Orange River canoe trail
4 to 9 April 2006

Peter & Ally Giddy
Hannes, Jacqui, Calvin, Jordan & Amber Zeelie
Terry, Jenny, Jared and Bradley Laubscher
Rob & Jason Ermes
Caroline Dalton
Mandy Perks
Mike, Barbie and Andy Perks
Mark Verral
Derryk & Linda Le Roux
Gerald & Pat Scheepers
Charles & Ian DuToit

We started the Plans for this trip in the middle of 2005. Originally we had asked Rob McLean to lead the trip but he had other commitments. Gravity was the touring company we used and we booked what is known as the Orange River Gorge from Onseepkans on the Namibian Border. Then, just a week before we were due to leave, heavy rainfall in the Lesotho Mountains and the Gauteng area caused to level of the river to rise. The river would have been too dangerous for us to go down the Gorge area so we decided we would do the Richtersveld area at Vioolsdrif on the Namibian Border. This meant that we would need passports. So those who did not have valid passports had a frantic rush to obtain emergency passports.

The week had started with the Nippers National finals at the Kings Beach in PE. This was hosted by the Sardinia Bay Club. The tournament started on the Saturday morning with inter provincial championships and then moved on to the team and individual events. I found this whole tournament to be quite stressful for both the competitors and the adults from Marshals to coaches and parents. If a child was a potential winner there was a huge amount of pressure on the child as he or she had to compete at a number of disciplines often in the heats, quarterfinals, semi finals and then the finals. Then there was the variety of events that the ch8ild was expected to take part in from swim, body board, Malibu board, running and flags as well as combinations of the disciplines. Saturday afternoon the West wind blew, Sunday was a reasonable day for the surf but by the time Monday afternoon came along the East wind had blown the surf up to a washing machine condition with hundreds of blue bottles in the sea. And then even in these horrific conditions the Under 10’s had to do their body board final.

The Summerstrand Club did very well in the competition with a fourth place overall. I personally did not like the way that we played the game. In the U 10’s we had “imported” a number of good swimmers and runners who had not been to any of the practice sessions during the season but who won the events for us. Hannes made a suggestion that I particularly liked: “We should make a huge fuss of the local tournaments, particularly the Provincial Carnival. Make these into the fun and less formal events. Then make it clear that the Nationals would be an “exclusive” competition with only the elite competitors taking part. Participation and all inclusiveness would not be the focus.” This would reduce the number of disappointed children who do not make the first round and reduce the cost of the tournament to the club. It would enable the coaches to focus on winning and not on rounding up Nippers who are either disinterested or do not have the ability to compete at this level. A uniform and kit was handed to each of the Nippers at minimal cost and yet we had some Nippers who did not attend any of the three days. The kit was quite amazing as it consisted of a Tog Bag, a Scull Cap, a Chafe Vest, a cap, a towel, an anorak, a T-shirt and a bathing costume. And all of this for a R150 contribution!

This was my first National Nippers Competition and so I am hardly in a position to make definitive comment. However I learned a great deal at the Carnival and during the past season and if I am still on a coaching team next season, I will make a number of changes to the way we organise the U10’s. Overall the Carnival was a huge success. We all know that the organisation of such a big event is a massive responsibility and Sardinia bay can give themselves a pat on the back. On Monday evening the prize giving and awards ceremony was a great success with Summerstrand in full spirit. Ally & I were not able to attend as Barbara had just left for London and we still had packing to do for our Orange River Trip.

After we had left the beach, Ally & I did our last bit of shopping and sorting out stuff for the trip. We packed the stuff that Charles was going to take on the back of his truck and off loaded everything with him. We then packed as much as we could in the car and were asleep early. We had planned that we would leave at 02.00am and I hardly slept that night. By 01.00am I had the car ready and waited for the others to join us. Then at 2am I piled Ally in to the car and with Charles, Hannes and Derryk following we picked up Pat & Gerald and were out of PE before 02.30am. Our little convoy consisted of Derryk & Linda, Charles, Ian and Caroline and in the combi was Hannes and his family.

Day one. Tuesday.
The drive took us through Graaff Reinett (where we predictably got lost on our way out of town), Victoria West and Calvinia. In Calvinia we stopped to buy some Biltong and Droe Wors at the butchery. I will recommend that if you are passing through Calvinia that you stop for this reason as well as to try their vet koek, which has aniseed, added for flavour. Then on to Van Rhynsdorp, Springbok and finally to Vioolsdrif. At the Border post of Vioolsdrif we had to go through the SA passport control, then the police control then the customs control. This seems such a long process for a simple cross border trip. It made me think of the arrangement that Canada and America have where if you are a citizen of either of these two countries cross border trips are made as easy as possible for the officials and the travelers. We crossed the Orange River bridge to the Namibian side where we had our passports stamped so that we could return on Saturday. Then back to the SA side where we drove the final 12kays to the Overbos Camp.

The total distance to the camp was 1342kays and we had driven for about 15 hours. Particularly in the early morning in the dark the drive was very tiring. Fortunately we were able to swap drivers and have a rest in between. We were the last to arrive. Rob and Jason had been to the Augrabies falls where the river was flowing at its strongest and then on to Ais Ais where they had spent a day in the heated pools. Mike and family had also been up to Augrabies. Terry and family had a relatively short drive from Cape Town.

It is interesting to note that the name of the Orange River has nothing to do with its colour. The river was named Oranjerivier to honour Prince William of the Royal Dutch house of Orange. At this time the Dutch claimed ownership of the Cape. The river has its origins in the Lesotho Mountains where it is known as the Senqu River. The river was known to the indigenous people as the Gariep (great) River. The two main tributaries of the Orange river are the Caledon and the Vaal rivers.

Anthony was the main Guide and he met us there. We also met up with Brett, Lefty and Izalda (Zollie). I later learned that Anthony is the son of a very good friend of Pierre Bester. Small world! That evening we set up our tents and after supper were all asleep pretty early.

First day on the River. Wednesday.
The next day Ant’ gave us the instructions required. We were each allocated a waterproof bag, which would contain clothes and sleeping bags for the next four days. We had to put our stuff into black bags and then roll the top of the waterproof bag over four times before clipping it closed. This system worked okay for most of us. I know that Rob had a leaky bag but still managed okay. After breakfast we set off across the river to the Felix Unite office where we filled our cooler boxes with ice.

Jenny and Jared did not make it across the river and after a while we could see that they were going to struggle. So Jared and I swapped places and I spent the day in Jenny’s boat. Brett was in charge of a Raft as was Zollie. These two rafts were to be the main meeting place of the younger group over the next four days. The two man Crocodiles would be used by couples and some of the more capable or energetic pairs.

The river was at a very high level after heavy rainfalls in the Lesotho Mountains as well as in Gauteng. Water was being released from the dams and were not going to experience the rapids that we had in 2002. However the character of the trip was completely different. The fast flowing river meant that we hardly had to paddle and the temperature of the water enabled us to swim all day.

Our first day was easy. At lunchtime the temperature had risen and the sand was hot to walk on. By the time we reached our overnight camping spot I realised just how much the river level had risen. We had no grass to camp on. The place where we camped the previous time was a few meters under water. There were no rapids and no weir to contend with.

Most of us campers made our first mistake in that as soon as we beached our craft we claimed our campsite and set up tents etc in the blazing sun. What we should have done was to relax in the water, leave our stuff until later in the afternoon and then find a good campsite of which there were many. We saw many troops of baboons both at this campsite and along the riverside. Fortunately, unlike the Baviaans Kloof, these baboons left us alone. We all learned how to use the Boom Boom Box. A garden Trowel, A small packet and the roll of toilet paper sent each one of us for a walk to a secluded spot. A huge problem in the outdoors is the toilet paper that litters the countryside. This problem is solved here as all toilet paper is place in the small packets and burned the next morning.

We took an exploratory walk up the hillside. While the hills look barren from afar, they have a variety of scrub and cactus that is seen only from close up. This afternoon many of us discovered the thrill of walking upstream a little and then, with our life jackets secure, allowing the force of the water to drift us downstream with a final frantic swim to avoid being swept away in the current. Then finally as dusk settled one or two scares brought the swimming to an end. All of us ate too much on this trip. The meals were more than substantial and there was always enough for second helpings.

This evening, as Ally and I lay on the ground sheet looking at the stars, Anthony brought us a Chocolate Brownie! The moon was half full but still provided enough light that we hardly needed torches. The moonlight seemed to reflect on the river sand. This kind of camping does not guarantee a really deep sleep. I had started off in the tent but during the night decided to move outside and slept under the stars. I generally found that I had enough sleep despite being restless in the night. This was the only night we set up the tent on the river. It really was not necessary, as the weather was perfect for a night under the stars.

Day two on the river. Thursday.
At this stage we were still deep in the mountains. The river was wide and we had an easy short paddle to the mine where the green stone is found. We spent a good hour or more picking up the stones. Those with cameras took photos of the scenery and people. Anthony had a video camera and he promised us that we could purchase a copy of the DVD that he would make. I had made a very amateur video of our last trip and was looking forward to a second momento. We came across number of other groups at this point. We were able to refuel with their leftover ice.

Lunch was served and we again played in the water, walking up high and floating down to the lunch stop. Anthony went ahead, hoping to be able to give some direction and take some photos but the river was simply too wide. We had a bit of excitement as we went through the waves but nothing like the real “shambok”. Terry and Pat, had involuntary swims in this section as they were ejected from their seats on the Crocodiles.


Brett was concerned that the afternoon paddle may be long but with the force of the river carrying us we were soon at the campsite known as Crystal Pools. We had passed what he refers to as Divorce Section. It seems that there is often a head wind to contend with that causes strained relationships. We also passed the Witches Rock formation as well as a number of mines, which may be diamond mines but we are not sure.

At the campsite some of us walked up the valley to a point where the first of the crystal pools may have been, but everything was dry. Mike carried on to see if he could find any water in the pools. He later told me that he had found some stunning rock formations where water had been in the pools fairly recently. We discovered that this was an area for collecting Tigers Eye Stones. These were added to the already growing rock collections.

This evening Charles, Rob & I had camped on the other side of a small gully. The children (and adults) had great fun in the water. At the campfire we all sat around in a semi circle and chatted. We tried to get Derryk to relate some of his famous fireside stories but he seemed to be reluctant. Some of us decided that he was much better behaved when Linda was around! Zollie showed us the Paddle Trick. Bradley was the first to try it out and then a number of others tried to master this acrobatic act. I think that Jacqui got it right. We saw Amber and Ally practicing in the background until they too had mastered the trick and were ready to give us a display. If you remember, please ask Ally to give you a demonstration and then you should also attempt this contortionist trick.

Later that evening, Anthony crushed some of the green stone and we had a display of the “Fairy Dust” in the fire. After this he gave us a display of fire rings as he lit the ends of two chains and twirled these around to the great delight of children and adults alike. Our little group had decided to sleep in the open this night and we did not put our tent up but had a wonderful night under the stars. I know little of the stars and the various configurations. All I know is the Southern Star.

Day three on the river. Friday.
This morning I found a little gully and was able to have a bath in the river. Rob was pulling down his tent when he realised that he had two friendly scorpions as bedfellows that night. Cameras were quickly pulled out before they scuttled away. We had found a variety of bugs and beetles on this trip. Birds that we encountered were the Goliath Heron, the Darter, the Pied and the Malachite Kingfishers and the spectacular Fish Eagle. On one occasion we saw, to everyone’s amusement, a Darter hitching a ride on a branch that was floating down river. Watching the Kingfishers hovering and then diving into the water became quite commonplace.

Anthony was keen to get going before the morning sun hit us. By now most of the youngsters were either with Zollie or with Brett on the two large rafts. Charles & I shared a Crocodile today. With Charles doing all the work, I had a relaxed morning in the front as we left the mountainous area and came to the farms and roads. We hear that the farms on the Namibian side of the Orange River produce one of the largest crops of table grapes in the world. Huge volumes of water must be pumped from the river to irrigate these farms.

After a brief stop at the point where we had ended our last trip we headed down river to our final campsite. This was an area where none of us was familiar. Our campsite this evening may not have been the very best possible but we all made the best of it and there were soon a variety of rock hunting expeditions led by Barbie and route marches being led by Mike. I really enjoyed these walks but not like Mike did. He continued to the top of a hill where we heard him Whooping in excitement. We had a long stay at this campsite and I was able to read Ally her Mary-Kate & Ashley storybook.

Rob pulled out his Boule Balls and as soon as one or two throws were demonstrated there was a rush to get in line as the next challenger. A version of the French game, Jeu de Boule, is recorded as being played by Romans in 300AD. It seems that soldiers of the Roman Empire played the game for entertainment and exercise. Rob’s Boule set consisted of six steel balls. Each Boule is identified by one, two or three rings. A small wooden ball, known as the cochonnet or jack, is thrown some distance away in the sand. The two players have three attempts each to try to land their Boule as close to the cochonnet as possible. Fair play is unheard of! Jared seemed to make his mark as did Ally and Amber. Charles has a number of good action shots of this on camera.

Ally & I again slept under the stars. This was for me one of the most comfortable nights. I had brought our self-inflating mattresses, which are actually not self-inflating but with a few puffs are quite hard and comfortable to sleep on. One of them was losing air in the night but fortunately not going completely flat. The next morning Derryk showed me how his Lilo had been punctured and was due to be trashed.

Day four on the river. Saturday.
We had debated how we would spend the evening but it was general consensus that we had a very long drive home with school and work commitments on Monday morning. So Anthony set us off for our last stretch. Ally had said that she would like to be with me on a Crocodile. We were unlucky that one or two small spiders had decided to camp on our boat that night and these unsettled Ally. Also I am a lazy paddler and quite happy to be at the back of the group. Ally become nervous and when we got to the exciting part of the river and a spider decided to crawl around her, this was just too much for her and she was really unhappy. We made it through the waves without incident and came across Charles and Ian who had flipped their craft. Ally decided that Charles looked like a safer bet so Ian climbed in with me and we cruised down stream to where the bus was waiting for us on the Namibian side of the river.

The bus and trailer were soon loaded and we collected our passports to be able to return to RSA. The desolate nature of this countryside was brought to harsh reality as we traveled this section of the trip. Unfortunately the tyre of the trailer shredded and Brett was left to wait for Lefty who returned with a spare. Meanwhile we had all offloaded and were packing our vehicles. It was great to see Yango from our last trip. He is looking well and just as adventurous and naughty as when we last saw him. Hannes and Derryk decided to return via the Augrabies Falls and we finally left at 14.30. Mike had to purchase a new tyre in Springbok. We filled up in Springbok and then headed off to Van Rhynsdorp where we waited for Charles and Rob. I realised that we had made a mistake in thinking that we could do route planning on the road via cell phones. This sounds fine in theory but there are long stretches of no signal that makes communication very difficult.

In the end we decided to press on to Calvinia where we found a caravan park. We asked directions from two local lads on bicycles who politely said “follow us” and they literally led us to the camp as well as opening the gate for us. We reached Calvinia at about 19.00 and soon had the owner of the campsite switching on lights and we were able to negotiate a very favourable rate of R300 for all 14 of us. Mike was still on his way so we drove to the local Café where we purchased burgers and cold drinks for our supper. We had 830 kays to go in the morning so after we had sorted out the sleeping arrangements we all headed for bed pretty early.

Sunday Morning.
Up at 05.00am and with little fuss, but doing a tour of the town as we tried to find the road out, we managed to leave by 06.00. I had to fill up at the next town (Williston). We seemed to congregate at the center of Carnavon here we purchased some coffee and then tried to leave this tiny village but got lost twice much to the amusement of Rob.

A negative feature of this journey was the carnage of wild life that we saw on the road. Rabbits, foxes or jackals and a variety of small creatures and birds fall prey to our speeding vehicles. I am not sure how this could be prevented but I became quite nauseated by the number of dead animals on the road. In Victoria West we found the café with the Mannetjies Roux Museum. Service was not that fast but we managed to have a breakfast and then, with only 450kay to go, left for Graaff Reinett. Along this road we encountered swarms of locusts which caused the front of the vehicles to become yellow and clogged up. We cleaned up a bit in Graaff Reinett. Later I realised that we had left this mess on the driveway of the BP filling station and I felt guilty about this. Ally had transferred herself to Rob’s car so as we reached Uitenhage we swapped back again. By the time we reached home we had traveled 2690kays.

I love the adventure of this kind of trip. I enjoy putting myself out of my normal comfort zone. But I also love returning home to hot water, electricity and my bed! The next day I had my car washed at a car wash in Russell Road and for a mere R20 my car once again looked acceptable. They also changed my front passenger side wheel as I had a flat tyre. I had my car serviced and had two new tyres fitted as Ally & I were leaving for Cape Town on Thursday. I planned to run Two Oceans Marathon on the Easter Saturday.

We slept in Plettenberg bay on Thursday night. I had contacted the Plett Primary school and got hold of Herman who was the father of Alexandra. Ally had met Alexandra at the Nippers Carnival and so we met up with them in Plett where Ally spent the evening. Ena had made Butternut soup and Pasta with sauce. When I say Ena made Pasta, she is the only person I know who makes her own Pasta from flour and the various ingredients. For desert we had home made ice cream and chocolate sauce. The next morning Ally & I drove through to CT where I registered for the race. We met Stuart and then Cathy showed Stuart and family where they could stay in Woodstock. When we left them we found the Montreaux Flat in Queen Victoria road. The tenant had abandoned the flat so we had to have a spare key made and Cathy offered to clean the place up.

We then drove to Fish Hoek where I had rented a self-catering flat @ R300 per night. It was perfect for our needs. I readied myself for the race then next day and at about 06.00am hitched a ride to the start. I handed my tog bag to Milka Boshoff and met up with some of the Achilleans in the Blue Number section. At 07.00 the race got underway and I knew that I was going to have a bad run. I had a sore left calf muscle and had no motivation.

I jogged through the 21kay mark in a little over 2 hours and then at 28kay tried to bail. Peter Pholman stopped me but he was soon out of sight and before going up little Chappies I again tried to bail but Neil from Muirites dragged me on. Then half was up Chappies I lost him and finally did bail just after reaching the 32kay mark. I took a combi bus to Hout bay where we were transferred to a big bus. Here I was joined by Basil Tyler, Keith and Sue Bayliss. I heard that Josiah Thungwane was also on this bus!

I must confess that I am sorry that I did not finish. But I have done Oceans 18times and will in all probability be back for yet another attempt. Someone said to me that I will have to give up some of the other events to concentrate on Oceans. But I feel the opposite. I would like to try to do more of the adventure events with less hype and more for the fun and unknown aspects.

At the UCT field we joined up with the Achilleans at the tent and I phoned Cathy to find that she had collected Barbara at the Airport and was almost at the field. They collected me and we drove to Fish Hoek where we had a relaxed evening. Ally & I watched TV till late.

Sunday after Two Oceans we had our traditional Boschendal lunch. I am not sure if I will continue to attend this lunch. The lunch cost us R500 for the four of us. A bottle of wine and cold drink is R100. More than a little steep I feel! I think that I was feeling the pinch of the Orange River and all the various travel costs. Kobus was awarded a certificate for running his 100th marathon. Back at home there had been a very unfortunate accident as Hooch, Barbara’s favourite little dog, had died in a car accident. After the lunch we drove to the Century City where we watched Ice Age 2. The family enjoyed the movie. I thought that it was a loosely concocted mishmash of animated garbage and certainly not worth the R38pp that is charged for movies these days. Little wonder that I go to movies less than once a year.

On Monday morning we left Cathy and, after a few stops (in Albertina we found a good Biltong shop & a church bazaar selling Pannekoek and fudge) and a brief visit to Ena in Plettenberg bay were back in PE by 14.30. From Fish Hoek to PE is 765kays.

Peter Giddy
17 April 2006.







Regarding an Orange River Onseepkans Gorge trip - attached are a number of documents to look at - kit list,

The prices are R1845 p.p.
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BORDER CROSSING PROCEDURE

Essentially, you are ‘pre-booking’ yourself through the SA and Namibian borders so that when you re-enter SA at the end of your trip, you will have the correct stamps in your passport.

Make sure that your passport is valid and that you have the correct visas and endorsements in your passport in good time – this will depend on your citizenship and residency status. SA passport holders require no visas and emergency SA passports are accepted.
On reaching the border, get your passport processed at the SA border post. Tell them that you are doing an Orange River trip and that you are staying at Oewerbos Camp in Vioolsdrif and getting on to the river on the SA side.
Drive across the river to the Namibian border post.
Get your passport processed at the Namibian authorities. Tell them that you are doing an Orange River trip and that you are staying at Oewerbos Camp in Vioolsdrif and getting on to the river on the SA side. You shouldn’t have to pay the R120.00 per vehicle road tax, as your vehicle will not be entering Namibia.
Do a U-turn and drive back across to the South African side.
MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE BOTH NAMIBIAN AND SOUTH AFRICAN STAMPS IN YOUR PASSPORT.
Proceed to Oewerbos Camp.


ORANGE RIVER GORGE: KIT LIST

On River
q Swimming costume
q Wet shoes – strops (sandals)/takkies (trainers)
q Kikoi or sarong – doubles as protection from the sun
q Long sleeved cotton shirt – ditto
q Hat with brim
q Sun block
q Sunglasses with strings!
q 5 strong black bags for waterproofing
q Camera (we provide dry bucket)
q Book
q Drink bottle with strap
q Light windbreaker (winter trips)
Off River
q One warm change of clothes for the evenings – T-shirt, track pants and top, closed shoes and socks, anorak, beanie. Winter nights are cold and in between seasons nights may still be cool.
q Small Towel
q Sleeping bag – available to hire if necessary
q Roll mat - closed cell foam or similar (‘Therma-rests’ are expensive but worth it!)
q Small pillow (inflatable or ‘stuffable’)
q Toiletries – all biodegradable, please.
q Mess kit: unbreakable plate/bowl, cup, knife and fork
q Your choice of beverages– we recommend that you bring drink mix (eg Game), sufficient for 2l per day as well as 24 soft drinks in cans or decanted into plastic.
q Sweets etc. (hearty meals are provided but you may enjoy a few special extras)
q Insect repellent
q Torch


Gravity River Tours, PO Box 53456, Kenilworth, 7745.
Tel/Fax: 683 3698. Cell: 082 440 6277. e-mail: adventure@gravity.co.za