stroom
Pack Dog
Date: 22 Oct 2008
Place: On Route to Beestekraal Noth-west province
Riders: Solo
The story:
since i have been out riding every weekend the last 2 months the mussus suggested that i stay at home for a change. it was a fair request and i agreed in order to ride another day. this meant that i had
to give the Norh Canel ride a miss. So our company had a spanbou yesterday at Mziki nature reserve and i saw OPERTUNITY!!! saved the image posted by jules and did a recce on Google earth. i was going
do some of the route that the rest did. my mission get to mziki reserver via gravel and canel detour to see THE ROCK. i packed the bike waiting for tommorrow to come.
I was greeted the next morning by saartjie having flat wheel in the garage. i managed to find and plug that air stealing hole and to work i went. at noon i left with my secret mission on route to the
spanbou. (nobody said to take a certain route)
i hid the gravel highway at Lethabile from there to jericho. from there to Rooiwal and this is where everything got pearshaped. i did not notice a turnoff anywhere (to the rock) and ended up in a
settlement called Tshwee (found out on google this morning) i knew i wanted to go to beestekraal and asked 2 friendly locals how to get there without heading back the way i came. the directed
me through the village, then through the river hang a right at the gamefarm (notice the fence) and hang a right. this will take you the the gravel highway running past the PPC cement place. i was
sorted with some local knowlege.
through the river xing no problem as there was almost no water. onto the track got to a locked gate where i should go right, problem was that i counld not go right. So i turned around. the terain was
thick river sand and i was so impressed with myself turning around and not buying a piece of the land that 10 meters back on the track that sleeping furiously fast stricking sandmamba lived up to its
reputiation. luckekly rider nor saartjie was injured and off we went. back at the river we desided to go left as it meant from the other side it is right. this track got to single track, to catle spoor
and back to twin tracks with lots of sand. i was going a bit faster now incase that mamba wanted to strike again. and she did... i came down quite hard and damaged my wrist. saartjie got a broke mirror
mounting and loose indicator with a few scratches. the thought that crossed my mind was - yeah, you mos wanted the DS bike to do this stuff. you most wanted to be a dog. yeah you mos like to ride solo.
well reality check, i was somewhere, i did not have coordinates, no idea. just somewhere in the norh west provice, the local speak tswanna i havend seen a local or anthing for the last hour. i couldn phone no-one i would not
be able to tell them where i was. yes, this is africa and not for sissies... luckely saartjie was ok and meself i do not want to think anymore.....about what could have...
now i am tired and my last H2o was gone. but i keep going. i noticed the sun on the left side of my lid and that meant i was heading north. logic told me that i should head west the place where the sun sets. not wanting
to end up in Zim i turned around back to the village. this time i was preped for the mamba as i gave it more speed. i did manage to find some canal roads and got to the reserve. everybody uploaded their stuff on the game vehicle and i followed
200 meters beind on saartjie since i needed to do some repairs at the camp site. it was a bad day in the sadle. lost to moer and gone, crashed twice, i was tired, drained mentally and phisically and
that sand mamba lived up to the reputation, and i did not see the rock. then 4 girafe with their young came strolling over the road, spitting distance from me and saartjie. i was awed by the experience
and that on the back of my trusty mule. it made the day worth every cent, tear and sweat. i mean, righ means left and left means righ right? zebra, blou wille bees, vlakvark. Yes, this was true
adventure riding.
at camp we were greeted by a pool and some ice cold beer.... what a day...
PS - i know posts is worhless without pictures. i did not have da camera, uploaded a pic from google earth on where i was.
I would like to explore the area some more but not without GPS and another dog to watch my back. this is no solo terain where right is left and left means turn around...
Place: On Route to Beestekraal Noth-west province
Riders: Solo
The story:
since i have been out riding every weekend the last 2 months the mussus suggested that i stay at home for a change. it was a fair request and i agreed in order to ride another day. this meant that i had
to give the Norh Canel ride a miss. So our company had a spanbou yesterday at Mziki nature reserve and i saw OPERTUNITY!!! saved the image posted by jules and did a recce on Google earth. i was going
do some of the route that the rest did. my mission get to mziki reserver via gravel and canel detour to see THE ROCK. i packed the bike waiting for tommorrow to come.
I was greeted the next morning by saartjie having flat wheel in the garage. i managed to find and plug that air stealing hole and to work i went. at noon i left with my secret mission on route to the
spanbou. (nobody said to take a certain route)
i hid the gravel highway at Lethabile from there to jericho. from there to Rooiwal and this is where everything got pearshaped. i did not notice a turnoff anywhere (to the rock) and ended up in a
settlement called Tshwee (found out on google this morning) i knew i wanted to go to beestekraal and asked 2 friendly locals how to get there without heading back the way i came. the directed
me through the village, then through the river hang a right at the gamefarm (notice the fence) and hang a right. this will take you the the gravel highway running past the PPC cement place. i was
sorted with some local knowlege.
through the river xing no problem as there was almost no water. onto the track got to a locked gate where i should go right, problem was that i counld not go right. So i turned around. the terain was
thick river sand and i was so impressed with myself turning around and not buying a piece of the land that 10 meters back on the track that sleeping furiously fast stricking sandmamba lived up to its
reputiation. luckekly rider nor saartjie was injured and off we went. back at the river we desided to go left as it meant from the other side it is right. this track got to single track, to catle spoor
and back to twin tracks with lots of sand. i was going a bit faster now incase that mamba wanted to strike again. and she did... i came down quite hard and damaged my wrist. saartjie got a broke mirror
mounting and loose indicator with a few scratches. the thought that crossed my mind was - yeah, you mos wanted the DS bike to do this stuff. you most wanted to be a dog. yeah you mos like to ride solo.
well reality check, i was somewhere, i did not have coordinates, no idea. just somewhere in the norh west provice, the local speak tswanna i havend seen a local or anthing for the last hour. i couldn phone no-one i would not
be able to tell them where i was. yes, this is africa and not for sissies... luckely saartjie was ok and meself i do not want to think anymore.....about what could have...
now i am tired and my last H2o was gone. but i keep going. i noticed the sun on the left side of my lid and that meant i was heading north. logic told me that i should head west the place where the sun sets. not wanting
to end up in Zim i turned around back to the village. this time i was preped for the mamba as i gave it more speed. i did manage to find some canal roads and got to the reserve. everybody uploaded their stuff on the game vehicle and i followed
200 meters beind on saartjie since i needed to do some repairs at the camp site. it was a bad day in the sadle. lost to moer and gone, crashed twice, i was tired, drained mentally and phisically and
that sand mamba lived up to the reputation, and i did not see the rock. then 4 girafe with their young came strolling over the road, spitting distance from me and saartjie. i was awed by the experience
and that on the back of my trusty mule. it made the day worth every cent, tear and sweat. i mean, righ means left and left means righ right? zebra, blou wille bees, vlakvark. Yes, this was true
adventure riding.
at camp we were greeted by a pool and some ice cold beer.... what a day...
PS - i know posts is worhless without pictures. i did not have da camera, uploaded a pic from google earth on where i was.
I would like to explore the area some more but not without GPS and another dog to watch my back. this is no solo terain where right is left and left means turn around...
