Encounter the Eastern Cape

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Encounter the Eastern Cape

Jonker Fourie of Firefly the Travel Guy brings you the beauty of the Eastern Cape through his camera lens. A province of diverse scenery, history and cultures.
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24/06/2024

The first mill on Glen Avon Farm outside Somerset East was built by Robert Hart Snr in 1823. It was built into the hill between The Gulley and the dairy, behind Hart Cottage. This mill would have had a wooden wheel and all that remains of it is the grindstone, which is paved into the entrance of the current mill.

The mill in its present situation was built in 1862, evidenced by the wheel being dated 1861. This mill would have been built by Robert Hart Jnr since his father would have been in his early 80’s by this time. There is speculation that this is the third mill and that a second, smaller mill stood here before. There is no proof but for word of mouth and the change in the structure from stone to brick higher up.

21/06/2024

The Fish River flowing over Katkop Weir on Lowlands Farm outside Cradock

20/06/2024

Paddling up the Sundays River at Sitrusoewer River Camp near Kirkwood at sunset

19/06/2024

The Somerset East Dutch Reformed Church standing at the top of Beaufort Street. The congregation was founded in 1825 but construction of the first church only started in 1830. Construction of the second (and current) church building began in 1869 and it was dedicated in 1871 although construction wasn’t completed yet.

18/06/2024

The multi-arch Churchill Dam near Kareedouw overflowing. The dam is located on the Krom River and from here the water flows down to the Impofu Dam.

17/06/2024

The magnificent sight of an overflowing Kouga Dam in the Gamtoos Valley (enhanced with a bit of HDR)

14/06/2024

5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Bungyyyyyyyyyyyyy

13/06/2024

Late afternoon over the Elands River Valley with the Cockscomb Mountain in the distance. A perfect sunny winter day.

12/06/2024

Flowering aloes just north of the Zuurberg Mountains with Ann's Villa in the background. Built in 1864, it once served as a stopover point for ox-wagons full of romantics and day-dreamers heading upcountry, all hoping to strike it rich in the diamond fields of Kimberley. The seven-room villa boomed and also had a blacksmith, wheelwright, bakery and shop.

11/06/2024

Sunset on the Sundays River at Sitrusoewer River Camp outside Kirkwood

10/06/2024

A Karoo farm stay breakfast under the trees

07/06/2024

Enjoying the beautiful Karoo landscape while driving through the Mountain Zebra National Park outside Cradock

06/06/2024

Looking down at Nature's Valley and the lagoon from the top of the Groot River Pass.

05/06/2024

In 1936, 57 years after the first Greek settlers (They were either survivors of a shipwreck or sailors) arrived in Algoa Bay, it was decided to establish a Greek Orthodox church, a hall and a school in Port Elizabeth. It was a necessary catalyst to preserve religious and cultural activities.

World War 2 halted the fundraising efforts for the church as finances were used to aid the starving population in Greece. And in 1953 an earthquake in the Ionian Islands again required the financial assistance of the community, which left the church’s funds depleted.

Funds were accumulated from as far afield as Zimbabwe to erect the church, with the bell tower completed only 40 years afterwards.

04/06/2024

The Great Trek Centenary Memorial in front of the Dutch Reformed Church in Pearston

Since 1850 parishioners would gather in the shade of a large pear tree on the farm Rustenburg, owned by Casper Lotter, to celebrate communion. The minister of the church in Somerset East travelled the 48 kilometres over the Bruintjieshoogte to celebrate Communion. In 1858 a notice to establish the village was published in the Kerkbode and the church was consecrated in 1886.

03/06/2024

Slow traffic on the afternoon drive at Samara Karoo Reserve

01/06/2024

Sunset on the Sundays River at Sitrusoewer River Camp outside Kirkwood. Total bliss.

31/05/2024

The view from the Sir Percy FitzPatrick Lookout near Sunland in the Sundays River Valley.

I’m sure most South Africans have read, or at least heard, of the book Jock of the Bushveld. The book was written by Sir Percy FitzPatrick, (24 July 1862 – 24 January 1931) who in his younger years was involved in gold and diamond prospecting in Mpumalanga where Jock of the Bushveld also plays off. He also had involvement in the Anglo Boer War and politics. Not many may realise though that the Sundays River Valley has solid links to Sir Percy. He actually played a big role in the early development of the Valley.

After coming to the Sundays River Valley he established the Sundays River Settlement Company which encouraged people to settle in this area. He also played a very big role in the establishment of the citrus industry in the valley and the amazing irrigation system of this area was his brainchild.

FitzPatrick bought a piece of land next to the river from where his guests could enjoy the stunning view of the surrounding valley. He even had a lookout platform built on the land where visitors can still go to marvel at the view today.

After his death, Sir Percy was buried at The Lookout where his wife is buried alongside him. His children are also all buried on the site.

The Lookout and the surrounding land were donated as a public space by his daughter and son-in-law in 1953 and the site was declared a National Monument. A lot of the locals have fond memories of spending time up at the Lookout, or Percy’s Place as they call it, in their younger years.

30/05/2024

A memorial to Gideon Scheepers can be found just outside Graaff-Reinet on a site as near as possible to the place where he was executed during the Anglo Boer War. The memorial comprises of three rocks from the vicinity supporting a stainless steel needle, symbolising the spirit of hope and faith in God. The largest rock represents the steadfastness of the then young Afrikaner nation. The two tilted boulders it supports symbolise this nation – suppressed but not fallen. A fourth boulder alongside bears the inscription.

During the Anglo-Boer War Gideon Scheepers formed his own commando, which operated in the Cape Midlands. He was captured by the British troops and charges of alleged war crimes were laid against him. At the court hearings in Graaff-Reinet he was found guilty, sentenced to death and executed by firing squad in the dry river bed of the Sundays River in an area now covered by the Nqweba Dam (previously known as Van Ryneveld's Pass Dam).

29/05/2024

South Africa's national election is taking place today so it's appropriate to post a picture of a voting line. In this case, an art piece called Voting Line. The Voting Line forms part of the Route 67 art installation on the Donkin Reserve in Port Elizabeth. It consists of 59 life-sized figures circling the base of the giant flag pole with the figure of Nelson Mandela in the front. The figures in the Voting Line represent the demographic of the Eastern Cape and each figure was designed from a photo of a real person. The art piece was the brainchild of artists Anthony Harris And Konrad Gee

28/05/2024

Do you have a Nieu-Bethesda owl in your garden? The town is famous for the Owl House and locals have been making owl replicas for years, selling them on the side of the road to visitors

27/05/2024

Taking a break after climbing up to the view site above Storms River Mouth. The climb from the suspension bridge is no joke but the view along the coastline back to the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National park (previously the Tsitsikamma National Park) rest camp is magnificent.

24/05/2024

The Mackay Bridge over the Sundays River was opened on 5 March 1895. The Colchester area was a very busy spot in the mid-1800s and early 1900s, as it had the only pont over the Sundays River on the main road between Port Elizabeth and Grahamstown. In 1874 the original pont washed away and they started looking at plans to build a bridge. This bridge was constructed entirely of steel and iron brought all the way from Sheffield in England and was named in honour of John Mackay whose efforts resulted in its construction. The current bridge was rebuilt in 1938 after a flood and was in use as the main road from Port Elizabeth until the 1960s when the N2 was built. The bridge is only accessible on foot or bicycle.

23/05/2024

The village of Clarkson in the Tsitsikamma is a former mission station of the Moravian Mission Society. It was founded in 1839 by Bishop H.P. Hallbeck with five coloured families from Enon and a Fingo chief with his entourage of farmers. William Wilberforce received 200 pounds from his friend Thomas Clarkson to set up the new mission station that was named after Clarkson. Clarkson spent his adult life working to abolish the Transatlantic Slave Trade and slavery itself. Rev Halter of Enon laid out the station with Church Street as the only street with the Coloured people on one side and the Fingos on the other side of the street. In December 1840 the first church building was consecrated.

22/05/2024

Outside Middelburg is a monument called the Stoel (chair) Monument. It's an unusual thing to have a monument for, isn't it? So what is the story?

Commandant J. C. Lötter and most of the members of his commando was captured on 4 September 1901, during the Anglo Boer War. One of the top commandants in the Cape, Lötter was known for his daring “hit and run” tactics. Earlier in the war, after the British had introduced their shocking scorched earth and concentration camp policies, Lötter and the commandos did a lot of attacks in retaliation. Lötter and his right-hand man were sent to Middelburg and on October 11 sentenced to death.

The following day Lötter was taken to this spot next to the Richmond Road where he was tied to a chair and shot. Three days later Wolfaardt was taken to the same place, where he shared Lötter’s fate. The two were buried in the same grave. Six years later, the remains of both men were dug up, placed in one coffin, and reburied in the Middelburg cemetery.

21/05/2024

At 9 meters high the Great Fish Point Lighthouse near Port Alfred is one of the smallest lighthouses on the South African coastline. It didn’t need to be built very high as it stands 76 meters above sea level and looks across a dune veld to the coastline. It may seem that the lighthouse is actually far from the coast (800 meters from the shoreline in fact), but the light can be seen 32 nautical miles out to sea and flash on the seaside every 10 seconds.

Although the large ships sail past quite far off these days, back in the 1800’s ships had to be warned about three shallow reefs to the north-east of where the lighthouse is located.

20/05/2024

The Voting Line art piece, part of Route 67, on the Donkin Reserve in Port Elizabeth with the Donkin Street houses in the background.

16/05/2024

Kareedouw is the first town you encounter when you travel into the Langkloof on Route 62 from the Port Elizabeth side. The name is thought to come from the KhoiSan word !karegadaob which means "A road past many Karee Trees".

Kareedouw was established in 1905 as a Dutch Reformed Church congregation. The church can be found on the southern side of town with the Tsitsikamma Mountains right behind it. Next to the church is a small "heroes' acre" where you will find the grave of Balthazar Johannes (John) Vorster, who was the prime minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978.

15/05/2024

Sunrise at Wavecrest on the Wild Coast. The promise of a great day to come.

14/05/2024

Sitting in contemplation along with one of the Stone Folk of Ongeluksloot just outside Nieu Bethesda.

The Stone Folk is a permanent outdoor installation of stone figures carefully placed in the landscape of Ongeluksloot, on the farm Doornberg, outside the village of Nieu Bethesda. The Stone Folk are sculptures from rocks in the area masterfully created by Ryno Greeff and inspired by the stone figures placed in Kaokoland in Namibia and “The Dance” by Marcella de Boom outside Loxton. Currently, there are 10 stone sculptures placed in the beautiful Karoo landscape.

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The Eastern Cape offers visitors truly spectacular coastal experiences like this pod of Common Dolphins encountered in Algoa Bay by Raggy Charters - Marine-Eco Cruises

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