05 | September | 2007 | Chessalee
The 3rd biggest and the greenest!!
Posted in Blyde River Canyon, holiday, Potholes, rivers, South Africa, Swadini, tagged Blyde River Canyon, Canyons, holiday, Mpumalanga, Potholes, South Africa, Swadini on 05/09/2007| Leave a Comment »
This daisy is called a Baberton-daisy…what’s in it?! My favourite colour!! Baberton is a town in the Eastern part of the country…Jock of the Bushveld – country….a legend of a dog…read it!! Search my site for Jock of the Bushveld…it is there…
The GREENEST canyon in the world!!! All other canyons are dry!!! And..this is the THIRD biggest…in the world! The Blyde River Canyon….Grand Canyon is the first…then…in Namibia!! the Fish River Canyon…and then ours…do you know where Namibia is…it borders South Africa…! Windhoek is the capital of Namibia…once called South West Africa and before that…do you know what is was called before THAT!! YES! there is another name….try find out….
This is the Blyde River dam….this is about 1/2 of it on this pic…
and here….ladies and gents…can I introduce you to…the very famous POTHOLES!! In the Blyde River!!
And…I hoped there was a spider here…can you see one?
Posted in Drakensberg mountains, hiking, holiday, nature, Port St Johns, South Africa, Wild Coast, tagged chainladder, Drakensberg mountains, hiking, hiking in the Drakensberg, nature, Port St Johns, South Africa, Wild Coast on 05/09/2007| Leave a Comment »
I love the Drakensberg mountains….did a few hiking trips there….my first was when I was 15…with a school trip….and I made it to the top of Mount Aux Sources…the highest peak in South Africa…I think it is about 4300m……there was a hut…but the roof was down! The highest peak of the whole range is in Lesotho.
If you’re the kind of outdoor-type of person and like to go on hiking trips….you MUST go there….!! You will not regret it…be careful….you get snow in October in the Mountains and you musn’t go by yourself! On any hiking trip…always at least 3 people….I also did a couple with children…my library monitors back home…three times…good old times….In the UK I would never dream of taking children on a trip like that…”health and safety” always a big issue….what a shame, this country has really brought some problems upon themself with “health and safety”… I wonder what it is like in other parts of the world…I think that’s why our kids from SA is much more “tougher”…they can handle a lot more and cope with much more than kids in the UK….you feel like pampering them all the time…Read in English here what I’m going to write in Afrikaans…you can also see a movie on that link.
Toe ek ‘n student was, was ek met ‘n staptoer saam met Oom Mauritz…van Centurion…hy was die hoofingenieur van die Hoogland waterskema in die Transkei en hy het die Transkei soos die palm van sy hand geken. Ons was ‘n groep van so 36 wat vanaf Port St Johns gestap het, noord na Port Edward se kant. Daar was ‘ n paar kindertjies ook van so 10-11 wat die trip bietjie moeilik gevind het, daarom het ons by Mkambati Natuurreservaat opgehou. Oom Mauritz het die bus van Margate laat kom om ons daar te kry en ons het regdeur na Margate geskiet en daar by ‘n hotel ordentlik gebad en ‘n dag daar deurgebring. Dit was heerlik!! Die roete wat ons gestap het was fantasties….soms op die strand gestap en soms op die rantjies….lees hier (gaan net af met die slider wanneer jy by die link uitgekom het) oor die roete en stappie daar… by Port St Johns het ons beeste op die strand gekry…en natuurlik anderskleuriges wat in onderklere swem…wonder hoe dit deesdae daar lyk….Oom Mauritz het ons na teeplantasies geneem…die Magwa Falle ook gaan wys….’n waterval gewys wat die enigste in SA is wat DIREK in die see val!…allerhande pragtige plekke…ek wonder of hy nog leef! Dit was regtig ‘n belewenis om saam met hom te stap…ek het dagboek gehou van letterlik alles, waar ons gestap het, hoe laat ons waar geeet het, waar ons geslaap het…een nag het ons onder ‘n oorhangende rots geslaap…genoeg slaapplek vir almal van ons!
Hy het ons in kookspanne in gedeel en almal het vir almal gekook, jy het jou beurt gekry om “aan diens” te wees en die gees onder die groep was fantasties…daar was twee uitruilstudente wat hulle by ons groep geskaar het, met die gevolg dit was heeltyd Engels praat terwille van hulle. Die eerste nag was nogal ‘n koue nag, ons was veronderstel om in hutte te slaap wat oom Mauritz gereel het met plaaslike bevolking wat hy geken het by Lusikisiki…hierdie spelling…weet nie meer of dit die regte spelling is nie, maar toemaar, ons weet min of meer…en toe was die hutte se dakke af en hy kon nie die mense daar kry nie. Ons het toe maar in die oopte geslaap en dit was koud…Oktober…maar die wind het gewaai! Oom Mauritz het in Hans Strydomlaan gewoon, spoor hom op en kry hom op ‘n staptoer in die Transkei!
The Chainladder that takes you to the top of the mountain…