(Final/End/Klaar/Finito)Around SA on dirt roads 14days(9provinces)/+-5500kms

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dustsucker

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Day 1-4   https://wilddog.net.za/forum/index.php?topic=15394.0

Day 5-8  https://wilddog.net.za/forum/index.php?topic=15490.0

Day 9-11  https://wilddog.net.za/forum/index.php?topic=15647.0

DAY 12 â?? Hot Kalahari

What a lekker stay at Kareespruit game farm. Erik spoilt us for the last time with a royal breakfast, and packed in the doggie bag from last nightâ??s braai. Champion!

The Kalahari was lying ahead and with it, lots of hot, long and dusty hours in the seat of my, now not so comfy anymore, Katoem.

We worked our way past Witsand Kalahari nature reserve and towards Groblaarshoop. This is the point where you cross the Orange River.
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Groblaarshoop is exactly the proverbial â??one horse town'.
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One bar, one hotel, one nutty mother who walked from across the street to chat to us, five minutes after we arrived at the bar. Some chitchat and a beer or two revealed that he was an ex-police officer, boarded after an accident.
He spent some time in Valkenbeg and other such institutions getting â??reprogrammedâ?? for various bad habits! â??What a lovely chapâ?? I thought, followed by â??lets get the foek out-a-here!â??

From here it would be Putsonderwater.
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While on a gravel section, I spotted a low-slung creature crossing the road in the distance. It was moving slowly until we neared it. I realised that it was a moerse lizard. I immediately switched to â??Croc hunter modeâ?? and hit anchors and kill switch. Dropping the bike, I sprinted after the likewaan and grabbed it by the tail, as he was just about to duck under the fence. It hissed at me (like some girls used to at school) and flicked his slapper. What a beauty, about a meter long with beautiful features and colours. For a stretch of about 30km after, we must have seen about 4 of these prehistoric looking critters.

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Putsonderwater is a much joked about name of a place, that most people use without actually being sure of its existence, especially my mate David. Let me tell you that a town with this name does really exist, but almost in name only. It's a ghost town! There are about 15 buildings and a station, all vacant and neglected. I walked around inside the mostly intact buildings checking for clues of why people left. Quite freaky!
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As we left there, I had that â??scary movieâ?? feeling in my gut, of getting stuck there with bikes not wanting to start, and not being able to leave. You know those flicks where the killer small town mutant freaks come out to kill! It was getting too intense and hadnâ??t even smoked anythingâ?¦..Iâ??ll stop now.

Another long pull to Kenhardt and ended at the Hotel. We where gatties by now, and basically fell off the bikes and onto the floor, just in front of the hotel door. The nice lady from inside was sympathetic enough to bring us two dops outside on the pavement. She, and her husband Eetan, turned out to be the owners of this fine establishment, and a great bunch of people. Eetan is a keen biker himself a magic oke. He insisted we write a piece on his â??biker wall of fameâ??, next to the Bike SA boys insert. We treated like family.
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Dustsucker says: If ever you are even remotely close to this place and you don`t make the effort to go here you don`t know what you are missing.  These people are real people`s people and treating is what they do best. Excellent place,excellent entertainment.
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By that evening, we became good mates and he showed us his prize possetions. Two brand spanking new bonies, a R1 & XT660, both in blue. He insisted we light a fire and after a couple more dops, he revealed another secret, a beautifully restored old Chevy truck, in candy-apple red! What a stunner. Schweeet sounding 350 V8.
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Dustsucker says: Eaton went to fetch the key and let Swaerrie start this beautiful monster. My peeps, i can`t tell you what it sounded like when those 8 ponies jumped to attention moaning and groaning but ready to serve the foot...and Swaerries foot was heavy by then....side pipes....instant boner.
PS, he rebuilt it himself.

I obviously offered to show him what the thing could do, but he was reluctant to let her slip from his care.

After a swim in the pool, we headed for retirement. Must say, Swaer and I staggered back. Those dops after a long day in the heat klapped us right between the eyes.

DAY 13 â?? South on through the Cederberg

This time we started the day with a light breakfast. We had to force Eetan out of bed to say cheers as this guy didnâ??t stop partying when we left, but keiered with some locals till 4:00 am. When he got up, we thanked and offered him a Jaggermeister as a reg-maker. He humbly refused.

While saying goodbye in the pub, we noticed some burn marks in the tiles and realized that someone had pulled their bike into his pub for a burnt-out? It was he, of course.
We laughed, as he continued to tell us how he had a â??burnt out tileâ??, also from his pub floor, set in a Klipdrift frame for an oke. He had apparently blown his bike motor doing the same thing. Eetan, being the nice guy that he is, though he might like the memorabilia.

Swaer and I both agreed that we had to come back and visit this place again.
Even Rattatouille was sad to say goodby to his new pals in Kenhardt. They promised to pop in when they fly north for the winter...
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Ya, dis blerrie lekker to be heading home, but not 50km out of town, we had a little scare. I was in front daydreaming when I realized that Dustsucker wasnâ??t behind me anymore. After riding back a while I found him standing next to his bike looking rather pale. His chain had come off! Luckily no lockup. The master link had come out and luckily, I had a spare. He owes me a handjob for that one.
Dustsucker says: Bite me

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Dustsucker says: Look what lightning can do to a telephone pole out this way...whoeao,serious stuff for our Capies.
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Trekking along this arid flat part of the country, I eventually saw to two mountain peaks, which reminded me of my misus even more.
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Dustsucker says: From this point on i decided not to turn my back on Swaerrie or bend to pick up the soap in the shower untill we get home....things were getting blerrie dangerous being away from home too long ;D

Next stop would be Calvinia, where we pulled in by da Hotel.

Minutes later some oke on a KTM990 rode past and spotted our bikes. We immediately greeted the fellow biker with open beers. He turned out to be another sharp oke named Martin. He had a place out this way and was on route back home. We agreed to ride back together in to Clanwilliam. What a lekker ride in the Cederberg, until Martin waved me down with a puncture. Kak!


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Before he could even start planning what to do, I whipped out my tyre levers and tools and got cracking. We had experience under our belts by now and it showed, even with the extreme heat of both the tyre and the Cederberg mountains, we sorted it quick. He was moer-of-a impressed and thankful to the point that he insisted on treating us to as many rounds as we wanted, when we got to Clanwilliam. We exchanged numbers before he left.


DAY 14 â?? Clanwilliam â?? home

Clanwilliam was warem. We woke just the way we fell onto the beds the night before. Uncovered with fan blowing.

It was time to do the last leg. Out the back of town, as suggested by Martin the day before, we rode along a dirt road contouring the dam. What a beauty area all along the dam. We stood on the pegs and idled along, admiring the contrast between the rugged rocky mountains and the smooth flat water of the dam.

The water looked so fresh that we had to find a way closer to go for a last dip of our travels. What great fun, and probably the prettiest area of the last 5 days riding.
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This again rang home the fact that we are so fortunate to be surrounded by such diverse beauty in the Cape. We actually donâ??t even have to go far to experience something completely different. What a lekker land we live in!

Well, we hit the N7 to get back to civilization and ended up where we often took off from, our local pub Baloos.

Reflect

What magic experiences, environments and people we have met. All while enjoying the freedom of traveling and challenging ourselves at the same time.

A key word sticks in mind, â??Diversityâ??. This is what our country offered us on our trip,

From 7degress to 40+ degrees C,
Sea level to 3250m above,
Laughter to frustration, 
modern lifestyle to African rural existence
desert to tropics

we really have it all.

Dustsucker reflects: A brotherhood forms between those who do this that can not be explained.....


 
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