Just 60 kilometres from Port Elizabeth lies another wonder of the Eastern Cape. The Elands River Valley. This area with its rugged mountains and endless beauty  of lush valleys is considered to be the gateway to the Baviaanskloof and is a must when traveling South Africa.

The Elands River Valley is nestled in between the Winterhoek Mountains and the Elandsberge Mountains, and is right between Uitenhage ( this town is part of the greater Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality) and the little town of Patensie. From this valley, the breath-taking views of the mountain ranges, gorges and rivers are not to be missed, gracing each vista and making for exquisite backdrops to your photographs.

This area is full of beauty and the natural vegetation is rich in  Fynbos, Protea and Broodbome.

I was told to meet Lukas Van Der  Merwe. "You have to meet him and visit his Anglo Boer War Relics Museum" and that is exactly what I did. After a bumpy road with beautiful mountain scenery I finally got to  Mount Ingwe Lodge

I was barely out the car and there he was waiting on my arrival. Now you may have heard this name before or read it somewhere on a screen. Lukas is the executive producer known for Zama Zama (2012) and Suurlemoen! (2014) however he is also known as someone who likes to find treasures using a metal detector machine.

Bordering the world heritage site “Baviaanskloof” and nestled in the Elands Rivier Valley surrounded by the Winterberg mountains lies the farm Middelwater on which the Lodge Mount Ingwe is situated. While finding your lost roots explore a world of vast open spaces and horizons while mother nature inspires your senses with her sights and sounds. There you will find indigenous wilderness. Only touched by abundant game species and endangered birds roaming in the silence of the mountain tops and valley deeps. In this diverse ecosystem you will also find well preserved bushman paintings with its historical intricacies of our earths past.

For travelers passing by or for a weekend break away  Mount Ingwe Lodge has luxurious bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms which were designed to bring Mother Nature into your resting place. Here you will find the extraordinary geology of the mountains and incredible African Sunsets.

The folds of the mountains and valleys have to be seen in person. It is not something you can really describe to someone.

They seem to just go on forever from riverine thicket to afromontate forest with here and there yellowwood trees fighting to reach the sky.

Enjoy real quality family time with no TV and minimum cell phone reception.

The mountains consist mainly of fynbos, Protea and Broodbome”

Mount Ingwe can be found 120km from Port Elizabeth and 35 km from Patensie. A small Country town in the Eastern Cape. It’s an easy drive from Jeffreysbay and the Tsitsikamma National Park.

Let the Locals spoil you with their famous Roosterkoeke after an adventurous day in the valley of Mount Ingwe.