Searching for the Ghost Bird of Magoebaskloof
The Safari Expert
38,359 views
Welcome to Episode 1 of Beyond the Bucket!
🛖 Stay at The Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottage: https://birderscottage.co.za/
🦜 Download the FireFinch App: https://bit.ly/firefinchapp
👕 Get 10% off on African Apparel: https://africanapparel.co.za/discount...
🤝 Support me on Patreon: Patreon: TheSafariExpert
Book the services of a professional bird guide in Magoebaskloof:
David Letsoalo: ☎️ 083 568 4678
Paul Nkhumane: ☎️ 0843549710
This brand new video series is called Beyond the Bucket and will focus on lesser-known safari destinations that have been on my own personal bucket list for years.
In November 2025, I visited Magoebaskloof in South Africa for four days with the aim of photographing as many forest bird species as possible. My base was the amazing Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages, where I stayed in Narina Cottage.
I did most of my bird-watching on Dragonwyck Farm, the property on which the Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages are located, itself and made a point of getting to all the different parts of the forest multiple times throughout my stay - the rivers and valleys, the contour paths and high view points, the dense forest trails and even the garden in front of the cottage where plenty of seed-eaters gather every morning. There's even a bird hide where the owner, Mark, puts out seed, fruit and peanut butter every morning at 07:30.
I ended up getting good photos of twenty five different forest bird species, including Knysna Turaco, Orange Ground Thrush, White-starred Robin, Chorister Robin-chat, African Firefinch, Swee Waxbill and Cape Parrot, to name but a few.
Granted, a few species were photographed elsewhere in the kloof, like at Stanford Lake Collage, where I captured the stunning Africa Olive Pigeon, and the magnificent Swartbos Forest, where I got shots of Olive Woodpecker.
Magoebaskloof is a must-visit destination for anyone who loves forests and birds, and I can highly recommend the Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages as a base!
If you enjoyed this first episode of Beyond the Bucket, please subscribe to the channel to see what I get up to next...
IMPROVE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY SKILLS:
Wildlife Photography for Beginners: http://bit.ly/WildlifePhotographyCourse
Digital Photography for Beginners: http://bit.ly/BeginnersPhotographyCourse
Intermediate Photography Level: http://bit.ly/IntermediatePhotography...
Adobe Lightroom Classic for Beginners: http://bit.ly/LightroomClassicBeginne...
Selling your photos online: http://bit.ly/StockPhotographyCourse
How to create a Udemy Online Course: http://bit.ly/BestsellerUdemyCourseCr...
MUSIC LICENSED FROM EPIDEMIC SOUND AND ARTLIST.
Disclaimer: Keep in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you click on them to make a purchase I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only promote products that I trust and the income from these links allow me to keep producing videos.
CONTACT ME:
E-mail: info@thesafariexpert.co.za
Website: https://www.thesafariexpert.co.za/
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20 Comments
I would love you to show off an “urban safari” in a city like Pretoria. It’s amazing how many bird species you can see in a garden.
A perfectionist.
Agree, it is sooo hard to find and photograph birds… I‘m impressed by your shots. Thanks for taking us along.
Searching for the Ghost Bird of Magoebaskloof
The Safari Expert
38,359 views
Welcome to Episode 1 of Beyond the Bucket!
🛖 Stay at The Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottage: https://birderscottage.co.za/
🦜 Download the FireFinch App: https://bit.ly/firefinchapp
👕 Get 10% off on African Apparel: https://africanapparel.co.za/discount...
🤝 Support me on Patreon: Patreon: TheSafariExpert
Book the services of a professional bird guide in Magoebaskloof:
David Letsoalo: ☎️ 083 568 4678
Paul Nkhumane: ☎️ 0843549710
This brand new video series is called Beyond the Bucket and will focus on lesser-known safari destinations that have been on my own personal bucket list for years.
In November 2025, I visited Magoebaskloof in South Africa for four days with the aim of photographing as many forest bird species as possible. My base was the amazing Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages, where I stayed in Narina Cottage.
I did most of my bird-watching on Dragonwyck Farm, the property on which the Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages are located, itself and made a point of getting to all the different parts of the forest multiple times throughout my stay - the rivers and valleys, the contour paths and high view points, the dense forest trails and even the garden in front of the cottage where plenty of seed-eaters gather every morning. There's even a bird hide where the owner, Mark, puts out seed, fruit and peanut butter every morning at 07:30.
I ended up getting good photos of twenty five different forest bird species, including Knysna Turaco, Orange Ground Thrush, White-starred Robin, Chorister Robin-chat, African Firefinch, Swee Waxbill and Cape Parrot, to name but a few.
Granted, a few species were photographed elsewhere in the kloof, like at Stanford Lake Collage, where I captured the stunning Africa Olive Pigeon, and the magnificent Swartbos Forest, where I got shots of Olive Woodpecker.
Magoebaskloof is a must-visit destination for anyone who loves forests and birds, and I can highly recommend the Magoebaskloof Birders' Cottages as a base!
If you enjoyed this first episode of Beyond the Bucket, please subscribe to the channel to see what I get up to next...
IMPROVE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY SKILLS:
Wildlife Photography for Beginners: http://bit.ly/WildlifePhotographyCourse
Digital Photography for Beginners: http://bit.ly/BeginnersPhotographyCourse
Intermediate Photography Level: http://bit.ly/IntermediatePhotography...
Adobe Lightroom Classic for Beginners: http://bit.ly/LightroomClassicBeginne...
Selling your photos online: http://bit.ly/StockPhotographyCourse
How to create a Udemy Online Course: http://bit.ly/BestsellerUdemyCourseCr...
MUSIC LICENSED FROM EPIDEMIC SOUND AND ARTLIST.
Disclaimer: Keep in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you click on them to make a purchase I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only promote products that I trust and the income from these links allow me to keep producing videos.
CONTACT ME:
E-mail: info@thesafariexpert.co.za
Website: https://www.thesafariexpert.co.za/
FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
Instagram: Instagram: thesafariexpert
Facebook: Facebook: thesafariexpert