ABOUT THE ESTATE
Hidden in the hills of the Mpumalanga Highlands on the edge of the escarpment lies a farm so beautiful that the Boers built defences and placed the Long Tom Cannon at its entrance to defend it during the Anglo Boer war. The old wagon trail used by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick, his faithful hound running at his side, runs the length of the farm on its twisty way from Lourenco Marques to the Witwatersrand goldfields.
The farm is black wattle free and the streams are gin clear and free of alien vegetation. Traditionally the farm has been utilized as a grazing farm for cattle, sheep and game with some plantations.
The owners witnessed the beauty of this farm from its highest point as it cascades over the divide between the Highveld and the Lowveld and saw its potential as the prime fly fishing venue in this rapidly developing area.
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Ten years later the owners of this 1020ha (2400acre) farm began the creation of a country estate, to share its magic with other fly fishing enthusiasts. In keeping with the desire to keep the farm as natural and un-spoilt as possible the development is low impact with just 40 houses spread out along the Marais spruit. The stream winds its leisurely way down for eight kilometres to the bottom of the farm, where it joins the Taute River and a few kilometres on the Elands River at Machadodorp.
There are eighteen dams on the development as well as six stone weirs. The stream has many ponds and pools where elusive wild trout hide out, ideal territory for a light rod. The largest dam, Lake Banagher, is four hectares in size followed closely by Kilkenny, which is three and a half. The majority of these dams are on the main stream, which has in excess of five million litres of water running through it daily, winter and summer. The fishing creed is based on sustainable fishing with Catch and Release practiced, rather than a Put and Take policy. This ideal has already paid dividends with Teal & Trout winning the best waters trophy at the Dullstroom Classic Fishing Competition in 2000.
Three of the dams have been earmarked as wetland wilderness areas and access will be limited to bird watching. Blue Crane breed in this area and Wattled Plover, Great Snipe, African Black Duck, Yellow Billed Duck, Dabchicks, and Moorhens to name a few, feed daily in the shallows. The development is fully game fenced and is stocked with game originally indigenous to the area in addition to the Duiker, Steenbok, Mountain Reedbuck, Oribi and Blesbuck already present on the farm. There are game viewing tracks which give four wheel drive and hiking access to the remoter parts of the farm including the old abandoned Gold diggings and the remains of the stamp mill.
The area has a mild climate and its position on the edge of the escarpment guarantees a high rainfall with misty mornings and fireside evenings. The area is malaria and bilharzia free. The area falls into the Montane Grassland Biome and is a major water sponge for the eastern part of the country. Get out your gumboots and count the plant species; our extremely high plant biodiversity is second only to the fynbos biome with over 100 species endemic to the area. South Africa boasts 40 endemic bird species of which 12 are found in the area. Keep an eye out for Southern Bald Ibis, Yellow Breasted Pipit, Blue Korhaan, Mountain Pipit, Sentinel Rock Thrush and Orange Breasted Rock Jumper to name some and add them to your Life List. While you are out there keep an eye open for the 29 species of endemic butterfly that visit the flowering herbs.
