By Naturetrek tour leader Maureen Ponting
Break up the cold British winter this January with a warm summer holiday to South Africa's beautiful Drakensberg Mountains. Our trip explores the botany and natural history of the Drakensberg - a spectacular montane escarpment that runs up the Natal/Lesotho border before joining the Malotti Mountains in Lesotho.
The mountains rise from 1,000 to 3,482 metres and we experience many different habitats en route. There are no less than 2,000 plant species here of which 400 are endemic! Not surprisingly, it is a World Heritage Site for plant and animal diversity and for rock paintings, too.
Our tour begins in the Royal Natal National Park where we stay in thatched rondavels in Tendele, with marvellous views of the famous peaks of the Sentinel, the Amphitheatre, the Eastern Buttress and much more.
A walk up the Tugele River to a forested gorge leads us to such botanical highlights as Eucomis autumnalis and E. bicolor. We also see Phygelia aequalis and a very showy parasitic plant, Harveya speciosa. In the gorge, we should see the orange flowers of Begoniia sutherlandia.
The next day, we drive behind the Sentinel Peak to Witsieshoek, another botanical hotspot, where we explore meadows for the spectacular Brunsvigia natalensis and the endemic Crocosmia pearsii. A blue haze of Agapanthus appears in a marsh; and tumbling down the cliffs above us, Xerophyta viscosa, a Small Black-Stick Lily, punctuated with Galtonia candicans.
Our next two nights in Lesotho are spent in Oxbow on the banks of the Oxbow River and surrounded by hills. The few trees in the courtyard are filled with chattering weavers busy tending their hanging nests. From here we drive, walk and explore the hills above us. We come across huge drifts of Kniphofia caulescens running down a wet flush, alive with flitting Gurney's Sugarbirds. Other plants seen on this unforgettable day include Morea alticola with large yellow iris-like flowers, the incredible blue of Felicia drakensbergensis, a cliff covered with Galtonia regalis and on the hills, many species of aromatic helichrysums.
On the surrounding mountains we meet blanket-clad shepherds and their dogs, bringing up their sheep for summer grazing. The shepherds are often riding ponies whose ancestors were imported by the British when Lesotho was a Protectorate.
Our journey from Oxbow to the Sani Pass Lodge, our next port of call, takes us over the most beautiful rolling countryside. Here we usually stop to admire a huge patch of the tall Dierama robustum under a blue sky; this is a photographer’s dream!
We make another stop beside a waterfall to look for the bright red Lesotho Lily, Gladiolus saundersii, which grows in the rocks above us and, in a damp spot, the curious striped Pyjama Plant Androcymbium striatum. Further on we explore the windswept rocks of the Kotisphola Pass in search of cushions of alpine plants, among them the blue Craterocapsa congesta and yellow Helichrysum pagophyllum. Most beautiful of all, H. milfordiae, is covered by white flowers with a red reverse.
We spend the night in the refurbished and very comfortable Sani Lodge The damp meadows surrounding the lodge are covered in pink and white Rhodohypoxis baurii. We then end this day with a most delicious dinner of local lamb and sweet potatoes, South African style!
The next morning, we take an exciting drive down the Sani Pass back into South Africa. The mountain cliffs above us are full of interest. The famous ‘Suicide Lily’ Gladiolus flanaganii, hangs from the rocks, along with the dark endemic Eucomis schiffii. The meadows are bright with Dieramas and Euryops, and in the rocks, two species of Diascia. Above us we see a hillside covered in the spreading Protea dracomontana but further down on the South African side, we find ourselves in mountain fynbos with Proteas and Watsonias.
Our first South African hotel in the foothills is pure luxury; both a swimming pool and an interesting flora. On a walk to a nearby waterfall we will look for Zantedeschia albomaculata with its beautiful spotted leaves. The pendulous red flowers of Cyrtanthus epiphyticus also hang over the waterfall whilst in a nearby meadow grows the very spotted orange Gladiolus ecklonii.
Our next destination, Howick, is located in the rolling hills of the Midlands. Our first stop is for picnic supplies in Underberg where there is also an excellent bookshop. We have our picnic in the Midmar Reserve next to a beautiful lake and two very showy orchids, Eulophia welwitschii and E. ensata. Among the many birds are Blue and Crowned Cranes.
Moving on we spend two nights in our very comfortable hotel in Howick. On one day we explore the Umgeni Reserve beside the huge Howick Waterfall. We see a another showy Caldelabra Flower, Brunsvigia radulosa and, in a gorge, the blue flowers of Streptocarpus polyanthus growing on the damp cliffs, as well as the Natal Cycad.
Our last hotel is near Port Edward, overlooking the Indian Ocean, with a gorgeous beach and good views of Fish Eagles in the estuary below. Here we explore the fixed dunes running out to the sea in search of the beautiful Flame Lily, Gloriosa superba.
We spend our last day in the nearby Umtamvuna Nature Reserve, a botanically rich area of rocky outcrops, scrub and marshy grassland, with many Pontoland endemic plants. We usually see the yellow Xyris capensis, a number of Watsonia species and on the rocks a couple of epiphytic orchids. If we are lucky, we may find South Africa’s only cactus Rhipsalis baccifera and one of the most colourful plants in the Reserve the purple Wild Thibouchina, Dissotis princeps.
In short, this tour offers wonderful sun, scenery and beautiful and unusual plants; all in the middle of our Northern winter!
For more information on our 2008 Drakensberg holiday please visit the tour page or call 01962 733051.