KWA ZUNGA MARCH 2007 LOOKING FOR A NATURE RESERVE

KWA ZUNGA
28 FEBRUARY 2008.

Barbara & I met Linda Olivier (Estate Agent based in Steytlerville) at about 10.00am on Wednesday morning at our house. We drove to the Crossroads at the Rocklands interchange. This is 30kays from our house. Here we met up with Greg Gilbert (044 532 7518). Greg is the owner OF Kwa Zunga (together with another group of people who he tells us have no real interest in the bush). The drive to KwaZunga is about 30kays most of which is good dirt road. We then turned off to the right and headed in a Northerly direction along a farm road. Here there are no apparent restrictions to access.

While this section of the road is extremely difficult with sharp rocks, dongas and steep drop off to the side, the Toyota 4X4 that Greg was driving coped with the terrain very well. I would recommend that visitors to this area should try to go in two vehicles. Greg assures as that once the Bulldozer has graded the road a farm bakkie will cope quite well. Tar road tyres will not last on this road.

Shortly after we left the main Winterberg dirt road we were in a farm belonging to the Whiteheads. It seems that there are no clearly defined boundaries at this stage. We crossed through both Whitehead farms as well as KwaZunga farms and went through two gates which were not locked. There is a Vodacom Tower on one of the ridges and power cables running through the property to supply the tower. At the top of the hill we passed by a log home which a PE man has built as a weekend getaway. He has no electricity and uses rain water. This is a really simple home with a terrific view of the valleys below. The home is built on an 80 hectare section slotted into a wedge between other farms. To the West Greg tells us that a well known PE family, Ronnie Watson is buying up land. To the north of this area is the greater Groendal nature reserve.
The area is so vast and inaccessible to the average person that boundaries and fences have little meaning. Once you are in the KwaZunga Valley you leave all visible signs of civilisation. Greg has two farms and each one has a “camp” on the river below. We were unable to see the second camp where he tells us there are caves and waterfalls as the floods of 2006 had washed away road access. However he reiterates that by the end of March 2007 the Bulldozers will have cleared both an old jeep track along the top ridge to the second camp as well as a road access along the river bed.

The road we took along the river seems to have been built with a degree of work. The side of the road seems to have been shored up with rock wedges. Greg thinks that there were rumours of gold in the valley and that is why the road was first built probably 100 years ago. Right at the south end top of the property where the neighbouring farms are, there are wattles and pines. But as soon as we descend in to the valley we did not see these exotic trees again. We saw cycads, aloes, protea and Fynbos and then right next to the river there are some yellowwoods. The valley is virtually untouched and unspoilt as the last farming efforts must have been many years ago.

There are a number of fences in the property and these look quite well entrenched and will take al great deal of work and effort to remove them altogether. There is only one jeep track leading down into the valley and this is at this stage quite difficult to drive. We will be interested to see the change next month. Greg has built a rudimentary shack near to the river where he camps for a weekend. Here he has a tank and a water pump which he uses for the shower and loo. There is nothing to do down here except to walk, swim, explore and to enjoy the outdoors. ON the way down to the valley we stopped to look at an area which looks like it would be suitable to build a cottage. This ridge has stunning views of the valleys below.

Greg says that a 4X4 tractor with a heavy duty trailer would be required to cart materials to the site and that this is entirely possible. As we drove though the property we saw Baboons, Reedbuck and Bushbuck. In the valley we saw a herd of about 10 to 15 Reedbuck. Once we had had a good look at the section of the property which was accessible we headed home. Greg has a double cab 3 Litre diesel 4X4 Toyota bakkie. Barbara & Linda had sat in the back and the lurching around on the roads had been quite tough for them. I seem to have aggravated a hip injury and I think that we were relieved to get back onto flat surface roads again. The whole trip had taken us from 10.00am to 15.00.

Peter Giddy
1.3.2007.