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Visited Tankwa last week and was surprised to see how good the flowers were: The dam was overflowing strongly.

A few quick snaps at this link:


https://picasaweb.google.com/1126503627 ... 290/Tankwa

Thank you for the update Mistral and the link . We are planning to visit Tankwa in the near future. Do you perhaps have any suggestions/recommendation regarding the accommodation?

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https://picasaweb.google.com/1126503627 ... 290/Tankwa
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Grantmissy - Being budget minded we stayed at Paulshoek which is not far from the Sanparks office.

We found the location good as it is mid-way between Varschfontein and the Oudebaaskraal Dam.
We wanted to see the dam for birding. We were told that the Varschfontein road was best for game.

All the cottages other than those luxury one's at Elandsberg on the Varschfontein road are miles from one another so privacy is not a problem. Tankwa was fully booked but we hardly saw a car a day. Personally I would find Elandsberg a bit far for our taste but they are the newest (and most expensive).

At Paulshoek (1900 farmhouse) you have to make a fire in the donkey at the back for hot water. It takes about an hour to heat. We found this easy to use. The higher priced cottages have gas/solar.

While old and rustic Paulshoek was spotless - linen etc (SANparks are to be commended) and we would be quite happy to stay there again.

Your choice of accommodation will hinge on how many people in your party and your budget.

We cant wait to visit again!

Thank you Mistral for the information on the accommodation. The accommodation you mentioned looks very nice on the pictures on the availability site. I also like the De Zyfer pictures – reminds me of the typical Karoo farm houses. The Tankwa guest house looks very big, almost like something from a King Arthur or medieval set. I hope your birding was

DeZyfer looks good and is well located.

Also lots of Bees around with Tankwa in bloom. I am not to sure how the folk in the Elandsberg cottages use their splash pools which I believe now have netting covering.

Roads were in very good condition - one or two spots where we took it carefully such as deep dry mud. We play it safe with gravel - use 4x4 the moment we are off the tar. I think I used low gear twice on some side roads - Pyper se boom was one if I recall. No tyres damaged and no punctures.
I believe the summer heat however can take its toll on tyres - it peaked at around 50C last December if I recall.

Birding was ok not marvelous in my view but I know others have had much better luck. We did see a Goshawk take a cobra. It was our first trip so probably at the wrong spots!

SANparks staff were outstanding and always ready to help. They had a very good flower book on sale at reception - Wild flowers of the Roggeveld and Tanqua - we bought two copies.

We cant wait to go back!