Location
The farm is situated 35km from the western suburbs of P.E. with only 8kms of this distance being gravel road.
Size
Made up of one title, the property is just over 136 ha in extent and borders onto Groendal Wilderness Reserve.
Description
To me this area of the Eastern Cape between the Elandsrivier and the Kwazungu River is one of the prettiest pieces of real estate in the province. The topography is comprised of a series of ridges and valleys plus the low lying flood plain that was carved over time by the Elands River that meanders through the property forming an oxbow like formation. This river system is home to both small mouth and large mouth bass and there are even fish eagles to complete this picture perfect setting. Water is in abundance and the farm offers a
truly lush setting with good grazing and densely vegetated slopes which translates into a relatively high grazing capacity in addition to the fantastic available browse matter.
Veld types
The farm is made up of a combination of sweet thorn, grassveld and dense Cape valley bushveld as well as some forest. The almost ideal combination of browse and graze is evident in the game species diversity found on the property plus in conjunction there’s also livestock grazing on this farm. Grass species found include Digitaria Smutsii, Eriantha, perennial Pannicums, Kikuyu and Cynodon Dactylon. While the latter grass species can be of marginal value in harder areas, here by virtue of the fertile soils and high rainfall, it is a superb grazing grass and is well used most of the year. Tree species include: wild olive, milkwood, yellowwood, candlewood, cape plain, euphorbia, cabbage tree, common guarri, boerbean and sweet thorn. Two south facing slopes at the northern end of the property also display some fynbos elements which are associated with “sourveld” whereas the rest of the farm is “sweetveld” and the Elandsrivier Valley is known to be a meeting point (mixture) of both habitat types.
Rainfall
The farm falls in a transition summer / winter rainfall area with an annual average of 600mm.
Improvements
There is a 3 bed original farmhouse (needs TLC) with 2 bathrooms (1 ensuite), lounge, open plan dining room/kitchen and both back and front porches. Alongside the farmhouse is a double carport plus there’s a nearby 4 berth carport and two small storage sheds.
There are also some old unoccupied staff cottages.
It is mostly game fencing in terms of the +- 5,8km boundary with +- 2/3rds being a 2.4m high game fence of a very high specification (21 strands). There are also some internal camps including: a 25ha game camp plus the existing 3 arable blocks that are fenced off to keep the wildlife out.
The main water supply for the homestead comes from a permanent fountain on the neighbouring Groendal Reserve and this water is gravity fed via a PVC pipe. The farm has +- 1800m of Elands River frontage and there are a few large pools along this stretch of the river. The one deep pool is formed by an old weir and water was historically pumped therefrom for irrigation purposes and this is still the case. At present about 2,5ha of lands are being irrigated but the owner recently obtained 25ha of registered water rights allowing for considerable expansion as far as the intensive farming is concerned.
Power is supplied from 3 phase Eskom power.
Wildlife species
Game species that are currently on the property include:
Mountain Reedbuck (migratory)
Grysbok
Common Duiker
Kudu (migratory)
Bushbuck
Bushpig
Both Nyala and Bontebok were also introduced but are not included in the sale price.
The bird life is phenomenal with species like knysna lourie, narina trogon and fish eagles to name just a few.
Conclusion
This farm is incredibly scenic and the topography of this property would lend itself well to a game based eco venture or team building/wellness venue alongside the utilisation of the arable land for intensive farming purposes. Alternatively simply indulge in ones own private getaway which could just as easily become a permanent residence due to its close proximity to P.E.
Price
R 4 750 000 plus Vat at the applicable rate.
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