Trip report: The back roads of Caledon

This report was provided by Johan van der Westhuizen.

Six birders in two vehicles left the Onrus OK at 07h30 in perfect weather conditions. At Salandra, 4 more birders joined the group. Here “Birding” started in earnest with several species added to the list, including the resident House Sparrows and a beautiful male Malachite Sunbird.

At the Dassiesfontein Farmstall on the N2, another birder joined the group. Traveling the Waboomskloof gravel road to Caledon was slow going as the birds were very active and necessitated frequent stops. Pipits, Larks, Canaries, Weavers, Bishops, and the ever-present Egyptian and Spur-winged Geese were added to the growing list. A Klaas’s Cuckoo was heard and eventually spotted in a clump of Blue-gum trees. Further on Grey-winged Francolin caused great excitement amongst photographers scrambling to get pictures of this very elusive bird. True to form they quickly took flight to everyone’s dismay. Driving past the huge wind turbines the convoy entered Caledon and made the customary pit-stop at the garage before driving to the Wildflower Gardens on the outskirts of the town.

The picnic baskets were immediately unpacked, and the important socializing was attended to while keeping eyes peeled for any feathered creatures. An African Paradise Flycatcher, the first for the season for many of us, was soon added to the list as well as Swallows, Swifts Sunbirds, Seedeaters, and Drongos. Sadly, the African Black Ducks that frequent the dam in the Gardens were nowhere to be seen. The group wandered up the Gorge and were soon rewarded by the familiar call of a Red-chested Cuckoo. The bird was eventually spotted, and the photographers went wild as it posed perfectly and in full view. A Cardinal Woodpecker was spotted but only seen by a few birders before it disappeared.

We then left Caledon, taking the Tesselaarsdal gravel road just outside of town. By then the wind had picked up considerably and birding became challenging as the birds chose to stay grounded and hidden in the Canola and Wheat fields. We however spotted several African Marsh Harriers and Jackal Buzzards on the route. We then took the Karwyderskraal road across the De Bos dam to avoid the stop-and-goes on the Hemel-and-Aarde road. 

The group dispersed at the R43 junction after a long but rewarding day’s birding with 84 species logged. Everyone agreed that it was a very enjoyable outing and were looking forward to the next outing on the 26^thof October to the Agulhas Plains.