An advert in the local community paper had piqued my curiosity. “Pledge Nature
Reserve night walk. Bring yourself, good walking shoes and a headlamp for an
exciting evening of night life in the Pledge.”
There are not many things that one can be certain of in life. Here in Knysna you can
be certain of one thing; you cannot predict the weather. What appeared to start off
as a clear day ended with a sky clotted with clouds. We were looking forward to
the walk in the reserve later that evening and were determined to go; come rain or
moonshine. Relying confidently on a popular adage that says “there is no such thing
as bad weather, only bad clothing’ we packed our daypacks, in this case our night
packs, in preparation for all possible inclement conditions.
A motley crew of night owls gathered at the designated meeting spot where we met
Mervyn, the Pledge’s manager and our guide for the evening. We exchanged the
usual salutations and pleasantries you would expect when meeting strangers in the
dark and set off in the direction of the reserve.
Being last in the line and looking at the walkers in front of me reminded me of
summit night on Kilimanjaro; a slim thread of headlamps pricking holes into the
blackness ahead of us.
We learned about the slow growing Cycads also referred to as living fossils; and
the Wild Dagga that is no good for smoking but instead used by the Bushmen for
medicinal purposes; and the Wild Boegoe that was reported to have been the perfect
panacea for Mervyn’s grandfather who was given only 6 months to live when he was
in his youth and went on to live until 99 years of age.
We were told that the resident Grysbokkie loved to eat the leaves belonging to the
Polygala, a hardy coastal shrub endemic to the southern shores. Before long someone
spotted a rather spiky looking plant and asked if it was a type of broom shrub only to
have Mervyn reply, “no, it’s just a denuded Polygala”.
The Pledge Nature Reserve is a marvellous story of how an ugly duckling became a
swan. During Knysna’s development in the 1800’s the area was used as a brickfield
supplying kiln-dried-bricks to builders during the boom times. By the 1920’s
there is evidence to support that the brickfield was no longer operational. Left to
deteriorate, it ultimately became a waste ground and an informal dump, unsuitable for
development because of is position in the valley. Consequently invader vegetation
proliferated choking the indigenous flora.
It would be fifty years before this parcel of land would attract attention again. In
1988 a town councillor garnered support from the local community in an effort
to eliminate the invader vegetation as an Arbor Day project. His proposal gained
impetus when a number of parties displayed interest in participating and contributing
to the project in one way or another. The following year the Pledge Nature Reserve
Management Committee was officially formed.
Twenty three years have past since the inception of one man’s foresight to restore
a wasteland to its former natural beauty. Knowing the history of the reserve before
we went on the night walk made the whole experience that much more tangible.
While hundreds, perhaps even thousands of plants and trees have been planted
in the rehabilitation process we did pass by a number of trees from the original
woodlands. The name of one particular tree Mervyn pointed out to us struck me as
an apt description for its title and that was the Forest Elder. As I pondered its age and
looked up into its lofty expanse of leaves and branches I imagined it standing like a
sentinel, through the dispensations of time keeping watch over the land, just as a wise
elder would over his tribe.
Walking at night left me rather disorientated and imagining that Mervyn was taking
us on Circles in a Forest*. By now the clouds had evaporated and between the knot
of branches we could just make out the presence of the moon, hanging like a lightly
buttered corn thin above our heads. After popping out above the canopy of trees we
arrived at the lookout point at the far end of the reserve. A pitch-roof, like the one
found over a wishing-well, sheltered the wooden picnic table and chairs. While we
found a place to sit Mervyn spread a table cloth and lit candles that he’d packed. And
much to our surprise and delight, he’d surreptitiously hidden savoury snacks, red and
white wine, juice and water in his backpack too. We enjoyed casual conversation,
swopping stories and getting to know one another. The weather didn’t disappoint
either; clear skies gave permission for the light from the full moon to spill out over the
town of Knysna below us.
It was a wonderful way to spend an evening and we’d definitely consider doing it
again. The pathways are smooth and easy to walk on (even in the dark) with a couple
of sections being wheelchair friendly. Wooden bridges aid comfortable stream
crossings. There’s ample space to walk, even for tall people, without having to stoop
under low lying branches.
The Pledge Nature Reserve in Knysna is a sterling example of what is possible when
people join together to make change for betterment. Breathing in the heart of the
town is Knysna’s “green lung”, providing visitors a place for informal recreation,
socialising, learning and relaxing, all within easy walking distance from the main
street.
“”¦”¦we cannot lead lives of dignity and worth when the natural resources that
sustain us are threatened or destroyed”
SC Johnson Wax, Sponsors of the Pledge Nature Reserve
* Dalene Matthee was a South African author. Her book Circles in a Forest focuses
on conservation and strongly speaks out against the reckless destruction of the
indigenous forest
Resources used: Pledge Nature Reserve History and Field Guide
