Gerry
Pack Dog
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2006
- Messages
- 75
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Ross on Wye , Herefordshire, UK
- Bike
- Suzuki DR350
Goodbye Sani Pass
The story of my last trip up the mountain , the previous attempt with Stefan and the gang had me off the bike for 2 months with a broken right collar bone .
Tuesday morning , 21 November 2006, I woke up at about 3:15 with lightning & thunder . This was followed very shortly by a deluge of note .
Eventually I got up at about 4:10 , sprinted out in the rain , got the wet newspaper & retired to the lounge with a cup of tea & to sulk .
My bike was prepped & ready , all my riding kit was on the dining table & now ? rain , with a forecast of all day rain .
It had sort of stopped by 6:00 , but the sky was dark & threatening .
Called Vic , same up in Pmb , oh well off to the loo .
I called Vic & we decided that we?d chance it . I left & wound my way the dirt roads through Shongweni & Hammarsdale to Eston , got muddy & rained on . But the sky looked clearer in the general direction we wanted to go .
Vic arrived about 10 minutes later & after a chat we decided to do a slightly more direct route to Sani Pass . We set off , going at a steady 80 km per hour , slow enough to look at birds , watch the roads & generally enjoy the ride.
The weather was getting better all the time , eventually it was glorious sunshine .
Wow , we decided to take the short cut through Pevensy to Himeville . It was so snotty , it was almost impossible to stay upright . Fortunately we eventually got back to hard dirt , but the bikes were carrying a lot of mud . Vic?s new tyres packed the swing arm with about 20 kg of glue / mud .
At the Sani / Himeville junction we had a very slow ride , road works going crazy ? Is this the start of the promised tarmac road ? After about 5 km it settled & we trundled along nicely , until about 8 km from the border post . Then we met ? the convoys ? all those weird vehicles taking tourists up the pass . We managed to thread our way past them & saw clear road ahead .
At the border we met ?Rory? and 2 other quad tourists on their way up .
We continued on up to the top , & paid the dude R 16 to go through .
The pass is in pretty rough condition , wash aways , rocks etc . Not for a soft vehicle or some one nervous on a bike or quad .
Pictures of us and the bikes at the sign board , at the Chalet signs and then into the pub . We ordered coffee & went out & sat on the deck , watching the birds , the ice rats & generally enjoying the sunshine .
We were lucky to see the Bearded Vulture slowly traversing back & forth. There was a very friendly little Cape Bunting , with a missing right foot . It did?nt seem to worry him though . A little bright green & yellow iguana was sunning himself just below the deck .
After an hour we set off back down the pass . at the second Hairpin bend we dismounted and ate our sandwiches , drank coffee & took a bunch of photos .
After eating we set off , stopping every few minutes to take pictures of things , flowers etc . Magic day .
Back at Himeville we fueled up . I called the manager of the petrol station , to discuss the fact that the attendant managed to pour over a litre of fuel all over the bike ! I find it so hard to accept , its his job , but even though it?s a relatively easy job , he just does?nt give a damn . The manager turns out to be a Moto Cross racer ! I hope he does discipline his idiotic staff ?
Back on the bikes we slowly trundled back on a bit of tarmac , until we hit the Comrie sign , then took off along the dirt , in the general direction of Hella Hella. Once we got to the top I decided to stop for a Kodak moment . The weather was getting cool , misty & decidedly unfriendly looking .
I stopped , dismounted & set up the tripod , then looked over the bank , man oh man , a herd of Zebra and a looney Wildebeest . So , we got a bonus , wild game & some photos .
The next stop was on the Umkomaas bridge , the river was full , over the banks & pumping . From there on we rode quietly , but I detected a bad attitude from the black youths ?
In Richmond we were pulled over by the local Mr Plod , complete with dark shades despite it being heavily overcast , looking very dark . He inspected my bike , wanted my license & I duly showed it to him together with my appointment certificate . He then immediately became friendly , asking where we had come from & where we were going , before wishing us well on our way .
We rode back along the tarmac road , I peeled off at Dardenelles road , Vic going on to his home in Pmb . I rode all the way back home along the old road, but the mist was heavy & wet . I got back home at about 5:15 pm , having been out since 6:30 am . Just on 500km and 27 litres of petrol later .
I was lucky , the weather played the game , I had a really good mate as a riding partner . Vic & I have ridden many many miles together & had some amazing rides, when all the others have dropped out because of dodgy weather , we?ve gone for it & had luck . The same again this time .
All I can say is , thanks Vic , it was a really great ride, a magic last ride in South Africa . I?ll remember it for the rest of my life .
Gerry Baillon
The story of my last trip up the mountain , the previous attempt with Stefan and the gang had me off the bike for 2 months with a broken right collar bone .
Tuesday morning , 21 November 2006, I woke up at about 3:15 with lightning & thunder . This was followed very shortly by a deluge of note .
Eventually I got up at about 4:10 , sprinted out in the rain , got the wet newspaper & retired to the lounge with a cup of tea & to sulk .
My bike was prepped & ready , all my riding kit was on the dining table & now ? rain , with a forecast of all day rain .
It had sort of stopped by 6:00 , but the sky was dark & threatening .
Called Vic , same up in Pmb , oh well off to the loo .
I called Vic & we decided that we?d chance it . I left & wound my way the dirt roads through Shongweni & Hammarsdale to Eston , got muddy & rained on . But the sky looked clearer in the general direction we wanted to go .
Vic arrived about 10 minutes later & after a chat we decided to do a slightly more direct route to Sani Pass . We set off , going at a steady 80 km per hour , slow enough to look at birds , watch the roads & generally enjoy the ride.
The weather was getting better all the time , eventually it was glorious sunshine .
Wow , we decided to take the short cut through Pevensy to Himeville . It was so snotty , it was almost impossible to stay upright . Fortunately we eventually got back to hard dirt , but the bikes were carrying a lot of mud . Vic?s new tyres packed the swing arm with about 20 kg of glue / mud .
At the Sani / Himeville junction we had a very slow ride , road works going crazy ? Is this the start of the promised tarmac road ? After about 5 km it settled & we trundled along nicely , until about 8 km from the border post . Then we met ? the convoys ? all those weird vehicles taking tourists up the pass . We managed to thread our way past them & saw clear road ahead .
At the border we met ?Rory? and 2 other quad tourists on their way up .
We continued on up to the top , & paid the dude R 16 to go through .
The pass is in pretty rough condition , wash aways , rocks etc . Not for a soft vehicle or some one nervous on a bike or quad .
Pictures of us and the bikes at the sign board , at the Chalet signs and then into the pub . We ordered coffee & went out & sat on the deck , watching the birds , the ice rats & generally enjoying the sunshine .
We were lucky to see the Bearded Vulture slowly traversing back & forth. There was a very friendly little Cape Bunting , with a missing right foot . It did?nt seem to worry him though . A little bright green & yellow iguana was sunning himself just below the deck .
After an hour we set off back down the pass . at the second Hairpin bend we dismounted and ate our sandwiches , drank coffee & took a bunch of photos .
After eating we set off , stopping every few minutes to take pictures of things , flowers etc . Magic day .
Back at Himeville we fueled up . I called the manager of the petrol station , to discuss the fact that the attendant managed to pour over a litre of fuel all over the bike ! I find it so hard to accept , its his job , but even though it?s a relatively easy job , he just does?nt give a damn . The manager turns out to be a Moto Cross racer ! I hope he does discipline his idiotic staff ?
Back on the bikes we slowly trundled back on a bit of tarmac , until we hit the Comrie sign , then took off along the dirt , in the general direction of Hella Hella. Once we got to the top I decided to stop for a Kodak moment . The weather was getting cool , misty & decidedly unfriendly looking .
I stopped , dismounted & set up the tripod , then looked over the bank , man oh man , a herd of Zebra and a looney Wildebeest . So , we got a bonus , wild game & some photos .
The next stop was on the Umkomaas bridge , the river was full , over the banks & pumping . From there on we rode quietly , but I detected a bad attitude from the black youths ?
In Richmond we were pulled over by the local Mr Plod , complete with dark shades despite it being heavily overcast , looking very dark . He inspected my bike , wanted my license & I duly showed it to him together with my appointment certificate . He then immediately became friendly , asking where we had come from & where we were going , before wishing us well on our way .
We rode back along the tarmac road , I peeled off at Dardenelles road , Vic going on to his home in Pmb . I rode all the way back home along the old road, but the mist was heavy & wet . I got back home at about 5:15 pm , having been out since 6:30 am . Just on 500km and 27 litres of petrol later .
I was lucky , the weather played the game , I had a really good mate as a riding partner . Vic & I have ridden many many miles together & had some amazing rides, when all the others have dropped out because of dodgy weather , we?ve gone for it & had luck . The same again this time .
All I can say is , thanks Vic , it was a really great ride, a magic last ride in South Africa . I?ll remember it for the rest of my life .
Gerry Baillon
