Struben Mine
Historical walking tours to the mine and lectures on the history of mining on the Witwatersrand. Rod brings to life some of the personalities of the time of the mining in 1884-1886: Fred and Harry Struben and many others.
Learn about Kloofendal's historical stamp mill & steam engine.
Public tours monthly. 500m easy walk to the mine. Please bring a torch.
Corporate and student tours by arrangement. A nominal charge goes to furthering work at Kloofendal.
Contact: Rod Kruger
+27 (0) 11-475-1782
cell 082-477-0319
Check out five articles (up to 30th May 2011) that Rod has contributed for Museum Africa:
http://www.joburg.org.za/culture/search?searchword=Rod+Kruger&ordering=&searchphrase=exact
Forthcoming walks into the mine
Date Guide
Sun 26th Feb 14h00 Rod Kruger
Sun 25th Mar 14h00 Rod Kruger
School Programme
 | We offer a programme for schools. Up to three groups of up to 20 are taken into the Reserve for field interpretation by our FAGASA-qualified guides. Inquire with Karin: 011-674-2980 & 072-595-6991
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Guided Nature Walks
Friends of Kloofendal have been arranging guided nature walks on a wide variety of topics since 2003. Walks last two hours or a little longer and are led by guides who are either recognized experts in their fields or are FGASA qualified.
We ask for a donation of R40 per adult, R30 for a member of Friends of Kloofendal and R20 for a child up to 12 years old. Money goes to paying the guide and admin costs. We ask for donations of R50, R40 and R25 respectively for evening events (e.g. Frogs, Scorpions & Bats).
Any "profit" supports our many projects.
Here are brief descriptions of some of our walks.
 | Grasses A wide variety of grasses grow in Kloofendal. These look almost the same to most people, but after two hours of you can learn to appreciate different grasses. About your Guide: Karin Spottiswoode Karin knows the grasses of Kloofendal very well, having helped Sakkie van Aswegen with the Field Guide courses at Kloofendal for several years. |
 | Arachnids, mostly Scorpions & spiders Are you scared of scorpions and spiders? Do you know that which scorpions in South Africa are not very dangerous? Did you know that deaths attributed to spider bite in South Africa are caused by secondary infections and not the spider venom itself? Did you know that scorpions glow light green under UV (Ultra-Violet) light? Do you know how to find spiders at night? About your Guides: Jonathan Leeming Jonathan is author of "Scorpions of Southern Africa" and takes scorpions walks in the morning or the evening. He also gives a talk on scorpions before some of the talks. Astri Leroy Astri is co-author, together with her husband John, of "Spiderwatch in Southern Africa". She will find spiders lurking in every corner of Kloofendal. Astri and her husband John are leading members of the Spider Club of Southern Africa. |
 | Bird Ringing Grant Egen our guide puts up nets early in the morning so that birds will have already been caught by the time participants of the Bird-ringing walk arrive. Grant will expertly remove the birds from the nets, causing them minimal stress, put each bird in a small bag, where the bird will be comfortable and relax. Then each bird in turn will be measured”: ID, ID number if he was ringed before, weight, length of wings, beak, state of moulting – all will be recorded, and if the bird has not been ringed before, he will be given a numbered ring around one leg.Grant will again give participants an opportunity to hold the bird and thus see these beautiful feathered friends from real close. About your Guide: Grant Egen Grant is a bird ringer authorised by the Animal Demography Unit (previous called the Animal Demography Unit) at UCT. Grant submits all data from the ringing to the UDU. |
 | Trees Trees have adapted in many ways to the harsh climate and poor soils of the Johannesburg ridges and valleys. Winters are dry with frequent frost and natural veld fires. The soils are mostly derived from quartzite rocks of the lower Witwatersrand sequence. These are low in the chemical nutrients required by plants. Large areas of the Reserve are forested due to streams, rock areas and to human interference with the natural fire regime, with fewer veld fires than naturally occur. About your Guide: Karin Spottiswoode Karin tells stories of the struggles against insects and the elements and traditional medicinal uses. You may eat some of the edible fruits and learn about those that are poisonous. |
 | Geology The Rietfontein and Witpoortjie Faults meet in the Reserve in a melee of structural complexity that has created many valleys and ridge segments. The gold deposits of the Confidence Reef mine are associated with a small basic intrusion that was sucked from molten lava Kilometers below the mine. About your Guide: Tony Jamison Tony has mapped the Kloofendal Nature Reserve in great detail and tells us how and why a modern mine would find gold that the Struben brothers missed. |
