HOGSBACK HOBBITON 16 AND 38K TRAIL RUN NOVEMBER 2014

HOGSBACK HOBBITON 16 AND 38K TRAIL RUN NOVEMBER 2014

EARLY SATURDAY MORNING AT SWALLOW TAIL CAMP; HOGSBACK.

John Nelson and Andrew Jonas have been training hard for this event. They have been running in the Baakens Valley on Sunday mornings as well as doing some long runs in the week. John did the 38k last year and experienced how tough the event is.
I had attempted to run the 38 but had to bail at 24k as it was just too tough for me. We heard that there were 36 runners taking part in the 100k which starts the other side of KingWilliamstown and is a Two Day event. Cristin Flynn was amoungst that group.

We left Port Elizabeth on Friday 28th afternoon at about 2pm. We had borrowed the trailer from Andrew Barton but managed to put all our stuff into the car and left the trailer at home. Stopped at Nanaga for a snack and then traveled via Grahamstown and Fort Beaufort. The drive took us just on 3hours.

TENT IS SET AND WE ENJOY OUR FIRST BEER OF THE EVENING

ANDREW HAS THIS NEW STRETCHER AND MAKES HIMSELF COMFORTABLE

We had booked at the Swallow Tail 082 800 8731    045 962 1317 where we had camped on previous occasions. In a short while we had set up camp. Andrew had a new stretcher that he was trying out. To save on space, John and I were going to sleep on a mattress on the floor.
As soon as we were packed out, John offered us a cold beer which went down well and we spent a short while relaxing before making our way to the Lighthouse Restaurant. When camping like this for just one night I find it easier to do no cooking at camp and choose instead to eat out. I had not expected the evening to be quite as cool as it was. The mist and cool breeze made wearing of warm tops necessary.

JOHN AND ANDREW DISCUSS THE UPCOMING RUN

PIZZA'S AT THE LIGHTHOUSE RESTAURANT WITH A FIRE IN THE MIDDLE.

We ordered two pizza's to share with draught beers. It seems that the owners are fairly new and were keen to serve good quality Pizzas. We were more than satisfied and finished every last scrap.

Back at the Tent Site we were soon bedding down and watching a Series movie on my Laptop. I could hardly stay awake after the drive and the beers.

JANE BARNARDO; JOHN AND ANDREW. ALL SET TO GO WITH FULL BACKPACKS

Saturday morning 29th.
We are all up early. We had brought some breakfast cereals and John boiled the kettle for tea. The 38k started at 7am and so we were at the Arminel Hotel at 6.30; Registered and greeted some of the PE people who we know. Jane Barnardo would run to a first place in a time of around 6.40 I think. Graham is the main organizer and he tried to explain the route in a briefing session. Unfortunately it is not easy to follow his instructions when standing like that in the morning. And at 7am the group of about 30 runners took off.

PE GROUP OFF TO RUN THE 16K. SEETH; PETER; SEAN; SHEENA AND OTHERS.

THE 38K GROUP IS OFF AT 7AM. JOHN AND ANDREW ON THE LEFT.

I had also registered and was ready to start the 16k but found out that it was only due to start at 9am. So I drove back to camp where I lay down and slept for an hour. I needed that sleep and felt a lot better afterwards. I met Steve and James in the camp. They are from East London and we drove to the start together. We too had a race briefing and started down the main road at 9am. Left at "Away with Fairies" camping and then down a single track hiking trail all the way down and down to the river at the bottom.

The trail is tricky and has many places to trip and fall if you are not careful. Rocks and roots and slippery underfoot can easily lead to trouble. After what I estimated to be 5k we took a short detour to see the Madonna Waterfalls. Here there were a number of DSG girls and other hikers who were in the pool. I too decided that a swim and cool off would be a good idea. Steve was with me at this stage but he left and I had to work quite hard later on to catch him.

MADONNA FALLS

MADONNA FALLS. SWIM WITH A BIG GROUP OF DSG GIRLS AND OTHER HIKERS.

After the falls there is a steep climb back to the forest road. Here we run for a short while before we take a left turn into the forest again. The forest pathway is not easy and is full of ups and downs and twists and turns. Finally we emerge onto a Loggers Jeep track which takes us Up and Up. I try to run and walk as much as I can. At about 8 or 9k we find the only water table for the 16k. At this stage if you were doing the 38k you would have to make a right turn up a steep incline. I was glad to be able to stay on the Jeep Track with Seeth; Sean; Sheena; Steve and James.

AT THE 9KM WATER TABLE. WITH 7KM TO GO WE ARE ALL HAPPY THAT WE DONT HAVE TO GO UP ---- THERE. WITH PETER; SEAN; SHEENA AND SEETH.

STEVE AND JAMES WERE GOOD COMPANY ON THE TRAIL THIS MORNING

The next four or five km is along the Forest Roads mostly uphill. Sean went off ahead. I tend to run or walk with my head down and so on two occasions missed the turns. Fortunately I was called back.  Seeth, Sheena and I find the Bench which is dedicated to the dogs of a local person. At the top of the hill we turn left and find the Kettle Spout. This is a waterfall that tends to spurt out as a Kettle would do. The lookout point is a dangerous area where you can look across to the spout but could just as easily fall over to certain death if you are not careful. There is no railing or other safety mechanism.

SHEENA RELAXES WITH SEETH FALLING ASLEEP ON THE PARK BENCH.

KETTLE SPOUT POINT WITH SHEENA

SEETH AND SHEENA WITH THIS AMAZING VIEW OVER THE MOUNTAINS

SEETH SAYS: THIS IS THE BEST VIEW!

THE WORLD FAMOUS SEETH .  HE MUST HAVE TAKEN A NOSE DIVE INTO A MUDDY SECTION TO BE QUITE AS MUDDY AS THIS. MICHELLE WAS BACK AT CAMP: IN HER WORDS; "I AM KNOCKED UP"

The final few Km takes the runners through a single track where the 38k and 100k runners come past us. You need to be a little careful as the rocks and roots are slippery and it is easy to fall with tired legs. This is exactly what I did and found myself sliding down a ditch. Seeth pulled me out. The last 500m is back on a Jeep Track and then finally back to the Arminel Hotel.

I have taken 3 hours for this 16k. I anticipate that John and Andrew will take around 7 hours so I think that I have about two hours to shower and pack. Back at the camp I have myself a really good, long shower and have a bit of a relax before making my way back to the finish area. I want to sleep but think that I will miss them coming in. So I stand with a group of people and watch the runners coming up the final hill.

John comes in at about 7.40.  We enquire about Andrew and find that he must be about an hour behind John. We think that he must have got lost at one stage as he was ahead of John. This turned out to be correct. John has a wash and we pack the tent and wait for Andrew who comes in at about 8.40. He is fine. Seeming to have enjoyed his outing. The extra hour or more was due to him becoming lost and having to back track. He had phoned Graham and found out that he was completely on the wrong track.

The medal for this event is a Clay Warthog which is made by Local people.

We all pack up and drive home to try to be home before dark. As we approach the Nanaga interchange we see some of the worst (Dangerous) driving that you will ever see. Cars and Taxi's overtaking on blind rises, on left bends where there is no visibility and finally a taxi passes us into oncoming cars, hooting and flashing his head lights telling the oncoming cars to get out of his way.

We arrive safely, drop Andrew off at home. Dianne comes to fetch John who still has to go to a Dinner Party. I am too tired to think much further and fall asleep early this evening.

ANDREW FINISHES LOOKING AMAZINGLY FRESH.

ANDREW EXPLAINS TO JOHN HOW HE BECAME LOST IN THE MOUNTAINS.

this mail from the organisers says it all:

A massive WELL DONE to all of you who conquered the Hobbit trail runs.
 
The 38km and 16km routes are possibly the toughest in their distances in the country. You are all champions for getting through them.  The tamer and gentler 5km route proved very popular and gave you a great sense of the forests and single track that the area has to offer. 

With the great weather, awesome views, fantastic trails and happy, exhausted runners, we could not have asked for more. It made our day to see you all cross the line, collapse on the lawn and soak up the sun. The Arminel Hotel proved to be the ideal venue and the vibe at the finish was wonderful.