On Monday the 12th August 2010, a public holiday in South Africa, my son, Little Birdman, and I left home at the crack of dawn for Potchefstroom. We decided to bird the route mentioned in the Roberts Multimedia program, called Eleaser Road. It is reached by heading north from Potch on the Ventersdorp Road (R53) and taking a left turn after the military base onto the Eleazar Road. It is a tar road that become a dirt road and heads to Welgevonden Farm at a crossroads where you can return to the N14 and head back to Potch or continue towards Klerksdorp (you will find the Faan Meintjies Nature Reserve on this stretch of the road).
After a frustrating experience of wasting at least 20 minutes thanks to poor road signage (a road marked R53 Ventersdorp leads to a T-Junction with no indication of which direction to take! Aargh!!! Anyway, after being very un-male and stopping to ask for directions we got back on track and at around 7am started out on the Eleazar Road.
1. Eleazer Road
We eagerly anticipated seeing dozens of larks and pipits but did not see one on the whole route. We did however spot Black-shouldered Kite, Hadeda Ibis, Cape Turtle-Dove, Ant-eating Chat, Common Fiscal, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Red-faced Mousebird, Natal Spurfowl, African Stonechat, Scaly-feathered Finch, Helmeted Guineafowl, Bokmakierie, Red-billed Quelea, Namaqua Dove, Tawny-flanked Prinia, Speckled Pigeon, Crested Barbet, Cape Glossy Starling, Crowned Lapwing, Blacksmith Lapwing, Pied Starling, Sacred Ibis and Egyptian Goose. The sight of Namaqua Dove in flight was a real highlight of this part of the trip.
2. Welgevonden Farm
We saw a few dams on the way to the crossroads where the Welgevonden Farm is location at a major crossroads but we saw very little by way of water birds. Even the big dam at the crossroads only had Sacred Ibis close to the dam. In the area we saw Wattled Starling, Familiar Chat, Bokmakierie and Egyptian Geese (perching in a tree getting us all excited thinking that we were looking at a pair of raptors from a distance!).
3. Faan Meintjies Nature Reserve
We took a drive towards Klerksdorp and stopped at the Faan Meintjies Nature Reserve and decided against starting to explore the reserve given that it was already 9:30 - maybe one day we will check it out. We were amazed at the amount of Helmeted Guineafowl that we saw in the fields on the way - at least four groups of about 30 birds in each group.
4. Road to the N12
We returned to the Welgevonden Crossroads and took the road south to travel back to Potch via the N14. Along the way we saw Wattled Starling, Chestnut-vented Tit-babbler, Red-eyed Bulbul, Cape Robin-Chat, Namaqua Dove and White-backed Mousebird. I don't know what it is about the Red-eyed Bulbul but it always makes me stop and get a couple of pics, while its more common cousin barely gets a second look!
As we made our way to Potch I was hugely disappointed to not have spotted a special on the Eleazer Road that I was really hoping to see - Chestnut-backed Sparrowlark or possibly even the Grey-backed variety. Little did I know that before the end of the day I would be smiling!
5. Klipdrift Dam
It took about 40 minutes for us to make our way through Potch to the Klipdrift Dam (there is a well marked turn off to the right about 20 from Potch on the N12 towards Johannesburg). There is a short drive on a dirt road before getting to the dam. Here we saw Cattle Egret, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Common Fiscal, Blacksmith Lapwing, African Stonechat, Southern Red Bishop and Black-shouldered Kite. We first explored the eastern part of the dam, by entering property that belongs to the Van Niekerks which seems to consist of land that is owned by different people who visit the dam regularly and camp there (like little homesteads on the waters edge). Here we saw Rufous-naped Lark (there has been a lot of debate about the id of this bird on the forums - and this is the general consensus), and not much else at all. There did not seem to be much bird life on the dam apart from a Reed Cormorant, a Common Moorhen, Crowned Lapwing and Red-eyed Bulbul.
We enquired at the shop across the road about gaining access to the Lakeview Resort but decided against paying the fee given the freeing cold weather and the lack of bird life on the dam. Instead we headed off to a spot that I found on my last visit to the dam - if you continue past the shop and Lakeview Resort you will come to a T-Junction, a left-turn and then 100 metres further on there is a left turn onto a small dirt track marked "Visvang en Kampering". This is an area that is free and open to the public. We had lunch at the dam and in the 20 minutes or so that we sat in the car at the water's edge started to see a few ducks on the lake including South African Shelduck, Egyptian Goose, Common Moorhen, Red-knobbed Coot, Cape Teal, Yellow-billed Duck, Cape Shoveler, Red-billed Teal, African Black Duck and Three-banded Plover. It was mostly just one or two of each bird. In the picnic area we also spotted Cape Longclaw, Crowned Lapwing, Blacksmith Lapwing and Black-shouldered Kite (hovering over the river area below the dam wall).
As we were leaving the dam we pulled in the the little dam (pond) just to the right of the dam wall on the road from the dam. There did not seem to be anything around until we sat for a while and started to see a whole stack of bird life, including Cape Wagtail, Squacco Heron, Long-tailed Widowbird, a little Warbler I never could id, Yellow-billed Duck, Red-billed Teal (parents with six chicks) and Cape Shoveler. A walk around the pond was a highlight despite the biting cold weather. My five year old son, Drew, captured a pic of three different ducks together while I was on my walkabout! He is so sharp!!!
When we got back to the main dirt road we headed left, instead of right to return to the N12 and spent a bit of time stopping along the river (this area is all below the long dam wall) that very soon crosses under the road before disappearing into the distance. We saw White-faced Duck, Southern Masked Weaver, Red-billed Teal, Giant Kingfisher, Black-headed Heron and Blacksmith Lapwing.
Just after the river we spotted an open gate leading towards the dam wall and then to the right and into a forest. We saw some bee-hives and then entered a space that showed signs of trees being cut down. Most surprisingly we saw that there were houses that were being built out of branches - you have to see the pic to believe it. Suddenly we spotted a bird that I have only ever seen once and we drove 4 hours to Barberspan Nature Reserve to see it - Swallow-tailed Bee-eater. We managed to get quite close to the pair and were thrilled at the sighting. An inquisitive little Tawny-flanked Prinia arrive to find out what we were doing in the area before we left (a little worried about who was living in the area and whether we were safe in such a secluded area). A Cape Robin-Chat was flying up and down the canal in the area.
6. The Road to the N14
We decided to keep travelling south, away from the dam, instead of retracing out steps. And boy, am I glad we did! Because we saw them!!! Chestnut-backed Sparrowlark. I cannot tell you how chuffed I was to finally see these birds. I had no idea of what their size would be, but it was a real treat to watch a female and two males scrounging through the soil in search of a light snack. It is always great to capture a Lifer!!!
7. Fochville
We made our way to the R54 and turned left to head towards the N14 - I had thoughts of making a quick return to Joburg via the toll road - but feeling a little snoep (cheap) decided to avoid toll fees by driving via the R500 through Fochville to the N12 intersection and then back home. Boy, am I glad I was feeling cheap - because we arrive at the town of Fochville and were blown away by the sight of the river and wetland than runs right past the town. I captured a second Lifer, African Palm Swift, and also saw White-throated Swallow, Brown-throated Martin, Reed Cormorant, Sacred Ibis, Yellow-billed Duck, Hadeda Ibis, African Stonechat, Red-eyed Bulbul, Cape Wagtail, a Weaver that I think is Southern Masked but I am not 100% sure, Three-banded Plover and Little Egret. I noticed that the area is called Peter Viljoen Park. Enjoy the scenery pics!
Wow, what a day! 57 bird species spotted and 2 Lifers recorded! Another great experience - and all it cost was a tank of petrol and a flask of strong coffee and sandwiches!!!