ACTUAL WRITINGS ON HOSPITAL CHARTS:
1. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.
2. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.
3. On the second day the knee was better, and on the third day it disappeared.
4. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed.
5. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.
6. Discharge status: Alive but without my permission.
7. Healthy appearing decrepit 69 year old male, mentally alert but forgetful.
8. The patient refused autopsy.
9. The patient has no previous history of suicides.
10. Patient has left white blood cells at another hospital.
11. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only a 40 pound weight gain in the past three days.
12. Patient had waffles for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.
13. She is numb from her toes down.
14. While in ER, she was examined, x-rated and sent home.
15. The skin was moist and dry.
16. Occasional, constant infrequent headaches.
17. Patient was alert and unresponsive.
18. Rectal examination revealed a normal size thyroid.
19. She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life,
until she got a divorce.
20. I saw your patient today, who is still under our car for physical therapy.
21. Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.
22. Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.
23. The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.
24. The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a stock broker instead.
25. Skin: somewhat pale but present.
26. The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.
27. Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Blank, who felt we should sit on the abdomen and I agree.
28. Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.
29. Patient has two teenage children, but no other abnormalities.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Sunday, October 5, 2008
TSITSIKAMMA HIKING TRAIL OCTOBER 2008.
TSITSIKAMMA HIKING TRAIL
Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th October 2008.
On this trail:
Peter, Barbara & Ally
Angus & Madison
Hannes, Jordan and Amber
Friend of Jordan – Handre
Rob, Megan & Jason and their friends James & Sarah
Fred, Jeremy and Janine
Alex, Lynne and Lara
John, Michael and Greg
Dawn was due to come but had to pull out for work reasons as her computer had ‘crashed’.
The hike was born from an idea of Graeme Gilmour (Walmer Methodist Church)who wanted to encourage family activities. I put out a notice and was pleased to receive an immediate and positive response from church members.
We met before the hike to discuss the logistics and kit requirements. At this stage I could already see that we were going to have a great hike. The youngsters immediately started to bond and there was an electric vibe in our lounge as we spoke about the coming hike. I was able to borrow a number of backpacks. The Glovers’, Perks’ & Scheepers’ were all good to lend out their equipment. These were distributed amoung people who were first time hikers.
On the morning of Friday 3rd October I was up early and made a few final preparations and packed the food that was in the fridge. Ally’s pack would be a little heavier than she was used to but I thought that it was about time that she started to carry for herself. The pack that she would use was one borrowed from the Perk’s. We met at the church and were able to leave at about 09.30.
We had been a bit concerned about the weather as we had seen some nasty predictions on the news. But the day looked fine and I was looking forward to a great three days ahead. Alex was in St Francis and had arranged to meet us en route. Barbara had forgotten her walking stick and after a quick stop at home we were on our way. Hannes took his Combi, Rob has a big Pajero, John has a station wagon and we had our Toyota with Angus and Madison driving with us.
We stopped at Humansdorp to wait for Alex but the wind was bitingly cold and we decided to press on as far as Storms River. On our way we saw two experimental Solar Powered vehicles heading towards PE. They looked more like a large Frisbee than a car. But it is interesting to think that people will continually be looking out for alternative energy. There was construction at the bridge and we were able to chat while we waited.
Hannes pointed out that I had been speeding and probably would receive a speeding fine for going over 60kph along the bypass section. The youngsters jumped out of the cars and walked across the bridge. At Storms River we stopped for a toilet break and pressed on to the Lottering Station where we would leave a car and park the rest of them at Boskor.
Fortunately Barbara decided to walk to the office where she met up with Nadia. Nadia had done the bookings but I had made a Boo boo! We were not going to hike the section that I had planned and so had to get back into our cars and drive through the toll gate to the Blaaukrans Forest station. Here we again parked cars and John & I drove back to Lottering where we would leave our cars to be collected at the end of the hike. Alex, Hannes and Rob left their vehicles at Blaaukrans. As we returned to where they were waiting I made my next mistake. I put my car keys into Hannes’ Combi. Doff! How was I to drive my car back to collect the others if the keys were at the start? Ah well! No worries. John had kept his keys with him.
After a bit of back pack adjustments we set off on the trail up to the Blaaukrans hut. It was a Forest Road and really very easy walking. All uphill. As we walked we were able to see the Blaaukrans River Bridge where the Bungy Jumping takes place. At one stage we were looking down into deep gorges and valleys. Stunning views. The distance from the forest station where we had parked to the overnight hut was about 6kays and it took us about 2 hours of easy walking to reach the hut.
Fred must have reached the hut first as he came back to see if he could help with anyone who was struggling. I was one of the last to the hut and discovered that the young group had secured exclusive use of one of the rooms. There were about 12 to 15 beds in the form of triple bunks in each room. Madison had wanted to know if she was going to be in her own room. However I think that she was delighted to be in a room with so many other children.
We got the fire going and then walked down to the stream below. From the balcony of this hut you look down to the stream and waterfall. Handre and Jordan were doing some cliff hanging as they sat on the edge of the waterfall. I tried to get them to step back, as it would be me who would have to face Jacqui’s fury if something happened to Jordan. But they seemed confident and Fred joined them for a swim in the pool. I was a bit more conservative and swam with James and Jason in one of the upper pools. These two boys had a ball as they looked for frogs and tadpoles. The water was chilly but bearable. This was my wash for the day.
Back up at the boma area the kettle was already boiling and we were able to make ourselves coffee. We settled into our rooms and unpacked the evening supper allocation. Barbara & I had decided to treat ourselves. Now you have to understand the dynamics of hiking with our groups. Each evening or meal time there is an unspoken rivalry as to who can be the most inventive and who will have the most luxuries. Normally what we do is set out snacks which can include muscles or oysters on crackers, Biltong and any other delicacies that we can think of.
This evening I had a plate with cauliflower, carrots and chips with a dip. Rob added some biltong and cashews and we passed this around while we opened our beers & sherry. Then I opened our pack of Tiger Prawns that we had brought for the evening. At the last hike Fred had shown me the special rice that he had bought and I used this idea with the Prawns. I put some Chinese rice on the fire in a dixie. I had brought some premixed olive oil and butter to fry the prawns and once they had turned a bright pink I served Barbara & I a meal that would have rivalled any that you could prepare at home.
Ally does not eat prawns so I braaied boerewors and served this in rolls for her. Immediately after the braaing was done, the marshmallows came out and soft, burnt, sticky marshmallows were served up as a dessert. The temperature dropped quickly as we sat enjoying the evening. The sky was clear and stars shined as bright as you will see anywhere. Barbara went off to bed and I followed soon afterwards. The youngsters were having a great time in their room. Singing, chatting and playing.
Saturday morning. I had slept fitfully as I generally do on hard uncomfortable bunk beds. Tough! During the night I had felt something run across my sleeping bag. The window was open next to me and I thought it was a mouse. Only after I had announced that there was a mouse in the room and had explained this in detail to everyone and sundry, did Barbara tell me that the mouse was her hitting me with a pillow to stop me snoring! How embarrassing.
John had slept outside in the boma on a table and Rob & Jason had slept on the floor next to the fireplace. They must have frozen. It was really chilly that night and there is no protection against the breeze. I put the fire on for morning coffee and one by one the rest of the group emerged. It was still quite cold but as the sun came up it became warm. Barbara & I had agreed that coffee and rusks would be our breakfast. The main consensus amoungst the hikers seemed to be Oats so easy or plain porridge.
At about 08.00am we managed to group together for a photo and then headed down the pathway for day two of our hike. I always wonder at how quickly we climb on hikes like this. In no time we were looking back down at the hut where we had stayed. The path took us up and then down to a stream in the forest. Here we stopped for a rest and a snack. And then headed off to the next stop which was to be at the 5kay mark.
We could see the rest of the group down at the stream long before we worked our way down. Here there is a crossing of the river with a chain. The last time we crossed the river was flowing strongly and we really had to use the chain. This time however the river was a gentle flow and once across, we found a wonderful place to relax, suntan, eat and swim. I saw Greg and Handre having a race across the pool. This looked like fun until I got into the water. I cannot remember ever being in such cold water. It was really bitingly cold. But the swim did our legs and muscles good. Refreshing was an understatement. I think that everyone was impressed to see Lynne in her bathing costume and also jump into the water.
After a good relaxing break we headed up hill. This was a long climb. Below we could see the stream flowing down to our pool. Across the valley was a sentinel Baboon barking a warning to the troop. The next section of hiking was heavy going. We walked along the contour of the mountain. The pathway was tough and there were continuous sets of ups and downs as each stream that we passed was a little valley that we had to go through. Ally was not feeling her best and Barbara had a sore back / side that she was battling with.
We plodded on slowly and made steady headway. Finally we came up to John, Rob and his little group and Ally managed to stay with them. Barbara & I then took it easy for a while. John had been studying the map and had pointed out where he thought the next camp should be located. We reached a small forest section where there was a reasonable stream. Each time we came across water I would fill my bottle. As we emerged from this wooded area we decided to take a break. Barbara closed her eyes and I took out my book to read.
The break had lifted our spirits and we headed down the pathway and then turned left along a forest road. From here we continued in an easterly direction for a short while before heading left up on to the pathway again. We again reached the forest road and saw a sign which indicated that we had 1.5kays to go to Keurbos. This would be the road that we would have to walk along the next morning, back to the Lottering Forest station. Ahead we could see Rob and Jason. As you near the huts you pass some pools called Twin Tubs. I had swum there before when we did a hike with family. These pools provide a really freezing swim opportunity. Rob had noticed the animal trap and took some people back to examine it later.
That afternoon we must have reached the hut at about 16.00. There seemed to be quite a bit of activity around the hut. The fires were burning, people were showering and a few hikers took the mattresses off the beds and laid them on the grassy area for an afternoon nap. I was looking forward to my coffee and was happy to see that the kettle was boiling. Chatting to the rest of the group I realised that it was not only us who had battled with the afternoon walk. Angus was quite weary, Fred looked like he was glad to be in camp and the sleeping bodies on the grass told a story as well.
That evening Barbara & I prepared a potato with Bacon, cheese, spinach, onion and mushroom topping. We had this with a hamburger and marshmallows as desert again. A really substantial and delicious meal. After supper and a few drinks we were pretty exhausted and were in bed early again. The youngsters had commandeered one of the huts and were having a great time together. Some of the adults stayed up a little later but I could hardly keep my eyes open.
The mattresses are pretty thin and with sore limbs I did not sleep too well and was happy to see that first light was just emerging. The boma area was empty that morning and Angus & I got the fire going for early morning coffee. As more people emerged a variety of breakfasts were prepared before we were ready to set off at about 08.00am. Rob & Janine were suffering with blisters and did a bit of doctoring. Janine had told me that she remembered our Jacqui from Church Youth Groups.
The road back to Lottering started off with an uphill but the forest road is easy going and we were soon back to where we had met up with the road the previous day. As we walked, John told us some very interesting facts about GIS mapping (Geographic Information Systems). The use of GIS mapping and how a variety of information is used for farming, development and all kinds of studies. We walked at a steady pace and reached the stream crossing the road where we estimated the 5 kay mark to be. Here we stopped for a break and to regroup.
I was really happy with our food provisions as we finished the last of our food supply at this point. I often over cater and take stuff home that I have lugged along for days on the trail. After a good rest we hitched up again and walked down to the weir of the Lottering river at the bottom of the valley before a steady climb up again. At the River we realised that we had already walked 7 kays and had just over four kays to go.
The last section of the hike was not too tough and we finally emerged back at the forest station about 4 hours after we had started off that morning. Fred and Handre were first in. Our little group was next and Ally, Lara, Greg and I had a little sprint to the finish. As each group came in we encouraged them to run in at the finish and this added fun to the end of a good hike. John loaded Rob, Hannes and Alex into his car and they went off to collect the other vehicles from the Blaaukrans forest station.
Those who were left behind either relaxed with closed eyes or played around on the grass. As soon as they returned with the vehicles, we loaded our stuff and drove through to Storms River where we purchased an unhealthy combination of burgers, chips, milkshake and coffee. All our hard work over the past few days was lost to burgers in a few minutes! Once we were back onto the N2 we took just under two hours to reach home. I really love the whole thing of going on an outing like this but I also love getting home. The thought of a hot shower, coffee and a remote control was really enticing. My body was tired and sore and we spent most of the remainder of the afternoon on the couch as we chatted about the hike.
Response from parents:
From: Cheryl Kotze [mailto:info@jksurvey.com]
Sent: 12 October 2008 08:03 PM
To: Peter Giddy
Subject: Re: Tsitsikamma Hiking Group October 2008 Report.
Well done Peter! Nice to read all you got up to!!
Dear Peter
Thanks so much for all you did to organise this hike. Sara THOROUGHLY enjoyed it and I believe from many people that she coped very well. We are so proud of her.
Tindal really battles with his knees from old rugby injuries and could never manage the up and downs of hiking. We do walk a lot along the flat beach at low tide and Sara thoroughly enjoys that too, but
this was a privilege and a blessing for her to be part of. Thank you, I appreciate it.
Jacquie
Dear Peter
Thanks you very much for this report – it brought back a lot of memories for me of my hiking days! It really sounds as if you had a great time and certainly achieved objectives I had in mind if terms of giving families quality time to spend together, and kids a chance to socialise in good company and a healthy environment, all as part of the WMC community. Many thanks for taking it on. I very much hope that we can move forward with what I see to be a valuable ministry.
With that in mind I would ask you, if you have not already decided to do so, to attend the men’s breakfast on Saturday. We are going to do some serious thinking about where men can fit into the vision we have for WMC and what you have done here is an example of what others can do with a little bit of imagination and thought. I think you could have a useful contribution to make, so please come if possible.
Graeme
Dear Peter
Thanks for initiating and enabling an obviously special adventure for part of our family at Walmer Methodist.
I hope we will get more of these going in time to come. I expect that those who went won’t miss out in future but hope others will find the time and take the opportunity.
Blessings
Jonathan
Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th October 2008.
On this trail:
Peter, Barbara & Ally
Angus & Madison
Hannes, Jordan and Amber
Friend of Jordan – Handre
Rob, Megan & Jason and their friends James & Sarah
Fred, Jeremy and Janine
Alex, Lynne and Lara
John, Michael and Greg
Dawn was due to come but had to pull out for work reasons as her computer had ‘crashed’.
The hike was born from an idea of Graeme Gilmour (Walmer Methodist Church)who wanted to encourage family activities. I put out a notice and was pleased to receive an immediate and positive response from church members.
We met before the hike to discuss the logistics and kit requirements. At this stage I could already see that we were going to have a great hike. The youngsters immediately started to bond and there was an electric vibe in our lounge as we spoke about the coming hike. I was able to borrow a number of backpacks. The Glovers’, Perks’ & Scheepers’ were all good to lend out their equipment. These were distributed amoung people who were first time hikers.
On the morning of Friday 3rd October I was up early and made a few final preparations and packed the food that was in the fridge. Ally’s pack would be a little heavier than she was used to but I thought that it was about time that she started to carry for herself. The pack that she would use was one borrowed from the Perk’s. We met at the church and were able to leave at about 09.30.
We had been a bit concerned about the weather as we had seen some nasty predictions on the news. But the day looked fine and I was looking forward to a great three days ahead. Alex was in St Francis and had arranged to meet us en route. Barbara had forgotten her walking stick and after a quick stop at home we were on our way. Hannes took his Combi, Rob has a big Pajero, John has a station wagon and we had our Toyota with Angus and Madison driving with us.
We stopped at Humansdorp to wait for Alex but the wind was bitingly cold and we decided to press on as far as Storms River. On our way we saw two experimental Solar Powered vehicles heading towards PE. They looked more like a large Frisbee than a car. But it is interesting to think that people will continually be looking out for alternative energy. There was construction at the bridge and we were able to chat while we waited.
Hannes pointed out that I had been speeding and probably would receive a speeding fine for going over 60kph along the bypass section. The youngsters jumped out of the cars and walked across the bridge. At Storms River we stopped for a toilet break and pressed on to the Lottering Station where we would leave a car and park the rest of them at Boskor.
Fortunately Barbara decided to walk to the office where she met up with Nadia. Nadia had done the bookings but I had made a Boo boo! We were not going to hike the section that I had planned and so had to get back into our cars and drive through the toll gate to the Blaaukrans Forest station. Here we again parked cars and John & I drove back to Lottering where we would leave our cars to be collected at the end of the hike. Alex, Hannes and Rob left their vehicles at Blaaukrans. As we returned to where they were waiting I made my next mistake. I put my car keys into Hannes’ Combi. Doff! How was I to drive my car back to collect the others if the keys were at the start? Ah well! No worries. John had kept his keys with him.
After a bit of back pack adjustments we set off on the trail up to the Blaaukrans hut. It was a Forest Road and really very easy walking. All uphill. As we walked we were able to see the Blaaukrans River Bridge where the Bungy Jumping takes place. At one stage we were looking down into deep gorges and valleys. Stunning views. The distance from the forest station where we had parked to the overnight hut was about 6kays and it took us about 2 hours of easy walking to reach the hut.
Fred must have reached the hut first as he came back to see if he could help with anyone who was struggling. I was one of the last to the hut and discovered that the young group had secured exclusive use of one of the rooms. There were about 12 to 15 beds in the form of triple bunks in each room. Madison had wanted to know if she was going to be in her own room. However I think that she was delighted to be in a room with so many other children.
We got the fire going and then walked down to the stream below. From the balcony of this hut you look down to the stream and waterfall. Handre and Jordan were doing some cliff hanging as they sat on the edge of the waterfall. I tried to get them to step back, as it would be me who would have to face Jacqui’s fury if something happened to Jordan. But they seemed confident and Fred joined them for a swim in the pool. I was a bit more conservative and swam with James and Jason in one of the upper pools. These two boys had a ball as they looked for frogs and tadpoles. The water was chilly but bearable. This was my wash for the day.
Back up at the boma area the kettle was already boiling and we were able to make ourselves coffee. We settled into our rooms and unpacked the evening supper allocation. Barbara & I had decided to treat ourselves. Now you have to understand the dynamics of hiking with our groups. Each evening or meal time there is an unspoken rivalry as to who can be the most inventive and who will have the most luxuries. Normally what we do is set out snacks which can include muscles or oysters on crackers, Biltong and any other delicacies that we can think of.
This evening I had a plate with cauliflower, carrots and chips with a dip. Rob added some biltong and cashews and we passed this around while we opened our beers & sherry. Then I opened our pack of Tiger Prawns that we had brought for the evening. At the last hike Fred had shown me the special rice that he had bought and I used this idea with the Prawns. I put some Chinese rice on the fire in a dixie. I had brought some premixed olive oil and butter to fry the prawns and once they had turned a bright pink I served Barbara & I a meal that would have rivalled any that you could prepare at home.
Ally does not eat prawns so I braaied boerewors and served this in rolls for her. Immediately after the braaing was done, the marshmallows came out and soft, burnt, sticky marshmallows were served up as a dessert. The temperature dropped quickly as we sat enjoying the evening. The sky was clear and stars shined as bright as you will see anywhere. Barbara went off to bed and I followed soon afterwards. The youngsters were having a great time in their room. Singing, chatting and playing.
Saturday morning. I had slept fitfully as I generally do on hard uncomfortable bunk beds. Tough! During the night I had felt something run across my sleeping bag. The window was open next to me and I thought it was a mouse. Only after I had announced that there was a mouse in the room and had explained this in detail to everyone and sundry, did Barbara tell me that the mouse was her hitting me with a pillow to stop me snoring! How embarrassing.
John had slept outside in the boma on a table and Rob & Jason had slept on the floor next to the fireplace. They must have frozen. It was really chilly that night and there is no protection against the breeze. I put the fire on for morning coffee and one by one the rest of the group emerged. It was still quite cold but as the sun came up it became warm. Barbara & I had agreed that coffee and rusks would be our breakfast. The main consensus amoungst the hikers seemed to be Oats so easy or plain porridge.
At about 08.00am we managed to group together for a photo and then headed down the pathway for day two of our hike. I always wonder at how quickly we climb on hikes like this. In no time we were looking back down at the hut where we had stayed. The path took us up and then down to a stream in the forest. Here we stopped for a rest and a snack. And then headed off to the next stop which was to be at the 5kay mark.
We could see the rest of the group down at the stream long before we worked our way down. Here there is a crossing of the river with a chain. The last time we crossed the river was flowing strongly and we really had to use the chain. This time however the river was a gentle flow and once across, we found a wonderful place to relax, suntan, eat and swim. I saw Greg and Handre having a race across the pool. This looked like fun until I got into the water. I cannot remember ever being in such cold water. It was really bitingly cold. But the swim did our legs and muscles good. Refreshing was an understatement. I think that everyone was impressed to see Lynne in her bathing costume and also jump into the water.
After a good relaxing break we headed up hill. This was a long climb. Below we could see the stream flowing down to our pool. Across the valley was a sentinel Baboon barking a warning to the troop. The next section of hiking was heavy going. We walked along the contour of the mountain. The pathway was tough and there were continuous sets of ups and downs as each stream that we passed was a little valley that we had to go through. Ally was not feeling her best and Barbara had a sore back / side that she was battling with.
We plodded on slowly and made steady headway. Finally we came up to John, Rob and his little group and Ally managed to stay with them. Barbara & I then took it easy for a while. John had been studying the map and had pointed out where he thought the next camp should be located. We reached a small forest section where there was a reasonable stream. Each time we came across water I would fill my bottle. As we emerged from this wooded area we decided to take a break. Barbara closed her eyes and I took out my book to read.
The break had lifted our spirits and we headed down the pathway and then turned left along a forest road. From here we continued in an easterly direction for a short while before heading left up on to the pathway again. We again reached the forest road and saw a sign which indicated that we had 1.5kays to go to Keurbos. This would be the road that we would have to walk along the next morning, back to the Lottering Forest station. Ahead we could see Rob and Jason. As you near the huts you pass some pools called Twin Tubs. I had swum there before when we did a hike with family. These pools provide a really freezing swim opportunity. Rob had noticed the animal trap and took some people back to examine it later.
That afternoon we must have reached the hut at about 16.00. There seemed to be quite a bit of activity around the hut. The fires were burning, people were showering and a few hikers took the mattresses off the beds and laid them on the grassy area for an afternoon nap. I was looking forward to my coffee and was happy to see that the kettle was boiling. Chatting to the rest of the group I realised that it was not only us who had battled with the afternoon walk. Angus was quite weary, Fred looked like he was glad to be in camp and the sleeping bodies on the grass told a story as well.
That evening Barbara & I prepared a potato with Bacon, cheese, spinach, onion and mushroom topping. We had this with a hamburger and marshmallows as desert again. A really substantial and delicious meal. After supper and a few drinks we were pretty exhausted and were in bed early again. The youngsters had commandeered one of the huts and were having a great time together. Some of the adults stayed up a little later but I could hardly keep my eyes open.
The mattresses are pretty thin and with sore limbs I did not sleep too well and was happy to see that first light was just emerging. The boma area was empty that morning and Angus & I got the fire going for early morning coffee. As more people emerged a variety of breakfasts were prepared before we were ready to set off at about 08.00am. Rob & Janine were suffering with blisters and did a bit of doctoring. Janine had told me that she remembered our Jacqui from Church Youth Groups.
The road back to Lottering started off with an uphill but the forest road is easy going and we were soon back to where we had met up with the road the previous day. As we walked, John told us some very interesting facts about GIS mapping (Geographic Information Systems). The use of GIS mapping and how a variety of information is used for farming, development and all kinds of studies. We walked at a steady pace and reached the stream crossing the road where we estimated the 5 kay mark to be. Here we stopped for a break and to regroup.
I was really happy with our food provisions as we finished the last of our food supply at this point. I often over cater and take stuff home that I have lugged along for days on the trail. After a good rest we hitched up again and walked down to the weir of the Lottering river at the bottom of the valley before a steady climb up again. At the River we realised that we had already walked 7 kays and had just over four kays to go.
The last section of the hike was not too tough and we finally emerged back at the forest station about 4 hours after we had started off that morning. Fred and Handre were first in. Our little group was next and Ally, Lara, Greg and I had a little sprint to the finish. As each group came in we encouraged them to run in at the finish and this added fun to the end of a good hike. John loaded Rob, Hannes and Alex into his car and they went off to collect the other vehicles from the Blaaukrans forest station.
Those who were left behind either relaxed with closed eyes or played around on the grass. As soon as they returned with the vehicles, we loaded our stuff and drove through to Storms River where we purchased an unhealthy combination of burgers, chips, milkshake and coffee. All our hard work over the past few days was lost to burgers in a few minutes! Once we were back onto the N2 we took just under two hours to reach home. I really love the whole thing of going on an outing like this but I also love getting home. The thought of a hot shower, coffee and a remote control was really enticing. My body was tired and sore and we spent most of the remainder of the afternoon on the couch as we chatted about the hike.
Response from parents:
From: Cheryl Kotze [mailto:info@jksurvey.com]
Sent: 12 October 2008 08:03 PM
To: Peter Giddy
Subject: Re: Tsitsikamma Hiking Group October 2008 Report.
Well done Peter! Nice to read all you got up to!!
Dear Peter
Thanks so much for all you did to organise this hike. Sara THOROUGHLY enjoyed it and I believe from many people that she coped very well. We are so proud of her.
Tindal really battles with his knees from old rugby injuries and could never manage the up and downs of hiking. We do walk a lot along the flat beach at low tide and Sara thoroughly enjoys that too, but
this was a privilege and a blessing for her to be part of. Thank you, I appreciate it.
Jacquie
Dear Peter
Thanks you very much for this report – it brought back a lot of memories for me of my hiking days! It really sounds as if you had a great time and certainly achieved objectives I had in mind if terms of giving families quality time to spend together, and kids a chance to socialise in good company and a healthy environment, all as part of the WMC community. Many thanks for taking it on. I very much hope that we can move forward with what I see to be a valuable ministry.
With that in mind I would ask you, if you have not already decided to do so, to attend the men’s breakfast on Saturday. We are going to do some serious thinking about where men can fit into the vision we have for WMC and what you have done here is an example of what others can do with a little bit of imagination and thought. I think you could have a useful contribution to make, so please come if possible.
Graeme
Dear Peter
Thanks for initiating and enabling an obviously special adventure for part of our family at Walmer Methodist.
I hope we will get more of these going in time to come. I expect that those who went won’t miss out in future but hope others will find the time and take the opportunity.
Blessings
Jonathan
Sunday, September 28, 2008
WILDCLIFF WEEKEND SEPTEMBER 2008
WILDCLIFF WEEKEND
Thursday 25th to Sunday 28th September
Michael had said that they would come along this time. But as it turned out they found a new house to live in and had to move over the weekend. They had been living in Westering and they found this to be a long drive each day to both work and school so looked for a house closer to where they had all their activities. They found a house in Target Kloof (River Road) belonging to a Nippers family and were able to secure it for a year.
We then offered to take their children with us to WC to give them the freedom to move. Wednesday was a public holiday and I was able to get a lot of stuff done. Started off with a 15kay around Moffet. It was blowing and I went through Walmer, Moffet and back via Newton Park. I ran on my own which is unusual for me but really enjoyed the exercise and gave myself plenty of time to think and plan. I went to Builders warehouse where they were having some kind of promotion and I bought a ladder plus some hardware. Richard was due to come that morning and we would be fitting the video door chime. That took us most of the day.
Thursday morning Barbara had school until 11.00am. Ally & Jessica had stayed out of school. I made up my list of things to do which started off with a letter to the insurance company, making an offer to purchase the Mazda Bakkie that had been stolen and that I had recently recovered in Uitenhage. It was in a garage (Owen’s) in Uitenhage for repair and roadworthy. When I recovered the bakkie it looked in terrible condition. The wheels were flat, the locks had been damaged, the canopy had been stolen and the alloy wheels exchanged for steel rims. I later heard, from the insurance company, that my offer of R5 000 had been accepted and I must now go back to Uitenhage to pay Owen, collect and licence the vehicle.
My next task was to go to see if I could get Ally’s little pink camera to work. I replaced batteries but am still not sure if I am taking pictures. I will have to download the software and then see if I am able to transfer the photo’s that I took this weekend onto the computer.
Then I had to buy Pinkies (newly born mice that are frozen) for Barbara’s snake. I then went to Pick’n Pay to stock up on provisions. I had a list and thought that I would be able to get through this quite quickly but as always I met up with people I know and each encounter takes time as we exchange stories and chat for a bit. Sonja Giddy (Wayne’s wife) runs a small jewellery shop from inside a chemist next to the entrance to the supermarket. I always stop for a chat there as well.
I drove down Moffet and saw that I was passing the Camping Warehouse shop and as Ally had been nagging me for Puttees I decided to see if they had any. While I was there I also looked at Two Man tents and ended up buying a tent (R700) and the gaiters (R200) (the sales lady refused to call them puttees). I then went to the Builders Warehouse where I bought the Paint for my painter, Clive Felix, to continue with the painting of the boundary wall and the school area.
Clive is an interesting man who had arrived a few days earlier asking for painting work. I had started with the job myself but had botched it up and was pleased to find a person who gave reasonable prices. I had asked him to do a small section of the boundary wall. This developed and I now have him working on all the walls except the house itself. Clive has a wonderful disposition and this makes him a likeable man. When we were at our “Cooking Class” on Monday night I mentioned to Derek Kibble that I had this painter, he immediately recognised my description of Clive from his limp and pleasant ways. Derek has also used him on occasions.
Finally, on my way home, I stopped in at the canvas place and gave them the trampoline mat to repair. By the time I had done all of this it was 11.00am and we had planned to leave at 12.00. We loaded the trailer (Gerald’s) and were on the road by midday. We now had Ally (11), Jessica (9), Joshua (5) and Daniel (3) in the car with us. We took the Gamtoos bypass and when we got to the road works at Storms River were the last in the queue and drove straight through without a stop. Amazing!
Our first stop was in Sedgefield. Nicci had said that she was not able to buy pyjamas and we found a Pep Stores where Barbara bought a set for each child. Then at the Mossel Bay Engen we bought some eats. Then it was a straight through drive to Heidelberg. Here we filled up with petrol and a final top up of groceries. Nicci and Stefan were at WC ahead of us and had phoned in to say that some of the stuff that we had left the last time had been used up.
We arrived at WC just as it was getting dark. Barbara took some stunning evening photos including one of a distant tornado that we saw on the horizon. There had been a fire on the mountains of Heidelberg and Bob plus his neighbours had spent nearly three days putting the fire out.
It had been about a 6.30hours drive. We put on a fire and braaied some chops and sausage. They children seemed to go wild making a huge racket and laughing and playing around. But it was not long after supper that we were all fast asleep. They wind blew all night threatening to blow the roof off.
It was raining as well and on Friday morning it was freezing cold, the wind was howling and the rain falling. It would be a mainly indoor day. Bob came for his mandatory visit and coffee. It is always good to see Bob and hear the local farming woes. The next visitor we had was Freek. He came to discuss the work that he had completed and the payment due to him. I was not able to inspect the work outside as the weather was just too miserable.
Then Mike and Basil arrived. And as it happened just as they arrived the roof in the kitchen and the lounge area started to leak. Mike blamed it on the baboons for removing the caps over the roof nails. Each time a visitor arrives we boil another kettle for coffee and tea. I was able to discuss all of Mikes work list as I had prepared for this; including payments and work still to be done.
There is very little to be completed in Talari. The White House (Casa Bianca) is now to be the focus of his attention. We walked down to the CB and looked, first off, at the store room which has a sky light and this makes it quite bright. He has started the inside work but will leave this to last as it now serves as a bedroom for his labourers. In the main house he has now painted a first coat of white paint and finished the roof (no ceiling).
He still has to build the bathroom and put in the fittings (shower, toilet, bath, basin and light). Then he has to build the mezzanine which will serve as an additional sleeping area for Keith’s children. Against the south wall he must build a counter leaving place for a fridge and must run electricity to that side of the house. He then has to finish off the front of the house with a stoep and roof and then lead a brick pathway.
Finally when we had finished our talks with both Mike & Freek they had to call Bob to come and assist them to drive back to the Gysmanshoek pass road. Bob drove through from his farm in his tractor. When he arrived at Talari his hands were freezing and he had to soak them in hot water to try to get the circulation going again. A good helping of sherry also helped. The roads were by now so muddy and slippery that it would have been impossible to drive through with a normal vehicle. I think that even the 4 X 4 would have battled. Bob put a chain to the front of the tractor and the back of Mike’s bakkie to drive down the hill and then had to tow them up on the other side of the stream.
A little later it stopped raining and we were able to walk down to the pond. The children had a great time. They all had Wellington boots but still became so muddy that the new corner in the front porch area for boots and washing was put to the test. Unfortunately the drain pipe is a bit too small and soon became clogged with mud.
Stefan & I found a gap in the rain and walked down the Talari road to the stream. It is a concern that the WFW people have left branches and tree trunks lying either in the stream or so close that a big rain will cause damming and flooding. We had a long afternoon which included collecting firewood from the meadow as the wood in the braai had been demolished and the wood in the inside fireplace was almost finished. The WFW people have been cutting on the West side of WC so the approach to WC is now more visible. Then they have also cut along the Wilderkrans Stream and both above Heron and Talari. Unfortunately the felling of trees leaves a mess and makes walking quite difficult. I am sure that the long term benefits will make it worthwhile.
We lit the newly fitted indoor stove in the kitchen. It seems to work very well as I was able to heat water and Stefan baked bread in the oven area. I think that it might work well as a slow cooker for a stew but may not be hot enough for frying or boiling rice etc. We did not try to load the fire burning area with more than a few then pieces of wood. A really strong fire in the stove may have made the stove hot enough to get the water really boiling. I had bought some Tiger Prawns and we had those for an afternoon snack. Stefan made a Pootjie in the indoor fireplace. It turned out very well. He does not mix the ingredients but starts with the meat and then adds vegetables to the top.
Our night was a bit better as Barbara had put the single bed next to hers but still there was a lot of restlessness from the children as one fell off and blankets were dragged off the beds or from one body to the next.
Saturday morning looked like it was going to be a great day. The sky was clearing and the wind had dropped so Stefan and I were able to get and early start on our planned hike. If the weather had been really good we had planned to walk up the Hidden Valley and to sleep out there. This did not work out but we still planned a long days walking. We packed back packs for the worst including wet suites, jackets, stove and torches.
We started off past the Rain Frog dam and it was here that we remembered that we had not brought the lopper. Stefan walked back to fetch it while I tried to phone for someone to bring it up the hill a way. But by the time I was able to phone, Stefan was already back at Talari. We bashed our way up the hill, past all the fallen pine that Tom had recently cut. And up to Fynbos Road. From there we walked past the area that Freek was supposed to fill with rocks. The clay washes away and what we really need is some kind of permanent solution but in the meantime rocks will at least shore the road up a bit.
Our marker for the trail down to the kloof was still there. As we walked closer to Ena’s falls the wind picked up and it became quite chilly again. But over the hill and in the valley we were sheltered from the wind and as soon as the sun emerged from the clouds it was pleasantly warm. We crossed the stream and were pleased to find a pathway had been established and marked with ribbon. Trail Marking Ribbon should be a permanent fixture in a day pack at WC.
We followed the trail for a while but it seemed to peter out and we then decided, for no real reason, to deviate from our original plan and walked up the hill on our left. Here we saw a Klipspringer silhouetted on the top of the ridge. Stefan had brought his new camera which takes up to 26minutes of video. He took a picture of this Klipspringer and then it gave us a display of why it has the name Klipspringer as it bounded from rock to rock with incredible agility and made us look like real fish out of water as we lumbered up the rocks.
Right now we were very pleased to have the puttees. The bush is thick and the sticks are quite vicious as they scrape your legs and knees. Each step is quite tiring as you need to step up and push your way through the bush. At the top of the mountain we looked down onto Ena’s Falls from the West side for the first time. It gives one a different perspective and we were able to see the water pipe that feeds the rest of the reserve. We had seen a Dassie Midden but then Stefan saw a live dassie (Rock Hyrax).
We then decided to head down to the Kloof that Stefan had tried to reach once before but had been unable to climb down an apparently high waterfall. Ahead of us we could see the end of the horse shoe ridge that jutted out to the west of Fynbos Road. It seemed like a reasonably gradual slope that could be negotiated from that side. On our side of the kloof we came across a number of interesting features. The most noticeable was the number of King Protea. While they are still sparse they were more in evidence than we had seen anywhere else on the slopes of the reserve. None of the Protea were flowering at this time of year. The King Protea had buds or young closed flowers. This was the only Protea we saw on this side of the mountain. There were a variety of heather and everlastings that provided colour to the veld.
We saw two other interesting plants. One was quite unique and only found on the top of a rock in a crevice. It looked like a pine leaf that we have seen before but was in the form of a small shrub. Then the other was a plant with a bean like seed. It must have flowered earlier in the winter and its seeds now formed miniature beans or pods. I picked samples of both. The beans unfortunately became black. Both of these two specimens I have posted to Gael and Roger to see if they can identify them.
We headed down towards the Wilderkrans kloof. On our way we saw a lone pine tree and decided that we did not like this invader and headed towards it. The going was quite rough through some high reeds and thick bush. But we finally reached it and attacked it with our Leatherman knives. The idea was that we would ring bark it.
The outer layer of bark and the soft part of the trunk was reasonably easy to cut through but as we reached the thick solid part of the trunk we gave up cutting. We thought that the tree would now die through lack of moisture as nutrients are drawn up the tree trunk through the outer soft layers of the trunk while the thick hard inner layers of the trunk provide the stability and strength for the tree. This little tree is visible from Fynbos road as it is just below a flat section of rock and is the only Pine in that area and on that side of the mountain.
From here we headed straight down hill. It was reasonably easy going as we did a lot of slipping and sliding through the reeds and bush. Finally we reached a point where we could no longer see where we were going and then headed to the right to a sloot where we thought we may be able to see a pathway down. But even here we could see nothing ahead of us. For a short while we thought of using the rope that I had brought but it would have been hopelessly too short and we could still not see more than three meters ahead of us.
So reluctantly we decided to head back up hill. At this stage we were only about twenty meters away from being right down in the kloof. We could now see up to the falls that had frustrated Stefan the previous time. This set of falls may be the most spectacular of the entire kloof. There is a long fall probably the same height as Ena’s Falls and then a number of falls after that, each creating pools, before cascading down again. But it was just not safe for us to attempt this without adequate strong ropes, helmets, harnesses and probably guidance from the other side of the kloof.
But what we were able to see from this angle, is that if we made our way from the Fynbos road straight across to the end of the horse shoe bend. And by keeping more to our left, we probably will be able to hike down to the Kloof below these falls by this route from Fynbos Road. Going back up the way we had come was exhausting. We had to trample our way through dense bush with each step being a burden as we pushed our way up. We found our pathway that we had established on the way down. The pine tree was a bit of a marker. From there we battled up the big rock faces and finally ridged over the top where we now could again see the pipes leading from Ena’s Falls. We saw, what we thought was a Rock Kestrel. Quite unusual and interesting to see the bird from above.
We sat down for a snack and it was here that Stefan lost his wide brimmed hat. We went back to find it but all the rocks looked alike and we could not find it. The way down on the north side was tough for me. I was, by now, becoming quite leg weary. A combination of the sharp sticks digging into my knees and legs as well as the climbing down was extremely tiring. We spotted some of the trail markers and this lifted our sprits as we looked forward to walking on a path again. We had underestimated our need for water. The apples and oranges that we had brought were a good substitute but we should have brought a spare water bottle.
Back onto Fynbos road the going was easy and we even had time to pick a few flowers to take home with us. As we made our way across from where we had been earlier we were able to see the terrain. When we had decided to make our way up from the dangerous section we now realised that we could have walked diagonally across to what we refer to as bum slide pools and then from there back up to Fynbos road. We finally reached Talari at about 16.30 having walked for over eight hours. I was really exhausted but a shower, warm tracksuit and a beer was enough to make me start feeling human again. Fortunately there was a rugby game on TV and we used that as an excuse to sit and do nothing for a while.
Barbara, Nicci and the 7 children had gone on a “Bear Hunt”. Barbara has a book that she reads to children about a bear hunt as you squish and tramp through a forest. The bear hunt took them up to Rain Frog Dam where the group of children had a great time enjoying each other’s company and playing in the sloot that Freek had built. The report we received later was that they had walked well together. When we returned to Talari the children were all down at the pond having a great time exploring.
We built a small fire in the lounge where they spent an hour with marshmallows on sticks. This evening we were all pretty tired and people seemed to fade off to bed rather than a deliberate intent to sleep. Zara and I were last to leave the couch and she came with me to our bed which already contained Barbara and four children. But after a short while she toddled off to her bedroom.
Sunday morning we spent most of the morning packing, cleaning, having breakfast and chatting to Mike and to Bob. Bob came for a visit with his grandson (Ashley) and confirmed that the road had now dried sufficiently for us to be able to drive out without his assistance. Mike came with a fishing buddy of his (Gordon) and I was able to talk to him about some of the places he still needed to spend some time.
We left Talari at about 12.00pm. The drive out was not without event and we had to stop and fill the hole at the gate with stones before driving through. We then decided to follow Nicci and Stefan through the Gysmanshoek pass road. As we turned left Stefan stopped to point out Wildcliff from an angle that we had not seen before. It was very interesting to look at WC from the East. We could see Plattekloof, Peter’s Kloof and the waterfalls that continued up the Plattekloof. This is a worthwhile drive as it gives one a different perspective of the reserve.
From there we headed up and over the pass. It was quite tough going and at one stage we had to off load all the passengers and Barbara & Stefan pushed the trailer while I drove it up and over the ridge. Over the north east side of the mountain range we were now in the Klein Karoo. The change in vegetation is quite dramatic. At the end of the pass Nicci turned left and we turned right. They went as far as Ceres that night where they stayed with Stefan’s sister, Lynette.
The dirt road from Talari to the Riversdale / Ladismith tar road is about 35kay and took us just over an hour. The road to Oudtshoorn is spectacular with deep gorges and valleys as we drove through passes. We drove past the now familiar Sewe Weeks Poort pass, Calitzdorp and on to Oudtshoorn. In Oudtshoorn we stopped to buy cold drinks, KFC and to fill up with petrol. This route is about 35kays longer than the coastal route and took us about 30 minutes longer than the journey down to WC. But it is an interesting alternative and it misses out the slow section from Storms River to George where we have to drive through Plett, Knysna, Sedgefield & Wilderness. The return trip took us about 7 hours as we arrived home at 19.00. Michael and Lene were there to collect their children and pile of clothing.
Thursday 25th to Sunday 28th September
Michael had said that they would come along this time. But as it turned out they found a new house to live in and had to move over the weekend. They had been living in Westering and they found this to be a long drive each day to both work and school so looked for a house closer to where they had all their activities. They found a house in Target Kloof (River Road) belonging to a Nippers family and were able to secure it for a year.
We then offered to take their children with us to WC to give them the freedom to move. Wednesday was a public holiday and I was able to get a lot of stuff done. Started off with a 15kay around Moffet. It was blowing and I went through Walmer, Moffet and back via Newton Park. I ran on my own which is unusual for me but really enjoyed the exercise and gave myself plenty of time to think and plan. I went to Builders warehouse where they were having some kind of promotion and I bought a ladder plus some hardware. Richard was due to come that morning and we would be fitting the video door chime. That took us most of the day.
Thursday morning Barbara had school until 11.00am. Ally & Jessica had stayed out of school. I made up my list of things to do which started off with a letter to the insurance company, making an offer to purchase the Mazda Bakkie that had been stolen and that I had recently recovered in Uitenhage. It was in a garage (Owen’s) in Uitenhage for repair and roadworthy. When I recovered the bakkie it looked in terrible condition. The wheels were flat, the locks had been damaged, the canopy had been stolen and the alloy wheels exchanged for steel rims. I later heard, from the insurance company, that my offer of R5 000 had been accepted and I must now go back to Uitenhage to pay Owen, collect and licence the vehicle.
My next task was to go to see if I could get Ally’s little pink camera to work. I replaced batteries but am still not sure if I am taking pictures. I will have to download the software and then see if I am able to transfer the photo’s that I took this weekend onto the computer.
Then I had to buy Pinkies (newly born mice that are frozen) for Barbara’s snake. I then went to Pick’n Pay to stock up on provisions. I had a list and thought that I would be able to get through this quite quickly but as always I met up with people I know and each encounter takes time as we exchange stories and chat for a bit. Sonja Giddy (Wayne’s wife) runs a small jewellery shop from inside a chemist next to the entrance to the supermarket. I always stop for a chat there as well.
I drove down Moffet and saw that I was passing the Camping Warehouse shop and as Ally had been nagging me for Puttees I decided to see if they had any. While I was there I also looked at Two Man tents and ended up buying a tent (R700) and the gaiters (R200) (the sales lady refused to call them puttees). I then went to the Builders Warehouse where I bought the Paint for my painter, Clive Felix, to continue with the painting of the boundary wall and the school area.
Clive is an interesting man who had arrived a few days earlier asking for painting work. I had started with the job myself but had botched it up and was pleased to find a person who gave reasonable prices. I had asked him to do a small section of the boundary wall. This developed and I now have him working on all the walls except the house itself. Clive has a wonderful disposition and this makes him a likeable man. When we were at our “Cooking Class” on Monday night I mentioned to Derek Kibble that I had this painter, he immediately recognised my description of Clive from his limp and pleasant ways. Derek has also used him on occasions.
Finally, on my way home, I stopped in at the canvas place and gave them the trampoline mat to repair. By the time I had done all of this it was 11.00am and we had planned to leave at 12.00. We loaded the trailer (Gerald’s) and were on the road by midday. We now had Ally (11), Jessica (9), Joshua (5) and Daniel (3) in the car with us. We took the Gamtoos bypass and when we got to the road works at Storms River were the last in the queue and drove straight through without a stop. Amazing!
Our first stop was in Sedgefield. Nicci had said that she was not able to buy pyjamas and we found a Pep Stores where Barbara bought a set for each child. Then at the Mossel Bay Engen we bought some eats. Then it was a straight through drive to Heidelberg. Here we filled up with petrol and a final top up of groceries. Nicci and Stefan were at WC ahead of us and had phoned in to say that some of the stuff that we had left the last time had been used up.
We arrived at WC just as it was getting dark. Barbara took some stunning evening photos including one of a distant tornado that we saw on the horizon. There had been a fire on the mountains of Heidelberg and Bob plus his neighbours had spent nearly three days putting the fire out.
It had been about a 6.30hours drive. We put on a fire and braaied some chops and sausage. They children seemed to go wild making a huge racket and laughing and playing around. But it was not long after supper that we were all fast asleep. They wind blew all night threatening to blow the roof off.
It was raining as well and on Friday morning it was freezing cold, the wind was howling and the rain falling. It would be a mainly indoor day. Bob came for his mandatory visit and coffee. It is always good to see Bob and hear the local farming woes. The next visitor we had was Freek. He came to discuss the work that he had completed and the payment due to him. I was not able to inspect the work outside as the weather was just too miserable.
Then Mike and Basil arrived. And as it happened just as they arrived the roof in the kitchen and the lounge area started to leak. Mike blamed it on the baboons for removing the caps over the roof nails. Each time a visitor arrives we boil another kettle for coffee and tea. I was able to discuss all of Mikes work list as I had prepared for this; including payments and work still to be done.
There is very little to be completed in Talari. The White House (Casa Bianca) is now to be the focus of his attention. We walked down to the CB and looked, first off, at the store room which has a sky light and this makes it quite bright. He has started the inside work but will leave this to last as it now serves as a bedroom for his labourers. In the main house he has now painted a first coat of white paint and finished the roof (no ceiling).
He still has to build the bathroom and put in the fittings (shower, toilet, bath, basin and light). Then he has to build the mezzanine which will serve as an additional sleeping area for Keith’s children. Against the south wall he must build a counter leaving place for a fridge and must run electricity to that side of the house. He then has to finish off the front of the house with a stoep and roof and then lead a brick pathway.
Finally when we had finished our talks with both Mike & Freek they had to call Bob to come and assist them to drive back to the Gysmanshoek pass road. Bob drove through from his farm in his tractor. When he arrived at Talari his hands were freezing and he had to soak them in hot water to try to get the circulation going again. A good helping of sherry also helped. The roads were by now so muddy and slippery that it would have been impossible to drive through with a normal vehicle. I think that even the 4 X 4 would have battled. Bob put a chain to the front of the tractor and the back of Mike’s bakkie to drive down the hill and then had to tow them up on the other side of the stream.
A little later it stopped raining and we were able to walk down to the pond. The children had a great time. They all had Wellington boots but still became so muddy that the new corner in the front porch area for boots and washing was put to the test. Unfortunately the drain pipe is a bit too small and soon became clogged with mud.
Stefan & I found a gap in the rain and walked down the Talari road to the stream. It is a concern that the WFW people have left branches and tree trunks lying either in the stream or so close that a big rain will cause damming and flooding. We had a long afternoon which included collecting firewood from the meadow as the wood in the braai had been demolished and the wood in the inside fireplace was almost finished. The WFW people have been cutting on the West side of WC so the approach to WC is now more visible. Then they have also cut along the Wilderkrans Stream and both above Heron and Talari. Unfortunately the felling of trees leaves a mess and makes walking quite difficult. I am sure that the long term benefits will make it worthwhile.
We lit the newly fitted indoor stove in the kitchen. It seems to work very well as I was able to heat water and Stefan baked bread in the oven area. I think that it might work well as a slow cooker for a stew but may not be hot enough for frying or boiling rice etc. We did not try to load the fire burning area with more than a few then pieces of wood. A really strong fire in the stove may have made the stove hot enough to get the water really boiling. I had bought some Tiger Prawns and we had those for an afternoon snack. Stefan made a Pootjie in the indoor fireplace. It turned out very well. He does not mix the ingredients but starts with the meat and then adds vegetables to the top.
Our night was a bit better as Barbara had put the single bed next to hers but still there was a lot of restlessness from the children as one fell off and blankets were dragged off the beds or from one body to the next.
Saturday morning looked like it was going to be a great day. The sky was clearing and the wind had dropped so Stefan and I were able to get and early start on our planned hike. If the weather had been really good we had planned to walk up the Hidden Valley and to sleep out there. This did not work out but we still planned a long days walking. We packed back packs for the worst including wet suites, jackets, stove and torches.
We started off past the Rain Frog dam and it was here that we remembered that we had not brought the lopper. Stefan walked back to fetch it while I tried to phone for someone to bring it up the hill a way. But by the time I was able to phone, Stefan was already back at Talari. We bashed our way up the hill, past all the fallen pine that Tom had recently cut. And up to Fynbos Road. From there we walked past the area that Freek was supposed to fill with rocks. The clay washes away and what we really need is some kind of permanent solution but in the meantime rocks will at least shore the road up a bit.
Our marker for the trail down to the kloof was still there. As we walked closer to Ena’s falls the wind picked up and it became quite chilly again. But over the hill and in the valley we were sheltered from the wind and as soon as the sun emerged from the clouds it was pleasantly warm. We crossed the stream and were pleased to find a pathway had been established and marked with ribbon. Trail Marking Ribbon should be a permanent fixture in a day pack at WC.
We followed the trail for a while but it seemed to peter out and we then decided, for no real reason, to deviate from our original plan and walked up the hill on our left. Here we saw a Klipspringer silhouetted on the top of the ridge. Stefan had brought his new camera which takes up to 26minutes of video. He took a picture of this Klipspringer and then it gave us a display of why it has the name Klipspringer as it bounded from rock to rock with incredible agility and made us look like real fish out of water as we lumbered up the rocks.
Right now we were very pleased to have the puttees. The bush is thick and the sticks are quite vicious as they scrape your legs and knees. Each step is quite tiring as you need to step up and push your way through the bush. At the top of the mountain we looked down onto Ena’s Falls from the West side for the first time. It gives one a different perspective and we were able to see the water pipe that feeds the rest of the reserve. We had seen a Dassie Midden but then Stefan saw a live dassie (Rock Hyrax).
We then decided to head down to the Kloof that Stefan had tried to reach once before but had been unable to climb down an apparently high waterfall. Ahead of us we could see the end of the horse shoe ridge that jutted out to the west of Fynbos Road. It seemed like a reasonably gradual slope that could be negotiated from that side. On our side of the kloof we came across a number of interesting features. The most noticeable was the number of King Protea. While they are still sparse they were more in evidence than we had seen anywhere else on the slopes of the reserve. None of the Protea were flowering at this time of year. The King Protea had buds or young closed flowers. This was the only Protea we saw on this side of the mountain. There were a variety of heather and everlastings that provided colour to the veld.
We saw two other interesting plants. One was quite unique and only found on the top of a rock in a crevice. It looked like a pine leaf that we have seen before but was in the form of a small shrub. Then the other was a plant with a bean like seed. It must have flowered earlier in the winter and its seeds now formed miniature beans or pods. I picked samples of both. The beans unfortunately became black. Both of these two specimens I have posted to Gael and Roger to see if they can identify them.
We headed down towards the Wilderkrans kloof. On our way we saw a lone pine tree and decided that we did not like this invader and headed towards it. The going was quite rough through some high reeds and thick bush. But we finally reached it and attacked it with our Leatherman knives. The idea was that we would ring bark it.
The outer layer of bark and the soft part of the trunk was reasonably easy to cut through but as we reached the thick solid part of the trunk we gave up cutting. We thought that the tree would now die through lack of moisture as nutrients are drawn up the tree trunk through the outer soft layers of the trunk while the thick hard inner layers of the trunk provide the stability and strength for the tree. This little tree is visible from Fynbos road as it is just below a flat section of rock and is the only Pine in that area and on that side of the mountain.
From here we headed straight down hill. It was reasonably easy going as we did a lot of slipping and sliding through the reeds and bush. Finally we reached a point where we could no longer see where we were going and then headed to the right to a sloot where we thought we may be able to see a pathway down. But even here we could see nothing ahead of us. For a short while we thought of using the rope that I had brought but it would have been hopelessly too short and we could still not see more than three meters ahead of us.
So reluctantly we decided to head back up hill. At this stage we were only about twenty meters away from being right down in the kloof. We could now see up to the falls that had frustrated Stefan the previous time. This set of falls may be the most spectacular of the entire kloof. There is a long fall probably the same height as Ena’s Falls and then a number of falls after that, each creating pools, before cascading down again. But it was just not safe for us to attempt this without adequate strong ropes, helmets, harnesses and probably guidance from the other side of the kloof.
But what we were able to see from this angle, is that if we made our way from the Fynbos road straight across to the end of the horse shoe bend. And by keeping more to our left, we probably will be able to hike down to the Kloof below these falls by this route from Fynbos Road. Going back up the way we had come was exhausting. We had to trample our way through dense bush with each step being a burden as we pushed our way up. We found our pathway that we had established on the way down. The pine tree was a bit of a marker. From there we battled up the big rock faces and finally ridged over the top where we now could again see the pipes leading from Ena’s Falls. We saw, what we thought was a Rock Kestrel. Quite unusual and interesting to see the bird from above.
We sat down for a snack and it was here that Stefan lost his wide brimmed hat. We went back to find it but all the rocks looked alike and we could not find it. The way down on the north side was tough for me. I was, by now, becoming quite leg weary. A combination of the sharp sticks digging into my knees and legs as well as the climbing down was extremely tiring. We spotted some of the trail markers and this lifted our sprits as we looked forward to walking on a path again. We had underestimated our need for water. The apples and oranges that we had brought were a good substitute but we should have brought a spare water bottle.
Back onto Fynbos road the going was easy and we even had time to pick a few flowers to take home with us. As we made our way across from where we had been earlier we were able to see the terrain. When we had decided to make our way up from the dangerous section we now realised that we could have walked diagonally across to what we refer to as bum slide pools and then from there back up to Fynbos road. We finally reached Talari at about 16.30 having walked for over eight hours. I was really exhausted but a shower, warm tracksuit and a beer was enough to make me start feeling human again. Fortunately there was a rugby game on TV and we used that as an excuse to sit and do nothing for a while.
Barbara, Nicci and the 7 children had gone on a “Bear Hunt”. Barbara has a book that she reads to children about a bear hunt as you squish and tramp through a forest. The bear hunt took them up to Rain Frog Dam where the group of children had a great time enjoying each other’s company and playing in the sloot that Freek had built. The report we received later was that they had walked well together. When we returned to Talari the children were all down at the pond having a great time exploring.
We built a small fire in the lounge where they spent an hour with marshmallows on sticks. This evening we were all pretty tired and people seemed to fade off to bed rather than a deliberate intent to sleep. Zara and I were last to leave the couch and she came with me to our bed which already contained Barbara and four children. But after a short while she toddled off to her bedroom.
Sunday morning we spent most of the morning packing, cleaning, having breakfast and chatting to Mike and to Bob. Bob came for a visit with his grandson (Ashley) and confirmed that the road had now dried sufficiently for us to be able to drive out without his assistance. Mike came with a fishing buddy of his (Gordon) and I was able to talk to him about some of the places he still needed to spend some time.
We left Talari at about 12.00pm. The drive out was not without event and we had to stop and fill the hole at the gate with stones before driving through. We then decided to follow Nicci and Stefan through the Gysmanshoek pass road. As we turned left Stefan stopped to point out Wildcliff from an angle that we had not seen before. It was very interesting to look at WC from the East. We could see Plattekloof, Peter’s Kloof and the waterfalls that continued up the Plattekloof. This is a worthwhile drive as it gives one a different perspective of the reserve.
From there we headed up and over the pass. It was quite tough going and at one stage we had to off load all the passengers and Barbara & Stefan pushed the trailer while I drove it up and over the ridge. Over the north east side of the mountain range we were now in the Klein Karoo. The change in vegetation is quite dramatic. At the end of the pass Nicci turned left and we turned right. They went as far as Ceres that night where they stayed with Stefan’s sister, Lynette.
The dirt road from Talari to the Riversdale / Ladismith tar road is about 35kay and took us just over an hour. The road to Oudtshoorn is spectacular with deep gorges and valleys as we drove through passes. We drove past the now familiar Sewe Weeks Poort pass, Calitzdorp and on to Oudtshoorn. In Oudtshoorn we stopped to buy cold drinks, KFC and to fill up with petrol. This route is about 35kays longer than the coastal route and took us about 30 minutes longer than the journey down to WC. But it is an interesting alternative and it misses out the slow section from Storms River to George where we have to drive through Plett, Knysna, Sedgefield & Wilderness. The return trip took us about 7 hours as we arrived home at 19.00. Michael and Lene were there to collect their children and pile of clothing.
Monday, September 1, 2008
MT MERA HIMALAYAS SEPTEMBER 2008 CLIMBED BY KEITH BRAATVEDT
"EVERSHEDS ON EVEREST"
KEITH BRAATVEDT
My trip to climb Mt Mera (6 476m or 21 247ft above sea level) in the Himalayas
I have, for many years, dreamed about climbing Mt Everest (8 844m above sea level) and reaching the highest point on earth. This dream will probably never be fulfilled. However, the dream has most certainly been satisfied by my climb of Mt Mera. This mountain is situated about 25km from Mt Everest and Mt Mera is the highest trekking peak in the Himalayas.
When I summited at approximately 07h00 on Monday, 13th October 2008, I had a magnificent view of five of the world's highest peaks, all above 8 000m. These peaks are :-
• Everest – 8 844m – the highest in the world
• Kangchenjunga – 8 586m – this mountain is situated in the East of Nepal and is the third highest in the world. Interestingly enough the summit of this mountain is "off limits".
• Lhotse – 8 511m – this mountain is the fourth highest in the world.
• Makalu – this is the fifth highest in the world.
• Cho-ouy – 8 201m – this mountain is situated in the West of Nepal and is the sixth highest in the world
There are 14 recognised peaks above the 8 000m level in the world. Of these, eight are situated in the Himalayan region of Nepal of which I was fortunate enough to see five from the summit of Mt Mera.
The Himalayan region is a fascinating and wonderful part of the earth deriving its name from the Sanskrit term of hima meaning snow and alaya meaning abode. The region is a zone of approximately 2 400km stretching across the Asian continent. In this area there are many peaks above 7 000m, many of which are as difficult and is some cases more difficult to climb than the "magic 8 000m peaks". The other six peaks above 8000m are situated in Pakistan (five) and one in Tibet.
Nepal is an extremely poor country, listed as the fourth poorest country in the world. The average income per capita of a person in Nepal is approximately US$200 per annum. 77% of the area in Nepal is taken up by mountains. Our expedition began with extremely strenuous hikes through the Hinku Valley. The hike began at a tiny village called Lukla, which is situated in the mountains and is an hour's flight from Katmandu. The flight itself is rather scary because Lukla is known to have one of the shortest runways in the world. Regrettably a week after we flew into Lukla one of the Yeti Airline aeroplanes crashed killing fourteen tourists and four Nepalese. The week or so of hiking through the Hinku Valley, prior to us even approaching Mera, helped the group with fitness and confidence. The old rule of "climb high and sleep low" in order to acclimatize was strictly applied. Lukla's altitude is 2 840m. After a week or so of hiking, doing between 5 to 7 hours per day we climbed to 5 000m in order to start the serious acclimatization process.
When camping at the Tangmang camping site (4 295m) we experienced a number of spectacular snow avalanches. The last avalanche was actually too close for comfort, about 100m from the campsite. I was, however, assured by a member of our group that this is a form of avalanche (a "powder snow avalanche) that is not that dangerous.
I need to say a little bit about the logistics and what made our group tick. The group consisted of fourteen climbers. The trip was arranged through a London based tour organization, Exodus. Our support team consisted of about twelve Nepalese porters who would carry tents, food and equipment. In addition, we had five kitchen staff under the strict control of the super efficient head of staff, "Mr Bim", who would make three wholesome meals per day (lots of soup, vegetables, porridge in the morning and the odd bit of Yak meat) for the hungry climbers. Needless to say, I still lost a few kilograms due to the intense exercise.
Our climbing staff comprised of the expedition leader, Krishna Gurung, and the Sherpas being Kajee Sherpa, Big Mingma Scherpa, Little Mingma Sherpa and Wang Chu Sherpa. These climbing Sherpas are amazing people. They will catch you if you fall, adjust your climbing harness and rope in the dark and give you Sherpa brewed tea when you feel close to exhaustion which, I guarantee you, will keep you going. It is interesting to note the fascinating combination of religions between the Nepalese coming from India and those coming from Tibet and Mongolia. On the mountains one can see simple prayer flags, altars made of rock and religious statues and offerings. Early on we were advised to walk clockwise around a monument because according to Buddhist theory it is not good Kharma to walk anti-clockwise around a monument.
I was always concerned about altitude sickness and this can be avoided by eating a lot of good wholesome food. Of course, we had to drink a minimum of three litres of water per day. As an added extra to prevent HAPE or HACE (high altitude pulmonary or cerebral edema) I took one Diamox per day. My very good friend, Peter Hey, and I called our Diamox tablets "the Big D". Thankfully I did not get altitude sickness but I must say that half a Big D twice a day most certainly helped. I am firmly of the view that there is no need to rely on these fancy vitamin shakes or energy supplements and it is really a question of lots of good food, water and sleep.
The golden rule in high altitude trekking and climbing is to maintain a constant body temperature. This is always difficult because in the early hours of the morning before dawn it is bitterly cold at sub-zero temperatures. However, after dawn, temperatures can rise fairly quickly and the secret is to take off the various layers of clothing in order to maintain one's body temperature. If the body temperature becomes too high then exhaustion will set in and likewise if you are too cold then the body will not generate sufficient energy to climb. I summited with two pairs of socks, outer plastic boots and inner boots. My legs were kept warm by two layers of inner thermals, a pair of trousers and gortex outer trousers. The upper body was covered by inner thermal shirts, a 100 fleece, 300 fleece, gortex jacket and outer down jacket. Little issues are important line suntan lotion and glacier sunglasses to protect oneself by the blinding sun made even worse by the snow and ice. A great feeling of comfort is the very heavy, but necessary, crampons clipped to the outer boots which prevent falling on the snow and ice. Fortunately, I didn’t experience any great difficulty with clothing and equipment but this is certainly always a big worry for climbers.
For the last two days of the climb we were roped up in teams of four with eight or ten meters between each climber. This is done for safety purposes and for the easy retrieval of a fallen climber.
The three days before summit day were the most nerve-wracking. The problem was the difficulty in sleeping well because of the high altitude.
Summit day finally arrived. We were woken at 01h00 to commence our six hour climb at temperatures of between -10o and -15o C to the summit. The last camp was known as High Camp at 5 800m, the summit at 6 476m above sea level. The majority of the group summited and there is nothing better than scrambling up snow, with Wang Chu Sherpa roped to me telling me that I had only 10m of flat ground to cover to reach the summit. The moment of the summit, as I have said, was probably one of the best in my life. I can really recommend the trip and the experience to anybody.
Generally, the weather was not that good. The normal pattern would be that it was clear in the morning and very cloudy and misty in the afternoon. It rained for a number of days which made camping at very cold temperatures even more uncomfortable. The earlier parts of the hike were most spectacular in the lower regions walking through the rhodedendrum forests and other wonderful flora indigenous to Nepal. A lot of the early morning mists and fog were brought on by the remnants of the latest monsoon rains in the area.
We returned safely to Katmandu to celebrate our success at the Rum Doodle Restaurant. This is a famous landmark in Katmandu and is a haunt of the Everest summiteers. As a member of the Everest Summiteers Club, your main course at the Rum Doodle Restaurant is free for the rest of your life on production of your Everest summiteers card.
I am attaching a picture of Peter Hey and myself on the summit with our firm's flag with the great mountain of Everest behind the flag and Lhotse on the eastern side.
KEITH BRAATVEDT
My trip to climb Mt Mera (6 476m or 21 247ft above sea level) in the Himalayas
I have, for many years, dreamed about climbing Mt Everest (8 844m above sea level) and reaching the highest point on earth. This dream will probably never be fulfilled. However, the dream has most certainly been satisfied by my climb of Mt Mera. This mountain is situated about 25km from Mt Everest and Mt Mera is the highest trekking peak in the Himalayas.
When I summited at approximately 07h00 on Monday, 13th October 2008, I had a magnificent view of five of the world's highest peaks, all above 8 000m. These peaks are :-
• Everest – 8 844m – the highest in the world
• Kangchenjunga – 8 586m – this mountain is situated in the East of Nepal and is the third highest in the world. Interestingly enough the summit of this mountain is "off limits".
• Lhotse – 8 511m – this mountain is the fourth highest in the world.
• Makalu – this is the fifth highest in the world.
• Cho-ouy – 8 201m – this mountain is situated in the West of Nepal and is the sixth highest in the world
There are 14 recognised peaks above the 8 000m level in the world. Of these, eight are situated in the Himalayan region of Nepal of which I was fortunate enough to see five from the summit of Mt Mera.
The Himalayan region is a fascinating and wonderful part of the earth deriving its name from the Sanskrit term of hima meaning snow and alaya meaning abode. The region is a zone of approximately 2 400km stretching across the Asian continent. In this area there are many peaks above 7 000m, many of which are as difficult and is some cases more difficult to climb than the "magic 8 000m peaks". The other six peaks above 8000m are situated in Pakistan (five) and one in Tibet.
Nepal is an extremely poor country, listed as the fourth poorest country in the world. The average income per capita of a person in Nepal is approximately US$200 per annum. 77% of the area in Nepal is taken up by mountains. Our expedition began with extremely strenuous hikes through the Hinku Valley. The hike began at a tiny village called Lukla, which is situated in the mountains and is an hour's flight from Katmandu. The flight itself is rather scary because Lukla is known to have one of the shortest runways in the world. Regrettably a week after we flew into Lukla one of the Yeti Airline aeroplanes crashed killing fourteen tourists and four Nepalese. The week or so of hiking through the Hinku Valley, prior to us even approaching Mera, helped the group with fitness and confidence. The old rule of "climb high and sleep low" in order to acclimatize was strictly applied. Lukla's altitude is 2 840m. After a week or so of hiking, doing between 5 to 7 hours per day we climbed to 5 000m in order to start the serious acclimatization process.
When camping at the Tangmang camping site (4 295m) we experienced a number of spectacular snow avalanches. The last avalanche was actually too close for comfort, about 100m from the campsite. I was, however, assured by a member of our group that this is a form of avalanche (a "powder snow avalanche) that is not that dangerous.
I need to say a little bit about the logistics and what made our group tick. The group consisted of fourteen climbers. The trip was arranged through a London based tour organization, Exodus. Our support team consisted of about twelve Nepalese porters who would carry tents, food and equipment. In addition, we had five kitchen staff under the strict control of the super efficient head of staff, "Mr Bim", who would make three wholesome meals per day (lots of soup, vegetables, porridge in the morning and the odd bit of Yak meat) for the hungry climbers. Needless to say, I still lost a few kilograms due to the intense exercise.
Our climbing staff comprised of the expedition leader, Krishna Gurung, and the Sherpas being Kajee Sherpa, Big Mingma Scherpa, Little Mingma Sherpa and Wang Chu Sherpa. These climbing Sherpas are amazing people. They will catch you if you fall, adjust your climbing harness and rope in the dark and give you Sherpa brewed tea when you feel close to exhaustion which, I guarantee you, will keep you going. It is interesting to note the fascinating combination of religions between the Nepalese coming from India and those coming from Tibet and Mongolia. On the mountains one can see simple prayer flags, altars made of rock and religious statues and offerings. Early on we were advised to walk clockwise around a monument because according to Buddhist theory it is not good Kharma to walk anti-clockwise around a monument.
I was always concerned about altitude sickness and this can be avoided by eating a lot of good wholesome food. Of course, we had to drink a minimum of three litres of water per day. As an added extra to prevent HAPE or HACE (high altitude pulmonary or cerebral edema) I took one Diamox per day. My very good friend, Peter Hey, and I called our Diamox tablets "the Big D". Thankfully I did not get altitude sickness but I must say that half a Big D twice a day most certainly helped. I am firmly of the view that there is no need to rely on these fancy vitamin shakes or energy supplements and it is really a question of lots of good food, water and sleep.
The golden rule in high altitude trekking and climbing is to maintain a constant body temperature. This is always difficult because in the early hours of the morning before dawn it is bitterly cold at sub-zero temperatures. However, after dawn, temperatures can rise fairly quickly and the secret is to take off the various layers of clothing in order to maintain one's body temperature. If the body temperature becomes too high then exhaustion will set in and likewise if you are too cold then the body will not generate sufficient energy to climb. I summited with two pairs of socks, outer plastic boots and inner boots. My legs were kept warm by two layers of inner thermals, a pair of trousers and gortex outer trousers. The upper body was covered by inner thermal shirts, a 100 fleece, 300 fleece, gortex jacket and outer down jacket. Little issues are important line suntan lotion and glacier sunglasses to protect oneself by the blinding sun made even worse by the snow and ice. A great feeling of comfort is the very heavy, but necessary, crampons clipped to the outer boots which prevent falling on the snow and ice. Fortunately, I didn’t experience any great difficulty with clothing and equipment but this is certainly always a big worry for climbers.
For the last two days of the climb we were roped up in teams of four with eight or ten meters between each climber. This is done for safety purposes and for the easy retrieval of a fallen climber.
The three days before summit day were the most nerve-wracking. The problem was the difficulty in sleeping well because of the high altitude.
Summit day finally arrived. We were woken at 01h00 to commence our six hour climb at temperatures of between -10o and -15o C to the summit. The last camp was known as High Camp at 5 800m, the summit at 6 476m above sea level. The majority of the group summited and there is nothing better than scrambling up snow, with Wang Chu Sherpa roped to me telling me that I had only 10m of flat ground to cover to reach the summit. The moment of the summit, as I have said, was probably one of the best in my life. I can really recommend the trip and the experience to anybody.
Generally, the weather was not that good. The normal pattern would be that it was clear in the morning and very cloudy and misty in the afternoon. It rained for a number of days which made camping at very cold temperatures even more uncomfortable. The earlier parts of the hike were most spectacular in the lower regions walking through the rhodedendrum forests and other wonderful flora indigenous to Nepal. A lot of the early morning mists and fog were brought on by the remnants of the latest monsoon rains in the area.
We returned safely to Katmandu to celebrate our success at the Rum Doodle Restaurant. This is a famous landmark in Katmandu and is a haunt of the Everest summiteers. As a member of the Everest Summiteers Club, your main course at the Rum Doodle Restaurant is free for the rest of your life on production of your Everest summiteers card.
I am attaching a picture of Peter Hey and myself on the summit with our firm's flag with the great mountain of Everest behind the flag and Lhotse on the eastern side.
Friday, August 1, 2008
ACHILLES AMATEUR ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION AUGUST 2008.
1. NAME
The Club shall be called Achilles Amateur Athletic Association.
In this constitution where the word club is used it shall mean the
Achilles Amateur Athletic Association.
2. OBJECTS
The objects shall be to encourage and foster athletics in general and
to look after the interests of the club members.
3. AMATEURS
Membership of the club is restricted to amateurs.
4. EPA RULES
The club shall be affiliated to the Eastern Province Athletics and
shall be subject to the rules of the EPA.
5. ASA RULES
The club shall operate under the rules and regulations of
Athletics South Africa, to which the EPA is in turn affiliated.
6. MEMBERSHIP
Members shall fall in the categories; life, active, non-active or honorary.
Active and non-active members shall, provided their subscriptions are paid,
always enjoy a personal single vote at all General Meetings.
Life members shall also always enjoy a single vote at all General Meetings.
7. LIST OF MEMBERS
The Honorary Secretary shall keep an up-to-date list of members.
This list shall be available at all Annual and Special General Meetings.
Members shall be responsible for advising the Honorary Secretary of any
change of postal address.
8. APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP
Application for membership shall be made on a club membership form which
shall be passed to the Honorary Secretary. Club membership forms shall always
include a declaration which shall indicate that the applicant is an amateur in
terms of the rules of the International Amateur Athletic Federation and ASA.
9. CLUB FEES
The fees shall be determined by the committee at the start of the financial year.
At their discretion, the committee shall have the right to remit any members
membership fees. Club fees do not include any fees for levies which might be
imposed by any National, Provincial Association or Union.
10. CLUB COLOURS
The Club Colours shall be;
Ultra Marine Blue, Red, Yellow and Green. Vests shall be White with a
diagonal Ultra Marine Blue sash across the chest with the club badge in the
centre, in the centre of the sash. The sash must be worn from the right shoulder
to the left waist. Running shorts to be Ultra Marine Blue.
The design and colour of the vest, sash and badge and Ultra Marine Blue shorts
comply with the registered colours of the Achilles Association of the United
Kingdom. The club colours may not be altered except to comply with any
change the United Kingdom Association may make.
11. SPECIAL AWARDS
(a) Honours Badge
The committee shall arrange for the presentation of an honours badge to
any club member who gains Springbok colours or wins a South African
title or is selected for any representative team which the committee deems
merits the presentation of the above award.
(b) Honours for Service
The committee on a two thirds majority vote shall be permitted to grant an
“Honours for Service” award to any member or person whom they deem
worthy of the above award.
(c) Merit Scrolls
The committee shall award “Merit” scrolls to members whom they deem
worthy of the above award.
12. HONORARY LIFE MEMBERSHIP
Persons may have honorary life membership of the club conferred on them
only at an Annual General Meeting. Such a proposal shall be submitted in the
name of the committee. The committee shall take their decision at a committee
meeting at which a two-thirds majority vote of those present must be obtained
before the committee shall submit their proposal to an Annual or
Special General Meeting. An honorary life member shall always enjoy a single
personal vote at all General Meetings.
13. HONORARY MEMBERS
Honorary members can be elected by a simple majority vote of the committee
at any committee meeting.
14. HONORARY MEMBERS (Voting rights)
Honorary members, while listed on the list of members as being an honorary
member, shall not be eligible to accept any office in the club as set out in
Rule 26(a). They shall be permitted to attend any Special or Annual General
Meeting where they can speak but shall not have a vote.
15. NON-ACTIVE MEMBERS
Any club member wishing to change from being an “active” to a “non-active”
member may be granted “non-active membership on application to the
committee. Provided his subscriptions are paid, a non-active member shall
continue to enjoy normal voting powers.
16. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
This meeting should, if possible, be held during September.
17. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING
These meetings shall be called on receipt of a requisition signed by at least
ten paid up members. The requisition shall clearly state the reasons for calling
the meeting and what shall be discussed at the meeting. The committee shall
have the power to call a Special General Meeting at any time.
18. NOTICE OF GENERAL MEETINGS
Ten days notice of all General Meetings shall be given to members in writing.
The notice shall clearly state the reason for calling the meeting.
19. COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Five days notice, in writing, should be given of all committee meetings. Only
committee members shall have the right to attend committee meetings, but the
chairman, at his discretion and with a two thirds vote of consent from the
committee members present shall be permitted to invite persons other than
committee members to attend a committee meeting for a specific purpose.
The prescribed period of notice may be varied by the committee.
20. FREQUENCY OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS
The committee shall endeavour to meet at least once a month.
21. QUORUM AT COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Five members of the committee shall form a quorum at a committee meeting.
22. ATTENDANCE AT COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Committee members unable to attend a committee meeting should notify
the Honorary Secretary. A committee member who is absent from three
consecutive meetings and is unable to give a satisfactory explanation can be
removed from his position by the committee.
23. QUORUM AT GENERAL MEETINGS
At General Meetings 12 paid up members shall form a quorum provided
at least five members of the committee are included in the quorum. If more
than 12 members are present and there are not at least five members of the
committee present then a quorum shall be two thirds of the fully paid up
members as appearing on the clubs membership list. If there is still no quorum
the meeting shall be postponed for between 14 and 21 days and all members
shall be advised in writing of the new date of the meeting and at this meeting
any 12 members shall constitute a quorum.
24. CHAIRMAN OF MEETINGS
The President shall preside at the Annual General Meeting. If he is absent the
Chairman shall preside. The Chairman shall preside at all committee meetings.
If the Chairman is unable to take the chair at a committee meeting the
Secretary or the Treasurer shall call for the nomination of a Chairman from
among those members present. If the Chairman and the President are unable
to attend an Annual General Meeting the Secretary or the Treasurer shall act
as Chairman until the meeting is properly constituted and a Chairman duly
elected.
25. CASTING VOTE
The person in the chair at committee meetings and Annual or Special General
Meetings shall always have a casting as well as a deliberate vote.
26. OFFICE BEARERS
All nominations for office in para. 26(a) to be proposed and seconded in writing
to reach the Secretary before the 31st August.
(a) Committee Members
At each Annual General Meeting the following office bearers shall be
elected.
President
Chairman
Vice Chairman
Honorary Secretary
Honorary Treasurer
Editor of Achillean
Road Running Captain
Cross Country Captain
Ladies Captain
Social Convener
Equipment and Assets Controller
Historian
One Committee Member
These officials shall constitute the club committee.
(b) Delegates to EPARR Council Meetings, EPATF, EPACC Meetings
Delegates and Alternates to be elected from the committee by the
committee.
(c) Honorary Vice Presidents
Honorary Vice Presidents shall be elected only at the Annual General
Meetings. All such appointments shall be for one year but such persons
shall be eligible for re-election.
(d) Additional Club Officials
To assist with the general running of the club the following officials shall
also be elected by the committee.
Honorary Assistant Secretary
Honorary Assistant Treasurer
Junior Captain
Statician
Honorary Club Coaches and all other Vice-Captains as required.
27. VACANCIES
Should any club office fall vacant during the year the committee shall have
the right to fill the position if deemed necessary.
28. CO-OPTED MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE
The committee shall have the power to co-opt members. Any such co-opted
members shall not have a vote at committee meetings.
29. FINANCES
The committee in addition to any other powers which may be granted to
them shall undertake the following specific acts in connection with the
club finances.
(a) Invest any funds which are regarded as being surplus to the immediate
needs of the club.
(b) Operate a current account at a Commercial Bank.
30. FINANCIAL YEAR
The financial year of the Association shall be from 1st September to
31st August.
31. BYE LAWS
The committee shall have the right to frame bye-laws to ensure the smooth
running of the club. These bye-laws shall not in any way conflict with any rule
of the club.
32. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
No alterations or additions to the constitution shall be made except at a Special
or Annual General Meeting. The constitutional change must be clearly specified
as a notice of motion on the agenda for the General Meeting. The constitutional
change shall be accepted only if two-thirds of those present and entitled to
participate in the General Meeting vote in favour of the proposal.
33. UNPAID SUBSCRIPTIONS
The committee shall have the right to cancel membership of any member
whose subscriptions fees are not paid by the 28th February of each year.
Persons whose membership has been cancelled because of non payment of
subscriptions shall be eligible to rejoin the club only when proof is produced
that subscription for the current year and all other outstanding arrears have
been paid.
34. RESIGNATIONS
Members wishing to resign shall do so in writing. The letter shall be submitted
to the Honorary Secretary. Resignations shall be in the hands of the Secretary
before the start of the Annual General Meeting otherwise the person shall
be liable for a subscription fee to cover the current year which starts from
the Annual General Meeting.
35. EXPULSIONS
Any member whom it is deemed has been guilty of breaking the laws and rules
of the club, or of any other unbecoming conduct shall be liable to expulsion.
The decision to expel a member shall be taken by the committee after a full
investigation. A member shall be expelled only when two-thirds of those present
at a duly constituted committee meeting vote in favour of the expulsion.
36. CONFIDENTIAL OBJECTIONS
Any club member who wishes on valid grounds to object to the continued
membership of any other member shall submit his objections in detail in
writing to the Honorary Secretary. This letter shall be marked “Strictly
confidential”. All such objections shall be dealt with strictly in committee
at the first committee meeting after receipt of the said objection.
37. APPEAL AGAINST EXPULSION
An expelled person shall have the right to have his case re-examined at a
Special or Annual General Meeting. The committees decision can be
overruled only if two-thirds of those present at the Special or Annual General
Meeting vote against the committees expulsion decision. An expulsion decision
shall only be re-examined at a Special or Annual General Meeting if the
member concerned submits his application within one calender month from
the date of the expulsion letter, which shall be addressed to the members last
recorded address in the clubs membership list.
The Club shall be called Achilles Amateur Athletic Association.
In this constitution where the word club is used it shall mean the
Achilles Amateur Athletic Association.
2. OBJECTS
The objects shall be to encourage and foster athletics in general and
to look after the interests of the club members.
3. AMATEURS
Membership of the club is restricted to amateurs.
4. EPA RULES
The club shall be affiliated to the Eastern Province Athletics and
shall be subject to the rules of the EPA.
5. ASA RULES
The club shall operate under the rules and regulations of
Athletics South Africa, to which the EPA is in turn affiliated.
6. MEMBERSHIP
Members shall fall in the categories; life, active, non-active or honorary.
Active and non-active members shall, provided their subscriptions are paid,
always enjoy a personal single vote at all General Meetings.
Life members shall also always enjoy a single vote at all General Meetings.
7. LIST OF MEMBERS
The Honorary Secretary shall keep an up-to-date list of members.
This list shall be available at all Annual and Special General Meetings.
Members shall be responsible for advising the Honorary Secretary of any
change of postal address.
8. APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP
Application for membership shall be made on a club membership form which
shall be passed to the Honorary Secretary. Club membership forms shall always
include a declaration which shall indicate that the applicant is an amateur in
terms of the rules of the International Amateur Athletic Federation and ASA.
9. CLUB FEES
The fees shall be determined by the committee at the start of the financial year.
At their discretion, the committee shall have the right to remit any members
membership fees. Club fees do not include any fees for levies which might be
imposed by any National, Provincial Association or Union.
10. CLUB COLOURS
The Club Colours shall be;
Ultra Marine Blue, Red, Yellow and Green. Vests shall be White with a
diagonal Ultra Marine Blue sash across the chest with the club badge in the
centre, in the centre of the sash. The sash must be worn from the right shoulder
to the left waist. Running shorts to be Ultra Marine Blue.
The design and colour of the vest, sash and badge and Ultra Marine Blue shorts
comply with the registered colours of the Achilles Association of the United
Kingdom. The club colours may not be altered except to comply with any
change the United Kingdom Association may make.
11. SPECIAL AWARDS
(a) Honours Badge
The committee shall arrange for the presentation of an honours badge to
any club member who gains Springbok colours or wins a South African
title or is selected for any representative team which the committee deems
merits the presentation of the above award.
(b) Honours for Service
The committee on a two thirds majority vote shall be permitted to grant an
“Honours for Service” award to any member or person whom they deem
worthy of the above award.
(c) Merit Scrolls
The committee shall award “Merit” scrolls to members whom they deem
worthy of the above award.
12. HONORARY LIFE MEMBERSHIP
Persons may have honorary life membership of the club conferred on them
only at an Annual General Meeting. Such a proposal shall be submitted in the
name of the committee. The committee shall take their decision at a committee
meeting at which a two-thirds majority vote of those present must be obtained
before the committee shall submit their proposal to an Annual or
Special General Meeting. An honorary life member shall always enjoy a single
personal vote at all General Meetings.
13. HONORARY MEMBERS
Honorary members can be elected by a simple majority vote of the committee
at any committee meeting.
14. HONORARY MEMBERS (Voting rights)
Honorary members, while listed on the list of members as being an honorary
member, shall not be eligible to accept any office in the club as set out in
Rule 26(a). They shall be permitted to attend any Special or Annual General
Meeting where they can speak but shall not have a vote.
15. NON-ACTIVE MEMBERS
Any club member wishing to change from being an “active” to a “non-active”
member may be granted “non-active membership on application to the
committee. Provided his subscriptions are paid, a non-active member shall
continue to enjoy normal voting powers.
16. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
This meeting should, if possible, be held during September.
17. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING
These meetings shall be called on receipt of a requisition signed by at least
ten paid up members. The requisition shall clearly state the reasons for calling
the meeting and what shall be discussed at the meeting. The committee shall
have the power to call a Special General Meeting at any time.
18. NOTICE OF GENERAL MEETINGS
Ten days notice of all General Meetings shall be given to members in writing.
The notice shall clearly state the reason for calling the meeting.
19. COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Five days notice, in writing, should be given of all committee meetings. Only
committee members shall have the right to attend committee meetings, but the
chairman, at his discretion and with a two thirds vote of consent from the
committee members present shall be permitted to invite persons other than
committee members to attend a committee meeting for a specific purpose.
The prescribed period of notice may be varied by the committee.
20. FREQUENCY OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS
The committee shall endeavour to meet at least once a month.
21. QUORUM AT COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Five members of the committee shall form a quorum at a committee meeting.
22. ATTENDANCE AT COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Committee members unable to attend a committee meeting should notify
the Honorary Secretary. A committee member who is absent from three
consecutive meetings and is unable to give a satisfactory explanation can be
removed from his position by the committee.
23. QUORUM AT GENERAL MEETINGS
At General Meetings 12 paid up members shall form a quorum provided
at least five members of the committee are included in the quorum. If more
than 12 members are present and there are not at least five members of the
committee present then a quorum shall be two thirds of the fully paid up
members as appearing on the clubs membership list. If there is still no quorum
the meeting shall be postponed for between 14 and 21 days and all members
shall be advised in writing of the new date of the meeting and at this meeting
any 12 members shall constitute a quorum.
24. CHAIRMAN OF MEETINGS
The President shall preside at the Annual General Meeting. If he is absent the
Chairman shall preside. The Chairman shall preside at all committee meetings.
If the Chairman is unable to take the chair at a committee meeting the
Secretary or the Treasurer shall call for the nomination of a Chairman from
among those members present. If the Chairman and the President are unable
to attend an Annual General Meeting the Secretary or the Treasurer shall act
as Chairman until the meeting is properly constituted and a Chairman duly
elected.
25. CASTING VOTE
The person in the chair at committee meetings and Annual or Special General
Meetings shall always have a casting as well as a deliberate vote.
26. OFFICE BEARERS
All nominations for office in para. 26(a) to be proposed and seconded in writing
to reach the Secretary before the 31st August.
(a) Committee Members
At each Annual General Meeting the following office bearers shall be
elected.
President
Chairman
Vice Chairman
Honorary Secretary
Honorary Treasurer
Editor of Achillean
Road Running Captain
Cross Country Captain
Ladies Captain
Social Convener
Equipment and Assets Controller
Historian
One Committee Member
These officials shall constitute the club committee.
(b) Delegates to EPARR Council Meetings, EPATF, EPACC Meetings
Delegates and Alternates to be elected from the committee by the
committee.
(c) Honorary Vice Presidents
Honorary Vice Presidents shall be elected only at the Annual General
Meetings. All such appointments shall be for one year but such persons
shall be eligible for re-election.
(d) Additional Club Officials
To assist with the general running of the club the following officials shall
also be elected by the committee.
Honorary Assistant Secretary
Honorary Assistant Treasurer
Junior Captain
Statician
Honorary Club Coaches and all other Vice-Captains as required.
27. VACANCIES
Should any club office fall vacant during the year the committee shall have
the right to fill the position if deemed necessary.
28. CO-OPTED MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE
The committee shall have the power to co-opt members. Any such co-opted
members shall not have a vote at committee meetings.
29. FINANCES
The committee in addition to any other powers which may be granted to
them shall undertake the following specific acts in connection with the
club finances.
(a) Invest any funds which are regarded as being surplus to the immediate
needs of the club.
(b) Operate a current account at a Commercial Bank.
30. FINANCIAL YEAR
The financial year of the Association shall be from 1st September to
31st August.
31. BYE LAWS
The committee shall have the right to frame bye-laws to ensure the smooth
running of the club. These bye-laws shall not in any way conflict with any rule
of the club.
32. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
No alterations or additions to the constitution shall be made except at a Special
or Annual General Meeting. The constitutional change must be clearly specified
as a notice of motion on the agenda for the General Meeting. The constitutional
change shall be accepted only if two-thirds of those present and entitled to
participate in the General Meeting vote in favour of the proposal.
33. UNPAID SUBSCRIPTIONS
The committee shall have the right to cancel membership of any member
whose subscriptions fees are not paid by the 28th February of each year.
Persons whose membership has been cancelled because of non payment of
subscriptions shall be eligible to rejoin the club only when proof is produced
that subscription for the current year and all other outstanding arrears have
been paid.
34. RESIGNATIONS
Members wishing to resign shall do so in writing. The letter shall be submitted
to the Honorary Secretary. Resignations shall be in the hands of the Secretary
before the start of the Annual General Meeting otherwise the person shall
be liable for a subscription fee to cover the current year which starts from
the Annual General Meeting.
35. EXPULSIONS
Any member whom it is deemed has been guilty of breaking the laws and rules
of the club, or of any other unbecoming conduct shall be liable to expulsion.
The decision to expel a member shall be taken by the committee after a full
investigation. A member shall be expelled only when two-thirds of those present
at a duly constituted committee meeting vote in favour of the expulsion.
36. CONFIDENTIAL OBJECTIONS
Any club member who wishes on valid grounds to object to the continued
membership of any other member shall submit his objections in detail in
writing to the Honorary Secretary. This letter shall be marked “Strictly
confidential”. All such objections shall be dealt with strictly in committee
at the first committee meeting after receipt of the said objection.
37. APPEAL AGAINST EXPULSION
An expelled person shall have the right to have his case re-examined at a
Special or Annual General Meeting. The committees decision can be
overruled only if two-thirds of those present at the Special or Annual General
Meeting vote against the committees expulsion decision. An expulsion decision
shall only be re-examined at a Special or Annual General Meeting if the
member concerned submits his application within one calender month from
the date of the expulsion letter, which shall be addressed to the members last
recorded address in the clubs membership list.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
KNYSNA HALF MARATHON 12 JULY 2008 RON PASK & PETER GIDDY.
Knysna half marathon 2008.
After our failure to take part in the 2 oceans marathon earlier this year, my daughter, Nicci and I decided to enter the Knysna half. I put in our entries on the day that entries opened as I am aware of how quickly this event fills up.
While I did not do any really specific training for the event, I did try to include a few runs of over 10kays on Saturday mornings. Nicci had told me that due to injury and other factors she would not be able to run with me. Barbara suggested that I ask my old running partner Ron to join me. I have not run with Ron for a number of years and did not know if he was training but phoned him anyway and he immediately agreed to accompany me.
We met on Friday afternoon at his friend Peter, Almarie and Grace. We then picked up his stuff in Summerstrand and after a quick stop at home to say goodbye to Barbara we headed off to Knysna. There are currently two sets of construction on this road. The first at Gamtoos we bypassed and then the one at Storms River held us up for quite a while. We had both taken Friday afternoon off but with cell phones we remained busy for most of the drive. We were really in a relaxed mode and had an easy drive through Plett and on to Knysna.
Once at Loerie Park we registered and were once again impressed by the level of organisation which improves every year. Registration was slick and made even more enjoyable by the cold effect of a Mitchell’s Draft. We met up with Billy, Diane and son Brad. Allan Taylor told us how he manages to remain fit by joining the younger group in training. Tracey and Leah Brink joined us for a short while. Tracey had the 42kay in mind for the next morning.
We were staying with my mother in Plett. She had prepared us a butternut soup and potato bake for supper with apple fritters for desert. I had brought five bags of Seville Oranges from my friends, Charles and Bianca Wooley who farm Citrus in Kirkwood. Ena likes to make marmalade. Seville oranges have a particularly sour taste if eaten and the fruit has the required texture for marmalade. Every year my mother, who celebrated her 92nd birthday in June, tells me that this will be her last year that she will be able to make Marmalade.
Saturday morning after a coffee and rusk; at about 06.30am Ron & I headed back to Knysna. We found ourselves a convenient parking and shouldering our tog bags followed the line of people who were waiting for a taxi ride to the start of the event. By now the 42kay event would have started. I met up with Arlene Wulfsohn and her group of friends. We had timed it to perfection and were almost the last in line. Justice was out taxi driver. It was his 5th trip and he would be paid R100 per trip. IN the taxi we chatted to Quinton and his son Mark. Quinton is an ex Jhb person who left the city after a shooting incident and now runs a golf course in Knysna while his wife runs a clothing shop (Pringles) in Plett. This would be Marks first 21kay. His dad is a seasoned runner and triathlete.
Once at the start, Ron and I strolled down to the tog bag truck where we off loaded our warm clothing. Pat and Gerald Scheepers were huddling together for warmth. They had been there for some time and looking forward to getting going. Rob Ermes and his pal were on Mountain Bikes and would be cycling the 42kay route. A lovely lady called Lillian poured us a coffee after which we headed to the mass start of this event. I was amazed to see the number of people who were happily throwing away clothing and blankets. The last time I had witnessed this kind of behaviour was at 05.30am in Pietermaritzburg where people had been waiting for the start of a down run at Comrades. But there were never blankets before. I am sure that a number of local people benefited from this generosity.
There was the equivalent of our ET giving instructions and making meaningless remarks with the backing of very loud music. Finally he counted down to 08.00am and off we went. The truth is that we continued to stand still. Ron and I were in the very back row of the waiting athletes and it took us well over 8 minutes to cross the start line. The road is narrow and there are masses of people there. The 21kay starts on a gradual uphill for about 2kays and then we turned right into the forest. At this stage your pace is very much dictated by the level of fitness of those ahead of you.
We settled down to a steady jog. As we passed Gerald he joined us for a short while then excused himself and waited for Pat. Lesley and Rodney seemed like a solid couple but shortly after the start, Lesley decided that Rodney does not train enough and she raced ahead of her husband. It was around this time that we remembered that the Rhodes Marathon would be taking place at the same time. It would be freezing up in the mountains and we had heard reports of snow. I found out from Ron that he and his group were meeting on a regular basis in the mornings for a six to eight kay run on the promenade. More importantly they were meeting on a weekend morning at Sardinia Bay for a run up to Longbarn, Boundary Road and down to Schoenies. Ron is looking a lot leaner and fitter than he has in a long time.
The sun emerged from the shade of the trees and we became quite warm. We met up with Steve Gerber who told us that Roz was ahead. No chance of catching her. It was a stunning morning for a run. We could not help but notice that the local “squatters” had prime real estate with views over the lagoon and Knysna Heads. Their neighbours are the wealthy owners of smart looking homes on a Golf Estate where the roads are paved and there is a huge entrance gate with smart looking security guards. We passed Gaynor and Roy but I think that Gaynor did not like this idea and she charged past us on the downhill shortly afterwards.
It was about here that the marathon runners began to overtake us. First it was Mike Magson and then Allan Taylor. Men of real ability and talent. Ron and I jogged along. Walking when necessary and also when not necessary. We observed some innovative ways of running down the steep hill to the lagoon: Backwards, sidewards and walking all seemed to be acceptable. We passed Kay and her little group. Cathy greeted us from the side. She had an injury and wanted to recover enough to be able too run in Croatia later in the year when she would be visiting the country.
We found all kinds of agreeable people to chat to, enjoying the outing, the sun, the forest and magnificent views. I can really recommend a half marathon to those who do not train as much as they used to. The section of the run which follows the N2 is not pleasant for the runners nor the Motorists. It is always up to the runner to take care that he is not going to be knocked over by a vehicle. But runners become quite arrogant and don’t take the same care that they would expect from pedestrians if they were the driver. Celeste came loping past.
With about 4 kays to go we move onto less busy roads. Peter Giddy! I hear from Paulette as she and Bruce drive past. Mmm, thinks I: the tent, the trailer, fold out chairs and beverages will be at the finish. I don’t run with a watch. So it was with surprise that I see a Sub 2.30 flag being carried by a lady runner. I had thought that I would be happy to get in before Lunch time. I gathered some renewed energy and jogged the rest of the way to the finish. Nicci Roote was there to greet us. Quite sorry that she had not taken part herself.
Ron and I found our tog bags and wandered around looking for a shower. Finally we found a clubhouse where a large group of people were watching the Springboks play the All Blacks. There were showers with hot water. After a wash we wandered back looking for the Achilles tent. Here we met up with Diane, Billy & Brad; Heidi & Adrian, Jenny, Theresa & Cathy. Kim, Glen, Garreth, Rodney & Lesley, Youart Tose, Roger Vogel, all finished the 21kay. We set out the chairs and looked for some more of that Draft Beer. One of those and a hot dog roll was all we needed to really feel our strength return. We enjoyed this snack with some Capetonians that we met. Pat & Gerald joined us.
There was a good contingent of Crusaders there. Benita Barton & Earl Scott had run the full marathon. The Tri Nations Test match between SA and NZ was becoming a real nail biter. We were up 17 to 15 after JP Pietersen had scored a try. NZ’s Dan Carter, SA’s Percy Montgomery and Butch James scored alternate Drop Goals, Conversions and Penalties. It seemed like the match would go the way of the All Blacks when the NZ 8th man scored. However not to be outdone, Ricky Januarie dodged his way through their defence, snapped a kick over the New Zealander’s heads, caught the ball and scored. Francois Steyn added two points to put us at 30 to 28 ahead. Strong defence by the Springboks held up relentless attacks by the All Blacks. This would be the first time that we beat the formidable All Blacks in Dunedin.
Back at the Achilles tent the marathon runners started to come in. Bob finished his 19th, MOF Botha did his 10th, Geoff, Peter, Kenny, Mike, Rodney Booth, Reg, Monde, Graham, Daryl North, John Parry, had all managed to complete one of the toughest 42kay marathons that we know of. The cut off time is 5 hours which is reasonably tough considering the terrain of this event. Brian James completed the distance albeit outside of the 5 hours. That afternoon we drove home stopping at the Storms River shop for a hamburger. Here I met Joey Dawson who is a young American man helping out at a Xhosa School in Seaview. He had run the 42kay and is looking for a club or group to train with. I promised to introduce him to the Achilles afternoon runs. Arriving at home I was a little stiff but was very pleased that I had not attempted the 42kay. It was good to wear the Achilles Vest in an event again.
After our failure to take part in the 2 oceans marathon earlier this year, my daughter, Nicci and I decided to enter the Knysna half. I put in our entries on the day that entries opened as I am aware of how quickly this event fills up.
While I did not do any really specific training for the event, I did try to include a few runs of over 10kays on Saturday mornings. Nicci had told me that due to injury and other factors she would not be able to run with me. Barbara suggested that I ask my old running partner Ron to join me. I have not run with Ron for a number of years and did not know if he was training but phoned him anyway and he immediately agreed to accompany me.
We met on Friday afternoon at his friend Peter, Almarie and Grace. We then picked up his stuff in Summerstrand and after a quick stop at home to say goodbye to Barbara we headed off to Knysna. There are currently two sets of construction on this road. The first at Gamtoos we bypassed and then the one at Storms River held us up for quite a while. We had both taken Friday afternoon off but with cell phones we remained busy for most of the drive. We were really in a relaxed mode and had an easy drive through Plett and on to Knysna.
Once at Loerie Park we registered and were once again impressed by the level of organisation which improves every year. Registration was slick and made even more enjoyable by the cold effect of a Mitchell’s Draft. We met up with Billy, Diane and son Brad. Allan Taylor told us how he manages to remain fit by joining the younger group in training. Tracey and Leah Brink joined us for a short while. Tracey had the 42kay in mind for the next morning.
We were staying with my mother in Plett. She had prepared us a butternut soup and potato bake for supper with apple fritters for desert. I had brought five bags of Seville Oranges from my friends, Charles and Bianca Wooley who farm Citrus in Kirkwood. Ena likes to make marmalade. Seville oranges have a particularly sour taste if eaten and the fruit has the required texture for marmalade. Every year my mother, who celebrated her 92nd birthday in June, tells me that this will be her last year that she will be able to make Marmalade.
Saturday morning after a coffee and rusk; at about 06.30am Ron & I headed back to Knysna. We found ourselves a convenient parking and shouldering our tog bags followed the line of people who were waiting for a taxi ride to the start of the event. By now the 42kay event would have started. I met up with Arlene Wulfsohn and her group of friends. We had timed it to perfection and were almost the last in line. Justice was out taxi driver. It was his 5th trip and he would be paid R100 per trip. IN the taxi we chatted to Quinton and his son Mark. Quinton is an ex Jhb person who left the city after a shooting incident and now runs a golf course in Knysna while his wife runs a clothing shop (Pringles) in Plett. This would be Marks first 21kay. His dad is a seasoned runner and triathlete.
Once at the start, Ron and I strolled down to the tog bag truck where we off loaded our warm clothing. Pat and Gerald Scheepers were huddling together for warmth. They had been there for some time and looking forward to getting going. Rob Ermes and his pal were on Mountain Bikes and would be cycling the 42kay route. A lovely lady called Lillian poured us a coffee after which we headed to the mass start of this event. I was amazed to see the number of people who were happily throwing away clothing and blankets. The last time I had witnessed this kind of behaviour was at 05.30am in Pietermaritzburg where people had been waiting for the start of a down run at Comrades. But there were never blankets before. I am sure that a number of local people benefited from this generosity.
There was the equivalent of our ET giving instructions and making meaningless remarks with the backing of very loud music. Finally he counted down to 08.00am and off we went. The truth is that we continued to stand still. Ron and I were in the very back row of the waiting athletes and it took us well over 8 minutes to cross the start line. The road is narrow and there are masses of people there. The 21kay starts on a gradual uphill for about 2kays and then we turned right into the forest. At this stage your pace is very much dictated by the level of fitness of those ahead of you.
We settled down to a steady jog. As we passed Gerald he joined us for a short while then excused himself and waited for Pat. Lesley and Rodney seemed like a solid couple but shortly after the start, Lesley decided that Rodney does not train enough and she raced ahead of her husband. It was around this time that we remembered that the Rhodes Marathon would be taking place at the same time. It would be freezing up in the mountains and we had heard reports of snow. I found out from Ron that he and his group were meeting on a regular basis in the mornings for a six to eight kay run on the promenade. More importantly they were meeting on a weekend morning at Sardinia Bay for a run up to Longbarn, Boundary Road and down to Schoenies. Ron is looking a lot leaner and fitter than he has in a long time.
The sun emerged from the shade of the trees and we became quite warm. We met up with Steve Gerber who told us that Roz was ahead. No chance of catching her. It was a stunning morning for a run. We could not help but notice that the local “squatters” had prime real estate with views over the lagoon and Knysna Heads. Their neighbours are the wealthy owners of smart looking homes on a Golf Estate where the roads are paved and there is a huge entrance gate with smart looking security guards. We passed Gaynor and Roy but I think that Gaynor did not like this idea and she charged past us on the downhill shortly afterwards.
It was about here that the marathon runners began to overtake us. First it was Mike Magson and then Allan Taylor. Men of real ability and talent. Ron and I jogged along. Walking when necessary and also when not necessary. We observed some innovative ways of running down the steep hill to the lagoon: Backwards, sidewards and walking all seemed to be acceptable. We passed Kay and her little group. Cathy greeted us from the side. She had an injury and wanted to recover enough to be able too run in Croatia later in the year when she would be visiting the country.
We found all kinds of agreeable people to chat to, enjoying the outing, the sun, the forest and magnificent views. I can really recommend a half marathon to those who do not train as much as they used to. The section of the run which follows the N2 is not pleasant for the runners nor the Motorists. It is always up to the runner to take care that he is not going to be knocked over by a vehicle. But runners become quite arrogant and don’t take the same care that they would expect from pedestrians if they were the driver. Celeste came loping past.
With about 4 kays to go we move onto less busy roads. Peter Giddy! I hear from Paulette as she and Bruce drive past. Mmm, thinks I: the tent, the trailer, fold out chairs and beverages will be at the finish. I don’t run with a watch. So it was with surprise that I see a Sub 2.30 flag being carried by a lady runner. I had thought that I would be happy to get in before Lunch time. I gathered some renewed energy and jogged the rest of the way to the finish. Nicci Roote was there to greet us. Quite sorry that she had not taken part herself.
Ron and I found our tog bags and wandered around looking for a shower. Finally we found a clubhouse where a large group of people were watching the Springboks play the All Blacks. There were showers with hot water. After a wash we wandered back looking for the Achilles tent. Here we met up with Diane, Billy & Brad; Heidi & Adrian, Jenny, Theresa & Cathy. Kim, Glen, Garreth, Rodney & Lesley, Youart Tose, Roger Vogel, all finished the 21kay. We set out the chairs and looked for some more of that Draft Beer. One of those and a hot dog roll was all we needed to really feel our strength return. We enjoyed this snack with some Capetonians that we met. Pat & Gerald joined us.
There was a good contingent of Crusaders there. Benita Barton & Earl Scott had run the full marathon. The Tri Nations Test match between SA and NZ was becoming a real nail biter. We were up 17 to 15 after JP Pietersen had scored a try. NZ’s Dan Carter, SA’s Percy Montgomery and Butch James scored alternate Drop Goals, Conversions and Penalties. It seemed like the match would go the way of the All Blacks when the NZ 8th man scored. However not to be outdone, Ricky Januarie dodged his way through their defence, snapped a kick over the New Zealander’s heads, caught the ball and scored. Francois Steyn added two points to put us at 30 to 28 ahead. Strong defence by the Springboks held up relentless attacks by the All Blacks. This would be the first time that we beat the formidable All Blacks in Dunedin.
Back at the Achilles tent the marathon runners started to come in. Bob finished his 19th, MOF Botha did his 10th, Geoff, Peter, Kenny, Mike, Rodney Booth, Reg, Monde, Graham, Daryl North, John Parry, had all managed to complete one of the toughest 42kay marathons that we know of. The cut off time is 5 hours which is reasonably tough considering the terrain of this event. Brian James completed the distance albeit outside of the 5 hours. That afternoon we drove home stopping at the Storms River shop for a hamburger. Here I met Joey Dawson who is a young American man helping out at a Xhosa School in Seaview. He had run the 42kay and is looking for a club or group to train with. I promised to introduce him to the Achilles afternoon runs. Arriving at home I was a little stiff but was very pleased that I had not attempted the 42kay. It was good to wear the Achilles Vest in an event again.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
ACHILLES CAR RALLY JUNE 2008.
Achilles Car Rally. Barbara was in Cape Town and Ally & I were in two minds as to do the Biathle or the Car Rally. After church that Sunday morning the Rally won the day and we headed for Old Grey. Graham, Gail and Tarryn were first there and we joined them to wait for Geoff. Peter, Lise and family; Bruce & Paulette; Bob, Jean, Malcom and family; Gerald and Lyn; Tom and Percy all turned up to take part. Geoff gave us this list of clues and questions and Ally, Tarryn & I joined Gerald and headed off to the Edward Hotel.
We found others wandering around looking quite puzzled. We walked into the hotel to ask the receptionist for some information. She was quite obliging and we soon had the first few answers. Next we jogged across to the Donkin Memorial and Lighthouse where the next set of clues took us. The White Lamp Post had us totally confused and we abandoned this question. Then on to the Drill Hall where we had to count Lions. We though that we were quite smart as we found a second Lion almost hidden on a badge on the door. Little did we know that there were 6 more Lions scattered around the door.
From here we headed down Military Road and back up to the Fort where we had to count lamp posts, cannons and do some History Lessons. Peter’s family were quite helpful as they showed us Mr. Pillay’s Removals business at the bottom of the valley. On to Park Drive where we saw no Sea Battle and so wrote Waterloo instead of Jutland. Round Park Drive and down How Avenue to Settlers Park. Here we found out that there are 125 species of Aloes in South Africa. I had forgotten about the Trenches which I had explored once before. I only remembered too late at Old Grey.
Back up in to Hallack Road and past Brian Close into Dickens (Charles) and back into Park Drive. Here we had to compete for parking with all of the Art in the Park people. At the War memorial in Park Drive we had to again count the Lions. I saw 4 at the top but realised that this was going to be a trick question as there were another four lion heads around the sides. We put down 8 as our answer but were told later that there were 38 of there pesky creatures lurking around the memorial. Less haste and more speed may have been the answer here.
Then we headed around to the Art Gallery where we had to decipher MCMXXV11. I was clueless but I think it was Ally who managed to work this out: M = 1000; CM = 1000 less 100; XX = 20 and V11 = 7. And so MCMXXV11 is the long version of 1927. Fascinating! We also had to count the number of families who had suffered the most in the wars. This was a tricky question as we were looking for one family and there turned out to be a number of family names with three fatalities.
From there we drove up Rink Street past the Barmy Army and the Spar and then decided to go back to the Edward Hotel to find that “White Lamp Post”. Success at last: it was the lamp post above the sign indicating the Historical Walk. Back to Old Grey where we were given another set of really nasty questions; the answers to which we had absolutely no idea. Geoff marked our papers. I saw that there was quite a bit of chirp going on around the marking and I may even have seen more than one team trying to slip him a bribe. I don’t think that our team came last but it was close. Unfortunately the fire and braai was not ready and Ally & I decided to head home. Well done to all the organisers. This morning had been a really fun day for those who were there.
We found others wandering around looking quite puzzled. We walked into the hotel to ask the receptionist for some information. She was quite obliging and we soon had the first few answers. Next we jogged across to the Donkin Memorial and Lighthouse where the next set of clues took us. The White Lamp Post had us totally confused and we abandoned this question. Then on to the Drill Hall where we had to count Lions. We though that we were quite smart as we found a second Lion almost hidden on a badge on the door. Little did we know that there were 6 more Lions scattered around the door.
From here we headed down Military Road and back up to the Fort where we had to count lamp posts, cannons and do some History Lessons. Peter’s family were quite helpful as they showed us Mr. Pillay’s Removals business at the bottom of the valley. On to Park Drive where we saw no Sea Battle and so wrote Waterloo instead of Jutland. Round Park Drive and down How Avenue to Settlers Park. Here we found out that there are 125 species of Aloes in South Africa. I had forgotten about the Trenches which I had explored once before. I only remembered too late at Old Grey.
Back up in to Hallack Road and past Brian Close into Dickens (Charles) and back into Park Drive. Here we had to compete for parking with all of the Art in the Park people. At the War memorial in Park Drive we had to again count the Lions. I saw 4 at the top but realised that this was going to be a trick question as there were another four lion heads around the sides. We put down 8 as our answer but were told later that there were 38 of there pesky creatures lurking around the memorial. Less haste and more speed may have been the answer here.
Then we headed around to the Art Gallery where we had to decipher MCMXXV11. I was clueless but I think it was Ally who managed to work this out: M = 1000; CM = 1000 less 100; XX = 20 and V11 = 7. And so MCMXXV11 is the long version of 1927. Fascinating! We also had to count the number of families who had suffered the most in the wars. This was a tricky question as we were looking for one family and there turned out to be a number of family names with three fatalities.
From there we drove up Rink Street past the Barmy Army and the Spar and then decided to go back to the Edward Hotel to find that “White Lamp Post”. Success at last: it was the lamp post above the sign indicating the Historical Walk. Back to Old Grey where we were given another set of really nasty questions; the answers to which we had absolutely no idea. Geoff marked our papers. I saw that there was quite a bit of chirp going on around the marking and I may even have seen more than one team trying to slip him a bribe. I don’t think that our team came last but it was close. Unfortunately the fire and braai was not ready and Ally & I decided to head home. Well done to all the organisers. This morning had been a really fun day for those who were there.
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