We depart early from Cape Town and head for the West Coast National Park, where large areas of flowers can be seen in the Seeberg/Mooimaak and Postberg areas. From there we make our way to the little fishing village of Paternoster and the Columbine National Park via the Geelbek bird lookout and Langebaan
Day 2
Overnight: Clanwilliam
Day two takes us via Velddrif, Piketburg, Elands Bay & Lamberts Bay . From there we head on to the Ramskop Nature Reserve , situated overlooking the Clanwilliam Dam, with beautifully laid out walking paths offering spectacular views towards the Cedarberg mountains. Clanwilliam is best known for its Rooibos tea, being the only place in the world where this is grown, and a visit to this area would not be complete without a tea tasting at the Rooibos Tea House
Day 3
Overnight Kamieskroon
Today we make our way towards Kamieskroon via Klawer, Vredendal and Van Rhynsdorp, with endless circular routes, an amazing variety of flowers and some quirky shopping as a bonus. There is even the possibility of a visit to Stellar Organics, South Africas largest producer of fine, organic, fair trade wines.
Day 4
Overnight Kamieskroon
We head out today for the Skilpad Wildflower Reserve and the Namaqua National Park in the “succulent karoo” where once again we will be treated to a show that easily rivals the natural wonders on earth. We’ll follow a circular route, walking a number of short nature trails and have the opportunity to see the worlds smallest tortoise – the Namaqualand Speckled Padloper (the Afrikaans word for tortoise is “skilpad”)
Day 5
Overnight: Papkuilsfontein Guest Farm
Today we will travel over the Van Rhyns Pass with beautiful views over the Knersvalkte , a rich flowering succulent area, to Nieuwoudtville Wild Flower Reserve, popularly known as the bulb capital of the world due to its abundant display of indigenous flowering bulbs in Spring and Winter, where we can drive up close to the flowers and enjoy a short hiking trail . We visit the 115 ha Nieuwoudtville Wild Flower Reserve with over 300 species of indigenous flora, and the Hantam National Botanical Gardens, a feast of flowers and a wonderful place to explore the bulbs on the Bokkeveld Plateau , where an amazing 1350 plant species have been recorded to date. Declared a botanical treasure of international importance, the Hantam Botanical Gardens is SA’s ninth national botanical garden, and has superb trails for visitors to experience and appreciate the flowers on foot.
Day 6
Overnight: Papkuilsfontein Guest Farm
Today we will spend the day soaking up the peace and tranquility, fauna & flora of the Papkuilsfontein Guest Farm, a region known as the bulb capital of the world with its extensive bulb varietals. Also on the agenda is the Matjiesfontein farm , reported to be the single farm with the largest diversity of wildflowers anywhere in the world.
Day 7
Overnight: Darling
Day 7 sees us starting our journey back towards Cape Town, via the Pakhuis Pass through the Cederberg Mountains , Clanwilliam, Citrusdal, Piketberg and on to Darling . Today should truly be yet another extravaganza with Duckitt Nurseries at Oudepost Farm, one of the largest orchid nurseries in the southern hemisphere, the Tienie Versfeld Wildflower Reserve, an absolute gem with generous displays of springtime flowers sprouting from a vast array of veld types . It is also a unique remnant of grassland, fynbos and a seasonal wetland within the Swartland, and particularly valued for its bulbous plants. Also on our list of possible places to visit is the Renosterveld , Waylands Farm, 6km from Darling , home to some 300 species , and part of the critically endangered Lowland Fynbos Biome, of which less than 1% remains. And if the flowers themselves are not enough, Darling offers a whole host of attractions , a place where you can kick back, relax and just take in all that this little gem has to offer.
Day 8
Homeward bound! After enjoying the last of what we can squeeze into our feast of flowers and fun – what is bound to have been a a Wildflower Extravaganza – from Darling we make our way back to Cape Town via Yzerfontein
