Today the plan was to walk up a deep kloof following a trail called "Koos se Bos". The first thing I had to do was cut a walking stick and found a tree with very straight branches that looked suitable and it was soon turned into a good stick. We started walking at about 8h00 heading up the steep hill behind the cottage. I got stuck at the back of the party behind a rather slow Keith so had a very easy walk up the steep hill. At this stage it was rather hot. It was flatter from there on and we could walk quite quickly. We had wonderful views towards the mountains ahead and the deep forested kloofs below. Soon we dropped into a side kloof for a tea stop under a big "Buig-my-Nie" or Smelophyllum capense tree. Then we got into the big kloof. The walk up this kloof was delightful, with no invasive wattles. Instead there were huge yellowwoods and other indigenous trees, cycads and ferns. A fairly well defined path crossed the stream again and again. There were a number of rock overhangs where we discovered Bushmen paintings. We found three hand prints and a painting we called the "running man", which was very clear and interesting. When we got to furthest point that Trefor had previously reached, the path disappeared and he decided that it would not be worth going further. But it was still early and Tim Bull was keen to explore further so we went on with him. The path was extremely overgrown and in many places simply not there. But we did find some big Willowmore Cedars that are now very rare. We also made the mistake of getting into the stream bed where we got caught in thick brambles. Despite this the kloof kept on inviting us to go further. There was a very steep rockface ahead and a curve around the corner. We simply had to find out what was still coming. The path eventually seemed to head up the hill and we could see what appeared to be the end and we simply had to turn back. Time was running on and the sky was getting darker. It was fun to have gone into an area that had not seen humans for quite a long time. When we got back to the pools where we had left the rest of the party, Tim wanted to stop for a swim so we carried on without him and had a very relaxing walk back down the kloof looking for some more rock paintings and taking pictures. It was now very overcast and it looked as if it might soon rain. Climbing through a tree that had fallen and blocked the path, we realised that it was an "Assegaai" or Curtisia dentata, which would make an excellent stick for Marianne who was not keen to use the borrowed walking stick as it was getting damaged. The saw on my Swiss army knife was the ideal tool for turning a straight branch into a walking stick. Marianne was very happy with her new stick. We found even bigger cedars and after a bit of looking and "consulting" our GPS found the path back up the side kloof. We stopped at the "Buig-my-Nie" again for an energy top up before climbing out onto the contour path, that somehow seemed a bit rougher than it had on the way in. We were in no hurry and enjoyed the wonderful vistas around us. The sky turned blue again and we could take some good pictures of the lovely farm and camp scene below. We got back to the cottage at 17h00, much to Trefor's relief. Tim got back at 17h30 after doing some exploring himself. Marianne wanted to give back the borrowed stick and collect the boots belonging to Petra's brother from the farm and decided to walk there while I got the fire going. She didn't realise it was over two kilometers, but she did at least manage to get a lift back. The fire was soon roaring away and our braai was again excellent. Most of the party turned in quite early after their exertions, but we did not to get to bed before 22h00. Strangely enough neither of us were particularly tired although we had walked for about 15.4 kilometers, according to the GPS, through fairly rough terrain. It had been a most relaxing and enjoyable day.

Geschreven door Leartravels