Durban... a little closer;-)

Blue Moon ...

We left a day early from Scottburgh - it was very nice and all but the windy crappy weather would not let up! I think it was an unpleasant experience for all of us, the cats were badly beaten up by the resident 'tom' and we were beaten up by the wind and everything that blew in with it. We learned some valuable lessons in the 13 long days and nights we were there, and came up with some amazingly innovative ideas to renovating our van, LOL! Although it was not all bad, as we were given a beautiful fish by one of the employees of the park, and it was honestly one of the tastiest fish we have eaten. They are quite passionate about fishing there and are on the beach every night fishing.

Dolphins somewhere in the distance ...

One of the few days that the weather cooperated we went down to the rocks at low tide and showed Erin how to pick mussels, mmm yummy! We couldn't even wait 'til dinner & ate them all before lunch time, it was divine! On a few occasions we saw dolphins and whales passing by, oh man that is when I wish I was a surfer - it must be so amazing to see the dolphins swimming so close by.

Anyways we waved goodbye to the South Coast and headed a little closer to Durban and set up camp at a stunning place with 5* ablutions, grass and hardly any wind!

Bliss, although the resident cat don't much like intruders so once again our cats are on high alert! To be honest I actually think they enjoy it, well not the getting beaten up part but they love the hunt...

Erin studying hard

Thank goodness exams finally came to an end and all the studying and testing is over! I'm sure Erin did well and she should soon seen the fruits of all her hard labour... top marks!

The pressure is not over yet, soon term 4 rolls in and a revision of the whole year's work awaits her undivided attention.  I've been brainstorming about some fantastic ideas to incorporate into her curriculum next year - I'm getting the hang of this homeschooling. LOL!

So we've had some time to relax and regroup after the exams and cleaning the last of the sand out of our stuff,  so we're going to treat Erin to a day at uShaka Marine World. A day of wild foefie slides and swimming, hopefully a dolphin show and a couple of seals thrown in too. Whoo, fun in the sun! Hopefully we can catch it before the school holidays hit and have a short wait on the rides...

sugar-cane

Rugby ... a part of any South African's day!

suburban wildlife

Scottburgh... still

(Erin)Today is a new day! It’s not so windy anymore! Tsonga just had a (very) bruised ego but Pepper is another story…….

*She was bitten on her front left paw,

*She was bitten on her back right paw,

*She was scratched behind the ear.

But she is a brave cat and is still as active as ever! I think she’s looking for the cat that whipped her furry bum.

While I was swimming today , there was a cockroach that was paddling after me! My dad thinks that  I am an island of safety! Hmph! Me! An island of safety! Yeah right!  My mom is making me study like you have never seen anybody study before! But I’m ready for the exams. I also got cool new slops and swimming shorts today!

Durban?... not exactly!

So reluctantly we head back on the road to Durban direction. Not reluctant to get back on the road but more so the destination. Just the thought of going near a ‘city’ is almost unpleasant after the tranquillity of the Midlands and the worst traffic we’ve seen in ages is Saturday morning in Howick. As we came down the N3 Erin counted over 200 trucks heading in our direction alone! It was a freakin’ hair-raising drive of note! Downhill all the way with bumper to bumper trucks on one side of us and cars whizzing on the right of us… hectic in the van trailing the golf, I even started counting trucks!

So we get near the pre-determined spot and smelt the stinky river so decided to try something else – fine time to take a wrong turn in the middle of the suburbs on a skinny little road! Eventually we get back on track and head for ‘Toti… Ja whatever, what a joke! The park on first impression left a lot to be desired and we desired something else. So back on the highway we decided to head to South Coast and we arrived at Rocky Bay in Park Rynie but they should’ve called it Windy Bay!?

we knew there would be days like this

6am fishing ...(?)

The caravan park is cool enough and we even get 3G signal, hence all the updates! I imagine it must be lovely here in summer when the wind is not blowing but so far it has not let up… Ja I know we’re from Cape Town and should be used to the wind but this is ridiculous! 

As we sit here in the tent looking out at a very rainy and windy night, it’s only 20 meters to the sand, we hoping for calmer conditions… But looking on the bright side crappy weather means less distraction for Erin writing exams and just maybe Andrew will catch that fish!

Once again Peppa (the cat!) has gotten herself into a spot of trouble by ‘soeking’ with the resident cat. Looks like we might be off to the vet for some painkillers, and might as well get her a tetanus injection too! LOL!! Tsonga went and got herself beaten up by the same cat and also has bites on her ankles but Peppa is still limping and getting bed rest!

The Office ...

Karkloof

So off we go to the other side of the highway to visit some more mountains and Garmin leads us into the unknown… meandering along the Curry Post road! Dirt roads filled with potholes and twist and turns around rolling hills. But at the end of it all  we decided it was actually a cool detour that we would have not ordinarily taken and we saw some truly beautiful scenery.

We ended up at a gorgeous little place at the foot of a tree plantation where the road was miles away and the 3G signal even further!

the front view at Bushwillow

Erin swam in the little lake every day before and after school, just can’t keep her away from water. The hospitality at Bushwillow Park was outstanding and the sites superb, our every need attended to… & for a reasonable rate too! Ha! Finally someone not trying to rip us off, we even got free weed ,Ag I mean wood heh! LOL.

Nestled in the hills

We went into Howick for a list of supplies and stopped off at their highlight attraction “Howick Falls” – a bit of a disappointment, it was so polluted at the bottom pool and on the other side of the railing.

Howick Falls

We caught the local Saturday Farmer’s Market and man oh man… stunning!  I was like a little kid on Christmas morning with all the locals selling their local wares – cheeses, breads, chutneys, meats, veggies, … you name it and it was there in it’s purest most organic form! As a city slicker it was a genuine treat to experience something that does not come naturally in the suburbs of any metropolis.

Karkloof Falls - we were right at the top

After the market we had a picnic at Karkloof Falls not far up the drag and was even more impressive with 10 meters taller than Howick and 100 times more beautiful.

top of Karkloof Falls

It was so dark at the campsite at night that all we could see were 2 tiny specks of light on the hillside and loads of stars in the nightsky. Still no fishing though, but I can confidently say that was no fault of ours as there was no fish!

The cats had a ball as there were no other animals there except 'Wicked' the owner's jack russell who presented no problem for them.  They had the run of the place exploring everywhere.  When it was time to leave I got the feeling as they ran away from me into the bushes that they did not want to leave!

Tsonga & Peppa 'hunting'

Eventually the park started filling up… with one other caravan, so we decided to head towards Durbs. Don’t think we would’ve left if we had internet signal… but exam time is just around the corner!

Meandering in the Midlands…

The drive through the Midlands was truly stunning! Such a contrast compared to where we’ve come from so far… rolling hills and so much water everywhere, not to forget cows far and wide everywhere you look, LOL!!

We found a beautiful little place tucked away near Rosetta where we ended up staying a few more days than planned. Wow, what an amazing place to stay! We parked right on the lake’s edge and caught the fly-fishing bug, Andrew even got himself a free casting lesson from the resident ‘Springbok’ fly-fishing champ. Ha… now all we have to do is catch the $*@!% fish!

We did the tourist thing going into the nearest ‘village’ and found some stunning odds ‘n ends to add to the collection of memorabilia. Best of all though was basking in the nature of it all with the mountains in the background reflecting clearly in the lake, the birds doing their chirping thing and once again the fish mocking us!

We met a fabulous dog – an Australian Cattle Dog and his name… you guessed it, Bruce. An intelligent dog of note and stunning looking – we totally fell in-love with him! His body is like a 'wild' dog, staunch & strong with giant paws.

Weather was a little unpredictable with one day changing so drastically from the next – the one morning we woke up to a rainy highlands looking day. It was so surreal as it just came out of nowhere as the day before was super-hot! Everything was covered in frost, was a beautiful sight but not so wonderful when I remembered I left Andrew's pants on the washing line, oops! The thing about getting lost in the mountains is you lose all communication with the outside world … bliss.

Erin finally finished up with her Term 3 work and can now begin putting in the hours getting ready for exams, which should be a good indication on how well she is adapting her school with the travelling. Obviously it has taken a lot more focus and motivation from her to maintain her school schedule, especially in this holiday environment but she is doing well and blossoming into a confident and intelligent young girl.

Daddy's girl

camera-shy

Sterkfontein Dam @ Harrismith

This dam goes for miles...

looking out from our door

Well we had fun at Sterkfontein Dam with the wind and the wide expanse of water filled with dam fish that taunted us and made complete fools of us as we huffed and puffed up and down the hill to the muddy bank. (we looked on google earth and didn't notice the hill).  Look, I really don't blame the fish for not coming out, heck the icy wind was coming off the snowy mountains and taking no prisoners.

friendly ferret

However we were rewarded with a visit from a zebra, a ferret and we saw springbok and if seeing camels at a petrol station counts then we saw the wildlife! It looked like almost touch and go for Andrew and Erin coming down with the sniffles and possibly flu so we decided to cut our losses and leave the fish to someone else. We packed up & found our electrical outlet and plug welded together (power surge?) oh crap! such are the challenges of moving house every other day of the week... LOL! I know Andrew will make a handyman-plan, that's just what he does. So the great pioneers that we are we crossed the mountain(s) into the Midlands and headed for Glengarry outside Mooiriver, as we heard a rumour there might be some warm sunshine and even fish there.

Andrew kiting

Ice Blue

Jhb to Sterkfontein Dam

bright-eyed & bushy-tailed

Tsonga meets a monkey

[Sarita]

It was quite a surprise to realise that we had already been in Kuruman for 12 days before we started getting itchy feet again; geez time flies swiftly there as one day flows so easily into another! We decided to make a dash for Joburg in one long haul…

Fallow deer - Kuruman

Oh my hat! The N14 is a hectic skinny long road with ‘stop & go’ road works most of the way, even forced to a detour that was surely fit for 4x4s, which took us down to Carletonville.  Needless to say with all the road works we started losing time and it became inevitable that we were going to arrive at the new site in the dark,… again! LOL

Driving Miss Peppa

Potholes of note!

The last hour of the journey was so hairy – potholes everywhere!  There we were in the dark with peak traffic pushing our asses – it’s been a while since we drove these roads so we put our trust in ‘Garmin’ and the stupid bitch led us onto some old back road!

Eventually we pulled in to Hennops Pride and cold does not describe the air blowing right through my body to every internal organ and ultimately freezing my bones. That was nothing compared with what was to come! Rain, Wind, Hail !!!

at Hennops

The cool thing about arriving at camp sites in the dark is the next morning you are presented with so much more than you expected, especially if you’ve chosen a shitty spot & you gotta move! Seriously though it does have a certain charm to it camping out right on the river’s edge and fishing, although not catching anything. Hanging out at Hennops for a couple of days gave us the opportunity to meet up with some family members and see our very dear friends and make some new friends. A fabulous time was had which went well with a bottle of ‘chocolate russians’.

First drink 1/3 of a bottle of good quality vodka, then chop up at least 400g of Diary Milk chocolate and put into bottle as best you can without eating the chocolate. You should then put the bottle near the fire to melt the concoction to a thick silky smooth yummy nectar and drink with friends.  Soon you will develop a Russian accent!

the view at hennops

Seeing our dearest friends Colin & Avril, as always was brilliant –' we love you guys, stay strong and we believe in you our friends'.  Erin looks so awesome with her shorter haircut, thanks Av! Erin got so excited at seeing such a hectic hail storm, it was a joy to see her enthusiasm.  We haven’t seen so much hail in ages, ‘not something you see around Cape Town bro’.

Erika, Sarita, Erin & Andrew

Thank you so much Erika for the opportunity to clean up and sleep in a bed (in a house) for a couple of nights and even catch up on some washing ... priceless!

We decided to start heading south and marked our 1^st stop for Sterkfontein Dam and will give Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Kruger Park a proper chance next year.  As it turned out today was a super day, everything just fell into place and went smoothly. 

Even the cats are getting the hang of it and settling down quickly for the drive.  I’m so amazed at how well they have adapted to this change in their lifestyle. So after sleeping for the better part of 5 years they have awoken and developed a personality. Amazing! 

Sterkfontein Dam

Snow-covered Mountains Harrismith

So we’ll hang out here with the

dam and the snow-covered

mountains in the distance

for company.

It shouldn’t be that difficult even though it feels below zero – it probably is!!! The view is pretty wow and this will be our spot for a bit, or at least until Sunday.