S1 - Ep 387 - Buffeljagsrivier and Suurbraak - Bridges and Mountain Vistas!

[@keiths8370]

We do have a beautiful country..

[@DustBugsTravel]

That we do! 🇿🇦😍

[@nerinemartin5901]

Even the clouds r spectacular❤😊!

[@axelmertens7762]

Thank you Curtis and Sonia for the lovely trip!!! The drone makes its own movie and it shows how beautiful the town is nestled in amongst the mountains! Three hundred years of history and it shows in the beautiful architecture! Seeing those Blue Cranes again makes my heart sing - I photographed them on the dirt back roads from Riviersonderend to Greyton. Beautiful road that winds amongst the mountains! Thank you kindly again! Safe travels!

[@dawnbarnes1361]

Hello 👋 I loved the Blue Cranes, that was amazing & so beautiful!! Suurbraak looks so peaceful, loved the houses. I'm sitting with my feet up and enjoying this video 😅 29/9/2023 4.20pm. Thank you, take care ❤

[@DustBugsTravel]

Feet up, that's what I like to hear! 😁 That's the best way to escape with us to the places we visit! The blue cranes were fantastic, we were very happy to have seen so many in one spot! I'm so happy you enjoyed Suurbraak, it's a calm, peaceful little place and one can't help but be calm and peaceful while visiting. Thank you for coming along! 🚙😊

[@desh7120]

I love that you are telling us day, date and time 😁 An awesome sight - seeing the Blue Cranes! The old, wooden bridge spanning the Buffeljagsrivier was a wonderful find - I loved visiting the old station and seeing your detective work applied to the tracks. Magnificent scenery! Food for my soul! And the sprawling, charming village of Suurbraak was a true delight! Your visit - crowned with a picture-perfect day! And the trusty drone views added another dimension of magic to a delightful experience!!

[@DustBugsTravel]

Sonia took the task of recording the day, date and time very seriously, so I'm glad you appreciate that! 😁📅 Those blue cranes were incredible to see, especially so many in one place! 🦆🤩 These two places have incredible scenery in common and to find an old station and two old bridges was very cool! Suurbraak is a well-preserved village surrounded by astonishing natural beauty. It was food for our soul too that day. 🚙🌳⛰️

[@wooden_branches]

I enjoyed this trip so much. Suurbraak is a beautiful town and the cottages and buildings look stunning. It would be a lovely place to retire. The young boy riding his bike made me laugh, he was travelling very well! Thank you again to you both. I watch the channel Green Renaissance and the towns of Barrydale and Suurbraak stayed in my mind as places I would love to visit one day.

[@DustBugsTravel]

We first saw the youngster in Buffeljagsrivier as you saw and he was clearly on his way to Suurbraak, just as we were! 😁 The power of youth, he must be one fit young boy! I'm glad you enjoyed Suurbraak and I hope you get the opportunity to experience the tranquil atmosphere yourself one day soon. And of course admire the incredible natural beauty which surrounds the village. 🚙😍

[@1812nico]

Hi you two! What a fascinating trip this was! The road curving between the green hills, the large Cranes flying up from the fields, mountains and blue skies. Just beautiful. Once you realize that the places have a history of 200 years, the neatly restored buildings and houses become even more fascinating. The settlements are peaceful but clearly not idle, given the active agriculture all around it. That you would find a railway station and old bridges was to be expected! Your drone view and music was once again my favorite part of the video. I will definitely visit Buffeljagsrivier and Suurbraak the next time I go down the N2. Thank you again for showing us these precious places in our beautiful country. Keep safe!

[@DustBugsTravel]

The blue cranes were absolutely magnificent! 😍 As you saw, both these places are actually very close to the N2 and we've always just zoomed past. What one doesn't miss when one does that! 🤷🏻‍♂️ The scenery was breathtaking with every green hue imaginable. The restored properties in Suurbraak are a testament to folks who believe in the future of the little village. That was special to see. It's cool that you enjoyed the drone shots of the three rivers and the confluence, I just had to do it! 🚙😁🌊

[@KelvinNaidoo-h4t]

Great stuff guys really enjoyed it ❤❤❤❤

[@DustBugsTravel]

Thank you, I'm happy to hear! 🚙🤩

[@tonynz9954]

Thanks for yet another wonderful visit to a historic little settlement like Zuurbraak. A shame you could not get inside that old church. Loved the drone footage. A friend of my Dad's from Cape Town, bought a small farm in Barrydale in the 1970's. Hy was n Rooinek en kon nie n woord Afrikaans praat nie. Every time his farm workers came to the house to talk he had to get his wife Jenny to talk to them in Afrikaans. Sy buurman was n ou called Stoffel en hy het nie tyd vir Engelsmanne wat nie weet hoe om te boer.nie. Geoff had apricots and a small vineyard at Barrydale but he was no farmer. Sad to say they moved back to the city of Cape Town after 2 years. The local Boere were not impressed. We went to a hot pools just up the road from Barrydale. I wonder if it is still there today ? " Die son steek die Langeberge aan die brand." "Getroud met van Deventer van Barrydale.Ja nou verstaan ek dit " David Kramer's words ring so true in that area.

[@DustBugsTravel]

I see there is a Warmwaterberg Spa between Barrydale and Ladismith, so that might be the hot pools you went to. 😁 This area is so incredibly beautiful and authentic with the restored houses, it took us on a journey back in time. 🏡⛰️ I don't think farming is as easy as folks might think, the fact that it's almost entirely weather-dependent, will make me super nervous. 😨🌧️

[@hannesvanniekerk499]

What a wonderful little place- so beautiful. Thank you.

[@DustBugsTravel]

It really was, beauty just everywhere we went. 🚙🤩 The craziest part is that it's just off the N2 and we've never been to either place before. I'm glad we fixed that! 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@collenraseala8678]

This part of South Africa's countryside is so breathtaking...

[@DustBugsTravel]

True. The natural beauty knows no limits. 🚙⛰️🌳

[@thepenelopejones]

Back home and so wonderful to be joining you again Peaceful countryside and villages, spectacular mountain views and great company! Yup yup another grand trip with our DustBugs😊

[@DustBugsTravel]

Welcome home! I hope you had an awesome trip. 🤩 It's good to see that you're not too exhausted to have joined us on another one of ours. This area was indeed super beautiful, the scenery especially blew our minds! 😍⛰️🌳

[@thepenelopejones]

@@DustBugsTravel lovely relaxing time in the Spanish sun with our family who live there - just what I needed😉 It is wonderful to get away but also super nice to be home again ... and with you!!🤞

[@emmerentiagroenewald3694]

Beautiful blue cranes!! Just keep a good distance... they can bite off your finger..!!!❤❤❤

[@DustBugsTravel]

Nope, we will never venture that close to wild birds. They were absolutely gorgeous though, we loved seeing them too! 🚙😁

[@michaelhendricks4471]

Thanks Dustbugs what a beautiful place with a wonderful history. Love your work

[@terrimeyer3815]

Aaaah loved this place. Those old houses were a standard in those days. So lush and green. The blue cranes were an absolute treat 🎉 I could live here without hesitation 🎉 Drone footage really gives the area perspective. Thanks darlings stirling job❤❤

[@DustBugsTravel]

The blue cranes were stunning! No wonder they're our national bird, they're very deserving of that status. 🇿🇦🦆 The houses, the scenery, everything just work together in perfect harmony, setting the perfect scene for a peaceful and tranquil existence. That's definitely the vibe we got there. Some of those houses have been beautifully-restored, I love those that are virtually on the road the most. 🚙🏡

[@johnknox1266]

thanks so much for taking us on your trip ,, love them all ,safe trips

[@DustBugsTravel]

Thank you so much for watching, we're happy to have you along! 🚙😁

[@mariusroos]

What a beautiful drive. The mountains are so nice. I am quite familiar with the are we visited. The old bridge over the Bufeljags was so nice to see. There must be a rich history around it. The drive towards Suurbraak is really a very nice drive en the vegetation was stunning. Suurbraak is indeed a very tranquil place with a long history. The folks there live in such a quiet environment. Thanks for this trip. Well done and showed us so much. The next trip will have to tollerate my presence!

[@DustBugsTravel]

That old wooden bridge was a first for us and super cool to see. I can only imagine it back in the day! 😍 Both these villages have this tranquil atmosphere and there is so much natural beauty to admire. The restored houses all along the streets must be proof that quite a few folks are trying to uplift the community, which is fantastic. 🚙🏡 Your spot on the backseat is ready, we're departing soon! 🚙😁

[@bramprins229]

So beautiful breath taking. Thank you so much!

[@DustBugsTravel]

Peaceful is just the right word. 🚙👌🏻 Thank you for coming along with us!

[@lee-anneadams9222]

Hi Curtis Sonia and Dusty, thanks for this awesome drive, once again filled with marvelous finds ❤. Whenever we travelled to the Southern Cape, I've always wandered what happens at Buffeljagsrivier, as we pass the sign on the N2. Now I know and what a jewel it is. Oude Post ( @the BP Garage) is our usual stop, our daughter lives feeding the animals 😊. Thanks again for allowing me in the back seat...safe travels

[@lamintouray7386]

I am loving these long form videos!

[@DustBugsTravel]

I'm glad to hear that! Thank you for watching our videos! 🚙😁

[@thecatat7]

Mwha, so glad you did Suurbraak! Love the little town, especially the eclectic houses. I hope it stays like this and does not lose it's character with development.

[@johnconifer6150]

Thanx Guys. I love Suurbraak. My weekend getaway from CT. Have family there.

[@rudiekeyser2495]

Dustbugs 46.30 was an awesome shot. Thank you so much, I did want to see that. Cheers Strand

[@DustBugsTravel]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, the scenery is seriously stunning in this area. 🚙🤩 And if we can see a confluence, all the better! 🌊

[@keiths8370]

Thank you for telling us day and time😂

[@DustBugsTravel]

Sure, my darling wife made a knot in her ear to remember each time! 😍📅

[@EurikaKruger]

Ek geniet jul reise en kan nie wag om te sien waar jul volgende besoek is nie. Ek wens ek kon n gesig by Sonja se vriendelike stem sit. Dankie vir die geskiedenis van eke plek. FANTASTIES

[@DustBugsTravel]

I'm glad you enjoy the little bits of history that we share along the way, that's always very intriguing to us as well. We look forward to taking you along to many more places on our travels! 🚙😁

[@volksieza]

Was so pleased to see this video, went through there at 11pm under stressful circumstances, and so thought one day, we have to come back in day light to see. So happy to see this now, and ironically, started in the same year as our town 1812 (Grahamstown). Stunning dorpie, thanks 👌

[@DustBugsTravel]

Wowzer, that does sound like a stressful trip. I'm not keen to be on the road at 11pm, no matter how beautiful the area is. 🚙😨 It's incredible to think that both your city and Suurbraak were founded in the same year, especially if one looks at the differences in size and population. 😳 I'm glad we could take you back to check out the area in bright sunlight this time! ☀️😁

[@deonzar]

I am so glad we are back at the small villages again...and Yes I am sure we are all appreciating getting the time and date that you traveled ...thanx Sonia!. I just wonder if that wooden bridge at Buffeljags survived the storm we had now. Suurbraak... how well kept...

[@DustBugsTravel]

I know! I wish the entire country was made up of small villages. We would've been totally cool with that! 🚙😁 I've been wondering about that wooden bridge over the Buffeljags myself. I tried a few numbers but haven't been able to reach anyone who can give me a definite answer. We'll swing by there again when we're passing by on the N2 one day. I really hope it still looks like it did two weeks ago, I'll be sad if it were totally destroyed. 😥

[@ingeborgvanderveer789]

WoW wat veel moois in dit deel van Zuid-Afrika, zo groen en vol geschiedenis. Die Britse kerk heeft een schitterend rieten dak en zo te zien is dat tamelijk recent erop gelegd. Groet vanuit Saint Rémy de Provence, waar Vincent van Gogh ooit in het gesticht kwam nadatbhij zijn oor eraf had gehaald. Hier verschijnt de Franse ‘fiets’berg de Mont Ventoux aan de horizon. Zonder sneeuw weliswaar maar zeker imposant om te zien. Ik fungeer hier een beetje als Sonia, dat ik vanaf de achterbank aan mijn vrienden voorlees wat de Romeinen allemaal ooit deden in dit gebied. En wie met wie deals sloot danwel op de vuist ging. Een beetje zoals de VOC leiden en hun nakomelingen in de regio’s van deze reis😊. Jullie gaan oude kerken langs en ik beklim de treden van arena’s uit de 1e (!) eeuw. Er komt bij ons wel eens een trein langs 😅 en hopelijk is dat ook het geval in Buffeljagsrivier, al was ik wel blij dat dit niet gebeurde terwijl jij op de rails stond 🚂. Echt schattig die cottages langs de wegen in mooie pastelkleuren, je zou er zo willen wonen. Ongelofelijk om voor iemands graf te staan die al bijna 200 jaar geleden daar geboren werd … Naast het besturen van de drone ben je trouwens ook razendsnel in het opvolgen van Sonia’s ‘regie aanwijzingen’, die wegvliegende vogels werd op tijd in je camera ‘gevangen’ 🎥👍

[@hezzieponelat6423]

Really great video. Thanks

[@annawitter5161]

What a huge flock of Blue Crane! Another favourite bird of mine, they are so graceful. I think they waited to show themselves off to you before they took off. Many happy memories of travelling the Overberg with Roger, my late hubby. Its 4 years now since he passed but it feels like yesterday 😥There is a prison at Buffeljagsrivier. Perhaps many people living there work at the prison? Love the old bridges, fantastic! Looks like the station was once very busy. All there is to do in Suurbraak is take in the mountain scenery? Well if it was me I would be painting, I bet a lot of artists stay out there. The old cottages are so beautiful. I would pig out on those hiking trails, never mind my aches and pains! I have osteo arthritis and its a real party pooper Yes I also once looked up the name and its a type of grass that grows there, I wonder if its similar to the Zuurveldt? Where the first settlers from Britain were parked as buffer against the Xhosa. Really enjoyed my tour of Suurbraak, and the drone footage of the river confluence. Can I put in a request? I would so love to see Namibia. Any chance of you going up there?

[@DustBugsTravel]

I didn't even know there was a prison at Buffeljagsrivier and the only data I can find in a quick search online, dates back to 1999. It seems to be a smallish prison, so I would imagine not too many employees, but I really have no idea. We were happy just taking in the sights in Suurbraak, no biking or hiking for us. 🚙🌳⛰️ I can't find a link between the bracket fern, which Suurbraak is apparently named after, and Zuurveld. The latter seems to be a specific area in the Eastern Cape in which winter pastures became sour and not palatable to livestock. 🤷🏻‍♂️🐂🐑🍀 We'd like to see Namibia one day, but for now we're still on a mission to see as much of our own country as possible. We'd like to explore some places abroad too, so we might do those first. Time only will tell. 🌍🌎🌏

[@annawitter5161]

@@DustBugsTravel Just wondered about Zuurveldt as there seemed to be a co incidence. . Yes, that prison was still there in 2004 when we went past there on our honeymoon.

[@hendrienel2259]

Thanks for another excellent trip. Last night we could not sleep. Diagnoses. We did not have our Dustbug dose.

[@DustBugsTravel]

I heard the doctor say four doses a week will ensure you sleep just enough! The doses are to be taken Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays @ exactly 3pm! 😁💊 I'm so glad you enjoyed these two beautiful places with us. 🚙👌🏻

[@ronnykenny3965]

Too beautiful to comprehend, thank you Dustbugs, Sonja we saw our rock sheet again 😂. 🚗🚗🚗

[@DustBugsTravel]

🤣 We did! And we were far from the Karoo landscape this time around! 😁🐑

[@doraduplessis2727]

This was outstanding! Did you see the patterns of the clouds:? Especially when you pointed to the mountain. Spectacular! And thanks again for the drone footage at the end! And also for giving us the date and time now. That was a clever decision.

[@DustBugsTravel]

We always notice the clouds and they looked quite different from the puffy ones we normally see. 🚙☁️ I'm glad you enjoyed our visit to these two little places, there was beauty overload along the way and we're always up for that! 🌳⛰️

[@rudiekeyser2495]

Suurbraak maak dat ek die gedagte kry en verkoop in die Strand en trek. Ek glo egter dat dit soos Stanford en Prinçe Albert die pryse baie hoog sal wees. Suurbraak is n mooi rustige dorp. Dankie vir jul moeite. Groete Strand.

[@frederickmurray5766]

Question....wherever you drive in the countryside, there's always one (or two) people walking somewhere. Even if the nearest somewhere is kilometers away. Drives me nuts trying to figure out exactly where they're going.

[@danielprinsloo2917]

If you see people walking in the morning they are going to the beach - if you see people , especially a male and a female walking in the late afternoon they are going to the movies, and if they look a little elderly then they going to a bingo evening. And if you driving behind me and you can read my number plate NUD 4477 then I have lost my caravan .

[@DustBugsTravel]

I know what you mean! And the same goes for some of even the most remote roads we've travelled on. We've stopped and asked quite a few people along the way and I'd say eight out of ten are either on their way home to the farm where they work, a neighbouring farm or to some kind of shop to buy supplies. Some are vague and therefore on a mission unknown to us. Every person has their story. 🚙😁

[@michalf6460]

love your videos! what was the economy change ? caused the trains not to work for 50 - 70 YEARS now?

[@DustBugsTravel]

We thought the old wooden bridge had been out of commission for at least 50 years and most likely longer than that. The decline in the railway system has been coming along for 30+ years. The extensive infrastructure with the vast network of railway lines criss-crossing the country, was simply not upgraded and maintained and road transport gradually took its place. Very sad. 🛤️😥

[@graemeneale9311]

Just a question, isn't it illegal to drive to the left of the Yellow line?

[@DustBugsTravel]

It is indeed. Technically-speaking that is. In South Africa it has been the norm for many decades though for slower vehicles to give way to faster ones and not only emergency vehicles. 🚙🛣️

[@user-oo8ei4lj6s]

There is a huge river where people live. You missed that part

[@keiths8370]

Try translate these towns to English 😂😂

[@DustBugsTravel]

Yup! Suurbraak becomes the challenge then. 🤢

[@1812nico]

@@DustBugsTravel Let's try Heartburn Vomit.