by Elza | Nov 7, 2016 | Uncategorized
Milkwood trees are a familiar sight in Stilbaai and as it is a Protected Tree, one will see many huge milkwood trees as it is illegal to move, destroy or damage it without a valid permit.
There is, however, one special milkwood tree. It is ‘Langbos se Oupa‘ or the grandfather in the Langbos Woods. Situated in the Langbos Woods on the property of the Kleinhans family about eight kilometres outside Stilbaai, this is the largest white milkwood tree (Sideroxylon inerme) in South Africa and is one of 75 ‘champion’ trees in the book ‘We are the Champions’ about exceptional important trees that deserves national protection because of their remarkable size, age, aesthetic, cultural, historical or tourism value. ‘Langbos se Oupa’ is most probably older than a thousand years and grows between a variety of indigenous tree and shrub species in Langbos.
Figures
Tree trunk diameter : 10.45 metres
Tree top : spans 475m²
Height: 14m
To visit this Grand old daddy is not easy and one can not reach it without a 4×4 vehicle. Contact the farm owners (the farm has been in the Kleinhans family for five generations) first to get permission and a map and then set out in a 4×4 vehicle to tackle the thick, loose sand and thousands of molehills that add to the challenge on route to Langbos. One has also have to tread lightly as especially tortoises might be using the same ‘road’.
Once at Langbos, one can not help but stand in awe of this huge, old three as well as its surroundings. It is a quiet forest where the ‘beards’ from the branches move slightly in the breeze and the moss shows the areas that do not see much sunlight. Although overgrown, there is a path and one can hike in the woods for an even better experience.
It is interesting to note that a milkwood tree, close to the farm Olive Grove on the eastern bank of the river, was earlier used as a ‘post office’ when post was put in a leather bag and hung on a branch. This tradition was done away in 1890 when a post office was built.
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by Elza | Sep 23, 2016 | Uncategorized
Saturday, 24 September, is Heritage Day and this means it is National Braai Day!
Despite the fact that Stilbaai is currently experiencing somewhat cooler weather, one can be certain that the smell of ‘braaivleis‘ will be in the air. So, pack the chairs, some shade like an umbrella and celebrate National Braai Day at your favourite braai area, be it at the river or the beach!
There are quite a few braai areas in Stilbaai. The various braais built on the way to Morris Point (take the gravel road away from the harbour) are very popular and if one prefers a ‘braai with a sea view’, these are perfectly situated. There are also braai areas at ‘Grassies’ next to the river close to the Lapskuit Restaurant as well as at the jetty.
The braai areas at the tidal pool in Jongensfontein are also very popular although the weather might not be perfect for swimming (yet)…
Where to buy for the braai?
One will find a variety of meat in the various butcheries, deli’s and grocery stores. If you like to buy meat at a butchery, you can visit Stilbaai Slaghuis (Kloof Industrial area); Blombos Slaghuis next to Main Road in Stilbaai West or you can drive to Kleynbegin Slaghuis on the Blombos Road between Stilbaai and Jongensfontein or the Vrek Lêke Slaghuis on the R305 between the N2 and Stilbaai.
For those who prefer to buy from a deli, visit Aloe Deli at the Fynbos Centre or Stilbaai Slaghuis Deli in Stilbaai West while the butchery sections in both OK Grocer and SPAR have a variety of meat to choose from. If it is fish you are after, visit the fresh fish depot on the harbour.
Not in the mood to braai? Try Lappiesbaai Restaurant‘s BraaiDay Special (Rump & Prawns for R99!) while enjoying the sea view – and do not miss the great specials at Stilbaai Kelders – they are open till 18:00 Monday to Saturday.
Enjoy National Braai Day – be safe and keep our beaches (and our town) clean!
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Braai with a sea view – at Morris Point.
by Elza | Sep 22, 2016 | Uncategorized
When you live in Stilbaai, it is quite difficult not to notice something pretty each day, no matter how busy you are.
Local youngster, Wilhelm van den Berg, took this photo of the harbour from a different angle – we like the photo taken from above the harbour (from the shell middens) showing the blue sky and turquoise ocean as well as the Goukou River running into the sea.
A visit to the harbour and the shell middens are only some of the things you can do at Stilbaai. We’ve got a few other suggestions as well.
Visit www.mystilbaai.co.za – ACTIVITIES – for more!
*As always: Please keep our beaches and the ocean clean*
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The Stilbaai harbour from a different angle (Photo: Wilhelm van den Berg)
by Elza | Sep 16, 2016 | Uncategorized
The planned Coastal Clean-up that would’ve taken place tomorrow, Saturday 17 September at Stilbaai and Jongensfontein, has been postponed as extremely bad weather is expected.Strong winds and rain have already hit Stilbaai while the temperature has dropped drastically.
The organisers are planning to do a clean-up on 1 October. We will keep you posted.
In the meantime, we can all still ‘celebrate’ International Coastal Clean-up by not littering (always!) and by collecting rubbish on the beach and disposing of it properly.
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by Elza | Sep 14, 2016 | Uncategorized
This Saturday (17 September 2016) is International Coastal Clean-up Day, an action that was initiated and started by Ocean Conservancy 30 years ago (South African has been officially involved in this international project for 20 years) and Stilbaai will also get into action to contribute to cleaning its beautiful beaches.
in 1986 the single effort of a woman walking along a beach in Texas resulted in the initiation of International Coastal Clean-up Day. This project has since grown into the world’s biggest volunteer effort for ocean health and annually, on the third Saturday in September, more than 700 000 volunteers in 127 countries spend two hours of their time removing litter from beaches.
Living at the coast, we are all too aware of just how bad ocean pollution is and the figures look really bad. According to Two Oceans Aquarium in the Cape, the estimated amount of plastic trash floating on the surface of the ocean is 270 000 tonnes while the global plastic production doubles every decade! They also say that 90{c77536a3c8b7388df25a320e52eabfd15c4727735b5f43d291dcbeb9bd4d4a99} of sea birds have ingested plastic while 700 marine species are threatened by ocean plastics. Another source states that there are 46 000 individual pieces of plastic litter for every square mile of ocean.
On the southern coast of Africa, the beaches at Stilbaai and Jongensfontein, that include various Blue Flag Beaches, are known for being particularly clean, but the trash from inland as well as rubbish being spewed out by the ocean, unfortunately do still end up on our beaches. Plastic bottles and pieces of other plastic products are a common sight on the beaches. Luckily many residents are in the habit of picking up rubbish during their regular beach walks while the Hessequa Municipality is also playing an important role in keeping the beaches clean, especially during the summer holidays.
This Saturday, those interested in the Beach Cleanup at Stilbaai, can meet at 8:00 at the Community Hall where they will be issues with plastic bags and told where to clean up – www.mystilbaai.co.za will be there!
September is Arbor Month (see the previous article about Arbor Month in Stilbaai), but also the month where the focus is on cleaning up and recycling. This week (12 – 18 Sept) is Clean-up and Recycle Week SA while Recycling Day SA is on Friday, 16 Sept 2016. Find more information about this on www.cleanup-sa.co.za
(Compiled by www.mystilbaai.co.za)
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by Elza | Sep 9, 2016 | Uncategorized
If you can not travel to Namaqualand or the Tankwa Karoo or the West Coast or anywhere where there are currently lots of flowers to be seen and you have to stay at home in Stilbaai, you can experience the flowers right here! There are flowers everywhere and it seems that especially the Pauline Bohnen Nature Reserve hike is quite popular as a variety of flowers are now blooming there. Please remember that you can not pick flowers or remove any plants from the reserve.
In town, it is quite a sight to see the gardens and various ‘open’ areas that do look like Namaqualand!
We found a photo that was taken at the corner of Duiker and Perlemoen Avenue of the abundance of flowers. The photographer mentioned the trees that were recently donated to the Hessequa Municipality. About 3 000 trees were donated (yes, September is Arbor Month) and these trees will be planted in designated parks and open areas. The area in the photo is one of the open areas earmarked to receive some of these indigenous trees.
The photographer/writer said: “The water points are up, now for the planting. A few years from now we can get rid of the invasive minnetoka trees and enjoy an indigenous park!”
The Suid-Kaap Forum newspaper published an article about the donation of the trees. Read it HERE. “The municipality’s goal is to plant 100 000 indigenous and/or fruit trees of which they have 6 042 registered planted trees in the region. “It’s a large number, but it’s possible with the assistance of the community. Every tree brings us closer to protecting and conserving indigenous vegetation in the Hessequa region for future generations. The municipality therefore encourages citizens living in and around Hessequa to help them.” – Suid-Kaap Form
(Photo by @coastal_paleoscape via Instagram)
The open area at Perlemoen and Duiker Avenue in Stilbaai earmarked to receive indigenous trees (Photo by @coastal_paleoscape via Instagram)
