Lake Naverone in the Underberg

About a 3 hour drive from Durban you will find yourself in a landscape that is majestic. The rolling hills of the Underberg is indescribable. The husband and I want to use our time in KZN as best as we can so a trip to the Underberg was on the bucket list.
 


Smaller lake next to Lake Naverone

 

I booked us a weekend at Lake Naverone, one of the best life choices I made last year :) The Lake is surrounded by a 400 hectare estate that will supply you with space for great outdoor fun or just a beautiful place to relax at. It has its own hiking trails or within a short drive you can hike at surrounding areas. You can book horse riding trips, do some birding or try your luck at catching some trout in the lake.

I was in awe about the beauty of this place. The mountains, the greenery and the thundershowers were perfection. I can imagine during winter time how pretty this place will be with snow on the mountains. Apparently is snows at Lake Naverone itself!


Our weekend view

 

The estate has 22 cottages that caters for small to big families. Check out their website for their rates and which cottage will suit you the best. We stayed at the Flufftail cottage. It's a well stocked self catering cottage with a inside fire place, outside weber and great views of the lake. They service the cottage twice a day so you can actually just sit on the terrace with a glass of wine the entire weekend and appreciate the beautiful surroundings.

We spent a lot of time in the window bay reading during thunder showers. It really was heaven on earth.

 

Flufftail cottage

 


Braai area at Flufftail cottage

 


Finished my book here :)

 

 

Each cottage comes with a rowing boat. You can also rent other boats and fishing equipment. The husband tried his luck with the fishing but I guess it's  fair to say that a few hours in the water won't cut it. (googling fly fishing also did not help :) )
 


Sundowners on the lake



Hoping to catch dinner



He did not catch anything but still looked great trying :)



 

We chose to do a hiking trail outside of Lake Naverone called "Three Pools". You buy a permit at Lake Naverone because you enter the National Park. It's a moderate hike of about 5km.  Great place to swim at is Champagne pool. Its about 500 m away from Three Pools. If you carry on with the trail you will reach the Bushman cave. Pack a  picnic and enjoy brunch or lunch here!
 



Champagne pool

Our weekend at Lake Naverone was the perfect spot to be active but also relax enough so that the new working week was easy to tackle.

There is a store about a 3 min drive from Lake Naverone that is well stocked if you forgot anything but I would say come prepared with all your groceries from your home base or shop at the shopping centre in Underberg. There are about four restaurants surrounding Lake Naverone but we never visited any of them.

 The staff at Lake Naverone were very friendly and helped us with all our questions about the hiking trails and even organised us another boat when a large tour group stole  borrowed ours :)

If you ever venture to the Underberg, Lake Naverone is not a spot to miss!

For more information visit their website
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Contact them at info@lakenaverone.co.za

Treat Café @ Talloula

 

I've spent two lovely Sundays at Treat Café and can say that there is no better way to end off your weekend. Situated on the 1000 Hill road in Botha's Hill, its a short drive from Durban. It is adjacent to the wedding venue Talloula.

Welcome to Treat Café

If there is one thing I miss about Cape Town, it is the wine farms. Now this is not a wine farm but the fact that I can sit outside underneath the trees sipping on some excellent wine from the Cape, I call this my wine farm away from home :)

It is a popular place over weekends so a reservation is essential. We always sit outside, order a bottle of wine and enjoy a long lazy Sunday lunch. It also doubles as a gift shop so I warn you that after the first glass of wine your wallet may be more lenient than before! They stock beautiful ceramics and woven baskets.

Lovely outside spot

 

Terrible quality photo but just a peek into the inside of the restaurant.

Louis and his staff are always friendly and efficient. If you ever want to host a birthday party, kitchen tea or baby shower this is definitely a venue to consider!

Now lets get to the good part, the food. You can join them for breakfast or lunch. They also host specialty evenings which they advertise of their Facebook page.

 

The menu changes but the good old favourites are always there. For starters we have enjoyed grilled mushrooms topped with pesto, tomato and mozzarella. Our favourite so far however was the mezze platter. Pitas are served with humus, grilled peppers, olives ,tomato salsa and guacamole. There is also a spanakopita and potato samosa to share. This paired perfectly with our Tokara Chenin Blanc.



Grilled mushroom and the mezze platter

Talking about wine, I really love their wine list. Well priced, diverse with regards to cultivar and there are some winners from the Cape such as Haute Cabriere and Tokara. This is one place where you don't have to BYOB.

 



Haute Cabriere Tranquille

Tokara Chenin Blanc

 

For mains the dish to try is their pie. The husband enjoyed it the first time we were there and I had to put up a fight at our next visit so that he didn't order it again. I wanted to try the rest of the menu but yes the pie is so delicious that you can eat it at every visit. First of all the portion is big. Tender meat in a thick sauce is covered entirely with a puff pastry lid. It is served with chips on the side. The husband was tempted to lick out the bowl, luckily he remembered his table manners! He also enjoyed the homemade burger which he gave top marks to.

 

   

The must try dish!

I've tried the salmon pasta which I enjoyed but I would have rather have served it with cooked salmon than smoked salmon. My quiche I recently had was jampacked with butternut which I enjoyed but the crust was too thick and hard. The salad served with it however was very fresh!




Salmon pasta

Butternut quiche with salad

 

We've tried dessert once which was a saucy chocolate malva pudding. It was delicious and sweet but the berries and ice cream served with it neutralised it well. A recommended lemon meringue is also on the menu.

Chocolate malva pudding

Treat Café is worth the drive out to a 1000 Hills. You can always count them on serving great food in a comfortable environment. If you end off you weekend here I promise you, you will be okay for the coming week!

Cheers!

 




Visit them at 61 Old Main road, Botha's Hill
Open Tuesday-Sunday 08:30 - 16:00
Contact them at 031 777 1586
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For more information check out their website

Bellevue Market

Bellevue Market is the place to be tomorrow evening. Every last Friday of the month you can wine and dine underneath the stars while listening to live music. My first visit to the market was last month and I am so sad that I am missing tomorrow night as I am on call :(

Bellevue Market

 

It starts at 16:00. Perfect to head over straight after work. Start off with a glass of wine, craft beer or even gin cocktails. My favourite was a pomegranate flavoured gin. While you are getting in the mood browse through various clothes and décor stalls.  There's ample seating but if you want to be more comfortable bring a blanket and make a picnic of it!

It is always gin'o clock!

Food wise they cater for all. For the adventurous tuck into delishous curries or pulled pork burgers. We enjoyed a delicious vegetarian pizza that we spiced up with some jalapenos and onion marmalade. As the cold showed face this week you can even tuck into some hearty soups and maybe take away some for the week?

Delicious pizza!

Before you leave be sure to grab some dessert on the go. I left with a few cupcakes and my weakness, a pecan nut tart.

Loved the fairy lights!

Bellevue Market, the perfect place to start your weekend! See you definitely next month!

 

 

Location: 5 Bellevue road, Kloof

Time: 16:00-20:00

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