An Aloe overlooking the Baakens Valley

I was out on a recce at lunch time today for this Saturday's Amazing Race I'm organising and ended up looking down the Baakens Valley from the Walmer side.  For those who aren't sure where this is, that is Upper Valley Road leading down towards Bridge Street with the harbour giraffes in the background.

Looking down on Walmer

In yesterday's post I showed you a photo I took while out on a bit of a Geocaching adventure looking down at Target Kloof.  Today's pic was taken from exactly the same spot but this time looking down on Walmer.  The Baakens Valley leading up towards Dodd's Farm is on the left with the river visible right in the centre of the picture.

Looking down on Target Kloof

On Saturday morning I went on a little Geocaching expedition at the bottom of Target Kloof.  I had to follow a path to the top of the cliffs overlooking the surrounding suburb and river below and ended up snapping this pic from close to the cache location.  Now I would never have seen this view if it wasn't for the cache.  #justsaying  

Baakens Bench

A bench ideal for contemplation.  The difference between this one and others with similar views is that you don't have to hike for an hour to get to it to enjoy it.  It's located next to the Baakens Valley on the corner at the bottom of 2nd Avenue and Fordyce Road in Walmer

Early morning robots

One of the things I like most about the school holidays is the fact that there is so much less traffic on the way to work in the mornings.  This morning I stopped at the Walmer Library to replace a Geocache that needed some maintenance and snapped a picture of a road with absolutely no traffic. Well, not a real road though but the one where the kiddies go and ride their bicycles.

Then and Now - Target Kloof

I am sure all of us who live in Port Elizabeth drive through Target Kloof between Walmer and the Central / Cape Road area every now and then.  Some on a more regular basis than others.  But do we ever think about the history of the road and area? Probably not.  So here is a tidbit of history.  Although I couldn't find any info on where Target Kloof got its name from, I have found that on 22 April 1896 it was decided at a Town Council meeting that the Divisional Council's proposed plan to build a road through Target Kloof from Port Elizabeth to Walmer was approved.  The road had to be 60 feet wide, fenced and maintained by the Divisional Council.  By November of that same year the old road through the Mill Property was closed.  The Mill Property, by the way, is where Thomas Gubb who was the owner at the time, got permission to have Xhosa huts built in 1863.  Although he sold the land in 1867, the area was still known as Gubb's Location and was later owned by the Mill Park Estate and Land Company.  The location was closed by the Plague Board in 1903.  But I'm digressing.  It's interesting that the picture says the Baakens River near Port Elizabeth but also keeping in mind that back then this would have been outside of the town of Port Elizabeth.

I really like this second picture.  It's a lot clearer than the first.  Notice the horse drawn carriage heading towards Port Elizabeth and the very old car heading towards Walmer.  Something else to note is the footbridge on the left of the road, probably for when the river was high and people needed to cross. The hill in the background is where Wellington Park is today.  This time the picture is marked as "New Road, Walmer". 

The road through Target Kloof as it is today.  Still quite wide (there was too much traffic for me to see if it's 60 feet or not) and fenced in in some areas.  Unfortunately not as maintained by the council as it is supposed to be, but still one of Port Elizabeth's busiest thoroughfares. I think I got pretty close to the same spot as the second picture was taken from when you compare the hill in the background.  Now if I can just figure out where the name Target Kloof came from.

Update (17 March 2016) - As far as the name goes, word is that there used to be a shooting range on the Port Elizabeth side of the valley near the then Gubb's Location and the locals started to refer to it as Target Kloof.

I got the two two historic pictures of Port Elizabeth groups on Facebook and they unfortunately had no credits attached to them.  The historic information was gathered from Margaret Harradine's book Port Elizabeth.

Looking down the Baakens Valley

The other afternoon I went for a stroll along the paths in Wellington Park.  Wellington Park is a section of Settlers Park up on the hill on the Walmer side.  Parking is just off 5th Avenue, Walmer from where a circular path takes you around through vegetation made up mostly of Fynbos species.  This section is safe with many Walmer residents taking later afternoon walks along the paths with loved ones or their dogs.  The paths give excellent views up and down the Baakens Valley with this one looking down the valley.  Settlers Park is in the middle, Walmer on the right and the apartments off Ring Road near St Georges on the left.  The Knysna apartment building in South End is visible at the bottom of the valley.

Sunset up Heugh Road

Last night the third Travel Massive Port Elizabeth event took place at The Mad Hatter on Heugh Road in Walmer.  Travel Massive is a world wide network of travel industry insiders and local chapters organise free networking events allowing people in the travel industry to get together, network, share information and, ultimately, do business.  I am one of the Travel Massive Port Elizabeth chapter leaders and last night's event was one of four events taking place at the same time all over South Africa as part of Travel Massive Day.  At one stage during the event I stepped outside and the sun was just setting at the top of Heugh Road.  A stunning evening, both inside

Walmer mini robots

The kiddies bike path in front of the Walmer Library is the perfect spot to teach your kids about the rules of the road.  I think the best thing about it is the working traffic lights.  Although the KidZ are now too big to go and ride bike there, I stopped there last weekend to check up on a Geocache I have in the area and decided to snap a pic.  No kiddies riding around today though. 

The Obelisk water troughs

If you know a bit about Port Elizabeth's history then you will know that at one stage there was an obelisk standing on Market Square in front of the City Hall.  The obelisk is known as The Prince of Wales Obelisk and was brought to South Africa by the founder of the Eastern Province Herald, John Paterson to be placed on the grave of his partner, George Kemp. The Kemp family decided that it was too elaborate to place on the grave and donated it to the city.  The City then erected it in front of the City Hall on 22 May 1863 to commemorate the Prince of Wale’s marriage to Princess Alexandra.  In 1877/8 four water troughs were added and filled with water during a “tap ceremony” when water was first piped to Port Elizabeth.  The obelisk was removed in 1921 and stored until 1975 when it was placed in front of Bayworld in Humewood.  But what happened to the four water troughs?

One of the water troughs was placed on the lawn at the Walmer Town Hall where it can still be found.  I bet most people have never actually noticed it or even though what it was.  The location of the other three troughs is unfortunately unknown. 

Walmer Cenotaph

Most of Port Elizabeth's monuments are located around Central and the city centre.  There are a few outside of those areas though.  One example is the Piet Retief monument and another is the Cenotaph in front of the Walmer Townhall.  I stopped at the Cenotaph with Drama Princess and snapped a few pics while she was checking it out.  The Cenotaph contains the names of the men from Walmer who died during the two world wars.  Why does Walmer have a Cenotaph while there is one in front of St Georges Park as well?  Well, Walmer used to be a town of its own independent from Port Elizabeth until the 1970's.

New garden services in Walmer

 I got a mail from regular PEDP reader Gerhard Burger last night asking me if I have seen that there is a new garden service company taking over at the Walmer townhall. 

Perhaps the lawns and hedges will stay nice and neat now which may lead to the municipality extending the service to other parts of the city.

Mohair ground breaking

Did you know that Port Elizabeth is the mohair capital of the world?  South Africa produces 53% of global mohair production and together with Lesotho produces 70% of world production.  The majority of the world's mohair gets processed in two plants in the Eastern Cape while there are two dedicated mohair spinners within Nelson Mandela Bay.  Port Elizabeth is also home to Mohair South Africa and it is here where most of South Africa's mohair gets handled and exported from. 

 

Last Wednesday I attended the groundbreaking of the new Mohair South Africa headquarters in Walmer right here in the Friendly City.  Other than Mohair SA's head office, the building will also include a retail space, where an array of mohair products, produced both locally and abroad, will be available.  There will also be a mini conference centre  as well as provision for a mohair library and crafting space to be utilised by students.

An artist's impression of what the building will look like

Lower Baakens entrance

Most people who access the Baakens Valley do so from How Avenue off Park Drive, Wellington Park or Walmer, but I wonder how many know that you can also do so from an entrance just off Brickmakerskloof.  I took a walk into the park from here the other day and you quickly loose sight of all signs of civilisation except for the towering Knysna apartment building on the Walmer side of the valley.

Walmer sunset by Shefetswe

Today's post features a photo by guest photographer Geoff Applewhite aka Shefetswe.  Geoff is one of my fellow Geocachers and went on a cache trip around town with Grannynasty and Speedbird yesterday afternoon.  While the other two were logging a cache next to the Baakens Valley in Walmer, Geoff ducked away to snap a pic of the beautiful sunset.

Dodds Farm view

Dodds Farm is part of the Baakens Valley and can be reached from the bottom of 9th Avenue in Walmer.  It's a beautiful spot that could perhaps do with a bit of maintenance, bush clearing and grass cutting, but ideal for a picnic and some quiet time.  The Baakens River flows right through Dodds Farm and there are several trails in the area, amongst them the Guinea Fowl trail and some trail running and mountain biking tracks.

Beware: Bumpy Road, Remove Dentures

I wonder how many people drive down (or up) Villiers Road in Walmer every day without ever noticing this sign painted on a log next to the road.  I for one never saw it until I was taken there in search of a geocache recently.  The bumpy road it refers to leads to the Walmer Woods driving range. 

History of Walmer

I wonder how many people know that Walmer used to be a town on its own before becoming part of Port Elizabeth.  In 1815 the farm Welbedacht, covered an area just under 14 square miles, to the south west of Port Elizabeth was granted to AM Muller.  When Muller died in 1845 his farm was inherited by his 8 sons who, true to form, could not decide on how to sub divide the property.  As a result the farm was sold and the money was distributed to the heirs.  In 1855 the area was transferred to the municipality of Port Elizabeth and renamed Walmer in honour of the Duke of Wellington.  The area was then laid out and on 8 March 1855 it was resolved to sell 400 plots by public auction.  A number of stands were also reserved for the Dutch Reformed Church and the Anglican Church.  The village plan included wide streets and a plentiful supply of water.  By June 200 plots had been sold. On 22 April 1899, Walmer was awarded separate municipal status while its residential character, spacious residential plots and attractive dwellings attracted both families with young children and the elderly.  It was incorporated into the Port Elizabeth municipality in 1966.

 

The section of Walmer in the picture, taken from the Mill Park side, is next to the Baakens Valley at the start of Target Kloof.

Wellington Park

One of the things I've discovered since I've taken up geocaching is that even though I thought I knew everything there is to see in and around Port Elizabeth, I haven't.  I've already been to at least three spots I've never visited before and I have another two new places lined up.  One of those I haven't seen before was a corner of Settlers Park called Wellington Park which is quite popular for a short walk with the residents living in the area.  Along the trail I found a little monument which was erected in the mid 1900's to remember the landing of Jan van Riebeeck in the Cape in 1652 and the British Settlers in Port Elizabeth in 1820.  If it wasn't for geocaching I would never have known that this is there.  

Steve Biko's cell at Walmer police station

Today is the 35th anniversary of the death of Steve Biko, anti-apartheid activist and founder of the Black Consciousness Movement.  I was invited to visit the police cell at the Walmer Police Station where Biko was kept after his arrest in 1977 before he was taken to the Sanlam Building in town where he was tortured.  I hadn't seen the cell before and was glad that the opportunity has come my way as it is one of only a few heritage sites in Port Elizabeth I haven't visited.  The visit was supposed to be followed by a commemorative lecture by Helen Zille, at the time one of the journalists to expose the story and today leader of the official opposition, at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University but it seems that the university buckled under political pressure from student groups and denied Ms Zille permission to do the lecture. 

 

On 18 August 1977, Biko was arrested at a police roadblock under the Terrorism Act No 83 of 1967 and interrogated by officers of the Port Elizabeth security police.  This interrogation took place in the Police Room 619 of what is known as the Sanlam Building in Port Elizabeth.  The interrogation lasted twenty-two hours and included torture and beatings resulting in a coma.  He suffered a major head injury while in police custody, and was chained to a window grille for a day.

On 11 September 1977, police loaded him in the back of a Land Rover, naked and restrained in manacles, and began the 1100 km drive to Pretoria to take him to a prison with hospital facilities. He was nearly dead owing to the previous injuries.  He died shortly after arrival at the Pretoria prison, on 12 September.  The police claimed his death was the result of an extended hunger strike, but an autopsy revealed multiple bruises and abrasions and that he ultimately succumbed to a brain hemorrhage from the massive injuries to the head, which many saw as strong evidence that he had been brutally clubbed by his captors. Then journalist and now political leader, Helen Zille, along with Donald Woods, another journalist, editor and close friend of Biko's, exposed the truth behind Biko's death. - Wikipedia