A COOL WEEKEND IN AUGUST 2005.
What was so special about this weekend? Nothing really, except we took full advantage of the time and enjoyed every minute. Both the weather and the activity of the weekend were cool! The weekend started off on Friday morning I was invited to a breakfast talk by a Standard Bank Investment Manager. It was really interesting listening to his thoughts on how to maximise investment opportunity. Tim had recently been told that his contract as a consultant with Spar would end at the end of September. He was in the process of discussions regarding the purchase of a distribution business and although this was not directly related, it was nevertheless pertinent to where his life was at that time. Tim and I did not stay for the breakfast part, as time had run out and we were both due back at work.
Work was work and Friday evening I dropped Ally off at Snoops (Church Guild for children). Then Saturday morning I joined the MPRG for our normal Saturday run to Hobie Pier and back. At the run this morning was: Andy, Kobus, Adel, Neil, John, Mike, Cathy, Gerald, Adrienne, Margie, Susanne and maybe others I cannot recall right now. This morning I really struggled with the run and was quite exhausted at the end. I then had a wash and dressed for Mini-Hockey, which Ally attends and I try to assist with the coaching. There were three coaches for the under 8’s, Greg and Leslie and myself. So with about 30 children we took groups of ten each and were able to handle the groups quite well. I like to give them a bit of a warm up, then a bit of pushing and hitting to one another; then there is a bit of dribbling followed by some goal hitting practice. Some of them enjoy this but others find that by now they have become tired or bored. So the drinks break is welcomed. After drinks we play “sticks” which is really a small game of hockey. During this period we may also play some “stuck in the mud” or a similar running game. This takes us to an hour and a half, which is about all they can take.
After the Hockey I spent an hour and a half at work. Here (on a Saturday) I sometimes make a routine appearance where I will handle any problems that staff may have encountered particularly with customers or decision-making on credit granting. This morning was quiet and so at 11.30am I left to pick up Barbara and we went to Tim and Suzanne to watch SA play Australia in Perth. It turned out to be a really tense game. Our history of games against Australia at this stage was that we had won the last two games in SA but it’s a long time since we beat them in Australia. The scoreboard at this stage was we had lost 14 games, won 13 games and drawn one game. The game was to be a really tense affair with the score opening with an opportunistic try by winger Bryan Habanna. Percy Montgommery was not on form and missed a potential of 3 penalties, one drop-goal and one conversion. To his credit he slotted a well-planned drop goal just before half time. The score swung against us at one stage but a second opportunistic try by Bryan Habanna put us in the lead and we did not concede a further point. This gave us: a win against Australia and New Zealand in SA and now a win against Australia in Perth. Next weekend we play NZ (in Dunedin I think) and a win or a draw will mean that we retain the Tri-Nations cup.
After Rugby Barbara and I went to Hannes Zeelie to collect Ally who was playing with Amber but they had made plans to go to Amber’s grandparents so we went shopping for T-shirts for our September hike. We were fortunate to find suitable shirts in Mr. Price. After this we stopped off at the new Checkers in 6th avenue where we did a bit of grocery shopping as well as finding a present for Ally’s Birthday party the next day. The rest of the afternoon we spent watching SA play cricket in an Afro Vs Asia one-day series. This was the second match of the series and we had won the first almost by default in the final over. This time we were not so lucky and lost too many wickets in our chase for 268 runs that the Asians had scored. I then spoke to Barbara about the Addo 15kay trail run which I had thought about running and so when she said that she was prepared to come along I phoned Gerald and Pat who also said they were keen. Tim had planned to do the triathlon.
On Sunday morning I was up early to wash and make some toasted cheese and egg sandwiches as well as some hotdogs. I also took some coffee and juice with us. Gerald was at our house at 05.45 as arranged and I put Ally into the back seat with a pillow and blanket and before long she was fast asleep again. The run was at the recently formed part of Addo near to Colchester and was the first of these races. We had an easy half-hour drive to the start of the run and were lucky to register, as there was a 100 limit to the number of entrants. Pat and Gerald were 99 and 100. At the start I saw that Tony Boardman, Ian Ross, Mark and others who were planning to run the Amatola 100 kay trail run (two days) in October were also there. I was pleased that I could make the contacts, as I needed to train with them when they started to do some longer trail runs. Gerald Bouwer, Mof, Rodney and Leslie of Achilles were also there.
The organisers had a “cattle truck” to take us to the start which was simply 15kays up the dirt road. Today we did not see any animals but I am not certain that this part of the Addo park has any game yet or indeed if it is open to the public. Of course it was cold as we rode on the back of the truck to the start but I had wisely decided that I would not need a second top. At the start point I saw Chanelle (Vanessa’s sister) who I had met the previous weekend at Baviaans Kloof. Also Scott Rollo who had provided us with interesting information at Baviaans.
Once at the start, the run was set off and the first 1500 meters is uphill but thereafter there are few ups and mainly downhill and flats. I met up with Sharon (PEB print) and she described to me her job at Ford in the safety and security division and that she also ran her own consultancy business in the same line. Sharon told me that she had studied law and had practiced as a public prosecutor before becoming totally disillusioned with the justice system. Her husband was also running a little behind us. She has a 5-year-old called Joshua who was being looked after by the grandparents. Sharon has been running for 12 to 13 years firstly for Crusaders and more recently for PEB. Only in the last two years has she started running marathons and Ultras including two Comrades. She tells me that she now has Iron man in her sights for 2006.
The weather was cool. The sky was cloudy and there was a slight Easterly wind blowing. Ideal running conditions. Plenty of chatting and enjoying the beauty of Gods creation took us past three watering stations and before we knew it we were looking down at the finish area. I personally had a really easy run of 82 minutes. I was very happy to feel this good after the run as the previous day’s run had me worried. I had predicted 85 mins. This type of run has the added interest that the participant predicts the finishing time and is not allowed to carry a watch nor are there distance marker boards. So the winner is not the first home but the closest to their predicted time.
Back at the car Barbara was patiently waiting for me. Ally had slept solidly the whole time, not waking once since we left home. Barbara pointed out two men who had been watching the event at the finish. These two men had opened beers just after we left at about 07.00am and from then to now had been steadily drinking one after another. As they finished one they would walk back to the car and fish out another two beers and flip them open and so the process went on. What amazed us were the time of day and the volume of consumption. Their wives arrived soon afterwards and immediately lit up cigarettes. People are really interesting! Thanks to ADT running club, Brian in particular, for setting up the event. I phoned Tim to see how he had got on with the Triathlon. It seemed that the weather in PE was not suitable for a triathlon with the East wind creating too much chop in the water and the rain added to this had just dampened (excuse the pun) the whole morning. What a pleasure it is to be able to run a trail event within a half-hour drive from home.
We did not stay for the prize giving, as we had to get Ally to her birthday party. It was Niel and Vanessa’s child; Wiebke’s 9th birthday. Gerald phoned me later to say that they had won a “lucky dip” of an emergency torch, a coffee mug and a cap. Barbara & I got ourselves ready and drove out along the KraggaKamma road turning left at Welcome Ave, then right at Landman to a place called Bushwhackers. This is a party venue for children where there are all kinds of adventure events for the children. It was quite cool by now and it had been raining earlier so we dropped Ally off and planned to go home as we had a number of things to do. On the way we stopped off for tea at Stuart and Rianna. They had just put coffee on and were most kind and welcoming. Coffee led to biscuits. We were introduced by Stuart to some interesting history of the early SA tribes and settlers. He had taken out a book from the library written by a man in 1860. Interestingly the writer states that he had to make alterations to the content of the book due to the “turmoil and changes that had recently taken place”. We decided to stay for the start of the Istanbul (Turkey) Grand Prix. Stuart meanwhile had lit the Braai fire but we insisted that we were not staying for lunch. Rianna brought out tea and Chelsea buns. Once the race had started Rianna brought out the Pasta dish that she had been saving. This was delicious. We must have been looking quite hungry because we ended that coffee visit with cake and custard. We watched the Grand Prix to the end. For me it was quite an experience to watch the race with someone who knows the sport like Stuart does. I normally enjoy the start of the Grand Prix but tend to “nod off” during the middle section of the event. Kimi Raikonnen (Mercedes Benz) won the race. It was almost a one, two for McLaren but Montoya lost control on the last lap and that allowed Alonso (Renault) to sneak into second place.
By now we had told Niel that we would collect Ally at their house and so as it was about 4pm we decided that we may just have over stayed our welcome. At Niel’s house Vanessa asked us to stay for coffee. I cannot imagine that we still looked hungry but as the children looked like they were enjoying their games we stayed. Of course there was leftover party cake. So when we finally got home we were quite stuffed. I had to wash the car, as it was still dirty from the Addo dust and the Miggies from my trip to Kingwilliamstown during the week. Ally insisted that she was still hungry and I must make her a hamburger. Barbara and I finished the evening off with a glass of wine. And that was our August weekend. Full of visiting, activities and food. Really enjoyable. I feel that we are so blessed to live in this city, to have good friends and good health!
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Monday, August 15, 2005
BAVIAANS KLOOF BERG PLAAS AUGUST 2005
BAVIAANS KLOOF. BERG PLAAS. 13 AND 14 AUGUST 2005
The week before this weekend had been a really busy one for us. Barbara and Cathy had driven to Cape Town on Wednesday as Cathy was trying to set up a branch of Stefan’s Photo and Video business in London. Cathy had contracted a cold, which she had passed on to Barbara. Barbara had missed her flight back to PE on the Thursday and when she finally got back on Friday was not feeling at all good. Meanwhile I had had people from our Head Office staying in PE for the whole week. Fortunately we have some good friends who helped me cope with Ally’s afternoons. Our friend, Tim, was in Botswana for a work assignment where he was trying to assist the owners of a dying bakery to survive. Another running friend of ours, Andy Bolton, was in Egypt and on the Red Sea for a scuba diving trip. His daughter, Caroline is an instructor in Port Elizabeth and was part of the expedition.
This is weekend had been planned by Niel and Vanessa (Wiebke and Silke) for some time. Herman, Tracey, Leah and Kim were also part of our group. So were Charles and Ian. Ingrid felt that she would be better at home alone for the weekend. We also met Vanessa’s sister, Chanelle, Ian and friends Bruce and Jenna. The weekend started with Herman and Tracey collecting us in an Isuzu double cab with canopy at just after 08.00am on the Saturday morning. We traveled in convoy to Humansdorp where we took the Hankey turnoff. But about 10kays into this road we encountered an accident where a big truck had gone off the road. And there were three big breakdown vans trying to pull the truck back onto the road. We heard that it could take as long as two hours to remove the obstacle and so turned around and went back to the Gamtoos River where we took the road to Loerie. From there we headed on to Hankey and Patensie. In Hankey we stopped off for a short break, coffee and sweets. And then we drove on to the kloof.
One of the interesting features of this part of the drive is driving through what must have been a riverbed many millions of years ago. The road cuts through a mountain of river stone that is about ten meters high. The Groot Rivier is on the left of the road and when we came to the dirt section we crossed the river a number of times. When we found a weir where the river was flowing over the road I asked Herman to allow Kim to sit on the bonnet while he drove through the water and I filmed this action sequence. We did this with Ally and Kim a few more times during the trip. Great fun for the children and me. We came to the Kondomo campsite, which is the entrance to the Baviaans Reserve. Here we met up with Scott Rollo who is a friend of Neil and a Volunteer Ranger for the reserve.
At this point the drive becomes quite tough, as the road requires a vehicle with a high clearance. Herman handled the driving with a degree of care and at no time were we, as passengers, worried. The road (or track) of the first pass consists of mostly rocks, very little grading of the road has been done. This section of the road has a number of hazardous twists and turns with a narrow road and sheer cliffs falling off to the right. As we drove we stopped a few times to admire the magnificent views of mountains and valleys that Baviaans is famous for. Soon we reached the top of the pass and the turn off to Bergplaas. Bergplaas consists of a single long hut with an indoor fireplace. In this (fireplace) room there are two double bunks, adjacent to this is the Kitchen, which has a sink, the next room is the bathroom where the bath and toilet are set up on a kind of throne. The next two rooms have two double bunks each. Barbara and I chose the room next to the bathroom. It could be said that we were the only people to have an “en-suite”.
We unpacked the three vehicles and soon turned the empty bungalow into a home with provisions sufficient for 50 people for two weeks. Seems like we may just have brought a little too much but as one of the children put it: “food is precious because there are no shops around.” Once we had unpacked, Tracey and Herman were quick to bring out a big bag of wood and the outside fire was soon blazing. Tracey had brought rolls and Boerewors to feed us all. Herman showed us a special trick where the Boerewors is wrapped in newspaper and made into a king of Christmas Cracker and put into the fire. The outside of the newspaper burns but inside the 'wors is cooked to perfection and this was quite a hit with the hungry group. Barbara had not been feeling well as she had caught a cold from Cathy on their way to Cape Town earlier on in the week. But when Niel suggested a drive down to the river, I decided to walk and Barbara agreed to walk with me. Tracey, Chanelle and Vanessa also wanted the exercise and so Niel went ahead and we walked what we expected to be about five Kays. Barbara and I stopped to look at the game as well as a number of other natural features of the fynbos while the Tracey group went on ahead. It is my opinion that walking is the best time to have “quality time” with anyone. There are few distractions from conversation, one does not have to look the other “in the eye”, and exhaustion is the common denominator.
The road that Niel had taken was the road that leads to Doodsklip and Rooihoek. I know this road from having to drive it on previous occasions. It was not just five Kays but more like ten Kays to Doodsklip where the man and children had a swim. As Barbara & I walked we saw a number of the Red Haartebeest that are common in the area. We also noticed what seemed to be wires stretching across valleys. We later on learned that this was a kind of Cable Car that had been used by farmers to transport produce, livestock and even farm labourers across the valley. Mmmm? Not too sure that I would have trusted it. After descending for over three or four kays the Tracey group decided to turn back for the camp. Barbara & I pressed on and after we reached the bottom of the kloof were lucky enough to see a pair of Klipspringer in the valley. Not long after this we heard the sound of Niel's vehicle and were happy to accept a (bumpy) ride back to the camp. We had walked for nearly two hours and about 6 kays. Margie Saunders had said that Brian, who had recently been into the Kloof, had said how bad the roads were. I did not find the roads to be worse than previous experience. But the Baviaans Kloof roads are very bad. Although we did not need the 4 X 4 facility of the vehicles, the high clearance was essential for these roads. We arrived back at the camp just as the Tracey Group were walking up to the hut. They must have had a tough walk as they had the uphill part that Barbara & I had avoided.
Charles and Ian had reached camp by this time. They had left a little later as Ian had a rugby match which his team drew five all. Charles joined us in our en-suite bedroom, taking the top bunks. Scott was also there and he had brought two trestle tables. These were really a great help with all the catering that had to be done. Beers were opened, Frisbees were brought out, Charles introduced a bit of “Survivor”, fires were lit and dusk turned to dark fairly rapidly. Niel had brought dough to make Rooster Koek. This is delicious when freshly baked on the fire.
Scott is a really experienced person in the outdoors and when he called the children to bring blankets for a bit of stargazing I decided to join this group. The adults meanwhile did the braai-ing thing. Scott proceeded to give an incredibly detailed and interesting talk on the stars and related matters. I was really impressed by the extent of his knowledge but even more taken by the amount of information that the children had as they were able to answer a number of questions to which I personally did not know the answers.
Some of the information included the make up of stars, planets, solar system, universe and our own Milky Way Galaxy. Then he spoke about satellites (we saw one), shooting stars, moons, comets and a variety of names of the various stellar objects. Something that I had never thought about previously was that Satellites are only seen soon after sunset or soon before sunrise as this is the time when the sun continues to reflect off them. The way to remember the names of the planets in order of their position relative to the sun is: Mnr. Van As; my jas sal u nie pas. This is Afrikaans and so the nine planets are: Mercury, Venus, Aard (Earth), Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune & Pluto. He says that a tenth planet called Sedna has recently been discovered.
After the Star Chatter I attempted to cook a few chops but was totally unsuccessful as I realised later when Ally nearly choked on a piece of meat that I gave her. I am not sure if I was too tired or the fire was not really hot enough but I had totally undercooked the chops. We had been snacking the whole day, Herman and Tracey had all kinds of goodies for after dinner so I was reassured that no one would go to bed hungry. It had been a long day as we had been up early, had driven for three to four hours, walked for two hours and were all exhausted. So after a bit of fireside chat, a glass of red wine and some story telling, we seemed to fade into sleep rather than actually go to bed.
The indoor fire room occupants made themselves a double bed (from the bunk bed mattresses) that would have made “grandma’s feather bed” look small by comparison. On this double bed slept: Niel, Vanessa, Wiebke, Silke, Herman, Tracey, Leah and Kim. Sounds like it must have been fun. On our side of the bathroom we were unlucky enough to have been locked out of the bathroom by the last user. So any lady wanting the bathroom in the night would have had to taken a walk outside, into the fireside room, interrupted their fun, through the kitchen and into the bathroom. As you may be able to gather we were a very “together” group of people this weekend.
The night was to be long for Barbara who seemed to deteriorate in health during the night. But we were all up reasonably early, as tends to happen when camping. I was stiff in my rear end and thighs from the previous days walk, probably also from cramped & bumpy drive. The back seat of a double cab is not quite as comfy as a normal car would be. Shortly after coffee and rusks we decided to do the two-hour walk, which had been, recommended to Niel. It was a walk over the fields and down the gorge to a waterfall. Just after we had started out Barbara realised that she had taken on too much and that she would turn back. We walked on past the Boom, past which no vehicle could pass and up the pathways that I estimate was a road made by the resident farmers over one hundred years ago.
Ally had a fall and grazed her legs so when I saw the cliff face that we would have to descend I was quite happy to turn back with Vanessa, Jenna, Silke and Ally. There was a cool breeze blowing from the West and a distinct chill in the air. We passed Scott on our way back and I gave him my daypack in case he should need any eats for the walk to the bottom of the gorge.
We had a leisurely walk back to the hut and during this time I was able to chat to both Jenna and to Vanessa. As I have said, Walking is a good time to learn more about others. I learned that Wiebke was born in Germany and that her name means “Young Woman” and that Silke means “Blind Faith”. Both beautiful names! Jenna has recently joined Dimension Data after a stint with Quest Personnel and a variety of jobs in London and Cape Town, Vanessa is looking forward to opening the Naartjie clothing retail outlet at Walmer Park shopping center and Chantelle is an architect taking on all kinds of interesting projects such as hospitals, private homes and even the exclusive millionaires homes. We got back to the hut and were soon brewing coffee while we were able to see others on their way back along the mountain path. It seems that while we were the first to turn back, others had also decided that the descent was going to be too tough and only the really dedicated would reach the waterfall.
Once Niel had got back to the hut he got the Breakfast going. This was to be a feast of sausage, bacon, eggs, mushroom, tomato, onion and rolls. Simply delicious and very filling! Barbara, meanwhile, had wrapped herself up and was trying to overcome the cold symptoms. After breakfast there was a lot of lazing around. The Survivor game was restarted by Charles. This morning we were able to spot a few Zebra grazing on a field across from the hut. I took a few of the children for a walk around the old stone Kraal behind the hut and around the small dam. There Ally and Silke discovered some small spiders nests.
After coffee the general consensus seemed to be that we would start our drive home. We packed the vehicles and took a slow drive down the pass to the farm called Kudu Kaya. This farm is on the Ys River and has camping facilities. It is a citrus farm and is also the farm where we did the Kloofing expedition earlier this year. Chanelle said that she too has done the Kloofing thing many years ago. Herman pointed out how the Orange trees have a Lemon tree stump and then the Orange tree is grafted into the Lemon tree. This is done because the Lemon tree has stronger and deeper roots. Later on I spoke to my friend Keith Finnemore who farms Organic fruit in the Addo area. He explained that all South African citrus trees are grafted. This is to assist the tree to combat soil diseases and insects. It is also to produce the best possible looking fruit.
Keith has a farm with about 10 000 trees which is small for the Addo area but is about three times the number of trees that he estimates are to be found on the Kudu Kaya farm. The yield of oranges is measured in tons per hectare and he estimates about 500 trees per hectare yielding 50 to 60 tons. Herman & I had tried to estimate how many bags of oranges would a large tree yield. Keith explained that there are a variety of bag sizes and that the different oranges such as Valencia, Navel and Clementines (Naartjies) have different yields.
We had seen piles of oranges dumped on a field. Keith explained to me that only first, second and third grade oranges are sold. The 1st and 2nd grade oranges are exported and the 3rd grade oranges are for the local market. 4th grade oranges, that are not sold to the juice companies, are often dumped for fodder or used for compost. These would be oranges that have marked skins. The fruit quality may be perfect but consumers buy with their eyes and so the fruit is unacceptable. Keith did the thing that all farmers do and that is to moan about the strength of the Rand. A stronger Rand means lower profits for farmers and he says that half the farms in Addo are up for sale.
At the Kudu Kaya we also saw the aqua-duct that the farmer uses to irrigate the trees. The children found this quite a good place to wet their feet. But the water temperature measures up to the name of the river. Keith described the irrigation system used by this farmer is that water is fed to the dam via this aqua-duct and then pumped up to a higher dam in the night when Eskom rates are about a third of daytime rates. The trees are then irrigated during the day, which is the best time for irrigation, using gravity.
From here we drove back to Patensie and took the 7kay detour to the Kouga (Paul Sauer) dam. This was my first visit to the dam. The construction of a dam such as this one is something to admire. Of concern to me was how empty the dam seems to be. There was a clear distinction between the present level and the maximum capacity. Perhaps expected September rains would make a difference. Here I used the last part of my video battery and we were soon on our way home. Herman drove our vehicle and I was quite happy to have a little snooze in the back seat. We were home by about 17.30 and soon unpacking and sorting things out.
The next morning I was up for my normal Monday morning MPRG run. Andy was back from his trip and told us some interesting facts about his trip. For example: Cairo is a city of over 22 Million people but the city has no traffic lights. He had been exploring the pyramids in temperatures of 37 Degrees and diving in water that most people find comfortable to bath in at 32 degrees C. Tim was back from Botswana but still enjoying his sleep. I struggled to get up and then to stay with the running group, as I was still very stiff from the trip & the walks.
Thanks again to Niel and Vanessa who put the whole trip together. Also thanks to all the rest of the group. It was a great get away.
Peter Giddy
15 August 2005.
The week before this weekend had been a really busy one for us. Barbara and Cathy had driven to Cape Town on Wednesday as Cathy was trying to set up a branch of Stefan’s Photo and Video business in London. Cathy had contracted a cold, which she had passed on to Barbara. Barbara had missed her flight back to PE on the Thursday and when she finally got back on Friday was not feeling at all good. Meanwhile I had had people from our Head Office staying in PE for the whole week. Fortunately we have some good friends who helped me cope with Ally’s afternoons. Our friend, Tim, was in Botswana for a work assignment where he was trying to assist the owners of a dying bakery to survive. Another running friend of ours, Andy Bolton, was in Egypt and on the Red Sea for a scuba diving trip. His daughter, Caroline is an instructor in Port Elizabeth and was part of the expedition.
This is weekend had been planned by Niel and Vanessa (Wiebke and Silke) for some time. Herman, Tracey, Leah and Kim were also part of our group. So were Charles and Ian. Ingrid felt that she would be better at home alone for the weekend. We also met Vanessa’s sister, Chanelle, Ian and friends Bruce and Jenna. The weekend started with Herman and Tracey collecting us in an Isuzu double cab with canopy at just after 08.00am on the Saturday morning. We traveled in convoy to Humansdorp where we took the Hankey turnoff. But about 10kays into this road we encountered an accident where a big truck had gone off the road. And there were three big breakdown vans trying to pull the truck back onto the road. We heard that it could take as long as two hours to remove the obstacle and so turned around and went back to the Gamtoos River where we took the road to Loerie. From there we headed on to Hankey and Patensie. In Hankey we stopped off for a short break, coffee and sweets. And then we drove on to the kloof.
One of the interesting features of this part of the drive is driving through what must have been a riverbed many millions of years ago. The road cuts through a mountain of river stone that is about ten meters high. The Groot Rivier is on the left of the road and when we came to the dirt section we crossed the river a number of times. When we found a weir where the river was flowing over the road I asked Herman to allow Kim to sit on the bonnet while he drove through the water and I filmed this action sequence. We did this with Ally and Kim a few more times during the trip. Great fun for the children and me. We came to the Kondomo campsite, which is the entrance to the Baviaans Reserve. Here we met up with Scott Rollo who is a friend of Neil and a Volunteer Ranger for the reserve.
At this point the drive becomes quite tough, as the road requires a vehicle with a high clearance. Herman handled the driving with a degree of care and at no time were we, as passengers, worried. The road (or track) of the first pass consists of mostly rocks, very little grading of the road has been done. This section of the road has a number of hazardous twists and turns with a narrow road and sheer cliffs falling off to the right. As we drove we stopped a few times to admire the magnificent views of mountains and valleys that Baviaans is famous for. Soon we reached the top of the pass and the turn off to Bergplaas. Bergplaas consists of a single long hut with an indoor fireplace. In this (fireplace) room there are two double bunks, adjacent to this is the Kitchen, which has a sink, the next room is the bathroom where the bath and toilet are set up on a kind of throne. The next two rooms have two double bunks each. Barbara and I chose the room next to the bathroom. It could be said that we were the only people to have an “en-suite”.
We unpacked the three vehicles and soon turned the empty bungalow into a home with provisions sufficient for 50 people for two weeks. Seems like we may just have brought a little too much but as one of the children put it: “food is precious because there are no shops around.” Once we had unpacked, Tracey and Herman were quick to bring out a big bag of wood and the outside fire was soon blazing. Tracey had brought rolls and Boerewors to feed us all. Herman showed us a special trick where the Boerewors is wrapped in newspaper and made into a king of Christmas Cracker and put into the fire. The outside of the newspaper burns but inside the 'wors is cooked to perfection and this was quite a hit with the hungry group. Barbara had not been feeling well as she had caught a cold from Cathy on their way to Cape Town earlier on in the week. But when Niel suggested a drive down to the river, I decided to walk and Barbara agreed to walk with me. Tracey, Chanelle and Vanessa also wanted the exercise and so Niel went ahead and we walked what we expected to be about five Kays. Barbara and I stopped to look at the game as well as a number of other natural features of the fynbos while the Tracey group went on ahead. It is my opinion that walking is the best time to have “quality time” with anyone. There are few distractions from conversation, one does not have to look the other “in the eye”, and exhaustion is the common denominator.
The road that Niel had taken was the road that leads to Doodsklip and Rooihoek. I know this road from having to drive it on previous occasions. It was not just five Kays but more like ten Kays to Doodsklip where the man and children had a swim. As Barbara & I walked we saw a number of the Red Haartebeest that are common in the area. We also noticed what seemed to be wires stretching across valleys. We later on learned that this was a kind of Cable Car that had been used by farmers to transport produce, livestock and even farm labourers across the valley. Mmmm? Not too sure that I would have trusted it. After descending for over three or four kays the Tracey group decided to turn back for the camp. Barbara & I pressed on and after we reached the bottom of the kloof were lucky enough to see a pair of Klipspringer in the valley. Not long after this we heard the sound of Niel's vehicle and were happy to accept a (bumpy) ride back to the camp. We had walked for nearly two hours and about 6 kays. Margie Saunders had said that Brian, who had recently been into the Kloof, had said how bad the roads were. I did not find the roads to be worse than previous experience. But the Baviaans Kloof roads are very bad. Although we did not need the 4 X 4 facility of the vehicles, the high clearance was essential for these roads. We arrived back at the camp just as the Tracey Group were walking up to the hut. They must have had a tough walk as they had the uphill part that Barbara & I had avoided.
Charles and Ian had reached camp by this time. They had left a little later as Ian had a rugby match which his team drew five all. Charles joined us in our en-suite bedroom, taking the top bunks. Scott was also there and he had brought two trestle tables. These were really a great help with all the catering that had to be done. Beers were opened, Frisbees were brought out, Charles introduced a bit of “Survivor”, fires were lit and dusk turned to dark fairly rapidly. Niel had brought dough to make Rooster Koek. This is delicious when freshly baked on the fire.
Scott is a really experienced person in the outdoors and when he called the children to bring blankets for a bit of stargazing I decided to join this group. The adults meanwhile did the braai-ing thing. Scott proceeded to give an incredibly detailed and interesting talk on the stars and related matters. I was really impressed by the extent of his knowledge but even more taken by the amount of information that the children had as they were able to answer a number of questions to which I personally did not know the answers.
Some of the information included the make up of stars, planets, solar system, universe and our own Milky Way Galaxy. Then he spoke about satellites (we saw one), shooting stars, moons, comets and a variety of names of the various stellar objects. Something that I had never thought about previously was that Satellites are only seen soon after sunset or soon before sunrise as this is the time when the sun continues to reflect off them. The way to remember the names of the planets in order of their position relative to the sun is: Mnr. Van As; my jas sal u nie pas. This is Afrikaans and so the nine planets are: Mercury, Venus, Aard (Earth), Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune & Pluto. He says that a tenth planet called Sedna has recently been discovered.
After the Star Chatter I attempted to cook a few chops but was totally unsuccessful as I realised later when Ally nearly choked on a piece of meat that I gave her. I am not sure if I was too tired or the fire was not really hot enough but I had totally undercooked the chops. We had been snacking the whole day, Herman and Tracey had all kinds of goodies for after dinner so I was reassured that no one would go to bed hungry. It had been a long day as we had been up early, had driven for three to four hours, walked for two hours and were all exhausted. So after a bit of fireside chat, a glass of red wine and some story telling, we seemed to fade into sleep rather than actually go to bed.
The indoor fire room occupants made themselves a double bed (from the bunk bed mattresses) that would have made “grandma’s feather bed” look small by comparison. On this double bed slept: Niel, Vanessa, Wiebke, Silke, Herman, Tracey, Leah and Kim. Sounds like it must have been fun. On our side of the bathroom we were unlucky enough to have been locked out of the bathroom by the last user. So any lady wanting the bathroom in the night would have had to taken a walk outside, into the fireside room, interrupted their fun, through the kitchen and into the bathroom. As you may be able to gather we were a very “together” group of people this weekend.
The night was to be long for Barbara who seemed to deteriorate in health during the night. But we were all up reasonably early, as tends to happen when camping. I was stiff in my rear end and thighs from the previous days walk, probably also from cramped & bumpy drive. The back seat of a double cab is not quite as comfy as a normal car would be. Shortly after coffee and rusks we decided to do the two-hour walk, which had been, recommended to Niel. It was a walk over the fields and down the gorge to a waterfall. Just after we had started out Barbara realised that she had taken on too much and that she would turn back. We walked on past the Boom, past which no vehicle could pass and up the pathways that I estimate was a road made by the resident farmers over one hundred years ago.
Ally had a fall and grazed her legs so when I saw the cliff face that we would have to descend I was quite happy to turn back with Vanessa, Jenna, Silke and Ally. There was a cool breeze blowing from the West and a distinct chill in the air. We passed Scott on our way back and I gave him my daypack in case he should need any eats for the walk to the bottom of the gorge.
We had a leisurely walk back to the hut and during this time I was able to chat to both Jenna and to Vanessa. As I have said, Walking is a good time to learn more about others. I learned that Wiebke was born in Germany and that her name means “Young Woman” and that Silke means “Blind Faith”. Both beautiful names! Jenna has recently joined Dimension Data after a stint with Quest Personnel and a variety of jobs in London and Cape Town, Vanessa is looking forward to opening the Naartjie clothing retail outlet at Walmer Park shopping center and Chantelle is an architect taking on all kinds of interesting projects such as hospitals, private homes and even the exclusive millionaires homes. We got back to the hut and were soon brewing coffee while we were able to see others on their way back along the mountain path. It seems that while we were the first to turn back, others had also decided that the descent was going to be too tough and only the really dedicated would reach the waterfall.
Once Niel had got back to the hut he got the Breakfast going. This was to be a feast of sausage, bacon, eggs, mushroom, tomato, onion and rolls. Simply delicious and very filling! Barbara, meanwhile, had wrapped herself up and was trying to overcome the cold symptoms. After breakfast there was a lot of lazing around. The Survivor game was restarted by Charles. This morning we were able to spot a few Zebra grazing on a field across from the hut. I took a few of the children for a walk around the old stone Kraal behind the hut and around the small dam. There Ally and Silke discovered some small spiders nests.
After coffee the general consensus seemed to be that we would start our drive home. We packed the vehicles and took a slow drive down the pass to the farm called Kudu Kaya. This farm is on the Ys River and has camping facilities. It is a citrus farm and is also the farm where we did the Kloofing expedition earlier this year. Chanelle said that she too has done the Kloofing thing many years ago. Herman pointed out how the Orange trees have a Lemon tree stump and then the Orange tree is grafted into the Lemon tree. This is done because the Lemon tree has stronger and deeper roots. Later on I spoke to my friend Keith Finnemore who farms Organic fruit in the Addo area. He explained that all South African citrus trees are grafted. This is to assist the tree to combat soil diseases and insects. It is also to produce the best possible looking fruit.
Keith has a farm with about 10 000 trees which is small for the Addo area but is about three times the number of trees that he estimates are to be found on the Kudu Kaya farm. The yield of oranges is measured in tons per hectare and he estimates about 500 trees per hectare yielding 50 to 60 tons. Herman & I had tried to estimate how many bags of oranges would a large tree yield. Keith explained that there are a variety of bag sizes and that the different oranges such as Valencia, Navel and Clementines (Naartjies) have different yields.
We had seen piles of oranges dumped on a field. Keith explained to me that only first, second and third grade oranges are sold. The 1st and 2nd grade oranges are exported and the 3rd grade oranges are for the local market. 4th grade oranges, that are not sold to the juice companies, are often dumped for fodder or used for compost. These would be oranges that have marked skins. The fruit quality may be perfect but consumers buy with their eyes and so the fruit is unacceptable. Keith did the thing that all farmers do and that is to moan about the strength of the Rand. A stronger Rand means lower profits for farmers and he says that half the farms in Addo are up for sale.
At the Kudu Kaya we also saw the aqua-duct that the farmer uses to irrigate the trees. The children found this quite a good place to wet their feet. But the water temperature measures up to the name of the river. Keith described the irrigation system used by this farmer is that water is fed to the dam via this aqua-duct and then pumped up to a higher dam in the night when Eskom rates are about a third of daytime rates. The trees are then irrigated during the day, which is the best time for irrigation, using gravity.
From here we drove back to Patensie and took the 7kay detour to the Kouga (Paul Sauer) dam. This was my first visit to the dam. The construction of a dam such as this one is something to admire. Of concern to me was how empty the dam seems to be. There was a clear distinction between the present level and the maximum capacity. Perhaps expected September rains would make a difference. Here I used the last part of my video battery and we were soon on our way home. Herman drove our vehicle and I was quite happy to have a little snooze in the back seat. We were home by about 17.30 and soon unpacking and sorting things out.
The next morning I was up for my normal Monday morning MPRG run. Andy was back from his trip and told us some interesting facts about his trip. For example: Cairo is a city of over 22 Million people but the city has no traffic lights. He had been exploring the pyramids in temperatures of 37 Degrees and diving in water that most people find comfortable to bath in at 32 degrees C. Tim was back from Botswana but still enjoying his sleep. I struggled to get up and then to stay with the running group, as I was still very stiff from the trip & the walks.
Thanks again to Niel and Vanessa who put the whole trip together. Also thanks to all the rest of the group. It was a great get away.
Peter Giddy
15 August 2005.
Sunday, July 17, 2005
KNYSNA AND RHODES MARATHONS JULY 2005.
KNYSNA AND RHODES 2005 17 July 2005.
The past two weeks have been quite eventful. Firstly the Tour De France started at the beginning of July with all kinds of exciting days including Lance Armstrong taking an early lead in the team time trial. This year he is riding with Discovery Channel Team as opposed to the US Postal team that we have become used to. This was due to be his final attempt at TDF as he had won a record 6 times and this was his seventh attempt at winning. He continues to dominate the race, both in time trials and in the mountains. It will be interesting to see what happens in 2006. Also a good friend, Keith, from Johannesburg, SMS’d me to say that he had reached the top of the mountain that he had climbed in Russia. Keith had been with us on Kilimanjaro and he said that this latest climb was ten times more difficult. Then our daughter, Jacqui who lives in London, let us know that she will be having her first child in March 2006. This will be our 7th grandchild as Michael’s wife, Lene is pregnant and so is Nicci who also lives in London.
Graham Richards was in town on Sunday the first of July and we had a good training run around the Moffet circuit. I had been having a good run in sales at work. Stuart, Rianna, Suzanne and Tim had been at our home for supper on the Friday evening and I managed to persuade Stuart to go to Knysna with me, as I needed some company. Michael and Lene were going off to Kariega Park for the weekend having won a weekend for two at the luxury lodge including game drives etc. And Barbara and Cathy planned an “extreme makeover” of their home while they were away.
So it turned out that Stuart, Tim and I drove down to Knysna on the Friday afternoon the 8th July and after registration we dropped Tim off with his family and Stuart & I stayed with my mother who made us a delicious pasta supper. The next morning we collected Tim at 05.00 and drove through to Knysna with Stuart still not sure if he would run the half or the full. We found ourselves a perfect parking spot just a few hundred meters from the Loerie stadium. We walked up to where the taxis depart and were soon in a Venture taxi owned by a local driver. He collected a voucher at the start of his route and when he had dropped us off. For each trip he was to be paid R70 and he hoped to do as many as four trips. Stuart told us later that the taxi that he was in had an incident as they came across a feuding couple. They stopped to assist the woman who was being severely beaten up. Stuart separated the two much to the indignation of the husband who explained to Stuart that she was “my vrou” and that seemed to him to give him the right to give his wife a beating.
Once Tim and I got to the top where the race starts we came across Kosima from Achilles and then a number of other of the PE people as well as Graham. The 42 started on time at 07.00. At the start there were the traditional fires, soup, coffee and tea and plenty of noise from the announcer. It seemed that there were more entrants this year with nearly 950 marathoners and about 5 to 6 thousand 21’ers. This run starts with a long climb to about the 11kay mark, there is then a sharp descent of a few hundred meters after which there is more climbing to about the 15 kay marker. Tim was up front with Neil and Viv and I also saw Eckart and others who I decided to let go. I was running with Nicky from MPRG, Graham, Doc Louis and Tremaine. I also met up with Andy Weddal who now lives in Cape Town, Bennie Bezuidenhout (Grahamstown) and a variety of other nice people. Nicky joined up with Mary-Anne from Cape Town Villagers and left us with about 11 kays to go.
I made the mistake of charging down the steep descent and paid for it with sore legs for the rest of the run as well as after the event. Graham reminded me of the story of the young bull who is in the field with older and wiser bull. The Young bull says to the older bull “Look down there at those young heifers. Lets charge down there and “do” a couple of them”. The Older bull says in his wise voice “I suggest that we rather walk down slowly and “do” the whole lot of them”. Wise words but too late for myself who had already made the mistake that the young bull wanted to. Tim and others had gone ahead and we would not see them until we arrived at the finish.
The weather was perfect for running, there were all kinds of great and chatty people on the run and we had a lot of fun: Until the downhill after the Gouna Pump station. The Pump station hits the runner at the 14kay to go marker and thereafter there is a 3kay uphill to where the marathon meets the half. After a short while the long (very long) steep descent begins. This descent has now been paved with all the golfing estate development and continues for about 3kays to the bottom of the valley. A long downhill can be very taxing on tired legs and destroys joints, such as knees and hips, of the older generation such as myself. Then at the 8kay to go mark the road evens out and runners are able to steady themselves for an even pace to the finish.
Graham and I were running together at this stage and we trundled (Graham’s terminology) on to the N2 and then I seemed to get a bit of a second wind but by now we knew that we were in for one of our longest Knysna’s ever. The previous year we had managed well under 4.15 but now anticipated a 4.40. With about 2kay to go we had our photo taken together again but this year is was brightened by a 20year old girl from Bloemfontien, Udeliah, who is studying sports science. At this time I went on ahead for no other reason except to get the day over. This year there was no Paulette to beat at the finish. She had finished about an hour earlier so I saved myself the price of a chocolate.
At the end Stuart, who had wisely decided to do the 21kay, was waiting for us. He had fetched the tog bags out of the car. I had a shower and then we met Kobus and family in the tent to watch the Springboks get beaten by the Australians in the Mandela Cup something like 32 to 9. I left before the final whistle to join the Achillean tent for a cold drink. Bruce had done his normal, but well appreciated thing, of bringing the tent, the drinks and chairs. Once the match was over and we had recovered to some extent, I bought myself a Calamari lunch and we packed up for home. Stuart & I dropped Tim off in Plett again and then headed home.
During the following week I did no running at all and tried to recover from the aching muscles that the down hills of the Knysna had served up. But the TDF was in full swing and the mountain stages had begun so each evening was filled with anticipation for the day’s summary and final two hours of the stage. It was with a good deal of apprehension that I left for Rhodes the following Friday morning. Pat and Gerald had picked up Tim and Suzanne and then came to our house where we left at about 05.30 for Rhodes. We took the route past Grahamstown, Fort Beaufort, Queenstown, Elliot and Barklay East and then the final 70 kay of dirt road to Rhodes. This way is about 600kays and it took us about 9 hours including stops. On the way to Rhodes we stopped at my Cousin Dennis and Melanie Giddy who farm at Kelvin Grove. Here we enjoyed some traditional farming hospitality. An interesting thing that Dennis told us is how the farm labourers are able to herd cattle for up to 45 kays in a day, and all on foot. He says that the cattle walk at a pace of about 5kays an hour.
We arrived at “Die Pastorie” at about 14.30. We did a bit of walking and going to shops before registering for the event. The registration is quite a slow process as each entrant has to produce an identity document before being handed the race number and a “Buff”. A buff is a kind of scarf and bandanna that some of the runners use but Tim in particular uses frequently and looks quite dapper when wearing it. In the house this year were: Craig on his own as Sharon had been unable to accompany him, Mark with his son and friend Russell with his son as well. Then there was Andrew with girl friend Janice and his son Greg, there was Duane and Annetjie. Robin, Martin and Kommiene, Tim and Suzanne and finally our family. This made a total of 18 people. Quite a festive house. Gerald and Pat were in a house a little further down together with Doortjie and her family.
Preparations were made firstly for supper and then for the race the next morning. Suzanne had made a Macaroni cheese that lasted for only a few minutes. I think that Tim was shocked to see how much was consumed by so few so quickly. Stuart phoned in to wish us a good run. The sky was clear but snow was still expected in the village. Most of the house was asleep reasonably early. I was woken at about 10.00pm with a call from work to say that I had won a sales competition and would be starting the run considerably richer than I had anticipated. The next morning we began our bathroom preparations at about 06.00 and were ready for the compulsory photo shoot before walking the 2 mins walk to the start. The race started promptly at 07.00 with a comparatively warm temperature of minus 6 degrees. I had two long sleeved shirts, gloves and a beanie. My mouth and nose were freezing for the first few kays of the run but this does not last for long as the body adapts.
I think that it is at about the 8 kay mark after some long tiring hills (and plenty of walking) that we take a left turn in to the valley. This is always a very colourful event as the contrast between the brightly dressed runners is highlighted against the backdrop of the brown veld. We pass a number of farms including one belonging to Gerhard. He always has a massive fire going. The local farmers and their families are wonderful in the way they assist in seconding. At this stage we still had Doortjie with us and had also met up with the Old Selbournians from East London including young Andrea who used to train with the MPRG. Marietjie from Queenstown Harriers also passed us. Peter, who lives near Boston was there to do his 8th Rhodes. He tells me that he canoes 20 miles across a lake to work in Boston each day. I can believe this having experienced his company on our Kilimanjaro climb a few years ago. Once we got the start of the Kloof at 15kays they all left us and it was Gerald, Tim and I who were together for the next 5 kays to Mavis Bank.
During the Kloof stage I took off one layer and the beanie and gloves as the sun was becoming quite hot. I was feeling quite nauseous with the cold and thin air. I heard later that this was a common ailment over the first half of the run. Experience told me that this nausea would go once we began the descent from the highest point. The seconding table organised by the boys and girls from Priory was a welcome relief. I think that it is about an hour to an hour and a half from here to the top of Mavis. The final climb up Mavis Bank took us the normal half hour that we have come to expect. This includes five sit down stops to catch our breath (I could have said to admire the view). It was here that we first encountered snow this year. Finally we made it to the top of Mavis Bank in just over 3.30 hours. This is the 21kay mark and we now have 31 kays to go. I have found that if we can make the top by 10.30am we should be able to get to the finish in a little over 7.30hours.
Once at the top I made a few snowballs to throw at various people including Tim. Unfortunately I had picked up a half handful of dirt and so his snowball blackened his running vest. He retaliated a little later with a frosty one on my neck. At the top of Mavis Bank we had our traditional soup, Tea, Coffee, Potato and sandwiches. After a 10 min break we pressed on only to find Russell, Janice and children including Ally ready to take photos of the runners. They had driven up in Mark’s Landrover. This was a great surprise especially for myself as I was delighted to see Ally having such a great experience in the snow. Thank you Russell for including her. She had a great day. Here we were able to shed our excess clothing. A running vest was all that was necessary as the sun was hot and the reflection off the snow made for perfect weather.
We pressed on with a lot of walking at this stage. I know that Tim wanted to do more running as he seems to love the ups but I am not able to run up and only just manage a shuffle type run on the downs. Gerald was just behind us at this stage. This was his third Rhodes marathon and his Permanent Number Run so we decided to finish together. We got to the half way of the run at about 4.30 hours knowing that the front runners would be in the showers by now. But that did little to dampen our spirits as we met up with Bev from Fish Hoek and Karl from Hillcrest and were able to swap stories. Actually if the truth be told I did most of the talking. At last we came to the highest point where we again met Chris Sephton who is a distant relation of mine and who is there every year in the green Landrover bakkie to greet the runners and tell stories of the area. He pointed out the Lesotho border and where a landing strip was planned for the Tiffendel ski resort. Tim had stopped for a flapjack and we were soon on our way to the T-Junction of the road to Tiffendel. This is about the 28 kay mark and we had a good 24 to go. Gerald had by now accepted his fate that we would coax him to the finish.
It was about here that there was a man in front of me who threw away a cup on the side of the road. To me this was simply not on and I mentioned my disappointment to him. But this is a message that goes to all of us runners: We DO NOT have a licence to throw running rubbish (cups, sachets, corn syrup packets etc) onto the side of the road. Either we use the rubbish bins provided or we carry the offending item to the next watering station. Just think of the image that we give to others when they see the mess we leave behind us. And, no! it is not up to the seconders to pick up after us. Almost everyone who assists at races are volunteers. This is valid for all runs but especially for country runs where we are there to enjoy (not destroy) the wonder of nature.
We were helping ourselves to plenty of oranges, coke and water at every table. The day was a perfect one with little on no wind, bright sunshine but very dry air and I found myself becoming quite parched between tables. Later on we realised that we had become sunburned. Soon after this we had group photos taken again and now started “the walk to a point, run to a point” way of running. This seems to work for me anyway. And soon the Kay markers began to fall away at a reasonable rate. I seemed to suffer a “runny nose” throughout the run, Tim had another body misfunction that persisted. I will leave that to him to describe. I had to stop to empty my shoes and socks of dirt and sand as the soil had penetrated everything and was chaffing my feet. I saw others doing the same. This may have been due to the muddy road after the melting snow.
Finally we reached the steep descent part of the run. We took it fairly carefully on the downhill to the 41kay mark. From here we still had a number of hills to do but nothing as tough as we had already done. We saw Jessie Gush and were surprised that David Goldberg was not there but Jessie told us that he was injured and could not run this year. We heard later that Craig had fallen on the steep downhill section and I can imagine that such a fall could be quite nasty. By now I lost all of the nausea that I had been feeling. We were able to run fairly substantial sections of the route with short walks to catch our breath. And the kays kept on falling away.
At last we reached what Tim calls Govan Mbeki avenue (2 kays to go) where Barbara, Suzanne and Ally were waiting to greet us. I was in no mood for chitchat and pressed on to try to get this run over with. Ally joined us for the final kay and we finished together in 7.40. If I am correct this is about the same time as last year. I walked straight back to the house for a shower. But it took me quite a while before I could breathe normally and stopped shivering. I think that my lungs had taken a pounding. The soup that Mark offered was a great help and appreciated by all. Robin looked a bit like a Mongoose as his sunglasses had shaded his eyes from the sun and he had the appearance of a masked bandit. Later I realised that, while I was stiff and sore in my legs after Knysna, after Rhodes it was my tummy and solar plexus that was sore. I was hoarse for a while after the run. Craig, Robin & Duane had finished a long time ahead of us, Andrew followed soon after we got in and finally the hero of the day: Kommiene came in with Martin in 8.40. I think that she had had the toughest day of us all. Well done to her for completing her first Rhodes and only the second Achillean lady (after Heidi) to do so. I think that she is now motivated to be the first Achillean lady to get a permanent number.
The prize giving was at 17.45 and Duane, Andrew Laing and Gerald all received permanent numbers, having completed three of these events. Andrew was there with his son, Stuart. We next met up with Stuart in July 2009 when Andrew was again at Rhodes and we were hiking the Mountain Zebra trail. See Blog of 14.07.2009. Then came the warming up of the lasagna. Again the stove did not really work well, the fridge had frozen a number of items including the cucumber, lettuce and tomato but we finally were able to serve dinner and I think that we ate well. I was surprised, the next morning, to find that the third lasagna had not been touched during the night. During supper Graham phoned in to find out how the run had progressed. I gave him a brief run down and I think that he was quite envious and sorry that he was not there. I will not be surprised if he does not join us again in 2006.
It was not long after dinner that Barbara went off to bed with the excuse that she was “putting Ally down”. Some went for the swim and others stayed chatting in the lounge. I was trying to read the “Davinci Code” but battled to stay awake for more than a few minutes. The next morning we were packed and ready to go by 7.00am. Some of the group had left early in the morning before daylight. Gerald had a frozen windscreen and so had to defrost before he could leave. But we were all on our way by about 07.30. Ally of course gets prime spot in the car as she has a duvet, pillow and the whole of the back seat to sleep in.
On this trip we did a bit of mathematics as we tried to teach her the variation in temperature from Minus 6 degrees when we left Rhodes to 27 degrees when we got to PE. The Toyota has a temperature gauge on the dashboard. There was a berg wind blowing in PE this evening. Today we decided to go home (on advice from cousin Dennis) a different route and we took the road to Aliwal North (petrol and Pick’nPay), Steynsberg, Hofmeyer and Cradock (petrol and hamburgers) before heading home for the final (250kay) straight. Ally was in the back doing the navigations from the map that we had marked out. This route may seem a little longer, (about 650 kays I think) but cuts out the section between Grahamstown and Queenstown. Fortunately for us the roads were clear and, after a stop at Nanaga road stall, we arrived home at about 15.00 without incident.
A few thanks: To Evie Raubenheimer who puts in hours of personal time, cost and effort to organise this event. Evie, let it never be said that we take anything for granted. It is a thankless task that you have taken on but the runners who have ever organised an event, know what a sacrifice you make throughout the year. To Craig who set up the house and when I had a cash crisis in paying for the accommodation, was able to secure a loan for me at favourable rates. To Pat, Suzanne and Barbara and Ally who have supported us in our running the Rhodes marathon. And to our friends in the house as well as those we met on the road, who add so much to the whole atmosphere of the event.
Peter Giddy
17 July 2005.
The past two weeks have been quite eventful. Firstly the Tour De France started at the beginning of July with all kinds of exciting days including Lance Armstrong taking an early lead in the team time trial. This year he is riding with Discovery Channel Team as opposed to the US Postal team that we have become used to. This was due to be his final attempt at TDF as he had won a record 6 times and this was his seventh attempt at winning. He continues to dominate the race, both in time trials and in the mountains. It will be interesting to see what happens in 2006. Also a good friend, Keith, from Johannesburg, SMS’d me to say that he had reached the top of the mountain that he had climbed in Russia. Keith had been with us on Kilimanjaro and he said that this latest climb was ten times more difficult. Then our daughter, Jacqui who lives in London, let us know that she will be having her first child in March 2006. This will be our 7th grandchild as Michael’s wife, Lene is pregnant and so is Nicci who also lives in London.
Graham Richards was in town on Sunday the first of July and we had a good training run around the Moffet circuit. I had been having a good run in sales at work. Stuart, Rianna, Suzanne and Tim had been at our home for supper on the Friday evening and I managed to persuade Stuart to go to Knysna with me, as I needed some company. Michael and Lene were going off to Kariega Park for the weekend having won a weekend for two at the luxury lodge including game drives etc. And Barbara and Cathy planned an “extreme makeover” of their home while they were away.
So it turned out that Stuart, Tim and I drove down to Knysna on the Friday afternoon the 8th July and after registration we dropped Tim off with his family and Stuart & I stayed with my mother who made us a delicious pasta supper. The next morning we collected Tim at 05.00 and drove through to Knysna with Stuart still not sure if he would run the half or the full. We found ourselves a perfect parking spot just a few hundred meters from the Loerie stadium. We walked up to where the taxis depart and were soon in a Venture taxi owned by a local driver. He collected a voucher at the start of his route and when he had dropped us off. For each trip he was to be paid R70 and he hoped to do as many as four trips. Stuart told us later that the taxi that he was in had an incident as they came across a feuding couple. They stopped to assist the woman who was being severely beaten up. Stuart separated the two much to the indignation of the husband who explained to Stuart that she was “my vrou” and that seemed to him to give him the right to give his wife a beating.
Once Tim and I got to the top where the race starts we came across Kosima from Achilles and then a number of other of the PE people as well as Graham. The 42 started on time at 07.00. At the start there were the traditional fires, soup, coffee and tea and plenty of noise from the announcer. It seemed that there were more entrants this year with nearly 950 marathoners and about 5 to 6 thousand 21’ers. This run starts with a long climb to about the 11kay mark, there is then a sharp descent of a few hundred meters after which there is more climbing to about the 15 kay marker. Tim was up front with Neil and Viv and I also saw Eckart and others who I decided to let go. I was running with Nicky from MPRG, Graham, Doc Louis and Tremaine. I also met up with Andy Weddal who now lives in Cape Town, Bennie Bezuidenhout (Grahamstown) and a variety of other nice people. Nicky joined up with Mary-Anne from Cape Town Villagers and left us with about 11 kays to go.
I made the mistake of charging down the steep descent and paid for it with sore legs for the rest of the run as well as after the event. Graham reminded me of the story of the young bull who is in the field with older and wiser bull. The Young bull says to the older bull “Look down there at those young heifers. Lets charge down there and “do” a couple of them”. The Older bull says in his wise voice “I suggest that we rather walk down slowly and “do” the whole lot of them”. Wise words but too late for myself who had already made the mistake that the young bull wanted to. Tim and others had gone ahead and we would not see them until we arrived at the finish.
The weather was perfect for running, there were all kinds of great and chatty people on the run and we had a lot of fun: Until the downhill after the Gouna Pump station. The Pump station hits the runner at the 14kay to go marker and thereafter there is a 3kay uphill to where the marathon meets the half. After a short while the long (very long) steep descent begins. This descent has now been paved with all the golfing estate development and continues for about 3kays to the bottom of the valley. A long downhill can be very taxing on tired legs and destroys joints, such as knees and hips, of the older generation such as myself. Then at the 8kay to go mark the road evens out and runners are able to steady themselves for an even pace to the finish.
Graham and I were running together at this stage and we trundled (Graham’s terminology) on to the N2 and then I seemed to get a bit of a second wind but by now we knew that we were in for one of our longest Knysna’s ever. The previous year we had managed well under 4.15 but now anticipated a 4.40. With about 2kay to go we had our photo taken together again but this year is was brightened by a 20year old girl from Bloemfontien, Udeliah, who is studying sports science. At this time I went on ahead for no other reason except to get the day over. This year there was no Paulette to beat at the finish. She had finished about an hour earlier so I saved myself the price of a chocolate.
At the end Stuart, who had wisely decided to do the 21kay, was waiting for us. He had fetched the tog bags out of the car. I had a shower and then we met Kobus and family in the tent to watch the Springboks get beaten by the Australians in the Mandela Cup something like 32 to 9. I left before the final whistle to join the Achillean tent for a cold drink. Bruce had done his normal, but well appreciated thing, of bringing the tent, the drinks and chairs. Once the match was over and we had recovered to some extent, I bought myself a Calamari lunch and we packed up for home. Stuart & I dropped Tim off in Plett again and then headed home.
During the following week I did no running at all and tried to recover from the aching muscles that the down hills of the Knysna had served up. But the TDF was in full swing and the mountain stages had begun so each evening was filled with anticipation for the day’s summary and final two hours of the stage. It was with a good deal of apprehension that I left for Rhodes the following Friday morning. Pat and Gerald had picked up Tim and Suzanne and then came to our house where we left at about 05.30 for Rhodes. We took the route past Grahamstown, Fort Beaufort, Queenstown, Elliot and Barklay East and then the final 70 kay of dirt road to Rhodes. This way is about 600kays and it took us about 9 hours including stops. On the way to Rhodes we stopped at my Cousin Dennis and Melanie Giddy who farm at Kelvin Grove. Here we enjoyed some traditional farming hospitality. An interesting thing that Dennis told us is how the farm labourers are able to herd cattle for up to 45 kays in a day, and all on foot. He says that the cattle walk at a pace of about 5kays an hour.
We arrived at “Die Pastorie” at about 14.30. We did a bit of walking and going to shops before registering for the event. The registration is quite a slow process as each entrant has to produce an identity document before being handed the race number and a “Buff”. A buff is a kind of scarf and bandanna that some of the runners use but Tim in particular uses frequently and looks quite dapper when wearing it. In the house this year were: Craig on his own as Sharon had been unable to accompany him, Mark with his son and friend Russell with his son as well. Then there was Andrew with girl friend Janice and his son Greg, there was Duane and Annetjie. Robin, Martin and Kommiene, Tim and Suzanne and finally our family. This made a total of 18 people. Quite a festive house. Gerald and Pat were in a house a little further down together with Doortjie and her family.
Preparations were made firstly for supper and then for the race the next morning. Suzanne had made a Macaroni cheese that lasted for only a few minutes. I think that Tim was shocked to see how much was consumed by so few so quickly. Stuart phoned in to wish us a good run. The sky was clear but snow was still expected in the village. Most of the house was asleep reasonably early. I was woken at about 10.00pm with a call from work to say that I had won a sales competition and would be starting the run considerably richer than I had anticipated. The next morning we began our bathroom preparations at about 06.00 and were ready for the compulsory photo shoot before walking the 2 mins walk to the start. The race started promptly at 07.00 with a comparatively warm temperature of minus 6 degrees. I had two long sleeved shirts, gloves and a beanie. My mouth and nose were freezing for the first few kays of the run but this does not last for long as the body adapts.
I think that it is at about the 8 kay mark after some long tiring hills (and plenty of walking) that we take a left turn in to the valley. This is always a very colourful event as the contrast between the brightly dressed runners is highlighted against the backdrop of the brown veld. We pass a number of farms including one belonging to Gerhard. He always has a massive fire going. The local farmers and their families are wonderful in the way they assist in seconding. At this stage we still had Doortjie with us and had also met up with the Old Selbournians from East London including young Andrea who used to train with the MPRG. Marietjie from Queenstown Harriers also passed us. Peter, who lives near Boston was there to do his 8th Rhodes. He tells me that he canoes 20 miles across a lake to work in Boston each day. I can believe this having experienced his company on our Kilimanjaro climb a few years ago. Once we got the start of the Kloof at 15kays they all left us and it was Gerald, Tim and I who were together for the next 5 kays to Mavis Bank.
During the Kloof stage I took off one layer and the beanie and gloves as the sun was becoming quite hot. I was feeling quite nauseous with the cold and thin air. I heard later that this was a common ailment over the first half of the run. Experience told me that this nausea would go once we began the descent from the highest point. The seconding table organised by the boys and girls from Priory was a welcome relief. I think that it is about an hour to an hour and a half from here to the top of Mavis. The final climb up Mavis Bank took us the normal half hour that we have come to expect. This includes five sit down stops to catch our breath (I could have said to admire the view). It was here that we first encountered snow this year. Finally we made it to the top of Mavis Bank in just over 3.30 hours. This is the 21kay mark and we now have 31 kays to go. I have found that if we can make the top by 10.30am we should be able to get to the finish in a little over 7.30hours.
Once at the top I made a few snowballs to throw at various people including Tim. Unfortunately I had picked up a half handful of dirt and so his snowball blackened his running vest. He retaliated a little later with a frosty one on my neck. At the top of Mavis Bank we had our traditional soup, Tea, Coffee, Potato and sandwiches. After a 10 min break we pressed on only to find Russell, Janice and children including Ally ready to take photos of the runners. They had driven up in Mark’s Landrover. This was a great surprise especially for myself as I was delighted to see Ally having such a great experience in the snow. Thank you Russell for including her. She had a great day. Here we were able to shed our excess clothing. A running vest was all that was necessary as the sun was hot and the reflection off the snow made for perfect weather.
We pressed on with a lot of walking at this stage. I know that Tim wanted to do more running as he seems to love the ups but I am not able to run up and only just manage a shuffle type run on the downs. Gerald was just behind us at this stage. This was his third Rhodes marathon and his Permanent Number Run so we decided to finish together. We got to the half way of the run at about 4.30 hours knowing that the front runners would be in the showers by now. But that did little to dampen our spirits as we met up with Bev from Fish Hoek and Karl from Hillcrest and were able to swap stories. Actually if the truth be told I did most of the talking. At last we came to the highest point where we again met Chris Sephton who is a distant relation of mine and who is there every year in the green Landrover bakkie to greet the runners and tell stories of the area. He pointed out the Lesotho border and where a landing strip was planned for the Tiffendel ski resort. Tim had stopped for a flapjack and we were soon on our way to the T-Junction of the road to Tiffendel. This is about the 28 kay mark and we had a good 24 to go. Gerald had by now accepted his fate that we would coax him to the finish.
It was about here that there was a man in front of me who threw away a cup on the side of the road. To me this was simply not on and I mentioned my disappointment to him. But this is a message that goes to all of us runners: We DO NOT have a licence to throw running rubbish (cups, sachets, corn syrup packets etc) onto the side of the road. Either we use the rubbish bins provided or we carry the offending item to the next watering station. Just think of the image that we give to others when they see the mess we leave behind us. And, no! it is not up to the seconders to pick up after us. Almost everyone who assists at races are volunteers. This is valid for all runs but especially for country runs where we are there to enjoy (not destroy) the wonder of nature.
We were helping ourselves to plenty of oranges, coke and water at every table. The day was a perfect one with little on no wind, bright sunshine but very dry air and I found myself becoming quite parched between tables. Later on we realised that we had become sunburned. Soon after this we had group photos taken again and now started “the walk to a point, run to a point” way of running. This seems to work for me anyway. And soon the Kay markers began to fall away at a reasonable rate. I seemed to suffer a “runny nose” throughout the run, Tim had another body misfunction that persisted. I will leave that to him to describe. I had to stop to empty my shoes and socks of dirt and sand as the soil had penetrated everything and was chaffing my feet. I saw others doing the same. This may have been due to the muddy road after the melting snow.
Finally we reached the steep descent part of the run. We took it fairly carefully on the downhill to the 41kay mark. From here we still had a number of hills to do but nothing as tough as we had already done. We saw Jessie Gush and were surprised that David Goldberg was not there but Jessie told us that he was injured and could not run this year. We heard later that Craig had fallen on the steep downhill section and I can imagine that such a fall could be quite nasty. By now I lost all of the nausea that I had been feeling. We were able to run fairly substantial sections of the route with short walks to catch our breath. And the kays kept on falling away.
At last we reached what Tim calls Govan Mbeki avenue (2 kays to go) where Barbara, Suzanne and Ally were waiting to greet us. I was in no mood for chitchat and pressed on to try to get this run over with. Ally joined us for the final kay and we finished together in 7.40. If I am correct this is about the same time as last year. I walked straight back to the house for a shower. But it took me quite a while before I could breathe normally and stopped shivering. I think that my lungs had taken a pounding. The soup that Mark offered was a great help and appreciated by all. Robin looked a bit like a Mongoose as his sunglasses had shaded his eyes from the sun and he had the appearance of a masked bandit. Later I realised that, while I was stiff and sore in my legs after Knysna, after Rhodes it was my tummy and solar plexus that was sore. I was hoarse for a while after the run. Craig, Robin & Duane had finished a long time ahead of us, Andrew followed soon after we got in and finally the hero of the day: Kommiene came in with Martin in 8.40. I think that she had had the toughest day of us all. Well done to her for completing her first Rhodes and only the second Achillean lady (after Heidi) to do so. I think that she is now motivated to be the first Achillean lady to get a permanent number.
The prize giving was at 17.45 and Duane, Andrew Laing and Gerald all received permanent numbers, having completed three of these events. Andrew was there with his son, Stuart. We next met up with Stuart in July 2009 when Andrew was again at Rhodes and we were hiking the Mountain Zebra trail. See Blog of 14.07.2009. Then came the warming up of the lasagna. Again the stove did not really work well, the fridge had frozen a number of items including the cucumber, lettuce and tomato but we finally were able to serve dinner and I think that we ate well. I was surprised, the next morning, to find that the third lasagna had not been touched during the night. During supper Graham phoned in to find out how the run had progressed. I gave him a brief run down and I think that he was quite envious and sorry that he was not there. I will not be surprised if he does not join us again in 2006.
It was not long after dinner that Barbara went off to bed with the excuse that she was “putting Ally down”. Some went for the swim and others stayed chatting in the lounge. I was trying to read the “Davinci Code” but battled to stay awake for more than a few minutes. The next morning we were packed and ready to go by 7.00am. Some of the group had left early in the morning before daylight. Gerald had a frozen windscreen and so had to defrost before he could leave. But we were all on our way by about 07.30. Ally of course gets prime spot in the car as she has a duvet, pillow and the whole of the back seat to sleep in.
On this trip we did a bit of mathematics as we tried to teach her the variation in temperature from Minus 6 degrees when we left Rhodes to 27 degrees when we got to PE. The Toyota has a temperature gauge on the dashboard. There was a berg wind blowing in PE this evening. Today we decided to go home (on advice from cousin Dennis) a different route and we took the road to Aliwal North (petrol and Pick’nPay), Steynsberg, Hofmeyer and Cradock (petrol and hamburgers) before heading home for the final (250kay) straight. Ally was in the back doing the navigations from the map that we had marked out. This route may seem a little longer, (about 650 kays I think) but cuts out the section between Grahamstown and Queenstown. Fortunately for us the roads were clear and, after a stop at Nanaga road stall, we arrived home at about 15.00 without incident.
A few thanks: To Evie Raubenheimer who puts in hours of personal time, cost and effort to organise this event. Evie, let it never be said that we take anything for granted. It is a thankless task that you have taken on but the runners who have ever organised an event, know what a sacrifice you make throughout the year. To Craig who set up the house and when I had a cash crisis in paying for the accommodation, was able to secure a loan for me at favourable rates. To Pat, Suzanne and Barbara and Ally who have supported us in our running the Rhodes marathon. And to our friends in the house as well as those we met on the road, who add so much to the whole atmosphere of the event.
Peter Giddy
17 July 2005.
Friday, June 17, 2005
HARKERVILLE HIKING TRAIL 17 JUNE 2005.
HARKERVILLE TRAIL 17th JUNE 2005
Some time ago Mike Perks had spoken to me about this trail but at that stage they had planned to do the trail from the Diepvalle hut to the Fisanthoek hut and then the Harkerville. This did not suite us as we had done this section before and had not really enjoyed the first two days.
So it happened that Mike was to be away doing some training in the Magalliesberg and so he would only be available for the hike from Friday afternoon. And with this in mind Barbie had changed the booking to only include the Harkerville and the Sinclair huts. But it was only at the last minute that she thought to contact us again. So when we decided to do the hike we had not prepared ourselves as we normally do.
On Friday afternoon I took the afternoon off and we left home at about 14.30. The drive to Plett was broken by two fairly long stops for road construction but was made interesting by Barbara reading to me from the book by Richard Pelzer who had been part of the David Pelzer family and who had been so severely abused as a child. We did not do our normal stop at Storms River, as we wanted to visit Ena in Plett as well as getting to the Harkerville hut reasonably early before dark.
Ena (Peter’s Mother) was expecting us and was also preparing for her birthday party on the 29th as she had invited about 30 guests. Ena seemed to be in fairly good health and had overcome the setbacks of a few falls that she had had recently. This was to be her 89th birthday and so we were very happy to see her looking and sounding so cheerful. We did not stay for tea and were soon on our way to Harkerville which is just 15kays further on the way to Knysna.
We reached Harkerville just before dark and found Louise and Allan there. Barbie, son Andrew, friend Mark and Mike’s sister Mandy (from East London) arrived as we did. Andrew and Mark (A&M) soon got stuck into the wood chopping business and we decided that the Braai was to be held in the kitchen of the hut. This hut is quite a luxury hut as there is electric lights, many rooms, a separate kitchen area, two flush loos and warm showers. We had plenty to eat but Barbara soon realised that although we had plenty to eat we were poorly prepared for the hike poorly and had little in the way of pasta or potato. We made up by going to the nearby filling station to buy a few extra goodies like ice cream and chocolates. Mike and Nigel were due to leave PE at about 19.00 and were expected at the hut after 21.00. Barbara and I were pretty exhausted and were in bed before they arrived. Our intention was to read but within minutes we were in dreamland.
The next morning (Saturday 18th June 2005.) we were up early and I had a shower and was delighted to find that they had those showers with a heating type nozzle that took the chill off the water. That morning there seemed to be a Berg Wind and while we expected a chilly morning we were pleasantly surprised to be able to start the hike with overcast but mild weather. This day is a 15kay hike with the first ten or 11 kays being in the forest and really easy going with no severe ups or downs. Enjoy this while you can because here comes the tough part of the hike! Just after the 10-kay mark the trail starts a steep descent. At the top we stopped for a breather and snack and then made our way down the step ladders and trail which included some difficult rock scrambling. We were soon down on the beach. I refer to this area as the beach but all the beaches along this stretch of coast consist of rocks and pebbles which are tough on the feet and legs.
Once down to the beach area we were soon treated to our first set of chains. For me this is a really scary section as the air was damp, there had been some drizzle and the spray of the waves made everything damp and slippery. To add to the toughness of the section it seemed that the wind decided to blow just as we were on these chains. What the hiker has to do is hang onto slippery chains which your hands, try to find footholds on the wet, slippery and sheer rocks with your boots and try your best to not fall to certain death on the rocks below. All this, while carrying the backpack that you have so carefully packed to be as light as possible but still tries its very best to unbalance you. Next time I must remember this section and perhaps I will not bring so many beers, snacks and the camera bag.
I remember thinking that we had done 11 kays in about three hours having left the hut at about 08.00 and reached the beach at just after 11.00 so we now only had just over 4kays to go. Well from here on the rock climbing over a variety of obstacles takes the hiker over an hour for every kay. The going is very tough and should not be taken lightly. I say again – this is a tough hike! It is not for someone who suffers a fear of heights like me. Nor is it for those who are unfit or who have had health problems like Barbara and most of the rest of the adults on the hike. I recommend a good pair of boots as the rocks are hard on the feet. A & M walked in running shoes but I was glad to have boots.
We finally reached the bottom of what I call the Zorro hill at about 15.00. Fortunately for us we found a stream at the base of this hill where we were able to refill our water bottles. This should be a reminder to hikers tackling this trail to carry extra water. On a hot day dehydration can sap the body of fluid and there may not be any water on the trail despite the fact that the map indicates that there is water to be found. We began our climb up the Zorro hill knowing that once at the top it could not be much further to the hut. But still the climb is tough and Allan was totally exhausted, Barbara had been suffering from blood pressure problems recently and all of us were weary from a long days walk which had included about four hours of scrambling over rocks to cover a mere three kays.
The Zorro hill needed all our reserves and energy of which we had little left. Mike and boys went up ahead and then Mike was able to come back down to assist Barbie with her pack. I was also able to give Barbara some help, as she seemed to be struggling with the heat and the climb. However it was not too long and we reached the top and wound our way through the tall fynbos to the hut, which is situated in a ring of gum trees. What a relief it was to be able to take off the heavy boots, the packs and now I was glad that I had suffered the weight of four cans of Hunters Cider.
This evening I felt a little embarrassed as I relaxed while A & M did all the wood chopping for the second evening in a row. Mike reminded me of a story where painting of a fence was made to be fun! We very soon had a fire going and water boiling. Nigel was concerned that the water tank was not full but the comment of a previous hiker was confirmed: “There is more rain here in a day than there is in a whole year in Namibia!” The tank contained thousands of liters of water and was full. So even though we used the water sparingly we were able to wash, cook and drink as much as we wished.
Barbara & I had leftovers from the previous evening for our supper: Delicious fillet steak rolls as well as our snacks but when Barbie offered us her stew that she had prepared and frozen we were only too happy to accept and ate with relish. It was at about this time that Barbara learnt that her Auntie Ilva (from Grahamstown) had died that afternoon. This was sad news but Barbara & I had been there a few weeks earlier when we went to Grahamstown to watch Grey play St Andrews at Rugby and were able to pay Ilva a visit. Exhausted and feeling a little sad Barbara was in bed really early. I was able to stay with the group a little longer and was treated to some of the traditional Perks pudding that I had enjoyed some months earlier when Kloofing with Mike. By now the group was bonding somewhat and we started to get to know each other just that little bit better. But despite that mellow atmosphere, the conversation and good company I kept hearing the distinctive call of bed -– Peter, Peter! —And so responded by slipping into the sleeping bag soon after 21.00. I had a good but fitful sleep and was glad to be able to rise at about 06.15. Sunrise was at about 07.00.
Sunday morning. Fathers Day! Mmmmm, Not sure what the significance of that was but I was not treated to coffee in bed. We wanted to make an early start today as the distance was 12kays and estimated time was 7 hours. I made us coffee and seemed to be packed and reasonably ready to go quite early but as it turned out we left at 08.00. A variety of breakfasts were enjoyed from cooked oats, instant cereal, coffee and rusks and a little fruit.
The trail on this day starts with an easy two-kay walk through the fynbos before a sharp descent takes the hiker down to the beach again. By now all the aches, pains, stiff legs, sore backs and feet start to manifest themselves. We were lucky that it was low tide and so the set of chain ladders and chains that had to be negotiated could be avoided. But not for A & M; they had to do it the hard way and even made poor Mike do the same just so they could be photographed. We pressed on. But more of the tough rock climbing that we had had the previous day was to come.
And it was extremely slow going. Up and down the outcrops of rock, climbing around sheer rock-faces and regrouping takes a great deal of time. We came to the Hole-in-the-wall that I had been expecting. Then there were the ladders both vertical and horizontal that makes the hike one of the really tough hikes of the area. Finally when we seemed to be becoming really exhausted we saw that it was not too long before the ascent to the Kranshoek viewpoint would be reached. Mike had decided to go on ahead with A & M so that he could leave Mark at the top while he and Andy jogged on to the Harkerville hut, fetch the car and then drive back to collect Barbie and others. The rest of us climbed the steep trail up and I was lucky enough to strike up conversation with a few local fishermen who had their bakkie parked at the top of the Kranshoek viewpoint.
It had taken us over four hours to reach this far and when they offered us a lift and it was not long before Barbara, Nigel and I were heading back to the hut where our cars were parked. We were cheating! But a slog through the forest roads and pathways did not seem that exciting. We found Mike and Andy almost at the hut and they joined us on the back of the bakkie. After that Mike and Nigel drove back to collect the rest of the group while Barbara & I headed for home.
Just before we reached Plett we came across an accident which reminded us of the danger of speed and so the rest of the drive was a comfortable one with a stop at the Storms River Bridge for hot chocolate and a snack. And with the advantage of the bakkie ride we were able to be home by soon after 15.00. The drive from Kranshoek to the Harkerville hut probably saved us three hours of hiking. We were not sorry as Ally had a project to do and also had an array of Fathers Day cards and a new jersey to give me. These were well received. Thank you Alli and Cathy.
So that was our Harkerville Hike. Thanks to Mike, Barbie and the rest of the gang for having us along and for the great support and companionship. I have a copy of the video that I took of us doing the hike. It does not do justice to the rigours of the hike but is a reminder of some of the difficult parts of the hike. I know that Mike has a vast array of photographs that he took with the digital camera that he had along.
Peter Giddy
On this hike with us were:
Mike, Barbie and Andrew Perks
Andrew’s friend Mark.
Mike’s Friend Nigel
Louise and her friend Allan
Mike’s sister Mandy from East London.
Some time ago Mike Perks had spoken to me about this trail but at that stage they had planned to do the trail from the Diepvalle hut to the Fisanthoek hut and then the Harkerville. This did not suite us as we had done this section before and had not really enjoyed the first two days.
So it happened that Mike was to be away doing some training in the Magalliesberg and so he would only be available for the hike from Friday afternoon. And with this in mind Barbie had changed the booking to only include the Harkerville and the Sinclair huts. But it was only at the last minute that she thought to contact us again. So when we decided to do the hike we had not prepared ourselves as we normally do.
On Friday afternoon I took the afternoon off and we left home at about 14.30. The drive to Plett was broken by two fairly long stops for road construction but was made interesting by Barbara reading to me from the book by Richard Pelzer who had been part of the David Pelzer family and who had been so severely abused as a child. We did not do our normal stop at Storms River, as we wanted to visit Ena in Plett as well as getting to the Harkerville hut reasonably early before dark.
Ena (Peter’s Mother) was expecting us and was also preparing for her birthday party on the 29th as she had invited about 30 guests. Ena seemed to be in fairly good health and had overcome the setbacks of a few falls that she had had recently. This was to be her 89th birthday and so we were very happy to see her looking and sounding so cheerful. We did not stay for tea and were soon on our way to Harkerville which is just 15kays further on the way to Knysna.
We reached Harkerville just before dark and found Louise and Allan there. Barbie, son Andrew, friend Mark and Mike’s sister Mandy (from East London) arrived as we did. Andrew and Mark (A&M) soon got stuck into the wood chopping business and we decided that the Braai was to be held in the kitchen of the hut. This hut is quite a luxury hut as there is electric lights, many rooms, a separate kitchen area, two flush loos and warm showers. We had plenty to eat but Barbara soon realised that although we had plenty to eat we were poorly prepared for the hike poorly and had little in the way of pasta or potato. We made up by going to the nearby filling station to buy a few extra goodies like ice cream and chocolates. Mike and Nigel were due to leave PE at about 19.00 and were expected at the hut after 21.00. Barbara and I were pretty exhausted and were in bed before they arrived. Our intention was to read but within minutes we were in dreamland.
The next morning (Saturday 18th June 2005.) we were up early and I had a shower and was delighted to find that they had those showers with a heating type nozzle that took the chill off the water. That morning there seemed to be a Berg Wind and while we expected a chilly morning we were pleasantly surprised to be able to start the hike with overcast but mild weather. This day is a 15kay hike with the first ten or 11 kays being in the forest and really easy going with no severe ups or downs. Enjoy this while you can because here comes the tough part of the hike! Just after the 10-kay mark the trail starts a steep descent. At the top we stopped for a breather and snack and then made our way down the step ladders and trail which included some difficult rock scrambling. We were soon down on the beach. I refer to this area as the beach but all the beaches along this stretch of coast consist of rocks and pebbles which are tough on the feet and legs.
Once down to the beach area we were soon treated to our first set of chains. For me this is a really scary section as the air was damp, there had been some drizzle and the spray of the waves made everything damp and slippery. To add to the toughness of the section it seemed that the wind decided to blow just as we were on these chains. What the hiker has to do is hang onto slippery chains which your hands, try to find footholds on the wet, slippery and sheer rocks with your boots and try your best to not fall to certain death on the rocks below. All this, while carrying the backpack that you have so carefully packed to be as light as possible but still tries its very best to unbalance you. Next time I must remember this section and perhaps I will not bring so many beers, snacks and the camera bag.
I remember thinking that we had done 11 kays in about three hours having left the hut at about 08.00 and reached the beach at just after 11.00 so we now only had just over 4kays to go. Well from here on the rock climbing over a variety of obstacles takes the hiker over an hour for every kay. The going is very tough and should not be taken lightly. I say again – this is a tough hike! It is not for someone who suffers a fear of heights like me. Nor is it for those who are unfit or who have had health problems like Barbara and most of the rest of the adults on the hike. I recommend a good pair of boots as the rocks are hard on the feet. A & M walked in running shoes but I was glad to have boots.
We finally reached the bottom of what I call the Zorro hill at about 15.00. Fortunately for us we found a stream at the base of this hill where we were able to refill our water bottles. This should be a reminder to hikers tackling this trail to carry extra water. On a hot day dehydration can sap the body of fluid and there may not be any water on the trail despite the fact that the map indicates that there is water to be found. We began our climb up the Zorro hill knowing that once at the top it could not be much further to the hut. But still the climb is tough and Allan was totally exhausted, Barbara had been suffering from blood pressure problems recently and all of us were weary from a long days walk which had included about four hours of scrambling over rocks to cover a mere three kays.
The Zorro hill needed all our reserves and energy of which we had little left. Mike and boys went up ahead and then Mike was able to come back down to assist Barbie with her pack. I was also able to give Barbara some help, as she seemed to be struggling with the heat and the climb. However it was not too long and we reached the top and wound our way through the tall fynbos to the hut, which is situated in a ring of gum trees. What a relief it was to be able to take off the heavy boots, the packs and now I was glad that I had suffered the weight of four cans of Hunters Cider.
This evening I felt a little embarrassed as I relaxed while A & M did all the wood chopping for the second evening in a row. Mike reminded me of a story where painting of a fence was made to be fun! We very soon had a fire going and water boiling. Nigel was concerned that the water tank was not full but the comment of a previous hiker was confirmed: “There is more rain here in a day than there is in a whole year in Namibia!” The tank contained thousands of liters of water and was full. So even though we used the water sparingly we were able to wash, cook and drink as much as we wished.
Barbara & I had leftovers from the previous evening for our supper: Delicious fillet steak rolls as well as our snacks but when Barbie offered us her stew that she had prepared and frozen we were only too happy to accept and ate with relish. It was at about this time that Barbara learnt that her Auntie Ilva (from Grahamstown) had died that afternoon. This was sad news but Barbara & I had been there a few weeks earlier when we went to Grahamstown to watch Grey play St Andrews at Rugby and were able to pay Ilva a visit. Exhausted and feeling a little sad Barbara was in bed really early. I was able to stay with the group a little longer and was treated to some of the traditional Perks pudding that I had enjoyed some months earlier when Kloofing with Mike. By now the group was bonding somewhat and we started to get to know each other just that little bit better. But despite that mellow atmosphere, the conversation and good company I kept hearing the distinctive call of bed -– Peter, Peter! —And so responded by slipping into the sleeping bag soon after 21.00. I had a good but fitful sleep and was glad to be able to rise at about 06.15. Sunrise was at about 07.00.
Sunday morning. Fathers Day! Mmmmm, Not sure what the significance of that was but I was not treated to coffee in bed. We wanted to make an early start today as the distance was 12kays and estimated time was 7 hours. I made us coffee and seemed to be packed and reasonably ready to go quite early but as it turned out we left at 08.00. A variety of breakfasts were enjoyed from cooked oats, instant cereal, coffee and rusks and a little fruit.
The trail on this day starts with an easy two-kay walk through the fynbos before a sharp descent takes the hiker down to the beach again. By now all the aches, pains, stiff legs, sore backs and feet start to manifest themselves. We were lucky that it was low tide and so the set of chain ladders and chains that had to be negotiated could be avoided. But not for A & M; they had to do it the hard way and even made poor Mike do the same just so they could be photographed. We pressed on. But more of the tough rock climbing that we had had the previous day was to come.
And it was extremely slow going. Up and down the outcrops of rock, climbing around sheer rock-faces and regrouping takes a great deal of time. We came to the Hole-in-the-wall that I had been expecting. Then there were the ladders both vertical and horizontal that makes the hike one of the really tough hikes of the area. Finally when we seemed to be becoming really exhausted we saw that it was not too long before the ascent to the Kranshoek viewpoint would be reached. Mike had decided to go on ahead with A & M so that he could leave Mark at the top while he and Andy jogged on to the Harkerville hut, fetch the car and then drive back to collect Barbie and others. The rest of us climbed the steep trail up and I was lucky enough to strike up conversation with a few local fishermen who had their bakkie parked at the top of the Kranshoek viewpoint.
It had taken us over four hours to reach this far and when they offered us a lift and it was not long before Barbara, Nigel and I were heading back to the hut where our cars were parked. We were cheating! But a slog through the forest roads and pathways did not seem that exciting. We found Mike and Andy almost at the hut and they joined us on the back of the bakkie. After that Mike and Nigel drove back to collect the rest of the group while Barbara & I headed for home.
Just before we reached Plett we came across an accident which reminded us of the danger of speed and so the rest of the drive was a comfortable one with a stop at the Storms River Bridge for hot chocolate and a snack. And with the advantage of the bakkie ride we were able to be home by soon after 15.00. The drive from Kranshoek to the Harkerville hut probably saved us three hours of hiking. We were not sorry as Ally had a project to do and also had an array of Fathers Day cards and a new jersey to give me. These were well received. Thank you Alli and Cathy.
So that was our Harkerville Hike. Thanks to Mike, Barbie and the rest of the gang for having us along and for the great support and companionship. I have a copy of the video that I took of us doing the hike. It does not do justice to the rigours of the hike but is a reminder of some of the difficult parts of the hike. I know that Mike has a vast array of photographs that he took with the digital camera that he had along.
Peter Giddy
On this hike with us were:
Mike, Barbie and Andrew Perks
Andrew’s friend Mark.
Mike’s Friend Nigel
Louise and her friend Allan
Mike’s sister Mandy from East London.
Monday, May 30, 2005
KLOOFING IN THE YS RIVIER IN THE BAVIAANS KLOOF MAY 2005
KLOOFING IN THE BAVIAANS KLOOF APRIL 2005.
About ten years ago my daughters, Nicci and Jacqui had gone off early one morning with some friends and had returned late that night with tales of how they had spent the day hiking and then coming back through the river. Nicci reminded me later of how it was that she had done this in one day with a group of friends and then a second time with Jacqui and Shane. Jacqui had spilt hot chocolate on Shane’s foot so he had done the days hike with a burnt foot and no wet suite. The poor man was completely hypothermic by the time they ended the hike that night.
Since then I have yearned for the experience but never come into contact with anyone who would organise that sort of trip. Then two years ago I was jogging with Mike Perks in Grahamstown at a Men’s Retreat and he told me that Kloofing was one of the things that he loved to do. I then made him promise that he would one day include me in such a trip. Eventually he set the date for the weekend of the 9th of Aril 2005. Kloofing is a form of hiking where the first section of the hike is the climb up the mountains and valleys to a point on a river and the second section is following the river back down to where you started from.
I then persuaded Tim Gendall and Neil Langner to join us. Mike arranged that Peter Bond would make up the 5th member of the team. I was very excited about this trip as it was something completely unknown and packed my backpack a week before the hike. It looked like it might rain so I borrowed a few mattress plastics from the shop. On Friday Barbara had arranged to meet Dawn and Gail in Port Alfred where they stayed in a cottage, had dinner and did plenty of chatting. Ally had a busy schedule with a Friday afternoon party and Snoops in the evening and after that we joined Charles and Ingrid for a braai at their home. This meant that I was pretty rushed in making some sandwiches and final preparations for the hike. It was drizzling but that did not stop us having a great evening and plenty of talk at the fire with Charles, Ingrid and their family. Ally was having a ball but I thought of my long day ahead and we left fairly early.
That night it rained through the night and with that and the anticipation of the day ahead I did not sleep well and was up early to get my stuff ready. Niel was picking me up at 05.30. I woke Ally and when Niel arrived loaded her up as well and we dropped her off at Michael’s house. We then picked up Tim and the rest of the group and eventually left PE at about 06.30.
Neil has one of these double cab Isuzu’s and we had a very comfortable drive to Hankey then Patensie where we stopped at the Spar for candles and Blitz. And eventually arrived at the Ysrivier Farm at about 08.30. The river part of the hike was to be through the Ysrivier. The day started off with an ascent through the farm. Mike kept on saying that we should look out for the path however you had to use a lot of imagination to call any part of where we walked over the two days a “path”. We continued walking up with pauses to catch our breath and look back at the magnificent view of the farmlands and the valley. For a while we followed that farm boundary fence which appeared to be a tall game fence. We worked our way through the fence and into the reserve, continuing upward doing quite a bit of bundu bashing as we tried to find the trail. Finally we reached the highest point and after a short break, we began our descent. We continuously remembered to look around and to appreciate the magnificence of the valleys and the entire Baviaans Kloof.
By now we were quite scratched on our legs and arms from the thorn bushes and plants that grow in the area. Peter had a fall and hurt his hand that it was really quite useless for the tasks that lay ahead. We lost the trail a number of times as each time we found a path it would last only a few meters and then seemed to peter out. Mike then told us of how he had become lost at this section and spent three hours in the blazing sun searching for a way down to the river. But his son had told him to look out for the tree with the branches pointing either way and when we spotted this tree we knew we were on track. We then descended to a point where we could look down to the river and a pool that Mike called the bum-slide-pool. The only problem was that there were just sheer cliffs surrounding the pool. Fortunately Mike had a general idea of where we should be going to the only pathway. So at last we reached the stream and the campsite.
The campsite was a tiny clearing on the side of the stream, which would allowed us to make a fire and sleep. It was at the campsite that we first saw an insect eating flower. This flower has a delicate tubular stem, four bright red petals, which surround a brown (poo-smelling) center. Flies in particular, are attracted to the smell and become trapped in the sticky center where the plant is able then to ingest the insect. Once we had reached this point, to the finish the next day, we were in a deep gorge with cliffs on either side. There was no turning back!
We had reached the campsite at about 14.30 and so had hiked for about 6 hours. We then worked our way up stream to the pool that we had seen from on top of the cliff. By the time I got there Mike was already sliding down the waterfall. Crazy! Thought I. But intrepid Tim followed him around the side of the pool, along a crack in the cliff side, then up a tree that had anchored itself in the crack and up to the top off the fall and with a cry of whoop!!!, slid down to the bottom. He did this a couple of times while Neil, Peter & I watched without envy. After a while we made our way back to the camp and I wondered how we would do this river walking thing with backpacks the next day.
At the campsite Mike crossed the stream and began dismantling a lightning struck tree for firewood and we carted the branches across to the camp area. I saw Tim doing the same a little further upstream. So in a short while we had a huge supply of wood that would last us for the evening and the next morning and still leave plenty for the next group coming this way. Mike’s wife, Barbie had made us a supper of mince, rice & potatoes. Mike prepared the supper for us as we sat around the fire. He even made a pudding which tasted delicious. I took one of the mattress plastics and made a kind of makeshift roof in case of rain in the night. Tim and Neil took their chances and slept under the stars. Early in the evening we saw that it was clear but still anticipated rain.
We were all pretty clapped from the day’s walk and were in our sleeping bags fairly early. We tried to find an area where there were no rocks but Peter seemed to position himself to sleep just where he would be uncomfortable for the night. Neil found a corner under the trees and seemed to settle in well. Tim settled for a downward sloping patch, which would have no shelter but he seemed content. When we settled down for the night the stars were shining in the little area of sky that we could see through the gorge and the trees but by about midnight it began to rain light showers. Fortunately nothing to really wet us and we were able to have a reasonable sleep. Peter was heard to ask if it was time to rise, to which Mike replied “mmmmm 02.00am?” I for one, had a good night’s rest. In fact much better than I would have expected from the Spartan conditions that we had.
We woke at dawn and soon were heating up water for breakfast and coffee. Packing up for the day’s hike was to be quite a task as we had to use all available black bags to insulate our sleeping bags and clothing. Mike had warned us that if water got into the fabric, our packs would become so waterlogged that the packs would weigh a ton. My big mistake was I did not pack the mattress plastics well enough, thinking that they would not retain the water. What I should actually have done is to have left the plastics in the cave and weighed them down with stones for future use by hikers.
We started the morning hike with prayer and requested guidance and safe hiking. We had put on our wetsuits and walked in either sandals or running shoes. We left the camp at about 08.00. The first part of the hike is spent on the sides of the river trying to maximise the time spent out of the water. You are able to move much quicker out of water than wading through the river, even though you have to climb over rocks and push your way through bushes and branches. We crossed the river often and were soon sweating and looking forward to our first swim. Mike had done the same walk a few weeks earlier but it seemed that most of the hike was unfamiliar to him. The river is confusing and there are no landmarks to assist with pinpointing exactly where you are at any point. From here the hike became a blur of walking, swimming, bum-sliding, climbing and jumping. Each time we would have to swim we would toss the backpacks into the river and they would float ahead of us. The backpacks have sufficient buoyancy to remain floating even if tossed from extremely high cliffs.
I am able to remember a few highlights such as the first really high waterfall, which required a jump. We tossed our bags down and Tim launched himself into the abyss. Peter and I were much more cautious and eased our way down a crack in the cliff face before jumping into the pool. We did a lot of bum-sliding and jumping down the lesser falls.
The problem with sliding down a fall is that where the water hits the pool below, it becomes like a washing machine and you are unable to see if there is a rock or if it is clear to jump into the pool. Mike told us that he had once broken his foot on such a slide. This made us extra careful. When you are in this gorge there is no way out except on your own feet. It would be impossible for a fellow hiker to carry you out and no helicopter could ever possibly get to you. It is important that you continuously look up and back. Otherwise you will miss the splendor of the cliffs that surround you at all times. The river is very narrow and the cliffs are quite imposing and magnificent. At no time is there any riverbank to speak of so you are always searching for a scrap of pathway to substitute walking through the water. But the chance of finding any path that you do not have to fight your way through is slim.
After a while we came to a fall which was impossible to jump into the pool below and we had to make our way down by means of a rope. Mike had a rope in his bag but when we got there we saw that there was already a rope in place and so he tossed his bag into the pool below. Neil was the first to descend. Holding onto the rope, he worked his way down, with the water forcing him down as he slid and climbed through the fall. Just as he was near to the bottom the rope snapped and he tumbled the final few meters slipping and sliding into the water below. He came out unscathed but had now to retrieve the rope from Mike’s pack and try to throw it up to Tim who had climbed down as far as the rope would now allow him. Then as Tim strained to grab the rope from Neil, the rope that he was holding onto also snapped.
So here was Mike, Peter and myself stranded at the top with only a short piece of rope left. Tim had landed safely in the pool and from where he was, decided to climb up the cliff face back to where we were waiting and so bring Mike’s rope to us. If he had not done this we would have had a very dangerous bum-slide to the bottom or would have had to try to find an alternate route around the cliff. Once Tim had got the rope to us, Mike threaded it round the remaining piece of the original rope and we were able to climb down through the waterfall. Personally I found the climb down scary and had to hang on for dear life. Tim had the privilege of doing the trip twice. Once the last of us was down. Mike untied the rope and pulled it down for future use.
The next really high fall demanded a compulsory jump so Peter & I had to overcome our fear and launch ourselves down a really scary rock to the pool below. Of course once we had jumped we realised that it was really not that bad. It was just a mind over matter thing.
The next waterfall was to be scariest of all. Neil, Peter and Tim got there just before Mike and I. And all we saw was Tim, sliding from the rock next to the fall and into the narrow crevice where the water was rushing down. He held himself there, backpack still on his back but the force of the water building up behind him became too powerful and it forced him through the gap and he slid, tumbled and fell to the bottom. Amazingly he was not hurt and surfaced with his normal grin that we had become accustomed to each time he surfaced from a jump or slide.
Mike then showed us what should happen at this fall: There was a steel pin that had been hammered into a crack in the cliff, to this was tied a series of webbing. This was not sufficient for our climb down, as it did not reach the bottom of the cliff. So what we did was again double the rope that Mike had brought along. Neil then worked his was across to the webbing and looped the rope through the webbing so that the combination of webbing and rope was long enough for us to climb down to the pool below where Tim was by now waiting for us.
Neil was first down. He somehow made it into a section of the waterfall and from there was forced down to the pool by the rushing water. Then it was my turn. I was terrified. I was wearing sandals which were slippery and so just getting into a position where I could grab hold of the webbing took all my strength and nerve. I then began the descent by wrapping the webbing around my right hand and easing my way down step at a time. I rested a few times as my shaking legs and arms could hardly stop me from falling down to certain death. By now we had been hiking for five or six hours and so apart from being scared I was also exhausted. Eventually I was able to swing into the actual waterfall where the pounding water was, strangely enough, quite comforting as I thought that at least from here I could slide down if I lost my grip on the rope. This was not to be and the encouraging shouts from Mike, Tim and Neil helped me down to safety and the pool below. It was now Peter’s turn and I could see that he was having an equally tough time getting down but he too made it even though he swung against the cliff face with such force that he smashed his had against the rock and so now had hurt both hands. Mike brought up the rear and seemed so able and confident. He then retrieved the rope and we pressed on.
Once we were through this section it was a case of swim and walk until we reached the weir where an aqueduct had been built many years ago and the last few hundred meters to the farm yard. This section was probably the worst for me as I thought that my clothes and sleeping bag were saturated and this had caused my bag to have become extremely heavy. At this stage I could hardly lift the backpack up onto my back and even when I had it strapped on, became so off balance that the slightest slip led to a fall from which I would struggle to stand again. I was to find out only after I got home that it was the mattress plastics that were full of water (my clothes and sleeping bag were dry) and had added the extra weight to the backpack. This combined with the fact that I was so tired led to me really battling to keep up with the rest of the group.
We reached the Isuzu by about 15.00 (a 7 hour hike today) and had a relaxed drive home with a stop at the Patensie Spar for a cold drink. And that was our kloofing trip. I would say that it was one of the toughest days I have spent hiking. I have had a number of tough days, carrying two bags, the ascent of Kilimanjaro, long days in the Fish River Canyon, etc and this can be counted in the category of extremely tough. The question that we asked each other “will we do it again?” Not this same route in the near future but certainly I will be part of the team next time Mike organises a trip.
Thanks to Mike for putting the whole hike together and to my fellow hikers (Neil, Tim and Peter) for their company and continuous support even when I was holding the group up.
On the Monday after we returned from the trip I felt that I had a sore on my toe. It was either where the sandals had rubbed or where I had scraped on a rock. But by that evening I was in agony and had to go to hospital for antibiotic and pain injection. It only started healing at the end of the week meaning I had to miss running for the week. Of course we all had scratches and bruises on our legs and arms as well as being stiff and sore. When I spoke to my daughter Nicci, she again reminded me that they had done all of this in one day. Starting in the dark and getting saturated from the dew and ending having to walk along the weir and through the aqueduct at night. Scary to say the least!
Peter Giddy
10 April 2005.
About ten years ago my daughters, Nicci and Jacqui had gone off early one morning with some friends and had returned late that night with tales of how they had spent the day hiking and then coming back through the river. Nicci reminded me later of how it was that she had done this in one day with a group of friends and then a second time with Jacqui and Shane. Jacqui had spilt hot chocolate on Shane’s foot so he had done the days hike with a burnt foot and no wet suite. The poor man was completely hypothermic by the time they ended the hike that night.
Since then I have yearned for the experience but never come into contact with anyone who would organise that sort of trip. Then two years ago I was jogging with Mike Perks in Grahamstown at a Men’s Retreat and he told me that Kloofing was one of the things that he loved to do. I then made him promise that he would one day include me in such a trip. Eventually he set the date for the weekend of the 9th of Aril 2005. Kloofing is a form of hiking where the first section of the hike is the climb up the mountains and valleys to a point on a river and the second section is following the river back down to where you started from.
I then persuaded Tim Gendall and Neil Langner to join us. Mike arranged that Peter Bond would make up the 5th member of the team. I was very excited about this trip as it was something completely unknown and packed my backpack a week before the hike. It looked like it might rain so I borrowed a few mattress plastics from the shop. On Friday Barbara had arranged to meet Dawn and Gail in Port Alfred where they stayed in a cottage, had dinner and did plenty of chatting. Ally had a busy schedule with a Friday afternoon party and Snoops in the evening and after that we joined Charles and Ingrid for a braai at their home. This meant that I was pretty rushed in making some sandwiches and final preparations for the hike. It was drizzling but that did not stop us having a great evening and plenty of talk at the fire with Charles, Ingrid and their family. Ally was having a ball but I thought of my long day ahead and we left fairly early.
That night it rained through the night and with that and the anticipation of the day ahead I did not sleep well and was up early to get my stuff ready. Niel was picking me up at 05.30. I woke Ally and when Niel arrived loaded her up as well and we dropped her off at Michael’s house. We then picked up Tim and the rest of the group and eventually left PE at about 06.30.
Neil has one of these double cab Isuzu’s and we had a very comfortable drive to Hankey then Patensie where we stopped at the Spar for candles and Blitz. And eventually arrived at the Ysrivier Farm at about 08.30. The river part of the hike was to be through the Ysrivier. The day started off with an ascent through the farm. Mike kept on saying that we should look out for the path however you had to use a lot of imagination to call any part of where we walked over the two days a “path”. We continued walking up with pauses to catch our breath and look back at the magnificent view of the farmlands and the valley. For a while we followed that farm boundary fence which appeared to be a tall game fence. We worked our way through the fence and into the reserve, continuing upward doing quite a bit of bundu bashing as we tried to find the trail. Finally we reached the highest point and after a short break, we began our descent. We continuously remembered to look around and to appreciate the magnificence of the valleys and the entire Baviaans Kloof.
By now we were quite scratched on our legs and arms from the thorn bushes and plants that grow in the area. Peter had a fall and hurt his hand that it was really quite useless for the tasks that lay ahead. We lost the trail a number of times as each time we found a path it would last only a few meters and then seemed to peter out. Mike then told us of how he had become lost at this section and spent three hours in the blazing sun searching for a way down to the river. But his son had told him to look out for the tree with the branches pointing either way and when we spotted this tree we knew we were on track. We then descended to a point where we could look down to the river and a pool that Mike called the bum-slide-pool. The only problem was that there were just sheer cliffs surrounding the pool. Fortunately Mike had a general idea of where we should be going to the only pathway. So at last we reached the stream and the campsite.
The campsite was a tiny clearing on the side of the stream, which would allowed us to make a fire and sleep. It was at the campsite that we first saw an insect eating flower. This flower has a delicate tubular stem, four bright red petals, which surround a brown (poo-smelling) center. Flies in particular, are attracted to the smell and become trapped in the sticky center where the plant is able then to ingest the insect. Once we had reached this point, to the finish the next day, we were in a deep gorge with cliffs on either side. There was no turning back!
We had reached the campsite at about 14.30 and so had hiked for about 6 hours. We then worked our way up stream to the pool that we had seen from on top of the cliff. By the time I got there Mike was already sliding down the waterfall. Crazy! Thought I. But intrepid Tim followed him around the side of the pool, along a crack in the cliff side, then up a tree that had anchored itself in the crack and up to the top off the fall and with a cry of whoop!!!, slid down to the bottom. He did this a couple of times while Neil, Peter & I watched without envy. After a while we made our way back to the camp and I wondered how we would do this river walking thing with backpacks the next day.
At the campsite Mike crossed the stream and began dismantling a lightning struck tree for firewood and we carted the branches across to the camp area. I saw Tim doing the same a little further upstream. So in a short while we had a huge supply of wood that would last us for the evening and the next morning and still leave plenty for the next group coming this way. Mike’s wife, Barbie had made us a supper of mince, rice & potatoes. Mike prepared the supper for us as we sat around the fire. He even made a pudding which tasted delicious. I took one of the mattress plastics and made a kind of makeshift roof in case of rain in the night. Tim and Neil took their chances and slept under the stars. Early in the evening we saw that it was clear but still anticipated rain.
We were all pretty clapped from the day’s walk and were in our sleeping bags fairly early. We tried to find an area where there were no rocks but Peter seemed to position himself to sleep just where he would be uncomfortable for the night. Neil found a corner under the trees and seemed to settle in well. Tim settled for a downward sloping patch, which would have no shelter but he seemed content. When we settled down for the night the stars were shining in the little area of sky that we could see through the gorge and the trees but by about midnight it began to rain light showers. Fortunately nothing to really wet us and we were able to have a reasonable sleep. Peter was heard to ask if it was time to rise, to which Mike replied “mmmmm 02.00am?” I for one, had a good night’s rest. In fact much better than I would have expected from the Spartan conditions that we had.
We woke at dawn and soon were heating up water for breakfast and coffee. Packing up for the day’s hike was to be quite a task as we had to use all available black bags to insulate our sleeping bags and clothing. Mike had warned us that if water got into the fabric, our packs would become so waterlogged that the packs would weigh a ton. My big mistake was I did not pack the mattress plastics well enough, thinking that they would not retain the water. What I should actually have done is to have left the plastics in the cave and weighed them down with stones for future use by hikers.
We started the morning hike with prayer and requested guidance and safe hiking. We had put on our wetsuits and walked in either sandals or running shoes. We left the camp at about 08.00. The first part of the hike is spent on the sides of the river trying to maximise the time spent out of the water. You are able to move much quicker out of water than wading through the river, even though you have to climb over rocks and push your way through bushes and branches. We crossed the river often and were soon sweating and looking forward to our first swim. Mike had done the same walk a few weeks earlier but it seemed that most of the hike was unfamiliar to him. The river is confusing and there are no landmarks to assist with pinpointing exactly where you are at any point. From here the hike became a blur of walking, swimming, bum-sliding, climbing and jumping. Each time we would have to swim we would toss the backpacks into the river and they would float ahead of us. The backpacks have sufficient buoyancy to remain floating even if tossed from extremely high cliffs.
I am able to remember a few highlights such as the first really high waterfall, which required a jump. We tossed our bags down and Tim launched himself into the abyss. Peter and I were much more cautious and eased our way down a crack in the cliff face before jumping into the pool. We did a lot of bum-sliding and jumping down the lesser falls.
The problem with sliding down a fall is that where the water hits the pool below, it becomes like a washing machine and you are unable to see if there is a rock or if it is clear to jump into the pool. Mike told us that he had once broken his foot on such a slide. This made us extra careful. When you are in this gorge there is no way out except on your own feet. It would be impossible for a fellow hiker to carry you out and no helicopter could ever possibly get to you. It is important that you continuously look up and back. Otherwise you will miss the splendor of the cliffs that surround you at all times. The river is very narrow and the cliffs are quite imposing and magnificent. At no time is there any riverbank to speak of so you are always searching for a scrap of pathway to substitute walking through the water. But the chance of finding any path that you do not have to fight your way through is slim.
After a while we came to a fall which was impossible to jump into the pool below and we had to make our way down by means of a rope. Mike had a rope in his bag but when we got there we saw that there was already a rope in place and so he tossed his bag into the pool below. Neil was the first to descend. Holding onto the rope, he worked his way down, with the water forcing him down as he slid and climbed through the fall. Just as he was near to the bottom the rope snapped and he tumbled the final few meters slipping and sliding into the water below. He came out unscathed but had now to retrieve the rope from Mike’s pack and try to throw it up to Tim who had climbed down as far as the rope would now allow him. Then as Tim strained to grab the rope from Neil, the rope that he was holding onto also snapped.
So here was Mike, Peter and myself stranded at the top with only a short piece of rope left. Tim had landed safely in the pool and from where he was, decided to climb up the cliff face back to where we were waiting and so bring Mike’s rope to us. If he had not done this we would have had a very dangerous bum-slide to the bottom or would have had to try to find an alternate route around the cliff. Once Tim had got the rope to us, Mike threaded it round the remaining piece of the original rope and we were able to climb down through the waterfall. Personally I found the climb down scary and had to hang on for dear life. Tim had the privilege of doing the trip twice. Once the last of us was down. Mike untied the rope and pulled it down for future use.
The next really high fall demanded a compulsory jump so Peter & I had to overcome our fear and launch ourselves down a really scary rock to the pool below. Of course once we had jumped we realised that it was really not that bad. It was just a mind over matter thing.
The next waterfall was to be scariest of all. Neil, Peter and Tim got there just before Mike and I. And all we saw was Tim, sliding from the rock next to the fall and into the narrow crevice where the water was rushing down. He held himself there, backpack still on his back but the force of the water building up behind him became too powerful and it forced him through the gap and he slid, tumbled and fell to the bottom. Amazingly he was not hurt and surfaced with his normal grin that we had become accustomed to each time he surfaced from a jump or slide.
Mike then showed us what should happen at this fall: There was a steel pin that had been hammered into a crack in the cliff, to this was tied a series of webbing. This was not sufficient for our climb down, as it did not reach the bottom of the cliff. So what we did was again double the rope that Mike had brought along. Neil then worked his was across to the webbing and looped the rope through the webbing so that the combination of webbing and rope was long enough for us to climb down to the pool below where Tim was by now waiting for us.
Neil was first down. He somehow made it into a section of the waterfall and from there was forced down to the pool by the rushing water. Then it was my turn. I was terrified. I was wearing sandals which were slippery and so just getting into a position where I could grab hold of the webbing took all my strength and nerve. I then began the descent by wrapping the webbing around my right hand and easing my way down step at a time. I rested a few times as my shaking legs and arms could hardly stop me from falling down to certain death. By now we had been hiking for five or six hours and so apart from being scared I was also exhausted. Eventually I was able to swing into the actual waterfall where the pounding water was, strangely enough, quite comforting as I thought that at least from here I could slide down if I lost my grip on the rope. This was not to be and the encouraging shouts from Mike, Tim and Neil helped me down to safety and the pool below. It was now Peter’s turn and I could see that he was having an equally tough time getting down but he too made it even though he swung against the cliff face with such force that he smashed his had against the rock and so now had hurt both hands. Mike brought up the rear and seemed so able and confident. He then retrieved the rope and we pressed on.
Once we were through this section it was a case of swim and walk until we reached the weir where an aqueduct had been built many years ago and the last few hundred meters to the farm yard. This section was probably the worst for me as I thought that my clothes and sleeping bag were saturated and this had caused my bag to have become extremely heavy. At this stage I could hardly lift the backpack up onto my back and even when I had it strapped on, became so off balance that the slightest slip led to a fall from which I would struggle to stand again. I was to find out only after I got home that it was the mattress plastics that were full of water (my clothes and sleeping bag were dry) and had added the extra weight to the backpack. This combined with the fact that I was so tired led to me really battling to keep up with the rest of the group.
We reached the Isuzu by about 15.00 (a 7 hour hike today) and had a relaxed drive home with a stop at the Patensie Spar for a cold drink. And that was our kloofing trip. I would say that it was one of the toughest days I have spent hiking. I have had a number of tough days, carrying two bags, the ascent of Kilimanjaro, long days in the Fish River Canyon, etc and this can be counted in the category of extremely tough. The question that we asked each other “will we do it again?” Not this same route in the near future but certainly I will be part of the team next time Mike organises a trip.
Thanks to Mike for putting the whole hike together and to my fellow hikers (Neil, Tim and Peter) for their company and continuous support even when I was holding the group up.
On the Monday after we returned from the trip I felt that I had a sore on my toe. It was either where the sandals had rubbed or where I had scraped on a rock. But by that evening I was in agony and had to go to hospital for antibiotic and pain injection. It only started healing at the end of the week meaning I had to miss running for the week. Of course we all had scratches and bruises on our legs and arms as well as being stiff and sore. When I spoke to my daughter Nicci, she again reminded me that they had done all of this in one day. Starting in the dark and getting saturated from the dew and ending having to walk along the weir and through the aqueduct at night. Scary to say the least!
Peter Giddy
10 April 2005.
Sunday, February 20, 2005
REDHOUSE RIVER MILE FEBRUARY 2005.
REDHOUSE RIVER MILE
SUNDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2005.
We had been in East London for the Surfers Marathon the previous Saturday and so had left EL at 04.30 to be on time for church on Sunday. The service was in induction service for the new minister, Jonathan Hobson.
After the service we rushed home and then to the river to get there by 12.00 when our daughter, Ally was due to swim her event, which was a 100meter swim across the river. There were 13 girls in the under 10’s and Ally swam this in about 2min30.
The men’s mile was due to start at 15.30 so I had time for a hamburger, cold drink and a good sleep in the shade while the children (Ally and Jessica) continued to swim in the river under Barbara’s watchful eye. Tim, Suzanne, Emma and Tim’s mother, Anne joined us at about 14.30 and we sat and watched the ladies mile. The first lady finished in about 18mins.
It is a tradition that participants walk to the start. This takes about 15 mins and so at about 15.10 Tim and I walked along the riverside (watch out for the thorns, this is also part of the tradition). Some of the houses along this river are really beautiful and the residents make a day of it on this day with braais and lunches.
Other Achilleans who I saw at the event were Steve Douglas, Craig Wilson, and Jock Sutherland. Apologies to anyone else from the club who I have not mentioned. I also missed my daughter Jacqui (London) and her husband Michael who have swum the event with me in previous years.
Once Tim & I got to the start we were separated in the crowd of men lining up and swimming as they waited for the start. Often this event is swum with a strong following tide. This was not to be the case today as the tide was already high and may have even being against us to an extent. Fortunately the wind was Easterly and helped us along.
Once the gun was fired the men sped off and I was soon being battered by the arms and legs of fellow swimmers. I tried to find a free path and was soon able to settle into a steady stroke. Having trained for triathlons this would be the first year that I did not come last or close to last (there is this bloke with no arms and no legs---they call him Bob--- who I am generally able to beat). I was able to swim the crawl the whole way whereas in previous years I was mainly a doggy paddle swimmer. I finished in 48 mins. I think that Jock and Steve were there about as well. I am sure that Craig was way ahead of us. The cut off time for medals is 45 mins but they felt sorry for me and still handed me this most important memento. I was gratified to see that I had beaten Marcus Burri’s son, MC (7 years old) who finished just after me. Tim had swum a 37mins, which was a very respectable time.
It had been a long hot afternoon and we left immediately after the swim. This event is a part of Port Elizabeth and should be done by everyone. My training in previous years has been my daily bath so I really do not consider myself to be a swimmer, just a participant. Put this one on your event calendar for 2006.
Peter Giddy
20 February 2005.
SUNDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2005.
We had been in East London for the Surfers Marathon the previous Saturday and so had left EL at 04.30 to be on time for church on Sunday. The service was in induction service for the new minister, Jonathan Hobson.
After the service we rushed home and then to the river to get there by 12.00 when our daughter, Ally was due to swim her event, which was a 100meter swim across the river. There were 13 girls in the under 10’s and Ally swam this in about 2min30.
The men’s mile was due to start at 15.30 so I had time for a hamburger, cold drink and a good sleep in the shade while the children (Ally and Jessica) continued to swim in the river under Barbara’s watchful eye. Tim, Suzanne, Emma and Tim’s mother, Anne joined us at about 14.30 and we sat and watched the ladies mile. The first lady finished in about 18mins.
It is a tradition that participants walk to the start. This takes about 15 mins and so at about 15.10 Tim and I walked along the riverside (watch out for the thorns, this is also part of the tradition). Some of the houses along this river are really beautiful and the residents make a day of it on this day with braais and lunches.
Other Achilleans who I saw at the event were Steve Douglas, Craig Wilson, and Jock Sutherland. Apologies to anyone else from the club who I have not mentioned. I also missed my daughter Jacqui (London) and her husband Michael who have swum the event with me in previous years.
Once Tim & I got to the start we were separated in the crowd of men lining up and swimming as they waited for the start. Often this event is swum with a strong following tide. This was not to be the case today as the tide was already high and may have even being against us to an extent. Fortunately the wind was Easterly and helped us along.
Once the gun was fired the men sped off and I was soon being battered by the arms and legs of fellow swimmers. I tried to find a free path and was soon able to settle into a steady stroke. Having trained for triathlons this would be the first year that I did not come last or close to last (there is this bloke with no arms and no legs---they call him Bob--- who I am generally able to beat). I was able to swim the crawl the whole way whereas in previous years I was mainly a doggy paddle swimmer. I finished in 48 mins. I think that Jock and Steve were there about as well. I am sure that Craig was way ahead of us. The cut off time for medals is 45 mins but they felt sorry for me and still handed me this most important memento. I was gratified to see that I had beaten Marcus Burri’s son, MC (7 years old) who finished just after me. Tim had swum a 37mins, which was a very respectable time.
It had been a long hot afternoon and we left immediately after the swim. This event is a part of Port Elizabeth and should be done by everyone. My training in previous years has been my daily bath so I really do not consider myself to be a swimmer, just a participant. Put this one on your event calendar for 2006.
Peter Giddy
20 February 2005.
Saturday, February 19, 2005
SURFERS MARATHON EAST LONDON FEBRUARY 2005.
SURFERS MARATHON
EAST LONDON
SATURDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2005.
The Surfers is about 18kays of mainly beach running. The event starts at 14.30 from a point along the East Coast resorts road. There are three events. The paddlers, the runners and the walkers. It is a tough event even for the walkers who start after the runners. Barbara & Dawn have walked this event before and will agree that it is not for the faint hearted. The event has been going for about 30 years and is well established in East London as a “must do” event. It is not organised by a running club and so does not fall under ASA. The participants do not wear club colours or licence numbers. The entry fee is a flat R35.00 for all participants and no temporary licence fee is payable.
Mark and Ewan from East London gave me a lift to the start and Richard drove the vehicle back to EL. The road is very busy and narrow and motorists have to allow extra time to get there. I take a bottle of water to the start of this event as the wait for the start can be quite long and dehydrating. I am not sure of the number of runners who tale part but is seems like at least 1000. The start is a narrow path with runners jostling for a good start position.
The starting gun gets the runners going, but anyone who is not right in front has to walk, as the path is far too narrow to accommodate all the participants. Soon after the start there is a choice of the high road or the low road. I personally take the high road but am not sure that it is the best option. Then the runners merge again and now begins the real fun with the route taking runners over some of the worst soft sand and rocks that can be imagined. I try to step in to the footsteps of other runners but this is not as easy as it sounds. Then I run right at the waters edge thinking that the sand will be firmer and this is also not always the case. There are also a lot of loose rocks and fallen trees to cross. The first section is the toughest with slow runners to contend with as well.
I think that the idea is really to watch carefully where you are going and to try to avoid slipping and causing an injury to yourself. This sounds fine in theory but not always possible to concentrate as the lady runners tend to wear as close to nothing as possible and even the quickest of glances can cause the runner to be distracted and lose his footing.
Today we were quite fortunate as there was a steady rain for the first part of the run. This event tends to be very humid and often quite dehydrating as the first watering point is in Gonubie. After about 45mins of running the route takes the runner to the Gonubie River, which has to be swum. Here is the dilemma: if you take your oldest shoes then you tend to slip and slide on the rocks but if you take newer shoes just know that they are going to be full of sand at the end. At the river it is best to jump in shoes and all. The lifesavers have a rope across to assist as the tide can quite easily sweep a runner away from the crossing. You do not need to be a swimmer as there is plenty of assistance at hand.
Having crossed this river there is a boardwalk that leads the runner to Gonubie. From here there is about 4 or 5 kays of tar running. Along this section is where all the supporters stand and drink beers and seconding is done. It seems that last year one runner’s wife was frantic at the finish when her beloved did not arrive at the finish. He was found at about 8 that night still drinking at the Gonubie Pub in his running clothes. It was in Gonubie that I saw Elaine Burger, an ex PE runner from Crusaders.
Somewhere along the Gonubie section is the half way mark of this race. There are no Kay markers and so for me who does not wear a watch this is mainly guesswork. The toughest section of the run is now behind. Once the runners gets back on to the beach there is still a lot of soft sand but not nearly as difficult as the first half and also there are no more boulder sections to cross. So here I was able to get into a rhythm and when Robin Fourie said hello to me I was at first able to keep up with him and then to get ahead of him. I was making the most of the fact that he had run 42 of the Bay Ultra in the morning. This was the first and last time that I would ever have Robin behind me.
The next river is the Quilera River, which was running just over ankle deep, and here we were treated to some water and power aid. From Beacon Bay it is not far to the finish at Nahoon. The only problem is that there is the Nahoon River to cross. This river is also one that has to be swum but as soon as the runner is across the finish is a mere 200 meters away. I was greeted by Ally, Barbara, Dawn and Mark’s Family who had been waiting at the river. Of course Ally had to show me what a good runner she was by beating me to the finish!
I was able to finish in 1h50, which I consider to be a respectable time for this event. After collecting a T-shirt and cold drink I saw Robin sitting in the Beer tent with his head hung in total exhaustion. I do not think that he will do the two events in one day again. I am not certain but I think that Robin & I were the only two Achilleans there for this year’s event. Brian James used to be a regular but as he now lives in Durban he did not take part this year.
For those who like to party, this event offers the necessary elements of: beer, common interest, beer, music, athletic bodies and beer. For my own part I was quite happy to get home to a shower, snack and couch where I promptly fell asleep.
This is a real adventure race, put this one on your calendar for 2006. A lot more fun than the Bay Ultra and we do too many long distance runs anyway.
Peter Giddy
19 February 2005.
EAST LONDON
SATURDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2005.
The Surfers is about 18kays of mainly beach running. The event starts at 14.30 from a point along the East Coast resorts road. There are three events. The paddlers, the runners and the walkers. It is a tough event even for the walkers who start after the runners. Barbara & Dawn have walked this event before and will agree that it is not for the faint hearted. The event has been going for about 30 years and is well established in East London as a “must do” event. It is not organised by a running club and so does not fall under ASA. The participants do not wear club colours or licence numbers. The entry fee is a flat R35.00 for all participants and no temporary licence fee is payable.
Mark and Ewan from East London gave me a lift to the start and Richard drove the vehicle back to EL. The road is very busy and narrow and motorists have to allow extra time to get there. I take a bottle of water to the start of this event as the wait for the start can be quite long and dehydrating. I am not sure of the number of runners who tale part but is seems like at least 1000. The start is a narrow path with runners jostling for a good start position.
The starting gun gets the runners going, but anyone who is not right in front has to walk, as the path is far too narrow to accommodate all the participants. Soon after the start there is a choice of the high road or the low road. I personally take the high road but am not sure that it is the best option. Then the runners merge again and now begins the real fun with the route taking runners over some of the worst soft sand and rocks that can be imagined. I try to step in to the footsteps of other runners but this is not as easy as it sounds. Then I run right at the waters edge thinking that the sand will be firmer and this is also not always the case. There are also a lot of loose rocks and fallen trees to cross. The first section is the toughest with slow runners to contend with as well.
I think that the idea is really to watch carefully where you are going and to try to avoid slipping and causing an injury to yourself. This sounds fine in theory but not always possible to concentrate as the lady runners tend to wear as close to nothing as possible and even the quickest of glances can cause the runner to be distracted and lose his footing.
Today we were quite fortunate as there was a steady rain for the first part of the run. This event tends to be very humid and often quite dehydrating as the first watering point is in Gonubie. After about 45mins of running the route takes the runner to the Gonubie River, which has to be swum. Here is the dilemma: if you take your oldest shoes then you tend to slip and slide on the rocks but if you take newer shoes just know that they are going to be full of sand at the end. At the river it is best to jump in shoes and all. The lifesavers have a rope across to assist as the tide can quite easily sweep a runner away from the crossing. You do not need to be a swimmer as there is plenty of assistance at hand.
Having crossed this river there is a boardwalk that leads the runner to Gonubie. From here there is about 4 or 5 kays of tar running. Along this section is where all the supporters stand and drink beers and seconding is done. It seems that last year one runner’s wife was frantic at the finish when her beloved did not arrive at the finish. He was found at about 8 that night still drinking at the Gonubie Pub in his running clothes. It was in Gonubie that I saw Elaine Burger, an ex PE runner from Crusaders.
Somewhere along the Gonubie section is the half way mark of this race. There are no Kay markers and so for me who does not wear a watch this is mainly guesswork. The toughest section of the run is now behind. Once the runners gets back on to the beach there is still a lot of soft sand but not nearly as difficult as the first half and also there are no more boulder sections to cross. So here I was able to get into a rhythm and when Robin Fourie said hello to me I was at first able to keep up with him and then to get ahead of him. I was making the most of the fact that he had run 42 of the Bay Ultra in the morning. This was the first and last time that I would ever have Robin behind me.
The next river is the Quilera River, which was running just over ankle deep, and here we were treated to some water and power aid. From Beacon Bay it is not far to the finish at Nahoon. The only problem is that there is the Nahoon River to cross. This river is also one that has to be swum but as soon as the runner is across the finish is a mere 200 meters away. I was greeted by Ally, Barbara, Dawn and Mark’s Family who had been waiting at the river. Of course Ally had to show me what a good runner she was by beating me to the finish!
I was able to finish in 1h50, which I consider to be a respectable time for this event. After collecting a T-shirt and cold drink I saw Robin sitting in the Beer tent with his head hung in total exhaustion. I do not think that he will do the two events in one day again. I am not certain but I think that Robin & I were the only two Achilleans there for this year’s event. Brian James used to be a regular but as he now lives in Durban he did not take part this year.
For those who like to party, this event offers the necessary elements of: beer, common interest, beer, music, athletic bodies and beer. For my own part I was quite happy to get home to a shower, snack and couch where I promptly fell asleep.
This is a real adventure race, put this one on your calendar for 2006. A lot more fun than the Bay Ultra and we do too many long distance runs anyway.
Peter Giddy
19 February 2005.
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