Community enjoys nature hike from revitalised Blue Bridge site
Once a crime and dumping hotspot, the area near the Blue Bridge in Silverton has been transformed. On June 16, more than 80 residents joined the first community hike.
The Blue Bridge in Silverton – once a hotspot for crime, drugs, and illegal dumping – hosted its first-ever community hike on June 16.
Around 80 people took part in the hike to enjoy nature and explore the newly rehabilitated green area following years of clean-up efforts by volunteers.
The area, once overgrown with long weeds that provided cover for criminals, has been transformed over the past four years, thanks to the efforts of residents and community organisations.
Friends of Skuilkrans organised the event to showcase the natural beauty of the sanctuary, the rivers flowing through the area, and to encourage nearby communities to use and protect the restored green spaces.
Peter Smythe, committee member of the group, said the hike followed the river route from the Blue Bridge at Meyerspark Bird Sanctuary up to the N4 near Moreleta in the Skuilkrans area.
“The goal was to introduce the community to these river areas, how to access them, the types of birds like the half-collared kingfisher, and animals such as otters that live there, and to show the beauty of nature,” he said.
Smythe said over the past four years, the bird sanctuary has been secured with razor wire fencing and locked gates to limit access to criminals and squatters.
This was made possible by volunteers acting under the Friends of Skuilkrans mandate, with the financial support of various companies in the area, like the Uitkyk Supermarket.
“[We] also worked to remove the long (alien) weeds which reduced the cover for criminal activities, and made the area much safer. Although some would say there is still a security problem that needs to be solved on the Blue Bridge,” Smythe said.
He said everyone, young and old, enjoyed the hike, especially crossing the Moreleta River on temporary stepping stones that were placed at a crossing point.
“Those that could not participate regretted it and immediately queried when the next one would be held, which has now been arranged, so overall there is huge enthusiasm for the initiative.”
He encouraged residents to embrace nature and use the public spaces.
“We need to remove alien vegetation at these nature sites. The alien plants grow faster and take over from the indigenous plants, so we need to identify and properly remove them so we can preserve these areas,” he said.
“We train local workers to do this, to upkeep these spaces, paid by Friends membership fees, so just signing up annually is a huge contribution.”
He said the organisation co-manages the areas with City of Tshwane Nature Conservation, and one of their responsibilities is education and outreach.
“The event was initiated by us. Normally, we only advertise walks or hikes on the Friends group/email list, but this time we decided to open it to the wider community, and the response was amazing, 150+ people signed up.”
He encouraged people to take back their green spaces, get out and enjoy them, and make new friends while hiking.
“By using the areas more, we are able to make them safer for everyone to use,” he added.
He said the next MeyersPark Bird Sanctuary walk will be on Saturday, July 5, at 10:00.
“We also intend to host an Open Day on the upcoming public holiday, September 24.
He encouraged people to join the Skuilkrans hike.
“But there is absolutely nothing stopping you from walking much more often. On our official (members) Friends of Skuilkrans WhatsApp group, regular walkers have organised themselves a weekly (Friday morning) walk on the Kopje.”
He said we would love the community’s financial support and encouraged them to join the Friends of Skuilkrans.
“It is only R220 per annum for the entire household, and you score much more in those vouchers. The money also goes directly back to employing people from the community to work on removing alien invasive plants and to take care of the green spaces.”
Marietjie Deventer said this was a huge milestone for the effort they put in.
“Since 2021, we have put in the work to clean and secure the area, and I see it was surely worthwhile.”
She said the hike is totally free and there’s safe parking inside the park, entering from Hoëveld Street or Jan Meyer Street.
If you want to keep up to date with their walks and other activities, visit their website at www.skuilkrans.org.za/subscribe.
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