Happy Valley figures

I took a walk up Happy Valley last week while I was doing a recce for an Amazing Race I organised.  Early morning and with no wind walking there was absolute bliss.  Not a soul in sight, birds chirping and the cool air on my face. What a spot and so under-utilised.  The lawns were cut, gardens mostly well looked after and the pathways cleaned.  A little maintenance is needed on two or three of the figures and some of the railings next to the Shark River but otherwise Happy Valley is still as beautiful as always and crying out to be enjoyed.

St George's Park fountain

The centre piece fountain of the Pearson Conservatory in St George's Park was made by Andrew Handyside at the Duke Street Foundry "Britannia Iron Works" in Derby in the UK around the same year the Conservatory was built in 1882.

How old is St George's Park?

I took a walk through St George's Park a week or so ago and along the way I wondered how many people actually know how old St George's Park is.

St George's Park was laid out and opened on 6 August 1861 to commemorate the visit of Prince Alfred, second son of Queen Victoria, to Port Elizabeth exactly one year earlier.

Flags and streamers were flying in every direction, all shops were shut, people dressed in holiday attire, and expectation stood on tiptoe. By a sort of instinct the Market Square (now Vuyisile Mini Square) seemed to be the centre of attraction. Here the naval brigade all dressed in blue and white stood mustered under Captain Chapman and Lieut. Wheatland. The worshipful concillors in ‘tails and gloves’ began to assemble at the Town Hall and looked most grave and dignified. Presently the band struck up and matched smartly down Main Street (now Govan Mbeki Avenue) and up Donkin Street past the Scotch Church. The concillors then proceeded to the Hill and by the time the brigade had reached the spot, a good crowd of people had assembled to witness the ceremony of planting the first tree in the newly-named St Georges Park. A fellow townsman, Mr Birt, had presented the Mayor with a young oak and this was to be the tree.

The Mayor, Mr William Smith, then explained to the assembled crowd the purpose of the meeting, after which he called upon Mr Pearson, the originator of the idea, to address those present. In brief, it was to the effect that for some time a public playground had been needed in Port Elizabeth and that the Mayor was about to plant the first tree in what it had been decided to name ‘Prince Alfred’s Grove’. In later years when people would assemble in St Georges Park they would point to the Prince’s Grove and say; ‘for that and for this spacious playground we are indebted to the foresight and kindness of a former Municipal body who commemorated the first anniversary of a Royal Prince’s visit in inaugurating for the comfort, health, and recreation of their fellow-townsmen for all time these shady walks and extensive beautifully laid-out grounds.’ After this, champagne was produced and amid a volley of popping corks and several repartees, healths innumerable were drunk, and success to St. Georges Park and to the Prince’s Grove pledged over and over again.

-- Port Elizabeth in Bygone Days written by JJ Redgrave and published in 1947.

Conservatory lines

I just can't get enough of the lines in the Pearson Conservatory in St George's Park.  

Great for photography.

Garden stroll

A weekend or two ago we went for a photo shoot in St Georges Park.  No, I don't mean I went to take photos in St Georges.  In February the Damselfly gave me a voucher for a couples shoot with Champayne Creations for Valentines Day and we were in St Georges to have our photos taken.  I'm not one who always like photos being taken of me, especially posed ones, but Lundi did an amazing job and the pics look stunning.  I did take my camera along to get a couple of snaps myself though.

Kings Beach Lake walkway

Crossing the Kings Beach Park Lake on a Sunday morning on the way to the flea market

The park named after John Shelton

For the second time in a week I visited a park with a little monument and plaque while Geocaching.    This time it was John Shelton Park in Humewood.  So who was John Shelton? John Shelton was the Director of Parks for Port Elizabeth until his retirement in the late 1970's and played an important role in the establishment of Mannville Open Air Theatre in St. George's Park in 1972.

British Settler John Parkin's farm

This morning a quick Geocaching outing took me to a small park in Fernglen where I found an equally small monument located to the one side of the park.  The monument stated:

IN MEMORY OF 

JOHN PARKIN

1787 - 1856

LEADER OF A PARTY OF SETTLERS

FROM DEVON TO SOUTH AFRICA IN 1820,

AND PROMINENT IN THE EARLY 

DEVELOPMENT OF PORT ELIZABETH

THE SUBURBS IN THIS AREA

STAND ON WHAT WAS ONCE

JOHN PARKIN'S FARM OF 1421 H.A.

WHICH HE ACQUIRED IN 1826.

I never knew this little monument was here not that the suburbs in the area (probably Fernglen, Sunridge Park and Framesby) is located on what was once a Settler farm.  Just shows once again that there are still things in Port Elizabeth even I haven't discovered and how big a role Geocaching can play in discovering these places.

You can see how dry it is in Port Elizabeth at the moment by looking at the grass.  Brown and dry.

St George's Wild Fig Trees

There are a number of giant Wild Fig Trees in and around St George's Park, all well over 100 years old.  The one in the centre of the park next to the Pearson Conservatory must be one of my favorite trees around Port Elizabeth.  I always marvel at it's size and love walking over the sleeper bridge underneath it imagining that it could be the city's Mother Tree.

Then and Now: Pearson Conservatory Fountain

The Pearson Conservatory was originally built in 1882 and restored to its former glory between 2009 and 2011.  The centre piece of the Pearson Conservatory is an ornamental fountain made by Andrew Handyside at the Duke Street Foundry "Britannia Iron Works" in Derby in the UK around the same year the Conservatory was built (1882).  The Britannia Foundry's work was well known for its fine quality so these fountains can be found all over the globe.

This particular design of fountain is listed as Design Number 15 on Page 30 of the 1879 publication "An Illustrated book of Designs for Fountains and Vases, costing from £1 to £1200 manufactured by Andrew Handyside".  The same fountain can be found at Prince Alfred College, Adelaide, Australia as well as at Sarmiento School Fountain in San Miguel de Tucuman, Argentina, South America.

The information above was found on the Friar Gate Bridge Derby website.

In 2013 I visited the Conservatory and did a post about the fountain located inside with the info above.  You could see in the photo in the post that the fountain was starting to show rust through the paint.  The other day I took a walk through the park and ended up at the Conservatory.  It was great to see that the fountain have been cleaned up and given a new coat of paint.

Then and Now - Pearson Conservatory

The Victorian conservatory in St George's Park was completed and opened on 12 September 1882 and named the Pearson Conservatory after the then Mayor of Port Elizabeth, Mr HW Pearson.  The conservatory cost £3,800 to put up and arrived in South Africa as a 'kit of parts' and was constructed in the park.  This conservatory was imported from England and was the first of three such buildings in South Africa at the time.  The double volume central atrium is flanked by two wings to the East and the West with perfect symmetry along its two axes. 

Over the years the building had been fixed up several times and in 1972 the city even considered demolishing it.  The building was restored by the municipality and reopened in 2011.  I just think that not enough people make the effort to go and visit it using the excuse of "the park is too dangerous". Dangerous se g@t.  I went for a walk through the park on my own with my camera last week and didn't see any unsavory characters.  But if you are worried, use the back entrance next to the cactus garden across from the hospital and you can drive right up to the conservatory, parking right outside.

St George's Park water lilies

I took a walk around St George's Park the other day.  Yes, alone and with my camera in hand.  It really isn't as bad as so many people would like to make it out to be.  It's just important to stay alert and observant but I didn't notice any unsavory characters hanging out in the park. I did notice that the water lilies on the central pond was beautiful though. 

The St Georges Park Oak that isn't anymore

In 1861, Mayor William Smith planted an Oak tree at the spot in the then new St Georges Park to commemorate the visit in 1860 of His Royal Highness Prince Alfred.  The tree unfortunately blew over in January 2001 with the original inscription then being moved to the Parks Division offices nearby.  Today the spot is marked by a plaque.

Richmond Hill park

Last Sunday Drama Princess and her school choir sang at the Doxa Deo Artuo church in Richmond Hill.  This beautiful little park with the old Erica building is right across the road from the church.  Imagine having a park like this close to home to walk the dogs, play ball with the kids or just sit under a tree with a book. 

Mountain biking in the Baakens Valley

We are so fortunate to have the Baakens Valley green belt running through Port Elizabeth.  The area truly has the potential to become a prime outdoors activities part of the city and already is very popular with mountain bikers and trail runners.  When I found this great video on YouTube showing off the great trails through the valley I just had to share it with you.

A path inviting you to explore

I had 30 minutes on my hands yesterday afternoon and did a quick detour to Mangold Park to find a new Geocache on the edge of the Baakens Valley.  From the parking coords at the bottom of a cul-de-sac there were two paths splitting off.  A paved one to the right which I had to follow to find the cache and the one in the photo to the left.  Obviously the call of the cache was strong andf I hurried down to do it, but on my way back I took a sharp right onto the path.  The narrow path surrounded by green undergrowth and leading under a number of flowering Coral Trees was just too inviting not to take.  It is normally used by mountain bikers but definitely one that is probably a nice little excursion for trail runners and casual strollers as well.

Winter is back... or still here

Just yesterday I asked somebody if they also thought that we didn't have a very cold winter this year as I stood sweating in the sun outside the lodge at Mount Camdeboo Game Reserve outside Graaff-Reinet.  This morning we woke up to a freezing wind and snow on the mountains in the area.  On my way back this afternoon I heard it hailed in some parts of Port Elizabeth. I pulled off the freeway and made a quick stop in Despatch (for a Geocache) and snapped this pic of an empty play park and the approaching clouds.  Cold and abandoned.  In black and white it feels even colder.  Winter just reminded us that she's still here and not leaving just yet.

Kings Beach Lake Reflection

It is as if the palm trees in Kings Beach Park were planted there for photographers to get pics of their reflection in the lake.

Picnic in St Georges Park

Two Saturdays ago I joined the local Geocaching community for a picnic event in St Georges Park.  I just realised again what an amazing place we have right here in the city where we can go and picnic while the kids run around and play on the park equipment.  Really something more people should do.

Baakens Valley - PE's green lung

The Baakens Valley truly is Port Elizabeth's green lung stretching all the way from the west of the city through to the harbour.  The valley really has so much potential to be one of the city's playgrounds, but the stigma of crime is sticking to it like velcro.  Mountain bikers, trail runners and hikers use parts of the Baakens Valley on a regular basis but the valley has so much more to give.  I am a true believer in the fact that it is up to the general public to take back places like this and by going there in their numbers, the bad element (if there are still any around) will be finally pushed out. This picture of the Baakens Valley with Settlers Park was taken from the Walmer side close close to 2nd Avenue.