The old Gamtoos Bridge

Today's post is slightly outside the borders of Nelson Mandela Bay, but the Gamtoos area is very much part of the metro even if its only through close association.  When the first Dutch trekboers got to the Gamtoos River in the latter part of the 1700's, they had to move upstream to find a suitable spot to cross the river.  Later a pontoon was used roughly where the Gamtoos Ferry Hotel is today.  There was a call for a causeway to be erected and the present bridge on the old road was decided on.  The bridge was completed and opened on the 3rd December 1895 at a cost of £20,000.

Flashback - Palm Beach Roadhouse

I love getting emails from followers of PE Daily Photo and The Firefly Photo Files, but it gets even better when I get mails like the one sent to me by Socratis "Socks" who was the last owner of the Palm Beach Roadhouse at Flat Rocks.  He has sent me some pictures of the roadhouse to post and said he's got a couple of old newspaper clippings that he will scan and send me some time as well.

 

Ahhhhh, the good ol' days of old fashioned roadhouses on the beachfront.  Today this site is cleared and only occupied by a parking area.

Do you have any good memories of the Palm Beach Roadhouse?

Tanks at Schoenies

Most people enjoy Port Elizabeth's main beaches but there are the few who try to flee the crowds to their favorite hidden spots and the little "beaches" and gullies in Schoenmakerskop are amongst these.  The most popular one in Schoenies is just in front of the Sacramento Restaurant and can be reached via steps down to the beach.  The spot is called Tanks.  According to Luc Hosten of Friends of Schoenmakerskop there are two theories on where the name came from.  The first one is that apparently large water storage tanks once stood in the area to store water from the springs and the second one is that a tank washed up from a nearby shipwreck. There was a metal outlined shape at the mouth of the gully visible a few years ago - possibly from the shipwreck.  Some people also call it Nuns Pool but according to Luc the purists would point out that Nun's Pool is to the right of Tanks.

Ironman weekend

Ironman is probably the biggest event staged in Port Elizabeth and right up there to what the Argus cycle race is to Cape Town and the Comrades Marathon to Durban.  But Ironman isn't just one day of ordinary sports men and women doing extra ordinary things, its a whole weekend of awesomeness and this past weekend was Ironman weekend.  It all starts in the week before the event with the arrival of athletes and there families, the Ironman expo and registration.  Friday afternoon is the start of the weekend's events with Iron Girl, a ladies only 10k run.  This is followed by the Corporate Challenge (called by the competitors as Corporate Ironman), a relay event over 1/10th of the full Ironman distance, on the Saturday morning and Ironkids on the Saturday afternoon.  Yesterday morning at 6:30 the pro's started off a long day on the road by heading into the surf at Hobie Beach for a 3,8km swim that took them down to Kings Beach and back.  By the time the rest of the field hit the water at 7am the top dogs were well on their way back to Hobie already for the transition to the 180km cycle.  The cycle route took them through Port Elizabeth out via Lake Farm to Maitlands and back via Seaview Road and Marine Drive to the beachfront... times 2.  As if this isn't enough already, it is followed by a three lap run along the beachfront totaling 42,2km, or a full marathon.  One can't help but to take your hat off to these guys and galls.

 

We spent some time in the morning next to Buffelsfontein Road to encourage the cyclists going past and then headed down to Marine Drive across from MacArthur's Pool in the evening to watch the runners.  A run that is said to be the best supported amongst all the Ironman competitions in the world.  These competitors, a few who I know, really inspires one to get off your backside and get active.  I'm not saying I'm going to do Ironman soon, but I will be going for a run around the block.

Port Elizabeth beachfront panorama

A panorama view of the Port Elizabeth beachfront seen from the Jester while cruising Algoa Bay

Welcome Carpet on Belmont Terrace

Part of Route 67's Welcome Carpet next to Belmont Terrace with the

King Edward Hotel in the background

Grey Heron on a pole

This Grey Heron was taking a break on a pole in the Sundays River at Colchester and wasn't really bothered when we cruised past it on the Sundays River Ferry.  The Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea), is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae and grows to about one meter in height with a wingspan of between 1,5 and 2 meters.  It normally feeds in shallow water, catching fish, frogs and insects with its long bill.  Herons will also take small mammals like mice and rats as well as reptiles.  It will often wait motionless for prey, or slowly stalk its victim.

Van Stadens railway bridge - the highest narrow gauge bridge in the world

When the Apple Express used to run (and lets hope it will be running again some time) it always stopped at the Van Stadens Railway Bridge to allow passengers to walk across the bridge if they wanted to get photos of the train crossing it.  I decided to drive out to Van Stadens to look for two Geocaches at the bridge and got to visit it for the first time in over ten years.  The Van Stadens Railway Bridge is the second highest railway bridge in South Africa and the highest narrow gauge bridge in the world.  Construction on the bridge was completed in 1905.  The bridge is 156 meters in length and 77 meters high.

 

 

 

Mosaic patterns

If creating the 470 m2 Piazza Mosaic as part of Route 67 did one thing it was bringing vibrant colours to the Donkin Reserve.  The mosaic has so many different pictures and figures that I literally see something new every time I visit the Donkin.  One of the great things about it is the different angles you can look at it.  Either close up or from a distance with the third option being from the top of the Donkin Lighthouse.

Then and Now - Queen Victoria Statue and Public Library

One of Port Elizabeth's best known historic landmarks is the Public Library with the statue of Queen Victoria in front of it.  The statue of Queen Vic was unveiled by major of Port Elizabeth, J.C. Kemsley, on 30 September 1903.  It was carved from Sicilian marble by Edward Roscoe Mullins of London to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee which took place in 1897 and was paid for my public subscription.  The first site preferred was in front of the City Hall but the present site was chosen after it was suggested by the Guild of Loyal Women.  Standing in front of the library, the statue looked down Jetty Street to the main entrance to town.

Looking at the statue today there is one small difference from when it was unveiled.  The railings around the bottom which was added in 1904.  The statue has since been restored by local sculpture Anton Momberg in 1992.

 

In an April Fool's joke in the Herald this morning the paper reported a special rates increase to pay for the cost, reportedly R15m, to remove the statue and replace it with a “20 years of freedom” commemoration plaque.  Oh yeah, and on Facebook they used a picture from PEDP to go with the article.