It was wonderful to wake up at De Hoop to the sound of the Orange River rushing over polished round rocks in the shallow water. And there was plenty of birdsong. The Pied Wagtail was on “campsite pet” duty and was daintily walking about. Stephen got the kettle boiling over the fire and we enjoyed a relaxed breakfast. While we finished packing, Paul and Petra went for a walk downstream. We soon followed with Troopy and then drove back up the Kook River kloof we had come down the day before. Some local herders were driving their mottled sheep up the kloof with the help of three very energetic dogs. It was very wet in the kloof and there would be good grazing for the flock. It was good to see that the local people could continue their lifestyle and utilize the park for their goats and sheep, although it does lead to problems with overgrazing. We were determined to locate the old Avenant family ruins and the once very visible chimney we had memories of from our visit there in 1996. We did eventually find the site, but the chimney had succumbed to time. We spoke to the Land Rover Discovery couple who had the bearing problem and we promised that we would ask their friends at Richtersberg to drive across and bring them some supplies and especially their meat! They were convinced that they would only be stuck at De Hoop for only a day or two, but we were not so sure about that! We also spoke to Sandy from the old Landrover 110 (Defender). Stephen had noticed that he had General Super All Grips fitted and was keen to know where he got hold of them, since they were reputedly out of production. Sandy’s number 0832702425. We were surprised just how many campsites there were at De Hoop with three ablution blocks and another row of toilets and showers which might have had hot water at some time in the past. All the campsites were occupied. By 10h00 we departed and headed for Richtersberg down the track that followed the river. We had memories of driving through a narrow channel of sand dunes, but now the Tamerisk had choked the riverbank and we drove behind a huge sandbank covered with this exotic curse. The one good thing about it is that it is a useful source of firewood. We saw the turnoff for the Abiekwa 4x4 track and decided to take this the next day for our drive to Kokerboomkloof. There were a few rocky tyre cutting sections and we held our breaths. At Richtersberg we found the sites at the river occupied, the one by the two off-road caravan couples from the Akkedis Pass fiasco and the other by a group who suggested that we wait for them to pack up and then take their site. They were soon gone and we decided to camp close to the water, but tucked into the corner next to a dense bush, thinking of the nasty sand blasting wind of the night before. In no time the monkeys got to raid a kilo bag of nuts from Paul and Petra’s car. After much shouting and chasing the monkey released the nuts and Paul managed to salvage most of the contents of the bag. Stephen’s catapult was well used and again proved to be an effective deterrent. Campsite monkeys definitely respect a “catty”! I did some quick washing and we put out a washing line and some wood at the fireplace to claim our site. We decided to drive up the track in the valley of the Tatasberg River towards Tatasberg which turned off next to the Wilderness Camp further on. We expected a rocky track and possibly a pass, but we found a beautiful and broad sandy valley with a track gradually winding its way towards Tatasberg. There were a few patches of deep sand, but it was mostly easy driving. The boulder landscape got more and more impressive as we slowly ascended. The boulder peak of the prominent Tatasberg loomed above us as we came to the end of the track. We had a quick lunch and then followed a marked trail to the neck. Unfortunately my phone’s storage was full and we had to rely on Stephen’s camera and phone. Paul and Petra scrambled to the top of the right hand peak and Stephen and I explored around the neck and we found some fascinating formations and flat “shelves” that almost looked man made. The views down into a broad sandy valley far down below where the Tatas River flows towards the Orange River were awe inspiring. The easy track out of Richtersberg campsite wound through this amazing world below. We enjoyed the easy drive all the way downhill back to the river. This little detour was a very worthwhile thing to do and an afternoon well spent. Another group had arrived and they had settled on the other corner of the river site, but they were fortunately very pleasant. A purple heron stood seemingly dreaming on the rocks and a darter was looking for food. Pied Kingfishers were diving for their meal and we settled down to a very pleasant evening around the campfire. We made a potjie with the wors we had braaied at De Hoop. There were a few nasty gusts of wind, but we were wonderfully sheltered. The new group was not so lucky and got a bit sand blasted. It had been a lovely relaxed day with little driving, but wonderful scenery.

Geschreven door Leartravels