We don’t look just at birds. All sorts of little creatures lurk underfoot. Bibron’s Blind Snake is one such. It’s quite common, but lives almost entirely underground, in burrows searching for small prey – especially termites. It’s completely blind, the greatly reduced eyes being covered with scales. The head is virtually identical to the tail, […]
Dear Friends 2016 has been a year of challenges, uncertainty, tremendous fun, new adventures and a bit of consolidation. We have continued to work on upgrades at The Cavern and we are slowly getting through all 55 rooms and their bathrooms. We have a few tasks planned for the New Year, a bit of fundraising
A visit to the Silent Woman is always interesting, recounting the story of Willie Chalmers to newcomers. But today there was an added attraction. A small tree on the edge of the picnic site clearing was covered in bunches of white flowers. The display can be so profuse as to lead to the common name
Lots of action in the insect world in the Drakesberg. While looking at flowers we noticed that nearly every Haplocarpha scaposa had beetles, sometimes a dozen or more, heads down, munching at pollen and nectar. The few flowers without beetles showed signs of their ravages. These beetles are scarabs, related to dung beetles and the
The high spot was finding a new bird for the Cavern list. Not so easy with such a well-watched place thronged for some years now by keen birders. The “first” was a Black-crowned Night Heron perched right out in the open in the gums overlooking the lower pond. It’s actually one of the most widespread
This is the time of year when swifts and swallows are most busy. As a generalisation, swifts fly high and faster, swallows lower, slower, and are more manoeuvrable. This is very obvious at The Cavern. First thing in the morning – first light on sunny days – both the White-rumped Swifts and Greater Striped Swallows
The Cavern est un réseau de vacances qui vous offre un logement dans le Drakensberg. Il est situé dans la Province du Kwa Zulu Natal. Tirant son nom de la « caverne des cannibales », le réseau est situé sur les 3000 hectares d’une réserve de montagnes privée limitrophe au Parc National de l’Amphithéâtre du
Dear Friends It has been a busy few months. The July school holidays were great fun with plenty of hiking alongside terrific friends and families that had joined us in this special place in the hills. We then held our annual Christmas in July weekend and we all waited in anticipation as the cold front
It’s a quiet time of year for birds. The aloes are still flowering, but the main flush is past. Gurney’s Sugarbirds were still present, but no longer jousting over prime spots. But every change sees something happening. The trees and bushes that produce small fruits do so most abundantly now. There’s a very good reason.
South Africa’s Drakensberg range – the spectacular ‘Dragon Mountains’ – are a vertical rush of towering cliffs, flat-topped peaks and high-level walking trails Words and photography by Laurence Mitchell The landscape is unexpectedly green, a folded blanket of lush slopes that extend to vertiginous cliffs in the west. Pockets of dense woodland lie in the
