There were still things we wanted to do in the Karoo National Park. Most important was the fossil trail. This is a short walk along a raised path near the accommodation that sets out the paleontology of the Karoo basin, with fossil records dating from 255 million years ago. The info boards were excellent providing a wealth of information about the Karoo in the late Permian period and there were many fossil specimens on display. What is most remarkable is that these animals thrived 35 million years before the dinosaurs evolved. Next stop was the bird hide. This overlooks a small dam and there we came across a frantic scene of activity with many masked weavers and red bishops building and tending to their nests. The delightful din reminded us of our house in Linton Grange where the weavers kept us entertained. We watched a grey mongoose lurking around the edges of the dam hoping to find an egg or two. After this we went on to the Lammertjiesleegte loop, where there were again very few animals to see - this is not a park for great animal watching, but rather for enjoying the majestic landscape and the vastness of Karoo space. The Bulkraal picnic area gave us a chance to get out for a coffee stop. Once again there was no one around. Karoo robins were hopping about and the vervet monkeys were trying to have a share of our milktart and we had to keep the car doors closed. There is an attractive swimming pool here, but it was overcast and windy so the water definitely did not appeal. We now left the park and headed into Beaufort West. We needed diesel, but the cheapest places, the truck stops just before town, did not accept cards. So we went to the Agri in town that was also quite reasonable and filled both tanks. Marianne popped into the Karoo Deli across the road and bought some wors and we then went to Checkers for groceries. We were now ready for part two of the trip. Just outside Beaufort West our route turned north off the N1. Surprisingly it was tarred and we headed up the route that would lead us over the Nuweveld Escarpment into the high Karoo. The tar did not last long soon becoming good gravel. This road is the eastern boundary of the national park and we were amazed by the difficulties that had been overcome to create a proper lion proof fence. We had been chatting to Dave Zimmerman, the National Parks vet, about the challenges of keeping the lions from breaking out. He had been able to save the famous lion, Sylvester, but recently the park had no choice but to shoot 7 lions that had broken out and were roaming on the adjacent farms. On some maps the this beautiful mountain route consists of three passes, the first is tarred and is called the Rosedale Pass, then comes the short Blounek Pass, followed by the actual Molteno Pas, completed by Thomas Bain in 1881. This pass is in excellent condition even though it has a gravel surface. We stopped near the top to admire the views. The pass follows the course of the Sak River and at this point the river also had a slate bed. We wondered if this was the same layer we had seen in the Sand River the day before. Once through the pass the road continued in very good condition and made for pleasant driving. We passed some productive farms, but also stretches of empty veld. About 20 km from Loxton Marianne took over the driving and as always happens, the road suddenly deteriorated - exactly when we crossed into the Northern Cape province!! The road was horribly corrugated and stony and a real car wrecker. Fortunately it was only for about 10 km, but it was no fun. We also passed the famous farm, Jakkalsdans, where the film with the same name based on the novel by Deon Meyer was filmed. (He lives in Loxton). When we got to Loxton, we stopped at the Rooi Granaat for coffee. Marianne has a fun memory of this coffee shop. She arrived there on a Sunday with a group. Everything was closed, but the church service was on. Suddenly a lady burst out of the church and enthusiastically opened up her shop for us. We mentioned the terrible state of the road to the new manager and he told us that many vehicle tyres are wrecked on this locally notorious piece of road. We were lucky to escape without trouble. After enjoying our first coffee shop stop of the trip on the terrace of The Rooi Granaat, we drove around a bit in the very quaint little Karoo town. The light poles in the middle of the streets are a peculiar feature. Many of the old houses have been neatly restored and one gets the impression that there has been an influx of city people into the town. We found a place on the outskirts of the town under huge pine trees to stop for lunch. No car or person came past. Marianne had heard of the Second World War Truck Museum and we were keen to investigate. This was a real surprise. It is entered through a local bar and there is no charge. Although a little run down, it houses a collection of second world war trucks and other vehicles. It is sad that it now appears to be in limbo, with some of its best exhibits sold off to the USA and those left slowly deteriorating. But it was really interesting to be able to look closely at the Chevs, Fords and other vehicles that played their part in achieving victory. There was even a Ford truck with German markings on the doors. We wondered if it had been captured. But we could not spend too much time and had to continue to our day's destination, the guest farm Melton Wold. After the dreadful last bit of road, we decided on the easiest route, the main tarred road. It was rather boring, but we were soon at Melton Wold, which claims to be the oldest guest farm in South Africa, dating from 1936. This is a real "old world" place. Marianne had taken groups there several times and she had had a good look at the camp site and resolved to one day come and camp there, instead of staying in the hotel. The owner, Ronel Vorster greeting us warmly. The wind was howling and her husband had erected a skerm for us at the campsite that was a large field of green grass. This would prove to be very welcome. But there was still time to do the game drive. This was quite short, but we did get to see some golden wildebeest. This was a new one on us and we discovered that just like black springbok and other deviant forms of wild life, this was a mutant variation of wildebeest. They were very attractive and obviously popular for the hunting fraternity, but certainly not our idea for wild life! The route was quite attractive, but again showed how desperately dry this part of the Karoo was. Back at the campsite we climbed the koppie behind the hotel and went to the completely dry dam, where we saw some black impala and visited the Paley and Torr graves. The impressive manor house was a good example of the grandeur of the wealthy sheep farmers in the merino wool boom period in the early part of the last century. The campsite was neat and the ablutions old, but spotless. The swimming pool was also well tended to and normally would have been a welcome feature for a dip after a dusty day, but not in the howling gale. Two huge mountain tortoises were wandering about and the peacocks were managing to be heard above the din of the wind through the trees. The resident Spaniel also came to do the rounds. We collected firewood that was lying around under the blue gums and got our fire going. It needed careful watching given the wind and dry conditions. The Deli wors was excellent and we enjoyed our braai. The wind was really awful and it got to be too cold for sitting outside. After lovely hot showers, we crawled into bed just after ten, hoping that the wind would drop.

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