A Weekend at De Hoop Nature Reserve

De Hoop Nature Reserve

My partner is the editor of a travel magazine and as part of his job he is invited to visit, taste and see some pretty amazing things and when the invitation calls for a +1... I am the luckiest lady around. I never thought I'd be so happy to be a +1!

One of the most incredible adventures his job has afforded us is probably the weekend trip to De Hoop Nature Reserve we were invited to as part of a media event. Amazing doesn't even begin to describe this magical place. 

De Hoop is situated in the Overberg Region of the Western Cape and the drive from Cape Town is spectacular! We were against the clock as we tried to finish work early and make to the gate before closing time. The drive alone was an adventure! It was hard to imagine while travelling along dirt roads surrounded by rolling hills that over the next crest we would see the ocean. But when we did... Wow!!

Once through the gates we were greeted by a myriad of birds and buck. We headed toward the De Hoop Collection, a cluster of sprawling houses and rondavels which offer guests an array of accommodation from self catering to luxury rooms in the converted barn. Guest which one we got?

Our Beautiful Room

Enjoying a bottle of wine while
the sun sets over De Hoop

Sunset from our room

Marine Biodiversity Walk 8:30am

Every morning Dalfrenzo Laing,  the friendliest guide you have ever met, takes visitors on a Marine Biodiversity walk. As he talks animatedly you can't help but begin to feel as excited about dune migration and ocean currents as he is. He does this walk every day but this walk is the best walk of the month. Its low tide and that  means we can see in all the rock pools.

Walking over the biggest dunes I have ever seen

Low tide - the best time for spotting marine creatures!

Ground cover

A starfish, sea anemone and an octopus
found on the marine walk.

Saturday Meandering

You can walk anywhere and everywhere you want in De Hoop and along the way don't get a fright if you're suddenly right next to a herd of Eland like we were. They aren't bothered by people at all and carry on their journey through the bushes. 

Food at De Hoop

The Fig Tree is De Hoop's very own little restaurant which is open from breakfast to dinner. When it is cold you can sit inside by the fire and if the weather is fair you can sit out on the stoop. During the day animals graze in front of you while you sip on a glass of chilled wine. We were entertained one morning by two ostriches bathing in a puddle. 

A selection of starters, mains and desserts we
enjoyed De Hoop's restaurant, The Fig Tree.

Bird Walk 6am

It was hard to get up early enough on a Sunday to catch the bird walk but it was more than worth it. Within minutes our guide from yesterday, Dalfrenzo, had spotted several Hoopoes pecking about on the ground. It was a magical 2 hours walking along the waters edge learning the names of all the birds and the interesting little things they do. I love birds and could not have asked for a more passionate and knowledgeable guide in Dalfrenzo. Regularly along the walk he would stop and exclaim something like "Ah! Did you hear?! A Southern Tchagra. A very rare bird! We are lucky to hear him, he must be near us!" And moments later he would have spotted pointed out a little bird somewhere in a bush that we would never have seen. 

Blue Cranes, Fiscal Shrike, Bokmakierie and Cape Bulbuls
to name but a few.

Only some of the many birds living in the vlei

Southern Tchagra - a rare and exciting spotting!

After our bird watching we enjoyed our last breakfast and ticked off all the animals and birds that we had seen on the Bird, Mammal and Marine Checklist which had been given to us the day we arrived.

I cannot put in words the profound beauty that I experienced that weekend in De Hoop. I can only encourage anyone who is even remotely interested to visit.