Ghosts In The Groot Rivier

[forex618]

Tossing and turning at 2AM on Friday night I was seeing images of fynbos, proteas and green gorges. I decided there and then to ride the Groot Rivier Poort the next day. I wandered downstairs and began to pack my tank bag with tools and essentials, noting that (as I was riding alone) I’d have to stop by at KTM to pick up some tyre levers and a multi-spanner. By 3AM, I was packed, and I spent the rest of the evening watching Braveheart to while away the hours.

The plan was to leave at 8AM, stop at Mcdonalds to pick up a egg Mcmuffin, scoot across to KTM to grab the tools, and then hit the road by 8.30.

The Egg thing tasted delicious! Out of all the Mcdonalds stuff, this is my fav. And possibly the most healthy?

Note that my gear was a road bike leather jacket, takkies and camo pants. Plus I was taking the 690 and not the 950. All because I had lent my KTM gear and 950 to Sabo a month or two back – who’ll you’ll hear about later in this tale.

After getting my tools and flying down Willam Moffat in desperation to get the f*ck out of town, I came to the start of my ride at the tar/gravel intersection near Elands Rivier. I had passed another solo rider in town in full ATGATT (a dawg? anyone?) who told me he was headed out the same way, but I never saw him on the road. In fact I never saw another rider, and only 2 cars in the entire 9 hours of my ride!

It was a foggy ole morning, which was to get worse later. This pic is of the (mostly good) road surface of the Elands river road. HOWEVER....all these little rocks, small potholes and corrugations make the long dirt stretch quite jarring and I was occasionally cursing into my helmet each time the shocks went up my arms. The 690 is an awesome bike, but very hard.

I lost my number plate before I even got through 5 k’s Annoying because I had just bought a new one for R200 “under the counter” at a plate place.

Time to stop for a smoke and to drink in the silence of the bush. I needed this escape from the city (if you could call PE a city...Gareth calls it an armpit. Whatever)

This old farmhouse is about 10 k’s into the Elands Rivier pass, and is for sale (remind me to give Pam a ring on Monday) Check out the position and the views!

This is my 690 parked on my new front lawn

 

[edgy]

:happy1:

 

[forex618]

Because Sabo had my helmet, I had to use my wife’s smaller lid, with the result that my face looked like a pimple about to pop.

At this particular spot, the mist had started to come down like a blanket, and I was instantly damp and cold. The road also became greasy and the red clay surface became – well, you know. Here you can see the gorgeous fynbos with the cliff behind. Well, you would be able to see it in fine conditions. I stopped here because the fynbos smell was overpowering and I had to drink it all in. They say smell is the most powerful of all our senses and the memories it provokes last the longest. In this moment I was back in the bush behind Fish Hoek town, building sand dens underneath bush with the same pungent/sweet aroma.

It was silent. Only the occasional twitter of a lark cracked the stillness. Did I see something other-wordly drifting across the road in my periphery?

As I got higher up the pass, the mist came down more heavily. The clay got more slippery and the isolation more pronounced. I was in heaven – I had the clouds and just needed the angels with harps (or not)

More of the intoxicating fynbos.  I think I sat here for 15 minutes imprinting the smell into my memory to top up the bank for the future.

At the top I reached the turnoff. I was somewhat nervous at this point – not just from the ghostly otherworld conditions – but the road really was wet, and I know that I’d have to add wet rocks to the recipe as progressed through the poort.

 

[forex618]

It’s not private land (or is it?) This CNN number plate must have been there for over a decade – the old Uitenhage prefix.

The road wasn’t too bad at all, but the wet rocks and clay made it a little tricky. Nothing to be too concerned about though. In this pic, I tried to show the wet conditions, but it didn’t come out. (No, really, it was wet. It was laak...juslike I can’t explain man)

Slip sliding down towards the river. Look at how stunning the green thorn bushes appear in this light.

Now I hadn’t seen a soul for several hours. Amazing. Makes you realise how NOISY the human race is.

Wet, cold and ....well, damn creative

There’s the bottom of the river valley down below on the right. You can also make out the track going up the other side. I was intrigued with this tree, which looks OLD and similar to a olive. Anyone know what it is plse?

 

[Sprocketbek]

Lovely. It looked like that the last time I went through there.
Planning on doing Grootrivierpoort on our return journey from the bash.

 

[forex618]

The river looked quite full, and I was anticipating a challenging crossing at the bottom. The several times I’d ridden through before varied between tricky and easy peasy.

A pretty succulent.

It was getting a little dryer now as I descended into the valley. Time to stop, smoke and air the old Berick jacket.

Let me digress from the scenery and show you the contents of my tankbag. Actually, this doesn’t vary much whether it’s a 4 day or 4 hour trip. Two tyre levers (new), duct tape, spare tube, wallet, smokes, cable ties, WD40 and some coke. (Note the Gadhaffi head scarve. I moonlight as a suicide bomber when business is slow)

If you like river crossings, then this one would be a damp squib to you. It was virtually empty. Suited me though, as the 690 tends to kick up a fuss in water – once resulting in a 5km towing experience.

Still it was a tranquil and beautiful place, and here I took a 30 minute nap to ensure that I didn’t spoil this experience by rushing. The best thing about solo rides is the complete freedom to be you.

It’s obviously a fertile place, because these are the biggest thorns I have EVER seen. In fact they are big enough to kill someone with a thrust through the eye or heart.

Here’s the 690 – happy to not have gotten too wet in the river, and thus far uncomplaining – that would change later on though!

Looking back to whence I had come. This part reminds me in some ways of Hluhluwe and Umfolozi in Zululand.

A little way up the pass on the other side looking down at the river

Here the road got a little more tricky, but the 690 handles this stuff with ease. Just the moisture on the rocks created a bit more fun. I was sliding the tail out and taking little jumps all the way out – lots of fun

 

[forex618]

Now at the top of the pass, I was anticipating long boring dirt roads, so I decided to prolong the joy of the wild by taking this cattle track into the bush. I’d now (unknowingly) done 170km on the 11 litre tank. Perhaps these detours were a little irresponsible

The cattle track soon ran out, and the top of this hill was calling me...”James, James....come here”

So I began to putter up the slope. It was full of small rocks, bush stumps and boulders, and my first run ended with this

A bit more momentum, and a direct line OVER the rocks and boulders, and I was up 

What a lovely spot. Time for another smoke and a 10 minute absorption time

The 690 got a small graze. I was pretty unsympathetic

Now the wolke appeared again, and the drizzle began to soak me and the road. Quite annoying, as I had to ride with the visor open, and I had to blink repeatedly to get the rain out of my eyes. Still, it was nice to feel the rain on my face.

 

[forex618]

This little mountain was putting on its blanket to bed down for the night

Low, but big African skies

mmm...now I’d realised that I was low on gas, and I had a choice – Stytlerville or Uitenhage via the Cockscomb. I chose Uitenhage, because it was only 40 k’s or so, and I could make it on the remainder of my fuel. WRONG on both accounts.

What faced me was 150km of this sort of road. Fast but boring. I skidded to a halt when my reserve light came on and pondered my next move. Thus far 690 had been uncomplaining, but now she was thirsty. I guess I had the coke to drink, and had forgotten that she also needed some refreshment. She was warning me that unless I bought her a drink soon, she was going to refuse to go further. Women!

I don’t have pics of the next part of the saga. I limped into a farmhouse with 690 already spluttering in anger (there were only about three farms on the entire road) and the couple had about 1.3 litres in an old coke bottle to spare. Checked it in and continued, just making it to the next farm.

This was a bizarre place. No sign of life, until (who I presumed to be) the farmers wife came to the gate in here nightie (this was around 2PM). She was large and let’s say extremely slow (mentally). The husband was fixing the windmill a few k’s down the road. No idea what he was hoping to pump, as the dirt was as dry as a nun’s .....
There was a dead sheep under the tree near the front gate, which had evidently been there for a few days. Weird.  The sheep was under that tree.

Anyway, he came home and siphoned 5 litres out of his (what looked like) 1954 Isuzu, and I was on my way to Uitenhage – still 70 k’s away. Got there and 690 got some more drink

More to come....

 

[GreenMamba1974]

why is she putting petrol into the boot?

 

[rubiblue]

Very cool, subscribed

 

[Duracell]

Very nice pics.... Subscribed  :happy1:

 

[Thump]

poets without tea
be nice

 

[XXL]

Very nice (unfinished) RR.... :happy1:

 

[EssBee]

Nice one! :biggrin:

 

[Ian in Great Brak River]

Great RR J.

This is the kind of trip that one remembers for the solitude and silence... and that Safrican Buchu... quite nothing else like it anywhere on this planet.

I spent over a year in PE in '87, loved it, used to have a girlfriend who was a dolphin trainer at the PE Oceanarium with folks who lived in Kenton... excellent place to ride out !

How does the 690 and the ST 660 compare...specifically on a trip like this one ?

Tx   8)

 

[chicco]

Nice report James... :thumleft:

Ek het familie op Patensie en elke keer as ek daar is raak ek van vooraf verlief op die deel van SA. Daar is so baie plekke om te ry, nie eers te praat van die kloof nie, het jy miskien die route op jou GPS gemerk?

 

[forex618]

Great RR J.

This is the kind of trip that one remembers for the solitude and silence... and that Safrican Buchu... quite nothing else like it anywhere on this planet.

I spent over a year in PE in '87, loved it, used to have a girlfriend who was a dolphin trainer at the PE Oceanarium with folks who lived in Kenton... excellent place to ride out !

How does the 690 and the ST 660 compare...specifically on a trip like this one ?

Tx   8)

Thanks Ian. Never ridden the 660 before, so cannot comment. (I sound like a politician)

 

[forex618]

Nice report James... :thumleft:

Ek het familie op Patensie en elke keer as ek daar is raak ek van vooraf verlief op die deel van SA. Daar is so baie plekke om te ry, nie eers te praat van die kloof nie, het jy miskien die route op jou GPS gemerk?

Is ie nodig om die GPS te plot nie. Gaan tot die top van die Elands pas, en draai regs.

 

[Gerard]

J-dog you're a poet. As always, cant wait for your next installment on whatever.

 

[Tweetie]

Nice run there J-Dog. Lekker pics.  :thumleft: