Whew! What can I say ?
The Ride Report and many stories will come, but to try to sumarize :-
- It was two-and-a-half Jules' Rides, ratcheted up a notch. ;D
- There were bikes and riders down, but all are fine and in extremely good cheer !! ;D
- There was bike swapping . :
- There was wife swapping - well sort of. :
- There was BMW assist. :scratch:
- The roads around Swinburne, and the Berg are well and truly dog-ridden. :ricky:
And the Hare and Hound has a little less beer than at the start of the weekend . . . . . :bar:
==========================================================
Just a few ( ;D ) words and then I must drop off the forum for a few days to reload a PC.
This ride has its roots in Newcastle where Dolf and I went on the first and only Kawasaki Explore weekend at the Majuba Lodge in Newcastle in 2007. That sort of faded, they left the organizing of number 2 to Dolf and I, but I had a silly personal fight with Kawasaki, so we decided to hijack the remains of the weekend for two Wilddog weekends at the Majuba Lodge in 2008 and 2009. They were great, but there was a feeling that at about R500 pppn the cost was a little high for some of our bling-addicted dogs, and we started to sniff about for an alternative.
I spend a lot of time on the N3 as my working life is split between Gauteng and Durban, and I often stop over for a bit of friendly, and sometimes pleasantly insulting, company at the Hare and Hound in Swinburne, and, if I don’t feel like the remaining three hours in the cage I sleep over.
So I wondered of the Riverview lodge would make a suitable base for a weekend as it is central to many of the mountain passes and poorts in the area, and it is “budget friendly” which has the advantage that I can ride more weekends !
For three nights in a comfortable bed with an electric blanket (Swinburne can be cold!), three English breakfasts, three dinners, and a whole number of beers and good company in the pub next to a log fire, my bill was under a grand – I don’t think that’s bad and would hardly have bought a single night at Majuba.
So who came along? From East of the Berg was Baby Beemer and Elize from Port Shepstone, both on the F650 GS and Rudder and Nick – on a Pegaso and XChallenge. I got the vibe straight away that these two knew how to ride bikes and the vibe proved spot-on. Both come from the plastic-bike world and they just gobbled up all obstacles in the way and asked for more !!
From up-country was the Cave Girl and Dolf on KLRs, Punchy on the DR650 with Lee in a Mercedes, Eddie and Shesha on Beemers (HP2 & GS1200), Jules on a loaner Super Tenere (whew – that thing moves) and Li looking good in orange on a 640. On Saturday the Purple Turtle and Kim joined us for the Sunday ride on the big Strom.
Jules was the route-master this year, and he put us through our paces with some great plotting.
Saturday’s ride was out North of the N3. We started in the mist on the Old Railway road down through the tunnel and clouds to Besters (A-B) and then along the Sundays Valley to the base of Normandien Pass (C). Normandien was quite rocky in parts but we made it up with no problems other than the GS650 that started squirting water from the hole in the water reservoir cap. I don’t think we ever worked out how or why, but it may have had something to do with the sudden rise in altitude going up the pass.
From the top of Normandien it was on the high side of the escarpment up to Memel. I personally found some parts a bit scary as they had scraped bits of the road for cages, but for the bikes it was effectively just scraping the road into one wide middelmannetjie and the Tenere was moving about under me – some times quite alarmingly. Memel was lunch. Took them what felt like two hours to get the Burgers done at the hotel before we set back on tar/gravel/tar/gravel to “G”.
At that point a bit of Gunda late-afternoon grumpiness started to bite me. The area up there is stony and bumpy and my legs and back started their industrial action for more rest, so I told Jules I was bailing and taking the easy option via Harrismith home. I also felt it a little foolish to push on on the intended route as my GPS on tracback predicted that the last 15minutes of the ride would be in the dark. I was going to suggest that Cave Girl join me as I was concerned that she may have problems seeing in the dark, but before I could sell the slab-option she was on the KLR and disappeared up the track ahead. I set off in pursuit but lost her at a branch in the road so took a very pleasant ride via Harrismith back to watch the first half of the Sharks-Lions game in the pub.
Then the calls started.
First call was for GundAssist trailer as the GS650 with Baby Beemer and Elize had died about 30Kms from Swinburne. They had lost a bit of time with two fixed tubeless punctures. Purple Turtle the navigator and I headed out with the trailer to the waypoint and met them towing the dead bike in the dusty dark, where we loaded the dead bike and inched back to Swinburne.
Then we realized that Cave Girl was missing and the panic started. There was much pouring over maps and debate as where she could be in the rabbit warren of roads, and we were about to send out the search party in my VW polo when she limped in much to our relief. It seems she was concerned and headed off solo but took a wrong turn in the dark, ran out of petrol, and took Collings and van Reenens pass to get back. To make matters worse she had not taken he cell along and it was merrily ringing in the room at Swinburne.
Sundays ride was lekka, but quite challenging for me. The route was along the escarpment (A-H) and then the amazing detour via the Verlore Vallei road (I-J) – Quite tricky in parts but I used my legs and Velociraptor Slow Technique to get through.
I believe there was fun and Merriment behind me with the Strom that ended with Kim on Jules’ Tenere and Purple Turtle with a bruised rib-cage but I will leave the story to them.
Then over some really nice whoops and a detour up Spion kop and then some slabbing through Bergville and the West side of the Wagondrift Dam up for a great and welcome lunch the Coyote near Little Switzerland.
On the way there the route took us on a fun section of no-road riding as, what to Google Earth looked like a road, was in fact a ditch.
Then back via Bezuidenhouts pass. Man, to me that was tricky, but fun. I did not have the courage to blast the Tenere up the rocks as the others did, but we managed to manhandle mine and all the others up with a few downs – Punchy and Jules among them.
To me the hardest part was the light – the sun was straight in our eyes and made it hard to see the rocks and ruts. From the top it was a fairly effortless cruise home in the fading light with me wondering why it was so dark and then realizing in the pub that I still had my sunglasses on – really doff.
All in all a great weekend. Do it again – For Sure !!
Thank for coming along. Was really great to get to know the new dogs and I was thinking it was amazing how strangers end up with hugs and tears when we have to say goodbye.
The Ride Report and many stories will come, but to try to sumarize :-
- It was two-and-a-half Jules' Rides, ratcheted up a notch. ;D
- There were bikes and riders down, but all are fine and in extremely good cheer !! ;D
- There was bike swapping . :
- There was wife swapping - well sort of. :
- There was BMW assist. :scratch:
- The roads around Swinburne, and the Berg are well and truly dog-ridden. :ricky:
And the Hare and Hound has a little less beer than at the start of the weekend . . . . . :bar:
==========================================================
Just a few ( ;D ) words and then I must drop off the forum for a few days to reload a PC.
This ride has its roots in Newcastle where Dolf and I went on the first and only Kawasaki Explore weekend at the Majuba Lodge in Newcastle in 2007. That sort of faded, they left the organizing of number 2 to Dolf and I, but I had a silly personal fight with Kawasaki, so we decided to hijack the remains of the weekend for two Wilddog weekends at the Majuba Lodge in 2008 and 2009. They were great, but there was a feeling that at about R500 pppn the cost was a little high for some of our bling-addicted dogs, and we started to sniff about for an alternative.
I spend a lot of time on the N3 as my working life is split between Gauteng and Durban, and I often stop over for a bit of friendly, and sometimes pleasantly insulting, company at the Hare and Hound in Swinburne, and, if I don’t feel like the remaining three hours in the cage I sleep over.
So I wondered of the Riverview lodge would make a suitable base for a weekend as it is central to many of the mountain passes and poorts in the area, and it is “budget friendly” which has the advantage that I can ride more weekends !
For three nights in a comfortable bed with an electric blanket (Swinburne can be cold!), three English breakfasts, three dinners, and a whole number of beers and good company in the pub next to a log fire, my bill was under a grand – I don’t think that’s bad and would hardly have bought a single night at Majuba.
So who came along? From East of the Berg was Baby Beemer and Elize from Port Shepstone, both on the F650 GS and Rudder and Nick – on a Pegaso and XChallenge. I got the vibe straight away that these two knew how to ride bikes and the vibe proved spot-on. Both come from the plastic-bike world and they just gobbled up all obstacles in the way and asked for more !!
From up-country was the Cave Girl and Dolf on KLRs, Punchy on the DR650 with Lee in a Mercedes, Eddie and Shesha on Beemers (HP2 & GS1200), Jules on a loaner Super Tenere (whew – that thing moves) and Li looking good in orange on a 640. On Saturday the Purple Turtle and Kim joined us for the Sunday ride on the big Strom.
Jules was the route-master this year, and he put us through our paces with some great plotting.
Saturday’s ride was out North of the N3. We started in the mist on the Old Railway road down through the tunnel and clouds to Besters (A-B) and then along the Sundays Valley to the base of Normandien Pass (C). Normandien was quite rocky in parts but we made it up with no problems other than the GS650 that started squirting water from the hole in the water reservoir cap. I don’t think we ever worked out how or why, but it may have had something to do with the sudden rise in altitude going up the pass.
From the top of Normandien it was on the high side of the escarpment up to Memel. I personally found some parts a bit scary as they had scraped bits of the road for cages, but for the bikes it was effectively just scraping the road into one wide middelmannetjie and the Tenere was moving about under me – some times quite alarmingly. Memel was lunch. Took them what felt like two hours to get the Burgers done at the hotel before we set back on tar/gravel/tar/gravel to “G”.
At that point a bit of Gunda late-afternoon grumpiness started to bite me. The area up there is stony and bumpy and my legs and back started their industrial action for more rest, so I told Jules I was bailing and taking the easy option via Harrismith home. I also felt it a little foolish to push on on the intended route as my GPS on tracback predicted that the last 15minutes of the ride would be in the dark. I was going to suggest that Cave Girl join me as I was concerned that she may have problems seeing in the dark, but before I could sell the slab-option she was on the KLR and disappeared up the track ahead. I set off in pursuit but lost her at a branch in the road so took a very pleasant ride via Harrismith back to watch the first half of the Sharks-Lions game in the pub.
Then the calls started.
First call was for GundAssist trailer as the GS650 with Baby Beemer and Elize had died about 30Kms from Swinburne. They had lost a bit of time with two fixed tubeless punctures. Purple Turtle the navigator and I headed out with the trailer to the waypoint and met them towing the dead bike in the dusty dark, where we loaded the dead bike and inched back to Swinburne.
Then we realized that Cave Girl was missing and the panic started. There was much pouring over maps and debate as where she could be in the rabbit warren of roads, and we were about to send out the search party in my VW polo when she limped in much to our relief. It seems she was concerned and headed off solo but took a wrong turn in the dark, ran out of petrol, and took Collings and van Reenens pass to get back. To make matters worse she had not taken he cell along and it was merrily ringing in the room at Swinburne.
Sundays ride was lekka, but quite challenging for me. The route was along the escarpment (A-H) and then the amazing detour via the Verlore Vallei road (I-J) – Quite tricky in parts but I used my legs and Velociraptor Slow Technique to get through.
I believe there was fun and Merriment behind me with the Strom that ended with Kim on Jules’ Tenere and Purple Turtle with a bruised rib-cage but I will leave the story to them.
Then over some really nice whoops and a detour up Spion kop and then some slabbing through Bergville and the West side of the Wagondrift Dam up for a great and welcome lunch the Coyote near Little Switzerland.
On the way there the route took us on a fun section of no-road riding as, what to Google Earth looked like a road, was in fact a ditch.
Then back via Bezuidenhouts pass. Man, to me that was tricky, but fun. I did not have the courage to blast the Tenere up the rocks as the others did, but we managed to manhandle mine and all the others up with a few downs – Punchy and Jules among them.
To me the hardest part was the light – the sun was straight in our eyes and made it hard to see the rocks and ruts. From the top it was a fairly effortless cruise home in the fading light with me wondering why it was so dark and then realizing in the pub that I still had my sunglasses on – really doff.
All in all a great weekend. Do it again – For Sure !!
Thank for coming along. Was really great to get to know the new dogs and I was thinking it was amazing how strangers end up with hugs and tears when we have to say goodbye.
