“We desperately need to cut our reed-beds & will have to do so manually, as the reed harvester machine has been out of action most of the year & we do not know when it can be repaired. However, our staff requires wetsuits to carry out this task, as they do not have any gear suitable for spending long periods of time standing in the water & we do not have sufficient budget to purchase waders or wetsuits.
That leads me to this request – please could any of our Friends and the community who have wetsuits they are willing to part with, please donate these for our staff / volunteers to use? We need these urgently! I am looking at a minimum of four wetsuits – 2 large & 2 medium (male-size) wetsuits preferably please. We would greatly appreciate any help in this regard – If anybody kindly has a wetsuit for us they may drop it off at Rondevlei’s entrance, with their contact details please, so that I may thank them afterwards.
Many thanks & waiting earnestly for a response!
Kind regards
Tamaryn”
Please could you convey our sincere thanks to all those Friends who donated wetsuits for our reedcutting. They have come in so handy & we have done quite a bit of cutting already. The process does take quite a bit of time, as we do not have many staff working in the water & have many other priority activities to attend to, but every day that we are able to cut helps reduce the reedbeds noticeably for birders to enjoy a better view of the vlei.
In addition, I received a red & black two-piece wetsuit the other day, but I’m not sure who brought it in. I think it may have come from Zeekoevlei Yacht Club according to the gate staff. Please could you pass on my thanks to whoever may have made this kind donation.
Much appreciation from the Rondevlei team!
Kind regards
Tamaryn