S1 - Ep 237 - Aggeneys - A Beautiful Mining Town in Namaqualand!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ม.ค. 2023
- When I saw the name Aggeneys on the map while planning this trip, I knew we had to visit but little did I know what we were going to find. The quote many of us like to use, “a well-oiled machine”, describes this town perfectly. As we arrived in town, we saw many signs clearly letting us know that the rules of the road are very important to them. Driving through the arid Namaqualand region at the time of year we did, we knew we would see many vast open spaces, which we love by the way. Finding an oasis in a desert was exactly what it felt like when arriving in this beautiful mining town. It was green, every single property was neat and there was almost no litter visible. This visit to this town was a very pleasant experience. The cherries on top were the incredible Gamsberg mine and Aggeneys Solar Facility just outside the town. #DustBugs #adventuretravel #southafrica #southafricavlog #travelongravel #aggeneys #northerncape #namaqualand #mining
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Agg-its-nice
Thanks guys for the fantastic video - God bless you both
I love that play on words, very clever! 🤩 Aggeneys was indeed very nice and I'm so glad you could join us again! 👌🏻🚗
Hallo Curtis and Sonia,Ilive ,in Mauritius,and really enjoy your videosof the small towns and villages of the RSA.
Greetings to you on the island of Mauritius! Thank you so much, we're glad that you enjoyed travelling with us! 🚗🇿🇦
Hi Curtis and Sonia,
Another excellent production, thanks for showing the place of water/blood, Aggenys. Aggenee about your sound that is still not sorted. But the good news is you are fast approaching the 10K mark.
I can imagine our sound situation is very frustrating to you as viewers, but these things happen. Unbeknownst to us, our mic started giving hassles on Day 2 already and we only realised it once we were back home and started editing. We were in Aggeneys on Day 6, so only four more episodes with the sound issues and we'll be back to normal with an upgraded mic system. We appreciate you bearing with us. 😬 Thank you for taking the drive through Aggeneys with us, it was fun! 😁🚗
Another fantastic video. Loved it. Thank you.
Happy to hear, thank you! 👌🏻🚗
A beautiful oasis. So well kept As you said every thing is right. Thanks i enjoyed it so much
Yup, a fantastic place Aggeneys is! Thanks for coming along to this oasis! 🌴🚗
Loved the weavers nest on the telephone pole beautiful not something you see everyday. A very clean and pretty town shows that it can be done 👍
Those nests were absolutely amazing to see and huge! I was wondering what it looks like inside, it must be mayhem all the time as they fly in and out! 😳 The town was a fantastic place to visit, we were impressed by almost everything we saw! 👌🏻🚗
What a little oases in the semi-desert......lovely
So true, we couldn't believe our eyes at how green it was everywhere in town! 😍🌴
Absolutely an oasis in the dessert. Also loved the "greening" of the town, the recycling and solar power. This is a really a "future" town.
Yup, a pretty organised place let me tell you! 🤩 And we realised it the moment we entered the town. It's clearly a place that has it together. The green of the lawns and trees was greener than green, it was unbelievable! Glad you came along to this oasis! 🌴🚗
What a beautiful town. Really neat. Few towns look like that. The solar plant is amazing.
I completely agree with you on both fronts. What a joy to visit! 😁🚗
Wow! I applause the community and leadership of Aggenys!
Not only are they maintaining their town 💯 but they investing in their towns future.
👍💥
Your applause is well-deserved! 👏🏻 It's a well-organised, attractive place and the mine management and residents clearly take great pride in keeping it that way! 👌🏻🌴
Impressive town. Can't believe how green it is 😳
I know! Our eyes looked like that the whole time we were in town! 😳🚗
WOW ! What a beautiful town.
An absolute oasis, it must be amazing to live there! 🌴😎
Ek was werksaam i '14-'19 op amper al die sonplase vanaf Kathu, Postmasb, Upington, Groblershoop, Pofadder en nog, die wind plase by Kenhardt en Springbok en die ontwikkeling van 'n paar myne daar rond onderandere Gamsberg. Dankie weereens vir die saam ry!
Wow, how interesting! You must know so much about these facilities. I was blown away when I read that there were 140k+ panels at the Aggeneys Facility, I didn't even think that was possible. We so appreciate you driving through these places with us. I hope it's interesting for you to see some of them again. 🌞🚗
Very beautiful place
We concur! 👌🏻😍
Those nests! So thats where all the electricity is going! Aggeneys lyk agtermekaar! Neat and clean. Love the bendy squiggle shapes of some trees, they look like they are dancing. The trees really make such a difference creating a beautiful lafenis. That mine looked scary though. The solar farm was really awesome, we need more of those.
The trees were never-ending, green as green can be and absolutely gorgeous! I see what you mean when you say they were dancing! 🌴😁 That solar facility just went on and on and I only understood it properly when I read that there were over 140 000 panels. Absolutely incredible! 👌🏻🌞
@@DustBugsTravel I think they could do a lot more of that solar thing.
Thanks for the video old Memory powerlines 70 71 etc till 1985 all around sa saluti from Italy🌈🌈🌈
Interesting, I didn't even notice those! Greetings to Italy from the two of us! 🚗😁
Hi guys Sonias comment about oasis perfect all the palm trees tidy little town with all the facilities I can see why there are not so many trailer homes as they need canopies for the sun top class sports facilities and a lovely Olympic size pool the solar system looks impressive it seems to me people should install them on their houses then no worries about load shedding?? Thanks for a great video cheerio till the next one
The town is truly an oasis. I think the houses all belong to the mine, so I'm not sure what the policy is about solar panels on the roofs, we certainly didn't notice any, but could've missed them! We believe they don't have loadshedding in town since they're a mining town and the mining operations have to continue at all times. You do such a great job summarising our videos, I always smile when I read your comments. It was great to have you on board through Aggeneys today. 😁🚗
Aggeneys is really a beautiful town. So green and tidy. Did not expect that.😊
Typical Mining town and all the amenities, you so spoilt growing up on a mine. Everything for free!! I grew up on a platinum mine!!
We've seen quite a few mining towns on this trip and have learnt a little bit about life in them as we drove through the different towns. Very interesting indeed to us who've never been exposed to it before. It must feel very familiar to you though having grown up in one! 😁🚗
5 jaar daar gebly,beste plek ooit. Baie dankie vir die video. Skoonste plek wat ek ooit in gebly het
I can easily believe that, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to your old hometown. It was super clean, we could hardly believe it! 👌🏻😎
Aggeneys was my and my husbands home from 2000-2011 what an unbelievable place to live. So safe, so beautiful it was indeed the best 11 years of our lives. The desert grew on us and it was difficult to leave it behind. We have such fond memories s of Aggeneys still missing it after all this time
So you must know the town like the back of your hand, 11 years is a very long time! I can hear the love you still have for Aggeneys in your comment and, after only spending a few hours in the town, I completely get that. It must've been extremely hard for you to leave the town and move on to your next home. Thank you for sharing those thoughts with us, I appreciate that so much. 😊🚗
I still remember when we moved we I cried and cried for days, I cried even moreso when we left. It truly is an unbelievable place we lost our hearts in Aggeneys. Thank you for taking us down memory lane it is such a blessing
good video my son in law also stay there with his famelie we did visit there in2021 very nice place
Thank you! You were there recently, so it must all look very familiar to you. I'm sure you had a great time there too! 😁🚗
Pragtige skoon plek.
Indeed, that stood out as much as the green of the trees! 🗑️
Without any doubt the best town visited so far. What is average price of house in Aggenys.
I really don't know. Most, if not all, of the houses belong to the mine, so I'm not even sure if they're for sale. 🤷🏼♂️🏡 So glad you enjoyed Aggeneys! 👌🏻🚗
Good Morning Sonia an Curtis. enjoyed it. Now 6.48 here. That footage is very stable without a dedicated gimbal. very nice. I enjoyed Aggeneys.
I'm glad you also liked Aggeneys, it's a great place! 😎 Yup, I really don't think I need to spend money on a gimbal, my simple setup works just fine for now and I'm happy with the stability as is! 😁
Hi Curtis & Sonja, thank you again , really superb vid. We did a road trip to Namibia some time back, those nest just got BIGGER & BIGGER the further we went. Never ever found out what birds Thuy were so thank you ,just learned something new, safe travels 💪
Thank you so much, happy to hear you enjoyed this one! 😊 Those nests were super interesting to see and we look forward to seeing even bigger ones like you speak of, on our future trips. I believe they get bigger towards Upington way too. Fascinating stuff! 🤩🦜
Nearly did a cartwheel on the backseat of the Bugmobile. Ek het my aftree dorp gevind. In Namakwaland. This is were I want to go and live. Hope I win the Lotto. Beautiful, beautiful town. And you guys know how much I love Koingnaas. BUT I just found me a new town. The weaver nests are called a "versamelvoeltjie nes" in afrikaans because different types of birds nest in it. These are still small. There are much bigger one's near Upington. It is said that the nests are build like this inorder to stop snakes going into the nests. Not to sure about this one. Thank you for showing us Aggeneys. Onwards travelers
The Bugmobile. I actually quite like that nickname for the Kwiddie. 🤩🚗 I can completely understand the cartwheel and why you would want to go and retire there, it is a truly fantastic place in every way imaginable! Koingnaas may just not be happy to hear you say that though. 😳 I hope we get to see those big, big nests when we explore the area around Upington one day, that must be awesome to see! 😁
Look, the thing with Koingnaas is I rember the 1960's Koingnaas. Much, much different from now. But Aggeneys show what happens when a mining house puts back into the area it mines in. Something De Beers obvious did not excell in. Not to the Aggeneys standard. Beautiful, beautiful town with some green parts of town but still reminds you that it is situated in Namaqualand in other parts of the town. As for the mobile homes under cover. I can understand it as a mobile home in direct sun can get plenty hot.
WOW!!! That's all I can Say. When I started my first job in 1975 it was in Aggeneys, at BMM. The only green colour that we saw those years was something painted Green. There were 25 single room cabins for the non-white staf and ten mobile homes and 5 Caravans coor the white staff. The nearest trees was about 30km away next to a dry bed river. There were no facilities except for one small shop, the mine supplied most of our food. In 1976 Dr. Bian Brock of the University of the Western Cape was appointed and the planning and development of the town was started. I left Aggeneys in 1977 and the town's development just started.
Lekker video 👍
Much appreciated! 😁🚗
Hi you two! I really enjoyed this trip with you over the flat earth to paradise.
There are many places in South Africa that can learn from Aggeneys, e.g. the solar farm, dealing effectively with trash etc.
It really looks like a nice place for families to live - sport and recreation facilities, schools, swimming pools. I'm impressed.
Keep safe!
And paradise it was! 🌴 The facilities in town were indeed amazing and one can see that a real effort has been made to occupy the residents with fun activities. We're so glad we decided to visit Aggeneys! Glad you made it too! 😁🚗
I’ve watched many of your excellent videos and am surprised that there are so few people about. Is it too hot at day time ?
When I was editing the Aggeneys video, I thought the same thing, but oddly enough it wasn't our experience as we were driving through town. We saw quite a few people out-and-about. My only explanation is that they were just too far away for the camera lens to pick them up as our eyes did. It was mid-summer and the heat was intense, so it could be that there were fewer people outside than during the cooler months. 🤷🏼♂️🌞
Lived here between 2000 and 2006, some of the happiest years of our life were spent here. Aggeneys is an oasis in the desert. Just as an aside the trucks conveying the concentrate takes it to LOOP 10 on the Sishen-Saldanha railway. Urban legend has it that although the previous siding was LOOP 8, this one was named LOOP 10. When asked why it was not named "LOOP 9", the answer was, "Dis Namakwaland en ons ken julle Namakalanders, dis hoekom dit sal LOOP 10 wees" Apologies, only Afrikaans speaking people will understand what I mean!
🤣🤣🤣
@Gary Durandt Aggeneys is without any doubt an oasis in this arid landscape. 🌴 I can very easily believe that you spent extremely happy times there, we got a happy vibe as we were driving through town too! 😃 Thank you for sharing that funny story, I had a good chuckle! 🤣 It would be interesting to know if it's purely anecdotal or actual fact.
🤣🤣
Pragtige dorpie. Weet julle wat ek opgelet het, is dat maak nie saak waar en in watter klein plekkie julle is nie dat die pad merkings baie gefade is oral . Kyk n bietjie. Alles is meestal gefade. Geen vars nuwe pad merke nie. Al die pad tekens moet oor geverf word. 😂Dis nou op die teer waarvan Ek praat . Is Ek reg of verkeerd. ? Of miskien moet Ek brille aanskaf 😅maar dis regtig n mooi plek .
Die rede hoekom dit in Aggeneys so faded lyk,is omdat die strate nie swart geteer is nie,dis paving stones die hele dorp
I must be honest and say that the faded road markings have never stood out to me, but that may very well be because I'm so used to them being like that so I don't even notice them anymore. 🛣️ I'll make a point of checking when we're on the road again. 🤓 It's a stunning town, we absolutely loved it! 🚗🌴
@@boerplaas388 so is dit teerstrate? Ek het 5 jaar daar gebly,so ek dink ek weet darem so ietsie van die dorp
@@dizolstir ok 👍. Dis n baie mooi plek daai. ✅
@dizolstir Oh, so that's why we didn't notice whether the road markings were faded. I couldn't remember if all the road surfaces were paved or if there were tarred sections. I'm glad you could clear that up for my mind. 😁🛣️
Read through comments and agree - what a neat and tidy place. Agree with Trudie about it being ideal retirement village. Also wondered why so few people are seen, in most of these northern towns, which is totally different to east coast
We actually saw a few people in town, but they may have been further away from the roads than the camera picks up clearly. With there being so many trees, that may also obscure the full views in many places. It was a very hot day, so I'm sure a fair number would've remained indoors. 🥵 It is an extremely clean and tidy town, we were very impressed! 🗑️♻️
Another incredible episode showcasing the stunning oasis of a town with an incredible and inviting entrance lined with Palm Trees. As a matter of interest Is the golf course "dry" meaning no alcohol served? The town is incredibly inviting and I enjoyed seeing the new homes. Is the town off the grid? That is independent of Eskom? Another success story of a town, interesting to see that the only "messy" place was the dump itself with the recycling ♻️ matter "littered" about. Incredible views of the solar farm and of course the mine with the tipper in action. That mine looks surreal in a way. I cannot wait for the next installment. I am hoping that its Pofadder.
An oasis indeed, let me tell you! From beginning to end. 🌴 You'll be happy (I think) to know that the fairways are dry, but the Clubhouse not so much. 😁 We asked if the town was off the grid and we were told they get their power from Eskom and not the solar plant, but they don't have loadshedding because of the mining operations which can't be halted at any time. I only later thought that there must be safety aspects associated with that, but we weren't able to get any more info. 🤷🏼♂️ Those endless rows of solar panels were very impressive and so was the mine. We live in great big cities and towns, but we have no idea what people in outlying areas like these and in incredibly harsh conditions achieve every day. Makes me kind of proud to be South African as I type this having heard about an hour ago that it's now Stage 6 and we'll be lights out in 9 minutes! 😎🇿🇦 You're hoping it's Pofadder next, you'll know in two sleeps if you were indeed correct! 😁🐍
Hows that nest!! Wow
I know! It was huge, I could easily sit and watch those birds fly in and out for some time! Super cool. 😎🦜
I looks like the USA out west
That's interesting. I would like to go and explore those regions in the US too. I believe especially Arizona has rather similar landscapes to those of the arid regions in South Africa. 😎⛰️
@@DustBugsTravel
Your road trips are so relaxing to watch…..as if I were in the back seat. I love who you’re both so agreeable and endeavorous.
Will you guys be checking out Keimos and Kakamas, both very interesting towns to visit
oh yes please do!!
@Ryan DH We just got back from shooting some stuff and we'll spend the next few weeks getting some work done, editing and uploading videos and then we'll be off again! Our trip is all planned out already, so you'll just have to wait and see where we end up! 😎🚗
Oh my, what a green, neat and tidy town👏👏👏👏
One of the neatest and most organised we've seen on all our travels! 🚗👌
I grew up there from 1994-2002. So great to see it in good shape.
The town is in fantastic shape! You must know it quite well having spent quite a long time there. I hope you were reminded of some special times there! We found it to be quite the oasis in this semi-desert region. 🌴🚗
Grew up in Aggeneys,late 80's and 90's. First we stayed in Lornex str.,then moved to pima str. 30. My best childhood memories is from there. Glad to see everything is still tidy and green. I learned swimming in that swimming pool. Used to lie to my mother,that my teacher told me I have to come for swimming lessons. That was fun,until my mother found out i was lying to her😬. Black Mountain used to entertain us kids on some holidays with slip and slides,jumping castle's etc. at the rec club or on rugby field or at the tennis courts. Sometimes whe would go to the Lemoen plaas or Burger huis.
You clearly still have fantastic memories of your childhood years in Aggeneys and I don't blame you one bit! I can only imagine what it must've been like to grow up there. The facilities are all stunning, the town is greener than green and the folks we chatted to, were super friendly. Love the story of how you got to spend so much time in that gorgeous pool! I bet it was fun while it lasted! 😁🏊🏻 Thank you for sharing those memories with us. It's great to hear that our video reminded you of all those great times! 🚗
I lived in 13 Lornex from 1994. My dad stayed in that house until 2009. Nice to see in the video that things are nice and clean - I had heard the town had gone down hill for a couple years.
Your videos are superb! I wouldn't worry about your microphone. Thank you for taking me to Aggeneys and Pella. Those towns were off the beaten track for us. They really surprised us with the neatness and rugged beauty of Bushmanland.
Thank you, you're very kind! 😊 These two places were a total revelation to us as well, I'm so glad to hear you also enjoyed visiting them. The one a true oasis in this semi-desert environment and the other filled with history and the most beautiful cathedral and date plantation. This was truly a memorable day indeed! Thank you for joining us! 💒🌴
Just an interesting sight, the nest….like a little bird community!
Or a large bird community! 😎🐦
Wat 'n pragtige myn gemeenskaps dorpie. Die netheid en mooi strate het my baie beïndruk. Dankie vir die deel🧡
Glad you enjoyed our drive through Aggeneys. We agree that the town was super neat and we found it to be an oasis in this arid region. Thank you for joining us! 🚗🌴
Loving the palm trees along the road👌
This place was an oasis in the desert, let me tell you! 🌴🤩
In 2004 or 2005 we had a 21.1km race in Aggenys. We ran through the mine and around the mine. Going in by the gate in the town and comming out by the check point where you turn rigth to go into the town. This finish was on the sports field. I won that race that day. Manne Dupico games. He was the Primier of the Northern Cape in the early 2000's
Well done, that was quite an achievement! 🥇 It must've been quite cool to check out the mine on your run. I would've slogged through the 21k's just to get a peek at the minesite. 🏃🏻😁
My home town and special place 😍 in the Boesmansland. #kaalvoetboesmanslandkind
We love your hometown too! 🤩🚗
I have been AWOL for a few days and am now playing catch up! This was a lovely surprise to visit a town I’d not heard of and then to be met by such a well organised and maintained oasis of beautiful green trees and lawns. Quite lovely! I missed you hitting 10k subscribers - you are already climbing the ladder to your next landmark of 11k. Well done!!! 🎉👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🎉👏🏻
No worries, life has to get done too, we can't just travel all the time! Although I wish we could! 😁🚗 Glad you're back to catch up. Aggeneys was indeed an extremely well-organised oasis of a town. We were blown away by what we saw in this desert-like region. Thank you for the congratulations on 10k, this journey we're on surprises each and every day. We're glad you're sharing it with us! 🍾🥂
Now what a pleasant surprise to see a neat town like this in South Africa...the management and the townfolk must be complimented! This episode really picked up my spirit after seeing that sad Steinkopf episode.
Welcome back! I only expected you back in another few days! I hope you had the time of your life along your beloved West Coast! 🤩🚙 Aggeneys was unreal and a true oasis! I could also not believe my eyes when we drove through this organised, clean and super cool town! 🌴🚗 There were indeed some sad moments in Steinkopf, but we loved this place too. Great history there! 💒
Loved it! What was the total cost of this trip and itinerary?
I honestly can't tell you. I'm not very good at keeping track of that type of thing. 🤷🏼♂️
Giant pool😳😳😳
You can go practice for the Olympics there! 😁🏊🏼♀️
That’s a mahussive solar plant!!!
So cool! We need more of those! ☀️😎
Hi julle, geniet die toere saam met julle so baie! Oorweeg asseblief om na Magogong te gaan.... waar ek groot geword het. Julle sal aangenaam verras wees.
I agree the scenery is beautiful. Sadly, the Aggenys mine is no longer owned by a South African company, it is owned by an Indian consortium. South Africa has sold its assets.
Just a correction Sonia. The N14 runnens between Springbok and Uppington not the N7. The N7 run between Cape Town and the SA border. The Solar farm should be on the N14 between Aggenyes and Pofadder
Thank you for the correction. 👍🏻
Sadly all being processed in India.
I know precious little about mining and had no idea! 🤷🏼♂️ So from Saldanha to India then.
Wow.....and all those palm trees just blew me away....lol no pun intended. So if they getting it right whats wrong with the rest of SA?. No need for litter just bs and bad attitude!!!!!
😁 Those palm trees blew us away too, don't you worry! 🌴 Lots of places can take a leaf (no pun intended either!) out of the Aggeneys book, it's truly a stunning place with so much going for it! To see almost no litter in a town as we drive through, is highly unusual and we just couldn't get over it! 🗑️♻️