of sad that this lovely train trip came to and end.

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Garden Route, Addo and Klein Karoo Tour with Köditz from 23rd February to 2nd March 2009

A very pleasant couple from Germany, Mr and Mrs Köditz, came with me on this tour. The first two nights we stayed at the Gästehaus Pinkepank in Plettenberg Bay. http://www.gaestehaus-pinkepank.de
When we left Somerset West driving over the Sir Louriespass there were terrific strong winds and a terrible fire on the Hottentot Holland Mountains. We were glad to leave these terrible fires in February at the Cape behind us and leave for the healthier air on the Garden Route.
My guests enjoyed very much the boat trip to the Knysna Heads, the Elephant Park, where one can FEED,FEEL and HUG an Elephant and we all really had fun with the Elephant orphan babies. We also enjoyed a beachwalk at Plettenberg Bay.
The next day we went to learn more about the different monkeys at the Monkey Sanctuary and Stormsriver Mouth with its scenic walk to the hanging bridge over the river. We had fabulous weather to enjoy this scenic area of our coast.
We then spend a full day and night at Leeuwenbosch Private Game Lodge for Game viewing in a malaria free area. The Game drive on this private Game Park is always very special, since we see most of the well-known african animals, eg. Giraffe, Rhino, Elephant, Buffalo and many antilope species.
We then stayed one night in the fabulous,five-star, Woodall Lodge in the Addo village. There is always some special food in their restaurant. From here we spend the next day in the Addo National Park for more lovely Game-viewing.
From Addo our tour goes into the Klein Karoo and we stayed at the lovely Groenfontein Retreat at the foot of the Swartbergpass which is situated in a very rural farming district between Oudtshoorn and Kalitzdorp.
The next day we went up the most famous Swartbergpass, now rated as the second most scenic pass in the world. This tour over the pass is something one must not miss, if you spend some time in this area. My guests were also enspired about these scenic pictures as seen above.
We then still spend some time during the next two days in the Cango Caves and Ostrich farm and driving back to Cape Town through the lovely Klein Karoo, one night in Montagu and then wine tasting through Robertson. My guetst really enjoyed the whole trip as they told me and thanked me so much at the end of our tour.

Garden Route, Addo, Schotia und Klein Karoo – 1.bis 7. Januar 2009 mit Ute, Dirk und Inge.

Gleich am 1.Januar 2009 fing diese Tour an. Es ging diesmal am ersten Tag bis nach Knysna. Hier eine Bootfahrt, die Elephanten Kinder und der Holzschnitzer wurde besucht. Ute hat vorallem das schöne Holz gefallen und hat sie sich vom wilden Oliven Holz 6 Stück mitgenommen, wovon sie dann ein tolles Kunststück zum aufhängen daraus machte. Am dritten Tag machten wir eine schöne Tour bei Monkeyland mit und besuchten dann die herrliche Bucht, Nature’s Valley und danach den tollen Pass über den Grootrivier wieder zurück zur N2.
Am 4. Tag besuchten wir den wunderschönen Stormsriver und Tsitsikamma Park, wo man die tollen Wellen die sich auf der felsigen Küste zerschlagen lange beobachten konnte. Hier machten wir auch wieder den Spaziergang am Fluss entlang zu der Hängebrücke über den stürmischen Fluss. Wunderschöne Landschaft. Danach ging es dann weiter nach Addo in der Nähe vom bekannten Addo National Park. Diesen besuchten wir dann am 5. Tag unserer Reise. Hier gab es wieder viele Elephanten, Kudus, Zebras, Gnus usw. zu sehen. Am nächsten Tag machten wir die “Tooth and Claw Safari” bei Schotia mit, die auch immer ganz toll ist und man ganz bestimmt hier Löwen sieht. Am Abend gibt es dann ein ganz feines Essen um ein grosses Lagerfeuer.
Die letzten zwei Tage waren wir in der Klein Karoo mit Vogelstrauss Farm, Cango Grotten und eine schöne zurückfahrt durch die Klein Karoo was zwischen zwei schönen Bergketten liegt.

Garden Route, Dolphin Trail, Game Lodge and Klein Karoo - 30th August to 9th Sept.2008

Eva, Christa and Ramona Tour – Garden Route, Dolphin Trail, Game Lodge and Klein Karoo – 30. August until 10. September 2008

Day 1. First stop the whales at Hermanus. Very windy, but we saw quite a few whales. Next stop Agulhas with almighty storm, almost blowing us over. Evening we spend at Cypresscottage Guest House, Swellendam, http://www.cypresscottage.info/ where it was storming all night and the rain was pouring down in buckets.

Day 2. As we drove off from Swellendam the skies opened up and we could see most beautiful views of the Langeberg Mountains halfway down covered with snow. As we reached Knysna and drove along the lagoon, we could see that the storms and high sees were not over, since the water was up to the road driving next to the lagoon.
At Plettenberg Bay were my guests stayed for two nights in a small Guest House we arrived just before dark. As we drove down from Plettenberg Bay to look at the large lagoon there, the police has just closed off two roads, as the water was so high and had taken away one Restaurant near the edge of the lagoon.

Day 3. This day we spend visiting the Elephant Park near Knysna, http://www.knysnaelephantpark.co.za/ , to feed, feel and hug an elephant. All my guests love this close encounter of elephants. We went for a walk amongst some of the old yellowwoods in the forest and in the afternoon on a lovely boat trip on the lagoon.

Day 4. This was the 2nd of September. Two days ago our coast was hammered by most severe storms with a swell of the sea 9 metres high and being new moon, caused a special high and low tied.
The morning we spend at Monkey land and then we were monkeys ourselves in the Treetops Canopy Adventure Tour, http://www.treetoptour.com/ Well, I had to do it again, after doing it last year, but if they take the Guide for free, why not. It is a very exciting experience.
We then were told that our Dolphin Trail that had to start at the Storms river Mouth was not possible the normal way, since the huts we were meant to stay in for the night, down at the sea, were washed away two days ago. What a start of the spring and our tour. We were taken down to the storms river mouth to look at the devastation caused by the massive swell of the sea two days ago. Two of the huts were totally broken and 6 others also damaged.

Day 5. The first day of the Dolphin Trail, we mainly walked in the Tsitsikamma forest. Our guide, Marius, very educationally did this.
At the bridge of the old Storms river road we had our lunch with sandwiches. They took us then onto a path were we ended on top of the mountain, overlooking the storms river mouth. Magnificent views over the sea, with whales playing in the far distance.
Late afternoon we arrived at the luxury accommodation, The Mountain View Lodge. We were greeted very friendly by our hosts and shown to our lovely wooden chalets. We met again with our hosts for some drinks at their bar and then we had a fantastic three-course meal.

Day 6. Today we were able to walk on the real Dolphin Trail. It was along the coastline, through lovely forests and with fantastic views over the blue ocean, with splashing water over the rocks below, but no dolphins in sight. At one place the wooden stairs where we were meant to climb over rocks, were also washed away. At this point we were suddenly splashed wet by a big wave and then had to climb up a steel ladder, that was brought in for us and hold up by some 4 men. I must say I was glad when my guests and I were all safely up the ladder and on steadier ground again.
Walking into the forest near lunchtime, we suddenly were surprised by a lovely table with lots of special food for lunch. Not something one expects on a Trail, but then this is a luxury Trail. Well worth doing http://www.dolphintrail.co.za/ We enjoyed it thoroughly, specially ending up at some real luxury the second day, the Fenery Lodge, with beautiful wooden chalets for us and a special meal in their 5-star Lodge. Being able to use a Jacuzzi after an all day walk was also a luxury.

Day 7 to 11.
For the rest of this trip we did the usual things, like half day in Addo National Park, afternoon and evening a Safari at Schotia. We saw a lot of animals, also some lions feeding on a warthog. After a long day drive to Oudtshoorn, we could do the Ostrich Safari Farm, where you can learn everything about the Ostrich. The next day the Cango Caves and up the Swartberg Pass and our last night we spend at the lovely Groenfontein Retreat “A Farm in Africa”, http://www.groenfontein.com/ with a fantastic african farm meal in the evening. On our tour back to Somerset West we could still enjoy some winetasting near Robertson.

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NAMAQUALAND FLOWER TOUR --- 17th to 21st August 2008

This Namaqualand Tour, with two ladies from the UK, was very enjoyable and we saw some fantastic

flower fields. We spend the first day in the West Coast Nature Reserve and Postberg. The flower fields just started there. Lovely Helliophilias as seen on this photo.

We travelled from Clan William to the Namaquland National Park with its millions of Namaqualand daisies, but also with very scenic mountains around.

From Springbok we travelled to Nieuwoudtville, the bulb capital of the westcoast. Here were also stunning fields of flowers. So much beauty and variety in flowers, more than anywhere in the world.

We then spend one day at the Bushmans Kloof Nature Reserve. The animals and flowers were breath taking. Such a big variety of different species of flowers is amazing. Also the rockpaintings we could gaze at, made this a very special trip.

Daytours around Cape Town!

26th - 30th April 2008:
One couple from Germany came on my daytours. One around Peninsula, one up Table Mountain and City Tour,
and one along our lovely coastline of False Bay, Betties Bay and Kleinmond to Hermanus.
Mr and Mrs Kaitna wrote afterwards to me:
"Wir wollen uns nochmals bei dir für die schönen und interessanten Stunden bedanken, in denen Du uns das schöne Südafrika gezeigt hast. Mit lieben Grüßen aus Purbach, am Neusiedlersee, Renate und Klaus."