‘A good balance of tranquility and activity’
Hotel
Situated on the banks of the mighty Breede River in the Western Cape, the Malagas Hotel is an absolute must for families and couples wanting a escape from city life. If you want peace and quiet, this place definitely has all that you need to get back to nature. The gravel road to reach us is quite popular with guests, those who like to cycle and with off-road motorbike enthusiasts. The Malagas Hotel has rooms of various sizes and offers comfortable accommodation and homestyle-cooked meals with old-fashioned hospitality. Our restaurant and Moxie’s Pub is open daily for guests and visitors. Here you can discover a wealth of bird life and the outdoor experience. We offer a mix of relaxation in nature and adventure activities in the surrounds. Access to the Breede River allows visitors to enjoy swimming, canoeing, motor boats and even a group effort on our paddle boat. We also offer cruises on our houseboats. The historic village of Malgas is a settlement on the southwest bank of the Breede River in the Overberg region of the Western Cape. Malgas supports a significant variety of fish and birds and is one of the largest rivers in the country.
Houseboats
The Breede River remains one of the most unspoiled holiday getaways in the country and is a must for anyone who enjoys a good balance of tranquility and activity in a natural environment. The Estuary of the Breede River sustains an abundance of fish. It also attracts fish eagles, owls and kingfishers, to name but a few. Malgas lives up to the reputation as a perfect weekend escape. Our 7.8m leisure liners are sturdy, safe and easy to drive crafts with all the basic comforts you need to spend a relaxing holiday on the water. The best way to describe the houseboats is caravanning on water. People who enjoy fishing, bird watching and simply love the outdoors will love an adventure on one of our houseboats. The Houseboat is most suited to two persons but can accommodate a family of five, maximum. 028 542 1049 | info@malagashotel.co.za | www.malagashotel.co.za | www.houseboathire.co.za
In winter, ALOES ERUPT LIKE FIRES from the fields and, come spring, those same fields fill with CHEERFUL BRIGHT YELLOW CANOLA
WILD INFANTA AND THE BENT HEAD BOOGIE
Infanta, which is on the western bank of the Breede (a long drive or a short kayak from Witsand), is as different as it can get. This is an exclusive enclave of a largely conservation-minded community of families who come here year after year to stay in the simplest of homes and enjoy fishing, birding, canoeing and snorkelling. With roaming baboons and nesting white-backed vultures that soar off the ramparts of the Potberg Mountain as neighbours, Infanta is as wild as it gets.
Well-known shark photographer and environmentalist Chris Fallows is a resident on the river not far from the mouth.
Heʼs working with a group of movers and shakers and farmers to create a private conservancy that will protect the western bank more fully, and is at war with fishers, particularly fly-fishers, who trample the riverʼs edges and are consequently putting the system at risk. He urges them to stick to the paths
rather than trample the riverine vegetation.
Driving back from Infanta to Malgas, there is a turn to Mudlark Riverfront Lodge, which is run by Hilary Smith. She has 14 South African fishing records, was an Overberg Chef of the Year finalist and runs a homely lodge. Her son, Mark, is next door and he may just win the prize for operating the quirkiest place on the Breede River. Over the past six years his roadside bar, the Bent Head, has become a repository for an amazing quantity of random stuff. In addition to a hang glider, a kombi, old skis and other bits and bobs, there is a resident peacock.
On Friday evenings, when things hot up, Mark turns on the smoke machine and encourages his guests to get up on a special boogie-table. Itʼs probably just as well that it is only a few feet off the ground as the drinks flow swiftly in these parts.
Back at the orange cliffs at our plot, my random collection of memories and experiences came to mind, and I realised there are countless untold stories on both banks of the river – new ones, but also ones half-buried in the past
I am ashamed to say that I know very little about the areaʼs pre-history but I am assured that the life-giving waters of this winding river would have been well-known to generations of early Stone Age people; the ancestors of modern hominids certainly walked, slept, hunted and fished along this coastline up to 100 000 years ago.
I do know that the Lower Breede River has a health score of 78 percent, which is close to the top of the class for South African rivers, but its grades are dropping quickly.
The meandering river is increasingly silted by topsoil and the impressive swathes of salt marsh, fynbos and renosterveld are under pressure. It is unthinkable that the relics of rare renosterveld vegetation are suffering from humans wanting more green grass and longer driveways.
I may have done a few wild things in my youth but Iʼve learnt a few things too: I do know that we Overbergers need to act now to make sure the Breede retains its wildness for the next generations and that its natural treasures remain true and not just pictures on the walls of the hotels, guest houses, farms and holiday homes that line the banks of this much-loved waterway.
We Overbergers NEED TO ACT NOW to make sure that the Breede retains its WILDNESS and that its NATURAL TREASURES remain true