Fishing at Oppiekoppie Bass Farm

BIL had bought a BassAfrica magazine when the family were here 2 years ago and Edward had brought it back here on holiday. He found a bass farm in it, in the North West province less than 30 km away from Magalies Park, so we phoned and made a plan to go on Thursday. (Needless to say the magazine is well worn and well travelled by now).

As instructed we took the road through Brits and turned left after the railway line onto a tar road which had seen better days - we dodged all the potholes and found Oppiekoppiebassfarm quite easily. It's a working farm and stone quarry and also produces wooden goods. It has at least 5 dams that can be fished on a catch and release basis. Also a multitude of free roaming rabbits, geese and sheep.

George and Edward were soon fishing (they're eating their supper and comparing sizes as I write).

The farm is very tidy with a chalet for overnight guests, a lapa and plenty of braais - some of them quite ingenious home made affairs.

I'm handing over to the boys to tell you all about the fishing. Suffice it to say that my big moment of the day was watching a purple heron competing with them.

......
This is Edward speaking, George is better at fishing he has caught the first fish every time because he is the best ! He hasn't failed to catch the biggest fish each time he has been fishing with me this holiday! I am lucky to have such a knowledgeable fisherman with me today ! I caught ten little fishies and George caught a humongous bass and trout and three other little fishies !

George's Trout

This is George speaking, Edward is far superior. He caught ten bass one of which weighed a hefty 1 pound 12 ounces and there were two or three more that weighed about a pound. I caught out of blind luck a two pound bass on one of Edwards worms which he very kindly lent me. Edward told me what to do and it really paid off! Thank you Edward!

Ed specialised in Bass!

This photo was taken especially for Dad? (Ed did not reveal why)

Hiking at Van Galen's Cheese Farm

Peter had left for work (shame) and I had to rouse the boys for our 8h00 departure to join the Johannesburg Hiking Club Wednesday hike which was due to start from the local cheese farm. I didn't realize it would only take 5 minutes to drive there from Magalies Park! They could have slept a bit longer.

33 hikers pitched up and we split into slow, medium and fast groups. Why do youngsters always want to go FAST?!!!

We drove our cars to another part of the farm up a track next to a Predators Park. Disgusted to see there were wild dogs and hyena in small cages alongside the track.

Thought the hike was going to be fairly flat for a change as the Magaliesburg were away to the north and south. Should have known better! Our leader, Mike, said it was a bit boring and that the view from the top was magnificent. George was first to the top and waiting for the rest of the group to catch up. I needed to stop frequently to admire the view.

Looking south

And North...

 In hiking terms this is a euphemism for catching ones breath! Once we reached the top we came across a British fort from the Boer war.

The "Fast Group"

At one stage the route took us into a ditch which was obviously man made and in places more than 5 feet deep. I suppose it was like the pictures of the trenches from World War 1.

Anyway we finished around 12h30 and met back at the cheese farm for "light refreshments". No I took my aunty driving duties very seriously and only had a coke.

We're back at the chalet now at Magalies Park but where is George? Seemingly he's gone for a lie down - these youngsters can't keep up with aunty. Don't know if he'll get any sleep because somebody has a chain saw operating next to the chalet!

Ed is trying to catch a tan  - yes Jen he has taken his shirt off because he says you keep pestering him about a tan .

At dusk George and I were walking across the golf course when he spotted something jumping from the ground up into a tree. It was a bushbaby - we watched it move from tree to tree and called Edward to come over and see it.

Spot the eyes - all the better to see you with.

Magalies Park

Yesterday was a public holiday in South Africa - Womens Day. Quite a crowd came out to the resort and the road past our chalet was continuously busy.

Chalet 53, Magalies Park

We are only 45 minutes from home so Peter was able to join us after work on Monday and commute back early this morning. Mike was supposed to join us for a round of golf yesterday but the pro shop had no record of our booking. It turned out that they had a golf day organized at our time (10h00), what a mess. They were fully booked all day and could only offer us a late afternoon time behind the golf day field - this meant that we would probably not finish in daylight. We threw a wobbly and they relented and gave us the first time of the day at 6h40 just as it gets light. However it meant that Mike wouldn't be able to get here on time. In compensation they offered us a free game and cart for later in the week but with Peter leaving and no space for the clubs in my boot we wouldn't be able to make use of it.

Peter and I played golf - a few years ago it was my favorite course - a good variety of holes and scenic with the Magaliesburg mountains all. around. They've made a few changes and added quite a bit of water now. I think it was the course on which I first went around and managed to complete every hole without a blackout (4 or more over par). Anyway we both played pretty badly but I managed to beat Peter - or perhaps he let me because it was Women's Day.

George and Edward chilling

Mum, we told you it was a waste of time to iron before packing!

Back at the chalet we watched all the afternoon golfers struggle to get over the small pond at the 12th hole. Later Ed and George scored more than 75 golf balls from the water and became very muddy in the process.

As it became cooler we went in search of possible bass fishing spots and found a quiet place close to the dam. Alas no bass but Peter and I added another lifer - Great Crested Grebe. And then just to go one better Peter added the African Olive Pigeon which is the new name for Rameron Pigeon.Unfortunately I already had it in my list.

Hartebeesport Dam - Ed & George each lost a lure and neither caught a fish!

An email arrived from Barrie & Sue inviting us to a "300 birds" party - date to be supplied by us - an excuse to visit Uvongo which we still hope to do this year.

Peter cooked us magic tasting ribs for supper and we resumed our Black Maria cards game which George won once more by going back to zero points on the penultimate hand. How does he do it???

To be continued.... Must get ready for our hike as we have to meet at the cheese farm before 8h30....

Gone Fishing!

Edward had googled "bass fishing in Gauteng" before he left England and found Ithumela - a private smallholding about 20 kms north of Pretoria.

We set off early on Sunday morning and arrived before 7h30. It felt as if we were in somebody's back garden as we had to drive past the house (including a large cage of Vervet monkeys??) and park more or less on a lawn. There were 4 or 5 small dams and a walk down the track brought us to a stretch of river that was hardly flowing.

George caught the first bass ......

and not to be outdone, Edward followed soon afterwards.

Both bass were caught before 9h30 and after that ............Only a crab........

It was cloudy and chilly so Peter and I sat in the car and updated our bird checklists. I had some new lifers to add from last week's trip. We counted up and much to my dismay I found that I had 303 birds which was 3 short of Peter's total. Barrie what have you done?? 

Peter the Bird Watcher

So, Peter is promoted from apprentice 

and

where was our promised "300" party?

The sun appeared and Peter and I left the fishermen and walked down to the river. Within 5 minutes Peter spotted an unusual bird that looked like a goose but had a bright orange beak. It was skulking along the opposite bank, and disappearing behind the reeds. Luckily we had taken "Sasol Birds" along and found that it was an African Finfoot. This was a new "lifer" for both of us and Peter recalled that Barrie and Sue had once spent 8 hours waiting to see one at some dam or other. Next time take Peter the birder along!!!!!!

Maximum zoom but still far away - the African Finfoot

Several hours went by and still no more fish were caught, after 14h00 the sun made a permanent appearance and brought out a few more birds. A black shouldered kite was hunting and a pair of African Fish Eagles were displaying and calling from a distant tree ( no it was not a ring tone!). We were lucky to see a Giant Kingfisher close by and a few arrowmarked babblers were chattering noisily.

Several more hours went by and still no more fish - by now I had finished 3 of the Black Belt Sudoku puzzles in the book that Mike had given me for Christmas.

I decided to take a photo of our car - just to prove to Barrie and Sue that despite travelling several kms on dirt road to reach the fishing spot - we still had our front number plate.

Finally as the sun was starting to set we managed to "lure" (no pun intended) our intrepid fishermen back to the car for the trip home to Centurion.

Off to Magalies Park tomorrow - and more fishing!

Back Home - a brief stay before we're off again

Our last day in St Lucia was very relaxing. Barrie and Sue went on a final search for the Sooty Tern down on the beach. The sighting could still not be confirmed and they left to go back to their home in Uvongo.

Edward, George and I played some table tennis and then decided to go and relax at the tea garden at the crocodile farm. Basil had suggested a bird watching trip to the sewage works but Ed wasn't feeling too good so we gave it a miss.

It was very windy again and we found a sunny, sheltered spot overlooking an area which housed 1 male crocodile and 7 females. No comment! Various birds were coming and going and we spotted a hammerkop and crowned hornbills. The chocolate muffins were delicious and George and I enjoyed them with a couple of coffee and chocolate milkshakes whilst Ed had to be satisified with a flat coke!

We left this morning just before 8h00 and arrived home just over 7 hours later. There are still several one way stretches on the road between Pongola and Ermelo. At one we must have waited 20 minutes for the oncoming traffic to come through. There were a lot of coal trucks on the road and we saw another long coal train which we measured at over 1.3 kms.

The temperature varied between 17 and 23 degrees centigrade on the drive back. Now we are in Centurion its sunny outdoors but pretty cold in the house. The washing machine is working overtime in preparation for our next trip which starts on Monday when we leave for Magalies Park - less than an hours drive away.

Cape Vidal

Up early on a sunny but windy day to take a leisurely drive through the Isimangaliso wetland park to Cape Vidal. Odette had said Cape Vidal was not to be missed.

Stopping to view the plentiful game and unusual birds (the lesser black winged plover was a good sighting), and taking all the optional loop roads we reached the long stretch of quiet beach at Cape Vidal in the late morning. The tide was out and the reef exposed  - we had taken the snorkel but it was far too windy to venture near the reef. I still have memories of being bashed against the jagged ancient coral on our Mozambique Beach Hike back in 2008.

The view from the top of the ancient sand dunes at Mission Rocks was stunning. Looking east was the turquoise of the Indian Ocean and we could see many whales blowing. Looking west across the area known as the Eastern Shores to Lake St Lucia we could see black rhino, buffalo, zebra and wildebeest. A large flock of Spoonbills flew over and settled on the shores of the lake.

What a View!

Maybe this one is better?

We could see an eagle hunting below us and hear the cries of the fish eagle. On the drive we had seen many busbuck, red duiker, reedbuck, waterbuck, a long crested eagle and an Afican Harrier Hawk. On the drive back past Banghazi Bush Camp we saw a couple of black rhino.

Black Rhino

Whale Watching, Fishing and Chilling

Monday - the first day of August. Our Bird Watching friends, Barrie & Sue, arrived from Uvongo and we immediately went in search of the Sooty Tern - a "lifer" for all of us. It had been listed on the rarity web site last week as being spotted in a group of other terns at the mouth of the St Lucia estuary. This actually meant stopping off for a pint at the St Lucia ski boat club and asking the locals if they'd seen a tern that didn't look like any of the other terns!

The Ski Boat Club

View from the ski boat club

We didn't find the Sooty Tern on Monday - on Tuesday Edward, George and Janice were up early to go Whale Watching...

George & Janice ready to go Whale Watching

The "double storey" whale watching boat

Power!

The tractor pushes the boat out using a steel bar

 The tractor pushed the boat into the surf, the two 300 horsepower engines revved and we surged forward jumping the breakers. One wave hit us and drenched the boat and the girls started screaming. The water quickly drained out, we were through the breakers and heading out for the open sea and hopefully some whales.

 

There were several Humpback Whales but we didn't get extremely close

Back on Dry Land.....
 

Barrie & Sue - "On the Boardwalk"

 You have been warned!

They were not kidding!

And if the crocs don't get you.....

George fishing in the estuary - watch your toes!

Mens' Business

Supper at last - Bream

Small but tasty!