The freshwater from the catchment areas in the mountains bring essential nutrients into estuaries that are vital for ecosystem functioning. Unfortunately, along with the vital nutrients there is also a continuous flow of waste, in particular, plastic waste.

The Boland 90 Interclub Hiking Challenge started when the first ever competition was staged in 1992 and was at the time called the “PERM Boland 90”. The original founder of Boland 90 Interclub Hiking Event was the Late Mr. Ameen Lagardien (pictured) along with his wife Mrs. Lilian Lagardien and his daughter Shireen who together with other stakeholders grew the event.

Heuningvlei – Arbour week is an annual highlight on the environmental calendar and is celebrated in the first week of September. This year, CapeNature and the Heuningvlei community joined hands in launching the Heuningvlei Cedar Seedling Nursery, in aid of saving the critically endangered cedar tree.

CapeNature will be hosting a series of clean-up events as part of their annual #Don’tBeTrashy Drive. Harnessing the power of the people, the entity calls on communities across the Western Cape to get involved this September and participate in local waste collection activities.

CapeNature is proud to co-host the 2022 Conservation Symposium and registration is now open for this international hybrid event taking place from Monday, October 31^st to Friday, November 4^th.

What better way is there to celebrate South Africa’s coinciding Tourism Month and Heritage Month than immersing yourself in nature…for free? Between 20-27 September 2022, CapeNature will open its doors for an entire week to everyone free of charge. 

South Africa celebrates Arbor Week on 29 August – 4 September this year. This week helps us understand the importance of trees and the role they play within the environment.

After the cold of winter, the blossoming of Spring brings with it longer, warmer and flower-scented days that lull us away from under the warm blanket and back onto the trails. There were murmurs at Forge HQ of a Spring blog post along the lines of the best hikes to swimming spots for Spring.

Free your mind from the city life blues by relishing in the crispy fresh air of what famous poet Stephen Watson describes as, “A mountainscape both dry and shining, desolate yet so rich.” Explore the mesmerising Cederberg Mountain landscape by taking a leisurely hike or lying back in style on an old-school donkey cart.

Don’t let the rush of the city life, aching joints, or social distancing blues rob you of your adventurous spirit this year. If 2022 is one of your golden years, celebrate it by using CapeNature’s 30% senior citizen discount on all self-catering accommodations – available Monday to Friday all year round EXCEPT for school and public holidays.

While the rainy season provides us with the sense that water is available in abundance, saving this precious resource should always be top of mind, even when it’s wet.

In a water-scarce country such as South Africa, it is important to keep track of the health of freshwater systems and to conduct long-term monitoring of selected rivers and wetlands and their biodiversity. Keeping up with changes, impacts, and trends of these ecosystems is very important for the management and conservation of these systems.