It was great to wake up in the park. The facilities are excellent and Marianne could just go to the kitchen to fill up the flasks with boiling water from the water heater. This speeded up our morning departure. Our plan for the day was to explore the western section of the park. All the routes in this area are described as 4x4, but we were not sure what to expect. I hoped that they would not be too mountainous. I prefer having some backup on mountain tracks. The historic and notoriously steep Pienaars Pass could clearly be seen clinging onto the mountainside as it led to the top of the escarpment, but this route had been closed and so that sorted out that dilemma for us. As we would have the whole day we could enjoy a leisurely start and got going at about 8h00. We decided to first go to the Doornhoek picnic area for early coffee as there were no other picnic spots in that section of the park and it is not permitted to get out of one's vehicle except at designated places. Doornhoek is very much on the main tourist road and we did see mountain zebra, kudu and hartebeest along the way. The picnic area was very appropriately named as it is located in a very dense Acacia Karoo thicket and these trees have lots of really monster thorns! There was no one around and no vehicles passed while we were enjoying our coffee. There were lots of very tame birds (no feeding allowed!) around to entertain us. Then it was back on the road to head for the De Hoek loop. Most of the 4x4 routes are one way, but the map was a bit unclear and open to interpretation. So we proceeded with care as some bits were very narrow and meeting a vehicle coming the other way would be tricky. It soon became clear that the route was not really 4x4 and it was only necessary to engage it to avoid damaging the road in the few tricky areas. They were obviously the old farm roads in the area and the most difficult bits were the exceptionally high water diversion mounds across the road. We also realised that the mostly pensioners in the campsite were not really into four wheel driving. We did not see another vehicle (except for a Parks Board bakkie) while we were on the 4x4 route! But the route was very beautiful, mostly skirting the high mountains to the north. As in most places it was possible to see for a long way and hear an approaching vehicle long before it got close. We were happy to get out at numerous interest points and later for coffee and then lunch stops. There was quite a lot to see, the highlight for me being watching three adult gemsbok and two calves run up a very steep slope and over a rock band as though they were klipspringers. There were also a number of old farms that had had the buildings demolished, although many of the kraal walls remained to make them easily identifiable. Apparently much of the stone in the dry packed walls of the new pass came from this source. There were also graveyards near the road at many of these sites that had to be explored. We were also amazed by the exceptional quality of the workmanship in the old kraal walls. Some of these old farms go back to the early Trekboer days in the late 1700's and it is incredible to think just how tough they must have been to live in this remote and harsh part of the Karoo. We had been undecided about taking the furthest of the loops called Klipplaatsfontein, but the area was so interesting that it had to be done. The name Klipplaatsfontein probably comes from the incredible sheets of stone which line the bed of the river for long stretches. It was an amazing feature of this river and Marianne took lots of pictures. Other features along the way were signposted - the grave of a Voortrekker wagon leader who was trampled by his oxen, the "spookbos" where skulls were washed out after a heavy rain many years ago and is still regarded by locals as being haunted and a board giving credit to the fact that permanent human habitation in the area had only been possible because of the humble and now disappearing wind pump. Towards the end of the Klipplaatsfontein loop we stopped at the remains of a stone farmhouse for lunch. The contorted trunks of dead trees gave the place a special feel and we enjoyed taking photos of the scene as much as our lunch. From here we took the route along the Sand Rivier and stopped at the crossing to take some photographs. We had just got going again when a National Parks bakkie came from the other direction. Almost an oopsie! Luckily we were very properly in the car. But I cannot see that people can be expected to stay in their vehicles for up to five hours - what the route took us - without stopping and getting out for a pee at least. From here we followed the Sand Rivier and eventually got to the Afsaal Cottage which was occupied and we could only photograph it from the road. When we got to the Potlekkertjie Loop we decided to go back to the Doornhoek picnic place for tea. It was again deserted by humans, but now fully occupied by vervet monkeys. We stayed at the car as these thieves were obviously well practiced in stealing from picnic tables. Then we drove along the bit of the loop we had not yet done, passing the hyena trap before going down the tarred pass back to the campsite. It was a very gentle climb in this direction, gaining the same height as the Klipspringer Pass but in three times the distance. We had driven 97km and although we had not seen many animals - mountain zebra, kudu, red hartebeest, gemsbok, vaal ribbok, springbok and wildebeest - it had been an absorbing day. Before going to the campsite we turned into the information centre. It was very informative and we were very interested in reading about the old farms that we had passed. Then it was back to our site to find a big campervan parked right next to us. We got a fire going, wandering if they were going to be noisy. They weren't, driving off to have supper at the restaurant and then, not being able to turn on the camper interior lights when they got back, went to bed early. We enjoyed our braai and then went for a walk towards the rest camp. It was quite a slog up the a hill I had not noticed while d7riving. Then it was back to the campsite for warm showers before turning in at about 22h00. The campsite was not as full as on the previous day. And we had hardly seen other vehicles all day! It had been a wonderful and thought provoking day. Our minds kept on dwelling not only on the incredible landscape we had driver through, but also the many generations of families that had lived and toiled there and made this world livable.

Geschreven door Leartravels