Phillipskop Mountain Reserve

23/10/2026

🌸 Everlasting blooms

At this time of year, the fynbos at Phillipskop is scattered with delicate, papery flowers – the beautiful everlasting daisies!

But did you know that what look like petals are actually rings of papery bracts surrounding the tiny flowers at the centre? These dry, straw-like modified leaves do more than simply look pretty. They help protect the flowers from drying out in the hot Cape summer sun, while requiring very little water themselves. Resistant to wilting, they keep their shape and colour for a remarkably long time, giving pollinators plenty of opportunity to discover the flowers within. 🐝

Everlasting daisies come in a wonderful variety of forms and colours. Look out for the delicate Edmondia sesamoides, with sunny yellow centres framed by delicate white bracts, the striking pink Phaenocoma prolifera, and the snowy-white clusters of Syncarpha vestita, also known as Cape snow. 🌼

With their beautiful colours and long-lasting blooms, it's no wonder everlasting daisies are so popular as dried flowers. But we think they're just as lovely growing wild in their natural fynbos home! 🌿

Have you spotted any everlasting blooms on your walks at Phillipskop?

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21/10/2026

Sitting patiently 🦉

Our female barn owl is patiently sitting on her growing clutch, while her mate regularly delivers prey to her. With food brought straight to the nest, she can focus on the important job of incubating her eggs.

Barn owl eggs typically take around 30 days to hatch, and the eggs hatch in the order they were laid. So we’re watching closely and wondering… when will our first little chick arrive? 👀

We’ll keep you posted!

19/10/2026

15/10/2026

A shy visitor at the Eco-Chalets 🐇

One of the more elusive visitors to the areas around our Eco-Chalets is the Scrub Hare, Lepus saxatilis.

These solitary herbivores feed mainly on grasses, and if you’re lucky enough to watch one, you may notice its huge ears constantly swivelling as it listens for danger. Those impressive ears have another important job too – helping to release body heat and keep the hare cool in warm weather.

And if danger is detected? Those powerful hind legs come into their own, allowing the hare to make a very speedy getaway! 💨

So keep your eyes open when you're exploring around the chalets – you never know when one of these shy residents might appear. 🌿

13/10/2026

The Hidden Valley – a well-kept secret 🌿

Nestled between the peak of Phillipskop and the ridge of the Klein River Mountains lies a secluded valley, hidden from civilisation and development. The Hidden Valley is a refuge for nature – and a place of peace, surrounded by mountains.

Follow the meandering path up through the valley towards the saddle, and you’ll discover a very different side of Phillipskop. As you climb, look back at the mountain and you may be surprised by the stark contrast between its familiar front face and the hidden face revealed from the valley.

Instead of fynbos-covered slopes, here the mountain rises in almost vertical rocky crags. These dramatic cliffs are home to black eagles, so keep your eyes on the skies and you may spot them soaring overhead as you hike.

The Hidden Valley has another important role too: it is the catchment for Phillipskop’s fresh mountain spring water. The water flows down from the mountains, providing us with delicious, naturally filtered spring water – and we’re incredibly blessed to have a year-round supply. 💦

So take the path less travelled, climb into the Hidden Valley and discover one of Phillipskop’s quieter corners. 🥾⛰️

09/10/2026

Laying her clutch 🦉🥚

Look closely and you might spot something very special in this clip — the arrival of a new egg in our barn owl nest box!

Barn owls typically lay 4–6 eggs, although not every egg will necessarily hatch. Unlike many birds, which wait until the full clutch has been laid before beginning incubation, barn owls start incubating as soon as the first egg is laid.

This means the eggs hatch sequentially, with the youngest chicks arriving after their older siblings. It also spreads the demand for food as the chicks grow, rather than having an entire brood needing feeding at exactly the same stage.

We’ll be watching our owl cam with great interest to see how many eggs she lays in this clutch. 🥚🦉

How many do you think there will be?

07/10/2026

🌿 Wachendorfia thyrsiflora - Golden Spires of the Marshes

October sees the Wachendorfia come into flower. We have all four species of Wachendorfia found in the Western Cape, but by far the tallest and most impressive is Wachendorfia thyrsiflora.

This magnificent plant sends a flowering stem densely covered with apricot-yellow flowers up to 2 m into the air. It is not surprising that it is one of the most popular indigenous garden plants of the Cape. Although easy to grow, it does require a very specific habitat: wet, marshy ground, such as the edges of streams and ponds.

Here at Phillipskop, it grows on the lower slopes where groundwater is forced to the surface, creating areas of dense marshy vegetation usually dominated by Psoralea and Berzelia.

The plants form broad fans of pleated leaves, attractive in themselves, but they are often overlooked until flowering begins, with flowering peaking in October.

Wachendorfia thyrsiflora is surprisingly easy to grow from seed, provided it has constant moisture throughout the summer. We have encouraged it to grow around our natural swimming pool, where it has now become established and seeds itself.

Like all Wachendorfia, it belongs to the bloodroot family, Haemodoraceae. Anyone who digs up a plant will immediately understand where the family name comes from: the rhizomes are a vivid blood-red colour.

Fortunately, you can usually see this without digging up the plant, as the bases of the leaves also transition from green to red.

05/10/2026

🌿 Meet Oxalis Eco-Chalet

The first of our five chalets to welcome guests, Oxalis opened in July 2015 – and the story behind its name originates in the weeks leading up to our first-ever visitors.

When we were choosing names for the chalets, Oxalis were flowering in abundance across the reserve. With their delicate blooms carpeting the fynbos, it seemed the perfect choice. 🌸

Perched at the end of the lower row of chalets, Oxalis enjoys uninterrupted mountain and valley views, with the added magic of spectacular sunrises to the east. Secluded and peaceful, it’s a wonderful place to slow down, rest and reconnect.

With three comfortable bedrooms and two bathrooms, Oxalis sleeps up to seven guests. The spacious open-plan living area is made for relaxing together, while upstairs you’ll find foosball and games to keep both kids and the young-at-heart entertained.

Cook up a feast in the well-equipped kitchen, fire up the braai with a view towards the mountain peak, then choose your spot to eat – in the garden, on the deck overlooking the valley, or around the family dining table with a view.

And although Oxalis may not be flowering during every visit, there’s plenty of fynbos to discover throughout the year. 🌿 A poster in the chalet tells the story of the different Oxalis species found in the Klein River Mountains – giving you another reason to head out and explore.

Oxalis – a peaceful mountain retreat with a view in every direction.

01/10/2026

Meet David & Goliath 🪨

Have you discovered David and Goliath whilst hiking at Phillipskop?

Climb above the waterfall, or make your way towards the cave, and you’ll spot Goliath – a tall, imposing rock pillar named after the giant warrior in the Bible.

Look a little closer, and you’ll find David, the shorter rock stack nearby. Just like in the Biblical account, David is smaller and appears to be crouching beside the stream – perfectly positioned to pick up his stones!

Unlike the story, though, David has yet to topple Goliath… 😉

The two rock stacks are impressive from every angle, and for the adventurous, David is fun to climb – at your own risk, of course. Please do not climb Goliath: he stands just over the boundary on our neighbour’s land.

📍 Why not visit David and Goliath on your next hike? You can reach them via either the Rock Stacks or Candlewood Trail, and make a loop by returning the other way.

And if you’d like to remind yourself of the story behind their names, check out the Lego video by Go Chatter Studios – which happens to have been made by our son!

28/09/2026

Quite a mouthful! 🦉

As our female barn owl settles into nesting, we’re regularly witnessing meal deliveries from the male on our owl cam.

And this particular delivery was quite a feast! Clearly, egg-laying is hungry work, because she swallows this prey item whole — despite it looking far too large for that to be possible! 😮

Another extraordinary and fascinating moment of barn owl behaviour – and we feel incredibly privileged to be able to witness all this up close.

🎥 Stay tuned for updates as our breeding pair prepare for the next generation!