Category Archives: Garden Route National Park

Our 2024 in Pictures

10 Replies

Join us as we reminisce about the places DeWetsWild visited while exploring Southern Africa’s wild places in 2024!

May 2025 be a year to remember for all the best reasons. Happy New Year, everyone!

Chalet 4 at Boschkop, on the shores of the Vaal Dam, January 2024
Skukuza Rest Camp, Kruger National Park, January 2024
Skukuza Bungalow #210, Kruger National Park, January 2024
Skukuza Safari Tent #316, Kruger National Park, January 2024
Cliffhanger Lodge
Leopard Rock Lodge
Recce Lodge
Sunrise at Rietvlei
Camping at Elephant Sands
Elephants drinking from the waterhole in Elephant Sands Lodge
Camping at Domtshetshu Pan
Camping at Domtshetshu Pan
Camping under the stars on Sua Pan
On the horizon lies our campsite on Sua Pan, surrounded by emptiness
Elephant Sands’ Eco Lodge
Campsite #19 at Senyati Safari Camp
Elephants at the waterhole seen from the deck above Senyati’s restaurant
Game-viewing by boat on the Chobe River
Elephants making their way to the Chobe River
Victoria Falls
Lilydale Unit#1, Mokala National Park, June 2024
Sunset Kudu at Mokala
Buffelshoek Safari Camp, Manyeleti Nature Reserve, June 2024
Two of the Kambula Lions at Manyeleti
Simon’s Town Quayside Hotel, Boardwalk Shopping Centre and Bertha’s Restaurant
View from my room at the Simon’s Town Quayside Hotel
African Penguin
Ostriches on the beach at the Cape of Good Hope
Kirstenbosch Spring Annuals Display
Table Mountain cableway
Big old elephant bull between Satara and Olifants in the Kruger National Park
Jamie Mulhovo Guest House, Skukuza, October 2024
Sunset scenery around Skukuza
Research Camp Chalet 5, Skukuza, October 2024
Buffalo at sunset
Research Camp Guest House, Shingwedzi, October 2024
Elephant cow walking past Shingwedzi Camp’s entrance
Gariep N1 Chalets in the Great Karoo
Camping at Karoo National Park, December 2024
Karoo Scenery
Camping at Aloe Canyons
Aloe Canyons
Entrance to Bontebok National Park
Bontebok National Park scenery
De Hoop Vlei
Agulhas Lighthouse
African Penguins on the boardwalk at Betty’s Bay
Camping at Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp in the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park
Wilderness
Camping at Storms River Mouth
Rough seas at the Tsitsikamma coast

Summer Trek – Tsitsikamma, 28 December 2024

2 Replies

Our final day at Storms River Mouth in the Tsitsikamma was mostly spent hiking around the forest and along the coastline. From tomorrow we’ll be visiting with Marilize’s parents so we will be quiet for the next few days until our travels pick up again early in the New Year.

Tsitsikamma Forest
Storms River Mouth
Storms River Mouth
Storms River Mouth
Tsitsikamma Forest
Tsitsikamma Forest
Rough seas at the Tsitsikamma coast

Summer Trek – Tsitsikamma, 27 December 2024

4 Replies

Today was one of those days at the seaside where you needed every type of clothing from a sun hat to a rain jacket!

Sunrise at Storms River Mouth
Bar-throated Apalis
Storms River Mouth
Forest Canary
Storms River Mouth
White-breasted Cormorant
Dolphin tricks
Kelp Gull
Sunset at Storms River Mouth

Summer Trek – Tsitsikamma, 26 December 2024

6 Replies

We’ve moved base again, this time to the Storms River Mouth Rest Camp, in the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park. We’re enjoying a prime view from our seaside campsite.

Our view at Storms River Mouth
Kelp Gull
Our view at Storms River Mouth

Summer Trek – Wilderness, 25 December 2024

15 Replies

Merry Christmas, Everyone! We had a lovely summer Christmas Day out in nature here at Wilderness. We hope that, if you celebrate the holiday, that you had a blessed time with friends and family too wherever you are.

African Dusky Flycatcher
Egyptian Goose
Knysna Turaco
African Hoopoe
Red-knobbed Coot (photo by Joubert)
Langvlei from Malachite Hide
Dabchick (Little Grebe) on nest
Rainforest Brown butterfly
As yet unidentified butterfly
Three-banded Plover with her eggs
Touw River
Egyptian Goslings
Touw River

 

Summer Trek – Wilderness, 23 December 2024

4 Replies

We’ve arrived safely at our next base – the Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp in the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park – though our initial explorations were severely curtailed by intermittent rain showers.

Wilderness
Wilderness

Summertide Diary: Nature’s Valley (Garden Route National Park)

30 Replies

22 – 24 December 2020

Located at the mouth of the Groot River, the small holiday town of Nature’s Valley is surrounded by the western reaches of the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park. The town is connected to the N2 national highway by the Groot River Pass which makes for a magnificent drive as one descends through the forest canopy to the town below.

South African National Parks manages the De Vasselot Rest Camp, which offers two fully-equipped chalets, ten rustic forest huts and a camping area on the outskirts of town. Private holiday homes are available to hire in town where there’s also a small general store and restaurant. Several hiking trails traverse the forests and beaches around Nature’s Valley, and canoes can be hired to explore the river and lagoon.

We spent two nights at the De Vasselot Rest Camp at Nature’s Valley during our 2020-21 Summertide Ramble, arriving in the early afternoon on the 22nd and departing again late morning on the 24th of December 2020. Our chalet on the bank of the Groot River had a lovely setting from which we could wonder at the beauty of Nature’s Valley.

Chalet 12 at Nature’s Valley Rest Camp
The view from chalet 12 at Nature’s Valley Rest Camp
A view downstream from the island in front of Chalet 12
Forest Buzzard circling over the Groot River
Pied Kingfisher
Collared Sunbird
Knysna Turaco visiting us at our chalet in Nature’s Valley (photo by Joubert)
Tsitsikamma forest at Nature’s Valley
Yellow-billed Duck
African Dusky Flycatcher
Young Fish Eagle overhead
Bushbuck ewe

When the sun was out we enjoyed the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets from our stoep. When it was raining, the sound of the drops hitting the river and the quacking of the raucous toad beneath the deck combined to make a soothing lullaby, lulling me to sleep right there on the veranda.

Sunset at Nature’s Valley
It’s raining! It’s pouring! It’s Dries that you hear snoring…
The “golden hour” at Nature’s Valley
The “golden hour” at Nature’s Valley

We didn’t see the sun very often during our time at Nature’s Valley and couldn’t explore as widely as we wanted to due both to the very rainy weather and government restrictions imposed to clamp down on South Africa’s “second wave” of COVID-19 infections, and we’ll definitely have to return to remedy that. Still, there were many trails that we did explore in between (and sometimes during) the rain showers, and even walking in the camp and town proved very rewarding.

The Groot River Pass is a beautiful drive through the forest at Nature’s Valley
Driving through the forest at Nature’s Valley
Ode to a tree
Outeniqua Yellowwoods (Podocarpus falcatus) towering over the road near Nature’s Valley
Majestic Outeniqua Yellowwood (Podocarpus falcatus)
Groot River and the Tsitsikamma
The Groot River at Nature’s Valley
Groot River
Groot River at De Vasselot Rest Camp
A side-loop of the Groot River
A side-loop of the Groot River
A side loop of the Groot River
Groot River at De Vasselot Rest Camp
Groot River estuary at Nature’s Valley
Groot River near its mouth, with the forested foothills of the Tsitsikamma range in the background
Groot River near its mouth, with the forested foothills of the Tsitsikamma range in the background
The deserted beach at Nature’s Valley
The deserted beach at Nature’s Valley
Vygies
Vygies
Cape Chestnut
I’m still trying to identify the tree bearing these fruit
I’m still trying to identify the tree bearing these fruit
Not sure about the identity of these flowers either
Pincushion
Not sure about the identity of these flowers either
Not sure about the identity of these flowers either
Not sure about the identity of this plant either
Leprous Grasshopper
Old Man’s Beard lichens abound in the forest at Nature’s Valley
Bushbuck ewe
Cape Brown butterfly
Black-headed Oriole
Cape White-eye
Levaillant’s Cisticola

One of our hikes took us on a forest trail in the early morning, and we were hoping to reach a cliff-top vantage point overlooking the Indian Ocean. But we got lost in the forest. Thankfully we could trace our steps back after realising that we lost our way. And we could swing on monkey vines (yes, strong enough to hold even me!). And we got soaking wet after it started raining. And yet there was so much life to marvel at that the hike really was still more than worth the effort. The fact that we really do want to go see that viewpoint is just another reason why we have to return to Nature’s Valley!

About to cross the Groot River at Nature’s Valley
Curious baby Baboon
Young Baboon
Pill-millipede
Hiking at Nature’s Valley
Hiking at Nature’s Valley
Hiking through the forest at Nature’s Valley
Impenetrable forest vegetation at Nature’s Valley
Common Bush Brown
Common Bush Brown
The damp of the forest provides ideal conditions for fungi to thrive
The damp of the forest provides ideal conditions for fungi to thrive
Well camouflaged Raucous Toad
A jeep track through the forest
Groot River from a spot along our hike
Old Man’s Beard hanging over a serene pool in the Groot River

 

Nature’s Valley location (Google Maps) Click on the map for an enlarged view.

 

Summertide Diary: Departing Wilderness

17 Replies

22 December 2020

Our last morning in Wilderness and one final chance to take a walk through the camp – even if it was drizzling slightly it’s amazing to still find so much new to see!

Bushbuck Ram heading to the reeds to hide
Cape Lappet Moth Caterpillar, kindly identified by Carol from Nature Back In
Wild Plum
Cape Chestnut
Knysna Turaco
Red-eyed Dove
Egyptian Goose
Unidentified blooms in Wilderness
Black-bellied Starling
Pompon Tree
Bush-tick Berry or Bietou
The Serpentine river snaking past Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp
Intricately patterned geranium leaves
African Darter
Common Starling
Common Dwarf Gecko

As we start our drive to our next destination, the sun finally puts in an appearance, inviting us to pull to the side of the road and enjoy the view over Swartvlei, the largest of the lakes in the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park.

A view over Swartvlei from a lay-by along the N2-highway

If you’d like to read more about the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park, please have a look at this special feature about it that we published a while ago.

Greater Red Musk Shrew

22 Replies

Crocidura flavescens

One of the real highlights of our visit to the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park was an encounter with a rarely seen small mammal: a Greater Red Musk Shrew.

Although it is tiny, weighing only about 30g, the Greater Red Musk Shrew is one of the biggest members of the shrew-family occurring in South Africa. We found the shrew next to a reed bed along the Touw River – typical habitat for the species, although they do occasionally venture into gardens and houses. Greater Red Musk Shrews are insectivores, feeding on a wide range of insects, worms and other invertebrates, and like other shrews have a relatively enormous appetite needing to consume at least half its own weight on a daily basis.

These cute creatures are mostly nocturnal, so we count ourselves very lucky seeing one in daylight (although heavily overcast) and out in the open. By day they hide in grass-nests built slightly above ground level in dense grass cover.

Females give birth to up to 7 young after a gestation of only a month, mainly in the summer months. The babies follow their mother around from 6 days old by forming a “train” nose-to-tail with their siblings. Like other shrews they live extremely fast-paced lives – the young are weaned at only 3 weeks old, reaching sexual maturity when they’re 2-3 months old and then have a life expectancy of maximum 18 months!

The IUCN considers the Greater Red Musk Shrew to be of least concern in conservation terms. It is almost endemic to South Africa, occurring all along our coast from Namaqualand to Maputaland and into extreme southern Mozambique and also along the Drakensberg through Lesotho and eSwatini to the escarpment in Mpumalanga.

Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew (photo by Joubert)
Greater Red Musk Shrew (photo by Joubert)
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Greater Red Musk Shrew (photo by Joubert)
Greater Red Musk Shrew (photo by Joubert)

Joubert photographing the Greater Red Musk Shrew at Wilderness

Summertide Diary: Arriving at Wilderness

28 Replies

20 December 2020 (cont.)

Even though we arrived at the Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp in the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park under heavy skies, there was no reason to be gloomy. There’s no doubt that the Garden Route is one of the most beautiful parts of South Africa, no matter the weather.

Wilderness Ebb-and-Flow Cottage 13A
Serpentine wetlands
Serpentine River in front of our cottage

There’s no containing our enthusiasm for exploring a destination once we’ve arrived and not even the threat of a downpour was going to keep us indoors while the expansive Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp beckoned outside our log cabin, however comfortable it may be.

Unidentified blooms at Ebb-and-Flow
Egyptian Goose (photo by Joubert)
Cape Wagtail
Touw River
This is the enormous nest of the Cocktail Ant
Large Yellow Eulophia (Eulophia speciosa) at Ebb-and-Flow, identified with the kind assistance of Carol from Nature Back In
Greater Red Musk Shrew (photo by Joubert)
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Joubert photographing the Greater Red Musk Shrew at Wilderness
Greater Red Musk Shrew
Scenery in an overcast and wet Wilderness
Brimstone Canary
Natal Plum (or Large Num-num) flower
White Bristle Bush
Glossy Currant berries
Unidentified but most interesting plant seen at Ebb-and-Flow

By now you probably know that we have a propensity to extend our explorations into the hours of darkness. Most of the camps in our national parks are safe to do just that and if you apply some common sense rules like walking with closed shoes you’re likely to be handsomely rewarded with some unusual encounters, like these we had on our first night at Ebb-and-Flow.

Olive House Snake
Raucous Toad
Spotted Eagle Owl

If you’d like to read more about the Wilderness section of the Garden Route National Park, please have a look at this special feature about it that we published a while ago.