eden to addo MEGA adventure!

Health warning:

Reading this may result in elevated heart rate, green skin discoloration, feelings of envy as well as an inability to concentrate on anything else for the rest of the day!

When:    16-23 October 2010

Where: Kranshoek view point (Garden Route) to Addo Elephant Park (Eastern Cape)

Who:      The Crème of the Garden Route society!

Why:       1. Recce the route for the Eden to Addo MEGA adventure event

                2. Because we can!

With:      6 riders/hikers

                6 bikes

                Various shoes

                Vuvuzela

                1 land rover (the queen)

                1 jeep (Shrek)

                1 trailer (the incredible)

                1 motorbike (the envy of those not on it!)

                2 drivers (the best!)

                1 motorbike rider (ray of sunshine!)

                1 camera man (strong neck!)

                1 smiley superman

                A whole lot of nerves

                Even more sense of humour                                                                            my trusty steed at the start

                A mountain of *$!# which was our baggage and cooking stuff!

                A whole lot of yummy food!

The Cast

	Pam -  ironlady (director of eden to addo corridor initiative)
	Herman                 -  superman (also involved with eden to addo)
	Carl - cucumber – he’s as cool as one! (IT, graphics and web stuff! – brilliant 4x4 driver!)
	Cornel -  Smiley (same as carl)
	Henri – Solar-powered (Henri can do and does do anything and everything – brilliant 4x4 driver! )
	Andrew - woooooobble neck (fabulous camera-man! Co-driver for henri!)
	Ben - everyone’s lovable child (same as carl and cornel)
	John - inspiration (eye-man and motivator)
	Dirk - Vas /Vaseline (our mutation project on holiday from Germany!)
	Raymond - Stickbite  (owner of BMW George, ray of sunshine and envy of everyone on the steep climbs!)
	Nikki  - the noodle / kakebeenia (jane of all trades but specializes in being Mrs Houtkapper)

                                 

Now that I am done with the introductions, let me get on with the real adventure!

I hope that you have a few pots of coffee lined up and some yummy biscuits because this may take a while. I am a strong supporter of endurance sports so please brace yourselves for what will be a long haul in front of the computer!

On our last day, whilst soaking up as much of our beautiful surrounds as we could, we each did a last “confession” in front of Andrew’s now very familiar camera! Our confession room was an old derelict river barge bar, bobbing up and down to the rhythm of the Sundays River.  At the end of our little speech, Andrew asked us each for one word which would best sum up the trip….., my word was PRIVILEDGED.

I often find myself wondering how or why one becomes involved in certain things and I can only come to one conclusion and that is “fate”.  The fact that Pam and I should have been concentrating on the various activities at our baby group instead of planning mountain bike rides probably has a whole lot to do with how I ended up being one of the lucky few to experience this most amazing adventure, but how we came about discussing riding in the first place, I can’t remember!

On one of our many rides through the forest (when everyone else thought we were working) Pam told me about the plan to hold an “Eden to Addo bike ride”. Man I just about jumped out of my skin with excitement. I felt like that little potato on the Simba ad. “pick me, pick me, pick me!” to be honest, she didn’t really have a choice, I was going to go on that recce!

Being moms, our training (mine and Pam’s) consisted of sneaking off when we could get it together with a big enough gap in our busy days where the kids and husbands were suitably occupied!  We did the Karoo to coast to much laughter and enjoyment on our side and then didn’t do a whole heap between then and the start of the recce.  It was with this in mind that “start day” loomed ever more frighteningly close!  Any fears in the last few days were not helped by the torrential rain. We don’t get any for almost a year and then just when we want to go and ride through the bundu’s, the heavens open!

Day 1 – bike (Kranshoek to David Mostert’s farm)

With cars packed (an endurance event and adventure on its own – thanks to those who did it!) we all met at the Kranshoek view site in Harkeville.  I won’t be shy to admit that I was suffering from mild terror.  All kinds of unbalanced thoughts were racing through my head – was I actually going to make it through day 1 let alone the following 7!  Were we all going to get on? Etc etc!  Any fears I might have had were soon dispelled by the easy and relaxed vibe of the group and by the beautiful sunshine which greeted our first day of adventure!

Once all the photo’s and interviews were done, it was onto the bikes for the start of our ride.  The route took us through the beautiful indigenous forest in Harkeville, (where Ben gave us a brilliant display of sign post hugging when he and his bike parted company) across the N2 and onto the Petrus se Brand route.  Our lungs and legs had a bit of a rude awakening, as this section is anything but flat!  I seemed to take a really long time to get into the swing of things which was not helped much by the constant stop/start of waiting for the backup crew and setting up shots!  Once onto the gravel road to Buffelsnek, the group spread out a bit, with Pam and I bringing up the rear, cursing the corrugations in the road! Man, that climb was so much easier on Karoo to coast – probably because we were going down then and not up! It was at about this point that my back handed in its appeal and this saw me lying spread-eagled in the road doing what I guess was supposed to resemble a stretch….. to the others and passersby, I probably looked a bit like a piece of road kill left for too long in the baking sun!

The surprise of the day came in the form of a little café at Buffelsnek forest station! The locals just sat in stunned silence as this group of dusty muddy people descended on the fridge as if we were possessed! After this little bit of refreshment we hopped back onto the bikes for the last stretch…or so we thought…..but, the day wasn’t over yet! In fact, little did we know, it was only just beginning! 

Once off the main drag, the road surface deteriorated. After being lulled into a false sense of ‘this is a breeze” the bombshell hit. Once across the Keurbooms river, the road simply disappeared up into the bushes…. Only to be seen peaking out here and there up the steep incline. I don’t think any of us was prepared, mentally, emotionally or physically for what we were about to encounter! Even the vehicles groaned as they slowly climbed up this never ending killer climb!  By the time I was half way up, I felt like my legs and lungs were about to explode and that I had just jumped into a pool I was so wet from sweat. But I was determined not to get off my bike and I just ticked away in granny gear! (I think that grannies pantry was by this stage completely empty as she had come to visit on numerous occasions that day already and now she was invited to tea again!)  my speech was reduced to mono-syllables as the back-up crew shouted encouragement!  At one point, Carl handed me a stick of celery – I must admit that my initial thought was “what the hell is a piece of celery going to do to get me up this hill” but I can happily say that I am now converted. It was the best thing I could have eaten! All those stringy green bits getting stuck between teeth took my mind off the hurt! Once at the top, or what we thought was the top, we were greeted by even more up!  My heart sank. My legs were kaput, my body had the shakes and my back was killing me. Stubbornness prevailed and I cleated in once again and started the next part of this relentless up!  About 2/3 of the way up, I came unstuck. My back had now officially handed in its resignation. I was now also very cold despite the exertion of climbing and decided to join Pam on the trailer for the last little bit to the overnight stop.

As the sun started to set, the temperature dropped, I was grateful for not having to negotiate the very rocky and stony road without a light!  To add to the days excitement, about 4km from the overnight stop, Shrek’s tow hitch broke, leaving the trailer stranded in the road which was only wide enough for one vehicle. After a bit of man handling we managed to get the trailer far enough off the road so that Joan (who was spending the night with us) could come past. We eventually got to the Farm and sent Carl and Cornel back to collect the trailer and the remainder of the riders as it was now well and truly dark!

I discovered that night that the world is a very small place. I not only bumped into someone who I have not seen in years, Ian van Zuydam, who is David and Pauline Mostert’s neighbor, but also discovered that Pauline is aunt to long time school friends of mine, Lisa and Anton Haakman and sister of the late Bernie Haakman! 

Their amazing hospitality made the perfect end to a wonderful day.  The whole family (including the dog) made us feel so welcome and at ease in their beautiful home!  Thank you!

Day 2 – kloof & hike  (David Mostert’s farm – Soetkraal)

After a fabulous night’s sleep we awoke to yet another beautiful day. It was hard to tear ones gaze away from the exquisite 360 degree views surrounding the house. I sat on the little deck overlooking the palmiet valley, taking in the beauty and remoteness of this homestead. Once we had all breakfasted, and packed our lunch, we set off down the steep path to the river below.  Sheldon, David and Pauline’s son was to be our guide for the day.  His love and passion for the outdoors was contagious and his knowledge of the flora extensive.  Once at the river, we made our way to the Groot Palmiet. We were all speechless!

To  have this right on ones doorstep, is a priviledge. It took quite some doing to get everyone on the move again! The kloof itself was relatively open and we managed to move at a good pace, whilst still managing to enjoy the stunning scenery. Pam took great delight in collecting Leopard poo samples! 

About half way along the kloof I slipped and fell really badly whilst jumping across the flow onto some rocks. I think everyone heard my shin hitting the rock, which was following close behind with some words which I think even the boys had never heard. Talk about being caught between a rock and hard place, although in my case it was more like between a rock and wet place. Poor Sheldon just stood there shell shocked, no doubt wondering how on earth he was going to get this chick who had surely broken her shin out of the kloof.  Whilst they were all standing staring at my shin, I was clinging on the rock with my butt hanging in the water. I eventually managed to get Sheldon out of his rather nasty daydream and give me a hand out of the water and into a slightly more flattering position! At first it looked like bone sticking through, and the swelling and bruising was immediate, but then it started to bleed which I guess was a blessing! But luckily I am used to little or no sympathy, so it was onwards without too much fuss!

The water was cool and the odd little water crossing which involved swimming was very welcome as it was extremely hot!

I must admit that during our kloof I was glad that we had decided that this first bit would be a hike leg. The thought of lugging my bike along the kloof was very unattractive indeed!

Eventually we reached the koesyn. It was spectacular. I find it constantly amazing how nature and the landscape can change within such a short time and what causes these changes.  The heat was pretty intense and it was hard to keep moving. Some people found the idea of taking a nap very attractive and needed a little more prodding than others!  Luckily we had a nice little picnic at the koesyn where we all just chilled, some took a dip, others just stuffed themselves full of food and drink!

Motivation was in serious short supply when it came to getting going again. It was time for us to leave the river and now the real bundu bashing was to begin. We had to try and find an old hiking trail – what hiking trail! The climb out loomed nastily. All of us were as enthusiastic about the hike ahead as one is about going to the dentist! 

Herman had lugged a vuvuzela of all things all the way down the kloof. I just figured that it was something that he had some odd attachment to and did not know how to broach the subject without causing any insult, so just left it. The reason for the vuvuzela however became apparent a little later. David and Raymond were walking from the opposite direction so that we would be able to get to other side without getting lost in the head high fynbos as the trail, even if there was one, was definitely playing a game of “hide and seek!”  Eventually, with the help of our vuvuzela, we met up!  

Upon meeting, we discovered to our alarm that Raymond had a suspected snake bite. He lifted his pants to reveal two very ominous looking puncture wounds about half and inch apart.  Various thoughts and words went through all our heads!  Luckily we were prepared. Sheldon had a venom extraction kit and we had a snake bite remedy. Raymond having had all kinds of thoughts running through his head worrying about whether or not he was about to kick the bucket, had even considered doing a last testament with his head camera for his family in case he did not make the two hour trek back to the vehicle!  Upon closer inspection, Pam and I noticed that one puncture wound was hard underneath. Out came the needles and tweezers and 10min later we extracted one of the “fangs”….. a nasty looking thorn!  Shew, collective sigh of relief! Raymond was then dubbed “stick-bite!” David and Sheldon left us to go back through the kloof to their home and the rest of us set off through the jungle of fynbos. Luckily David had cut a bit of a path with a kapmes so that we weren’t walking completely blind to where the vehicles and back up crew were waiting!  After about an hour and a half of crawling, stumbling and bush-wacking we eventually met up with the others and were greeted like long lost heroes!  Man, they had the whole ten yards packed out for us. A feast of fruit and drinks…. The gazebo and comfortable chairs! 

The day was however not over yet, we still had to get through the maze of forestry roads to Soetkraal!  With Pam and Raymond on the motorbike, me and my banged up leg in the Land rover with John, Carl and Cornel, Andrew and Henri in Shrek, the remaining three set off on their bikes for an “18km” ride to Soetkraal….  Ha ha! The road didn’t leave much to the imagination! I was very glad to be in the landy and not on my bike!  We eventually arrived there in the dark, set up camp and then Carl went to look for the motorbike and bicycles of which there was yet no sign. Raymond and Pam and very cleverly decided that negotiating that road with fast fading light was not a good idea and waited to be collected along with Dirk and Ben who had lost Herman somewhere along the line. I stayed at camp to make supper and suddenly out of the dark appeared Herman!  After some yummy pasta we all stuffed our very smelly bodies into our sleeping bags, and the competition of who could snore the loudest began…… thank goodness I packed my earplugs! Everyone has been so sweet. Although no-one has said anything, if my talking (and writing) is anything to go by, I probably would have won hands down!

Day 3 – hike (soetkraal – many waters)

I would at this point in my story, like to introduce you all to “GUESS MY RIDE”.  I think that out of all of us, this trip was probably the most mind bending for Dirk! But I am glad to announce that his “neanderathal adventure gene” has very successfully mutated and he is now a converted adventure junkie to whom distance and elevation have very little meaning or importance!  This did however take some time to happen and Dirk was not a very happy person on this particular morning. Not only had our first day ended up having nearly 800m more climbing that what the “Map… sorry Guess my ride route guide” said, but the ride from the end of the kloof the day before to Soetkraal was definitely not 18km…. but then again, they did take the “scenic route!”

After a much heated discussion, it was mutually decided by all that “guess my ride” as it was now fondly known, could not under any circumstances be trusted! We were on our own now!  The mood lightened considerably after we were treated to a beautiful sing song by the local Working for Water team. Before I carry on with this lump in the throat, no dry eye around, part of the story, I must just make you all understand how very remote Soetkraal is.  En route to Soetkraal is a place called “hell hole” and the road is only passable by 4 x 4, and then you gotta know what you’re doing!  The people who work here live very isolated lives away from their families for many months at a time. They have no TV or telephone, in fact, there is a whole heap of…. Beautiful nothingness there!  Their only form of entertainment is to sing….. and boy can they do that!

Once all the data from the day before was loaded and the gps tracks updated, we settled down for a goose-bump performance from this colourful group of people.  I personally found it very hard to keep the eyes dry. Words cannot describe how beautiful it was. I think we all left the camp that morning with very peaceful hearts!

After a debate about what the mode of transport for the day was going to be, we decided to leave the bikes behind and do this section on foot as they reports from the various people in the know was that that path / road was in a very bad state and that we would end up carrying the bikes the majority of the 20km section through the mountains – not quite my idea of fun!

After going only 50m, we were lost already!  Instead of following the road like any other normal group of people, we opted for a “short cut” across the stream!  This resulted in a very cold footed scramble through not so shallow little streams, over grass banks and through palmiet! Eventually we found the road and we set off towards the “road” that was to lead us to many waters!  En route were a few very interesting remnants of long ago human inhabitation.  A once beautiful farm house, left to die and decay had now become home to a myriad of wildlife of the telescopic variety.  An old rusty steam engine, just left forgotten in a field, inspiring the imagination to a whole heap of possibilities of who brought it there and more impressively, how they got it there! 

As civilization (or our newly aquired version of it – i.e the backup vehicles and their drivers) disappeared slowly into the distance behind us, the wonderful mountain vistas and fynbos opened up in front of us!  John had sadly but wisely decided to turn back early on due to a bad blister on his foot and not really having the correct shoes for the hike.  This said, Ben and Herman did all the hiking on our trip in crocs and merrell open sandals!

Whilst on shoe issues, Pam’s beloved shoes also finally parted company with one of its soles!  Undeterred, sole got stuffed into the backpack and Pam soldiered on!

On the first section of the hike the effects of erosion were only too visible as we managed to stuff 4 hikers into one of the eroded gulleys in the road! We also came face to face with a Berg Adder, who very shyly slithered into the long grass without too much of a fuss.  A good reminder to us all to be on the lookout for our scaly friends!  The flora was fascinating. The fynbos having burnt not long before opened up the landscape to an amazing collection of pioneer species. At one point it felt like we were walking through cotton fields. The only disadvantage was the very spikey burnt stems of the trees, standing like sentinals along the path. This only added to the collection of cuts and bruises on our already painfull legs. Luckily I had taped up my “hole” but every bit of contact with shrubbery sent a shockwave through my shin! 

About halfway, we came across a log bridge crossing of one of the streams. We decided to stop for lunch and a recharge.  By now, the heat a set in properly and it was a real shock to the system to leave the cool shade of the kloof.  We were now completely exposed to the sun for the rest of our hike through the mountains. Once at the top of the first saddle, the views were endless. We were surrounded by mountains. Outeniqua’s to the west and Tsitikamma’s to the right!  Pam had been having a glorious time so far collecting more leopard poo samples. We now had more leopard poo than food! Well…. At least we wouldn’t starve!

Luckily due to all the rain the previous week there was plenty of fresh water on the mountain and we stopped at every opportunity to fill up our bottles from the clear cool streams and to cool down our very overheated bodies!  We could see the path winding down into the valley between the two ranges and then again as it wound its way around before disappearing over the saddle and into the langkloof.  Dripping with sweat, we were all dreaming about the camp at Many Waters. About half way up, I hit a severe energy dip, but luckily I wasn’t the only one looking a bit wilted! I had saved some evergy drink mix and decided that now was the time to use it! Dirks eyes lit up so much when he saw “coloured” water in my bottle, I couldn’t not let him and the others have a sippie or two or three!  The effect was astonishing.

Once at the saddle, the landscape changed a bit and there was an icy wind. Not far to go now! Once at Many Waters, we trudged along the road until we found the farmer. He was clearly ecstatic to see people. I don’t think there are too many passersby. We simply could not turn down his offer for coffee, in fact all of us were positively salivating at the thought of a steaming cup of plaas koffie in our grubby little paws! In the distance we saw Raymond on his motorbike. Once the rest of the team was contacted we settled in for some real Langkloof hospitality rounded off with some colourful stories of the area!  One such tale is of a piano that was thrown into the river where our overnight camp was to be to serve as a bridge. The piano is rumoured to still be there, although all we could see was mud and stones and hint of wood peaking out here and there!

Once the rest of the crew arrived, it was back up the road we had come down to the abandoned house up the kloof and the piano, but first we had to remove the fallen trees….. hard work with a hand held silky pruning saw!

Not having bathed since the Mosterts place, I decided that another night with a dirty and now very smelly body in my sleeping bag was not very attractive and braved the very chilly stream!  I apologise to dirk and john if your eyeballs are not yet recovered!

Supper, a lovely lamb stew accompanied with roosterbrood and washed down with some red, saw us all yawning off to our tents for another night of snoring sing song!

Day 4 – bike (Many Waters – Perseverance farm: George Ferreira)

Ouch, eina…… man my legs are a little stiff!  Note to self, never ever use this thin little excuse of a mattress again! 

My bike looked rather inviting I must admit!  But then again, I think Raymonds must have looked rather inviting to him too! 

Once breakfast was dealt with, yummy porridge, we packed up and hit the road.  Today was going to be an easy day for us …well some of us!  The route, if one took the shorter option was relatively flat and would take us through the many apple and pear farms surrounding Joubertina and Krakeel.  Sadly Ben had to spend the day in the Landy due to a nasty cold he had developed so we were down to 5 riders for the day!

I had asked Carl the day before to collect the topo maps from Joan as I no longer had any faith whatsoever in “guess my ride” and GPS is a totally foreign object and concept to me! I am an old fashion girl, just give me a map and I’m happy!

Once out of Many Waters and into the Langkloof valley we did a short section on tar before heading off the main drag and onto a jeep track. It was a pleasant change to be meandering through farms, the trees heavy with apple blossom and the beautiful mountains with Formosa peak towering away to our right.  Finding our way was not going to be too much of a challenge, although we did have a moment or two where we seemed to go around in circles in the apple orchards. Asking locals is not always the best option. There was a lot of: ‘ you go around the bend then turn right at the long row of apple trees and then you go straight and then when the road curves you go left and up the hill and….. etc etc) what you must realise is that all the rows are long, the road constantly bends and is constantly going up or down!  Needless to say, we did eventually find our way!

I did have a bit of a giggle at one stage though. I am a self admitted map hog/ control  freak, call me what you will, but I don’t like to give up the map, so there was a bit of a tense moment when Pam wanted to see where we are! After staring blankly at the map for some time, with a very perplexed look on her face, I (pushy medley me) orientated the map the right way and decided it was time to maybe leave Pam with some space and made myself scarce (what can I say, I’m a virgo!)

The riding was fast and the km’s seem to clock up quickly. Once through the great metropolis of Krakeel, where the Bokmakierie general store saved the day with ice cold drinks, we split up. Herman was going to take a slightly longer route round and we were going to go straight.  Krakeel is a real one horse town, with beautiful historical buildings. Don’t blink too long or you may miss it.

Next up was the slightly greater metropolis of Joubertina.  Once we met up with the backup crew just outside of town, Dirk went off in search of an internet Café as he had some pressing work stuff to tend to. We arranged to meet at the big church in the centre of town.  Once at the Church, Pam, John and myself settled in for a bit of a siesta in the shade, much to the amusement and interest of many of the locals!

Once out the town, we were faced with an option. Back onto the main tar road, or a jaunt through what looked like a jeep track all the way to George’s farm.  Naturally, with all of us suffering from a severe tar allergy, we opted for the jeep track. After about 4km we came to a locked gate. This put an end to the Landy and Jeep’s progress along this road, and would challenge Carl’s reversing with the trailer as they would have to turn back and go along the tar.  The track became more and more disused but at least we knew we were going in the right direction. At one point I stopped and looked at the map (which was once again in my possession!) and told the others we had two options, first was to go down and across the train line and on to the main road, the other was to go up behind Perseverance and then down to the road. The decision was to go down. We didn’t at this stage realize that Perseverance was George’s farm and our ultimate destination for the day!  We crossed the road and then stopped to ask a local farmer (who was waiting for his daughter) where George’s farm was. After he directed us back to Perseverance we got chatting. He asked where we were from and when hearing that Pam and I were from Elandskraal and Barrington, he told us that he had grown up in Elandskraal and was family of the Barnards (Adam Barnard is our very handy truck driver/mechanic!). It turns out that my mother in law buys koeksisters from his sister in Karatara….. isn’t the world small!

Upon arriving at George’s house, he very kindly told us we could stay in his mom’s house next door. What a relief not to have to pitch tents as the wind was now blowing and was very chilly. 

After a lovely hot shower, we were treated to a tour of George’s honey bush tea factory, which we had ridden past on the way in.  Walking into the shed, we were literally attacked by the amazing smell of the honeybush. It was fascinating to see how the tea was processed. Also visiting George’s farm was a very colourful gentleman called Ralf from the Organic Certification board, doing his annual check. It was really interesting hearing all about organic farming requirements.  George also educated us on the joys of a natural product called EM (effective Micro-organisms), something which I have already used for numerous applications….. the opportunities and properties of this stuff are endless!

Dinner consisted of braai, salads and roosterbrood. We then had a group chat, and fell into bed exhausted! Note to Andrew….. I hope that your face and head have recovered from my trampling during the night?

Day 5 – bike (hike) (George Ferreira’s farm to Baviaans lodge)

Waking up at 5am, the warmth was already noticeable. We were going to be in for it today!  After playing sound-man for Andrew whilst he filmed Pam interviewing George, we packed up and set off.  For the first time since day 1, I was actually on familiar territory as the first section of road was one which I have travelled often en-route to the Kouga River. Once across the bridge, we congregated at the top of the hill on the otherside to meet up with Hentie Barnard whose land we would be “cycling” through!

Uh oh, was what went through my mind as I looked across to where we to heading. The jeep track across the valley just seemed to go up and up and up and even from where we were, you could it was steep.  Whilst deep in thought about my own problems, I overheard Hentie talking to back up crew…. “no, you won’t be able to go through with the Landrover and trailer. Impossible. And if you try, once you are in, there is no turning around, you’re committed.  TALK ABOUT RED RAG TO A BULL! Carl in his ever calm voice replied that he would like to give it a try!  Hentie just kept shaking his head, saying no, it wasn’t possible. Carl needless to say, was not going to be pushed over so easily and eventually managed to convince Hentie!  The descent into the valley was a nose opener, across the little stream and BAM! Even Herman couldn’t ride up (which says a lot!), and so the pushing began!  I wasn’t too sure if my heart was racing out of exertion or out of stress because of the back-up vehicles and trailer. We were only 1km, there were still another 15km to go and Hentie said the road only got worse!

Luckily the need to concentrate of where I was walking (climbing/crawling) took my mind off what was going on behind me with the vehicles. If the ups were bad, the downs weren’t much better. Entertainment was not in short supply as I witnessed Pam falling off her bike whilst climbing on!  As she swung her leg over on one of the steep downhill sections, she accidentally pulled the front brakes and proceeded to go flying over the handle bars. Luckily she wasn’t too badly hurt, except for some rather impressive bruising on her upper thigh, but her bike wasn’t as lucky! A rather bent and buckled front wheel made already hard riding, ever more of a challenge! But it did supply a good laugh!

The climbs were relentless, no sooner had we gotten to the top of a climb and we were welcomed by a very rocky descent followed by another steep and un-ridable up!  I had a bit of a wobbly emotional moment on the second last steep descent, the road was definitely at it’s worst here and I had a serious panic attack about the landy and trailer….. but trusty carl pulled it off with Hentie standing on the edge of the sheer drop pointing that the wheel should touch his feet, they got through without too much drama!  The view into the valley below was breathtaking! We were all pretty cooked by this stage. The heat was intense and we were all dripping with sweat! A little stream quietly minding its own business was suddenly invaded by bodies desperately trying submerge themselves in its two inches of ice-cold water!  Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, we came across an old abandoned farm house. To think that people had actually tried to eek out an existence here?

We had arranged with Hentie to meet him at a little picnic spot at the start of the last climb of the day. We all flopped down on the grass, toes hanging in the icy water, munching on whatever we could lay our hands on. Slowly our core temperatures returned to an acceptable level. Pam, Carl and myself took a little stroll up the kloof to a nice rock pool, surrounded by yellowwoods and euphorbia’s (space like karoo plants). Here we discovered all kinds of exciting fish and plant species!  Inhabitants of the farm had also many years ago built a type of Leiwater, of which the stone wall was still visible. My previous thought of where the water for the farm house came from had now been answered!

Leaving the river and getting back into the open veld came as a shock. The heat seemed to have instensified. I really didn’t know how I was going to get up the hill in front of me. Not wanting to prolong the torture any longer than I had to, I headed off. Once in a rhythm it wasn’t so bad, especially once my body temp had risen to match the surrounding air!  Once at the top, I almost felt a strange kind of disappointment that the day, although it had been really tough and hot, was almost over? (was the heat getting to me more than I realized?)

We arrived at the Baviaans lodge campsite to a wonderful greeting from a huge tortoise and a beaming Raymond, armed with ice cold Sprite. I think he got sweaty dusty kisses from us all!

After an ice-cold shower, more sprite and some oranges, I enjoyed a rare afternoon snooze!

Cold beers, compliments of the amazing Raymond, went down extremely well as did the fabulous supper.

The evening was rounded off by the now harmonious chorus of snoring!

Day 6 – Bike (Baviaan’s lodge – Rooihoek Camp site Baviaanskloof)

Our morning routine, although by mow pretty slick, also always ended up running at least and hour and a half behind schedule!  Today, though, we managed to get going relatively “on-time” as it was going to be another stinker!

The start to the day was not kind, but then again, with a campsite next to a river in the middle of the Kouga Mountains, one can’t expect to do anything that go up!  Talk about getting a kickstart to the day. Pam and Ben had wisely opted to hike the first section, clearly my ego was bigger than my brain and for this I paid the price plus interest not long into the day!

My little bicycle and I were clearly not going to get on today. I guess we can’t always be friends!  Any little tiff we may have been having, was definitely softened by the absolutely breathtaking scenery which just seemed to go on forever in just about every direction you looked. 

The road, which snaked its way through the Kouga mountain range was definitely no highway, and made riding not only hard, but challenged the brain as well.  I just wasn’t in sync with the bike and the road and made a bit of a blunder with my gears on one of the steep uphill sections, using up energy I didn’t really have.  Endless pushing of my bike in my cycling shoes also resulted in very painful blisters on my heels.  I was not a very happy person and I must say I had some serious little battles going on inside my head! If it is possible to experience two very conflicting emotions at the same time, I can honestly say that I was hating it and loving it at the same time! Hating it because I was cross and disappointed in myself for struggling so much especially as I had ridden much tougher sections with ease, and because I was feeling so flat, but loving it because it was incredible riding, the best, with absolutely gob-smacking views! The heat was definitely getting to me!

At one point, Pam, Ben and I, ditched out bikes and ran a section as we didn’t see the point of pushing our bikes any more than we already had!

After 35km of technical jeep track traversing the Kouga mountains, we reached Rust en Vrede farm in the Baviaanskloof valley near Studtis. A very warm welcome by the local farmer, Chris, saw us taking over his stoep with huge jugs of ice-cold lemonade!  Once topped up with ice and cold water in our bike bottles, we set off along the Baviaanskloof road to Rooihoek. The pace was fast as the road was like a highway compared to what we had been riding the past few days!  Being on a bike has its advantages, but disadvantages as well. Wildlife, not frightened off by the sound of a car, is often caught by surprise as I nearly had a head-on with a Kudu as it jumped down the embankment and into the road in front of me, missing my front wheel with only inches to spare. Tortoises were in abundance, which had Dirk jumping on and off the bike like a jack in the box!  About 30km after leaving Rust en Vrede, Raymond caught up to us. With him was a hitch-hiker he had picked up along the road.  After initial bewilderment, we realized that he in fact had not only a person, but a bicycle strapped to the back of his motorbike and that it was Herman’s (only the bike was strapped, Herman got a to share the seat with Ray!).  Having gone to look at Chris’ bushcamp, Herman had left the farm after us and gotten a flat due to a tear in the sidewall of this tyre.  Raymond luckily came along not too long after it happened, and was able to act as recovery service!

Our fast flat riding was soon put to an end with the first of the big climbs which one negotiates en-route through the Baviaanskloof. Known as Baviaans back, it certainly has a way of snapping one out of ones daydream!  The heat of the day was vanishing fast and a very chilly breeze had now taken it’s place.  Once over the top, we met up with the vehicles which had caught up having gone to do some shopping. With only a handful of km to go, I lent a champing at the bit Herman my bike.

Upon arrival at Rooihoek, we found the boom to be locked with a combination type lock, despite the fact that we had arranged with EC parks to camp there. We didn’t have the combination….. or so we thought. After a couple of minutes, Herman piped up that he had found the combination as Henri appeared armed with some spanners and wrenches, much to Pams absolute horror!  After no time at all, we were bouncing down the short track to the camp site.

The water was surprisingly warm as we dipped our very smelly dirty bodies. Supper was as usual great as was the conversation. Andrew set up our confessional room in Pam and my tent and Pam spent the evening questioning us all about our kit and what we found usefull and what not etc.  the highlight of the evening was supplied by Dirk. In response to Pam’s question about what he felt was the most useless item he had brought along, he replied in his very precise German accent: “ I brought zis little tub of Vaseline, but zer ver no instructions viz it on how to properly use it!” after much laughter, Ben piped up: “Dirk, I’ll give you a demonstration. You take a big handful of Vaseline, you pull open your pants, you pull up your balls and smear the Vaseline on nice and thick!” this resulted in even more raucous laughter. I will in the interest of keeping this story clean, refrain from continuing with this conversation!  Dirk was then dubbed “VAS”.

The next morning, we were paid a visit by one of the Park Rangers, whom Pam knew and with whom she had arranged to stay at Rooihoek. We had the night before, thought up a concoction of stories of how we got in!  to our relief, none of these stories were needed, but after he left, Pam burst out laughing saying that guilt radiated out of each and everyone one of us!

Day 7 (a day in the landy….. dad….. are we nearly there yet?)

Today was Carl’s birthday. He is a whole 40 years old!  Having decided that today was going to be a chill day, we woke up in our own time (in my case I was once again sitting bolt upright in the tent at 4:30am). Not able to go back to sleep, I took a wonder around the campsite and was rewarded with a wonderful collection of earlier morning wildlife such as a collection of buck coming to the rider to drink.  The morning was wonderful and still and it was treat to be able to sit in silence, reflecting on the past few days.

My katti shooting skills were put to test in warding off the very cheeky monkeys and baboons who descend onto every visiter, causing havoc to anything and everything not properly closed or sealed.

Breakfast consisted of scrambled eggs and lovely free range bacon from a local farmer in the Goukamma valley. Once we were packed up, we all descended onto the river for a last swim and a little bonding chat session on the white sand.  We were all putting off actually leaving as it was going to be along day in the car.

We had decided to drive some of the “known” sections so as to make up time lost at the beginning of the trip due to the grossly inaccurate “guess my ride”. This section is beautiful no matter how you do it, on a bike or in a car, and we were treated to all kinds of antelope such as Kudu and Red Hartebeest.

In Patensie, we loaded up with some yummy home-made pies and set about locating Herman, who was on his bike somewhere. Sadly this is where our trip with Herman came to an end. His lovely wife to be picked him up somewhere between Jeffrey’s bay and Plett. At least he got a good training ride in!

We then set off in the opposite direction and headed towards the old Osseberg 4x4 trail, a section which is done on the Eden to Addo hike. Once through the Osseberg (which we had to circumnavigate due to it being closed to vehicles) we were on to the Grootrivier pass. I must say that I am not too sure which mode of transport I would rather have been using through there. A bicycle and having to negotiate the brutal climbs, or in the landy stressing about the trailer and whether or not the vehicle would actually make it up some of the hills without flipping over backwards! (silly chick mind!) as the day wore on, so the boredom of being stuck in the car started to increase. At one stage, whilst waiting for Shrek to catch up, Pam and I did some revitalizing yoga and pilates in the very “busy” road, much to the intrigue of one or two locals who were cycling past!

We eventually arrived in Kirkwood, and on the recommendation of “Nollie, the seksie ranger” from Addo, we stayed at a delightful place on the outskirts of the town. After a warm shower and some of Dr Pete Bernings be-well stew with a twist (homemade chilly added in a rather too generous dose for some, by Pam) we set about some silly entertainment with Headlamps and Camera’s. the results were pretty impressive even if I can say so myself!

The challenge and highlight of the evening was the Pot cake, made by none-other than myself. Definitely a new one for me! I did cheat though thanks to Raymond who had managed to find a chocolate cake mix in one of the don’t blink too long because you might miss it towns he had been through!

Decorated with smarties, silver balls, Lindt chilli chocolate and candles, Carl was presented with his birthday cake…. And there did not a crumb remain!

Day 8 run/bike (Kirkwood – river lodge: addo elephant park)

The morning after the night before. Mmmm… champagne, Smirnoff and I think some red wine came to visit at some stage or another, and very little sleep, it was hard to get out of my sleeping bag!

We met the famed “Nollie die Seksie ranger” at the Entrance to the park just outside of Kirkwood. We were advised to drive the first section so as to make the river crossings before the water release came through.  The section of the park we were going through was no longer in regular use and the road in a less than desirable condition. After a few kilometers of being car bound, Pam and I hopped out, deciding to rather run. WOW! What a treat. We got to see a host of wildlife, warthogs, Eland, Waterbuck to mention a few. It was a real treat. It didn’t take Dirk long to also jump ship and join us on foot.

The river crossings certainly spiced things up. One knows one is in for some action when the sign says only experienced drivers who know their stuff should attempt it!  We suddenly realized the need to get through before the water came through. But with some team effort, the guys made it look like a walk in the park. At least the vehicles and trailer got a bit of a wash!

Ben, seeing how much fun we were all having, also eventually jumped ship and trundled along with us in his sandals!

We had great fun joking about with antelope skulls and horns and at one stage I felt like a bushman, trotting through the bush with a long stick held up above my head warding off ostriche!

Whoops…. Where did the road go?

We were brought to a rather abrupt halt not long after 2^nd river crossing by a rather large hole where the road should have been! After a bit of scouting, we (the runners) managed to find an area where with a little bit of landscape remodeling, the vehicles would hopefully be able to get through! This done, shrek made the little bit of rodeo 4 x 4ing look easy. Now for the landy and trailer…. I couldn’t watch , so decided to go and have a close up inspection of the some Spekboom!  Without too much scraping they got through and it was onwards again!

After mucking about setting up a running shot for Andrew, Carl packed out the bikes and very cruelly made us start half way up a climb! At the top, out came my samies as my tank was now running on fumes!

The ride was great! The road surface had drastically improved and after what we had been through the past couple of days it was almost like riding on tar. But in the distance, hung very dark and threatening clouds, so we didn’t dilly dally too much because when wet, the road became like snot!

We were all gobsmacked when we arrived at the now disused River lodge camp.  Overlooked by a stunning old abandoned farm house, the thatch lapa overlooked a huge deck on the edge of the Sundays river. The only eye-sore was the huge electric fence surrounding the camp to keep the hippo’s and baboons out!

Sadly Raymond bid us goodbye, as having to take our guide back to Kirkwood, he decide that he would carry on to PE to visit his mom.

Pam’s family arrived, supplying us all with Children at home, some child cuddle time!

Bathing consisted of a bucket of river water warmed by the fire. Supper we had decided was going to be a very yummy and was yummy “moerallesin” potjie! Topped with some roosterbrood and the remaining champagne, we settled in for our last night together around the camp fire!

Sleep time….. thank goodness I packed in my ear plugs!

Wedged between Cornel (king of the snorers), Henri (not far off becoming king of the snorers) and Andrew ( a king in training) the night quiet was broken by a carefully compiled and conducted crescendo of snoring!

I, didn’t hear a thing!

Day 9 –packing up and going home.

Packing up sucks!  Especially when one does it with the knowledge that the fun and adventure has come to an end! All the hype and excitement is now replaced with that horrible feeling of…. What now?

Probably the biggest challenge now had to be faced. Getting all of our kit, bicycles and people into the vehicles as the trailer was to be dropped off in PE with me for branding (the trailer not me)!

Luckily Kasey had come in his bakkie so we managed to distribute a lot of the stuff.

Arriving in Kirkwood to fill up with Diesel, we adorned the landy with her show-piece, a glorious set of kudu horns complete with scull, hard earned for her fine efforts in getting everthing and everyone through in one piece. This drew many odd looks from the locals to say the least!

Some will say that arriving in PE was arriving back into civilization. To me, it was more like arriving in “un-civilization”.  It came as a shock to the senses, all I wanted was to be back on top of one of the many mountains we had traversed, enjoying one of the many breathtaking views we had seen, and without a care in the world!

PRIVILEDGE – we are priviledged to live in the land that we live in, to have the means to be able to partake in an adventure of this nature, to have the physical condition to ride and run, and to enjoy the company of like minded people in experiencing life and the many joys it has to offer!

Thank you Pam for inviting me, and thank you to everyone else for making it such an incredibly special 9 days!

Dream like you will live forever, live like you will die tomorrow!