Hartbeespoort Dam ... a haven for water sports, fishing & boating 
The town of Hartbeespoort lies along the shores of the dam
Several majestic homes nestle right along the edge of the waterOn Sunday we took a drive out to the Hartbeespoort Dam, which is situated in the North West Province of South Africa, surrounded by the majestic Magaliesburg Mountain range.
Hartbeespoort is a manmade dam which was built in 1921 and completed in 1923 and was built on what used to be a farm called “Hartbeespoort” which means “pass of the Hartbees” – a Hartbees is a species of Eland.
The dam covers 20 square kilometers and is 101 metres long and has a depth of 9,6 metres. It is fed by the Magalies and Crocodile rivers and supplies irrigation water to surrounding tobacco, wheat, lucerne, fruit and flower farms and the dam is also popular for boating and fishing, with the town of Hartebeespoort situated along the shores of the dam.
This area, and the Magaliesburg Mountains in particular, are of great significance to my husband and I as it is in the delightful village of Magaliesburg that we first met, around 14 years ago. At the time I was working at a local country lodge and living in a quaint thatched cottage on a local strawberry farm, and I have many happy memories of that time. We used to often take day trips to Hartbeespoort and the surrounding areas, so it was nice to return there after so many years.
Another part of our past was also visited on Sunday …. the old smallholding (farm) that my husband and I rented (for a very brief period a long time ago, and well before we even got married) in the Lanseria area, which is where we built up and ran our own hydroponic tunnel farming business. (We used to grow both miniature and English cucumbers which were supplied to 2 of the largest retailers in the country).
Lanseria is on the way to the dam, so we popped by to have a look at our old farm and house. It is very dilapidated and old now, and although we were interested to see it again we were also a little sad, although it also made us very grateful for the decisions we’ve made since then, that have led to us living the life in Tanzania which we do now.
I never usually return to places where I have lived or worked before (I just find it too difficult) so I am not sure what made me do it this time, but I was glad that I did and glad that we have come as far as we have and that I can look back at our time in Lanseria and realize that although it was one of the most difficult times we’ve been through in our lives, we went through all of that for a reason, it helped shape us into the people we are today, and we came through it all okay in the end. (As is what happens with most of life’s trials, I guess !)
So there you have it … a small glimpse into my Sunday trip down memory lane …
Hartbeespoort is a manmade dam which was built in 1921 and completed in 1923 and was built on what used to be a farm called “Hartbeespoort” which means “pass of the Hartbees” – a Hartbees is a species of Eland.
The dam covers 20 square kilometers and is 101 metres long and has a depth of 9,6 metres. It is fed by the Magalies and Crocodile rivers and supplies irrigation water to surrounding tobacco, wheat, lucerne, fruit and flower farms and the dam is also popular for boating and fishing, with the town of Hartebeespoort situated along the shores of the dam.
This area, and the Magaliesburg Mountains in particular, are of great significance to my husband and I as it is in the delightful village of Magaliesburg that we first met, around 14 years ago. At the time I was working at a local country lodge and living in a quaint thatched cottage on a local strawberry farm, and I have many happy memories of that time. We used to often take day trips to Hartbeespoort and the surrounding areas, so it was nice to return there after so many years.
Another part of our past was also visited on Sunday …. the old smallholding (farm) that my husband and I rented (for a very brief period a long time ago, and well before we even got married) in the Lanseria area, which is where we built up and ran our own hydroponic tunnel farming business. (We used to grow both miniature and English cucumbers which were supplied to 2 of the largest retailers in the country).
Lanseria is on the way to the dam, so we popped by to have a look at our old farm and house. It is very dilapidated and old now, and although we were interested to see it again we were also a little sad, although it also made us very grateful for the decisions we’ve made since then, that have led to us living the life in Tanzania which we do now.
I never usually return to places where I have lived or worked before (I just find it too difficult) so I am not sure what made me do it this time, but I was glad that I did and glad that we have come as far as we have and that I can look back at our time in Lanseria and realize that although it was one of the most difficult times we’ve been through in our lives, we went through all of that for a reason, it helped shape us into the people we are today, and we came through it all okay in the end. (As is what happens with most of life’s trials, I guess !)
So there you have it … a small glimpse into my Sunday trip down memory lane …
