Cane Rat
Race Dog
Every 3 months or so, when I have to opportunity to visit civilization, I make a point of making good use of the time, by spending as much time with the two most important things in my life.. My wife and my bike. Fortunately for me, the missus is very keen on biking so there is never any argument about the mode of transport for a breakaway.
The planning normally takes place while I’m here in Angola and then ma has to run around and organize the accommodation and whatever else that needs to be organized for the trip. We try and do a different area every time and this time Limpopo was on the hit-list and more specifically the Haenertsburg/Magoebaskloof area (Also called the “Land of the Silver Mist”). I was last in that area when I was still in primary school.
So we decided to do it over the Easter weekend. Most people thought we were crazy going to that part of the woods at the same time as Zionist meeting at Moria.
We left the Tuesday before the Easter Weekend and ma took the cage with the daughter up to VDBP. She was going to visit grandma while we were taking a break and the cage would stay there.
We left the Thursday morning for Haenertsburg and I opted to take the road over Groblersdal, Marble Hall and Roetan. At the Middleburg tollgate we saw some DS riders. One TA and one AT and also a guy on a GS. All greeted and I wondered if they were dogs. We did not stop to chat, so I will probably never know.
First stop was Groblersdal where a guy came up to us and warned us against taking the road that went straight to Marble Hall.
Apparently there were about 3 sections where they were working on the road and we would spend about 20 – 30 minutes waiting at each. He suggested a detour, which we took.
The road was good and we travelled well.
Somewhere between Marble Hall and Roetan.
We reached Haenertsburg in the afternoon and booked in to the Pennefather.
These cottages resemble the original miner’s cottages that were used during the gold rush in the area. Each one is named after a person that played an important roll in the history of Haenertsburg. They are not cheap, but at least they are neat and comfortable.
Haenerstburg is a small village and I would dare say that there are a lot of people that does not even know about its existence. If you don’t know about it, you would drive by without even knowing it was there. It is however one of those places, much like Clarens where everybody knows everybody and nothing is a secret. The people are extra friendly.
The weird thing about Haenertsburg is the cemetery..........
The people in Haenertsburg love their cemetery. They say it is the friendliest cemetery in the country. The locals often take a bottle of wine and glasses and then go to the cemetery to relax. They also have picnics there quite often.
To be quite honest, I could understand why, after a visit to the place. It is right on top of the mountain and one has the most fantastic views from up there.
It is also neat as a pin with lots of very old graves. Some are so old you can no longer make out the writing on the headstones.
There are “Restaurants” in the village. The Iron Crown Pub & Grill which also caters for biker’s breakfasts and the Red Plate Restaurant. They even do cooking classes..............
The locals recon the owner of the latter is the best chef in the country. I would not really go that far, but it is quite pleasant to sit on the deck and watch the locals go about their business.
More to follow.....................
The planning normally takes place while I’m here in Angola and then ma has to run around and organize the accommodation and whatever else that needs to be organized for the trip. We try and do a different area every time and this time Limpopo was on the hit-list and more specifically the Haenertsburg/Magoebaskloof area (Also called the “Land of the Silver Mist”). I was last in that area when I was still in primary school.
So we decided to do it over the Easter weekend. Most people thought we were crazy going to that part of the woods at the same time as Zionist meeting at Moria.
We left the Tuesday before the Easter Weekend and ma took the cage with the daughter up to VDBP. She was going to visit grandma while we were taking a break and the cage would stay there.
We left the Thursday morning for Haenertsburg and I opted to take the road over Groblersdal, Marble Hall and Roetan. At the Middleburg tollgate we saw some DS riders. One TA and one AT and also a guy on a GS. All greeted and I wondered if they were dogs. We did not stop to chat, so I will probably never know.
First stop was Groblersdal where a guy came up to us and warned us against taking the road that went straight to Marble Hall.
Apparently there were about 3 sections where they were working on the road and we would spend about 20 – 30 minutes waiting at each. He suggested a detour, which we took.
The road was good and we travelled well.
Somewhere between Marble Hall and Roetan.
We reached Haenertsburg in the afternoon and booked in to the Pennefather.
These cottages resemble the original miner’s cottages that were used during the gold rush in the area. Each one is named after a person that played an important roll in the history of Haenertsburg. They are not cheap, but at least they are neat and comfortable.
Haenerstburg is a small village and I would dare say that there are a lot of people that does not even know about its existence. If you don’t know about it, you would drive by without even knowing it was there. It is however one of those places, much like Clarens where everybody knows everybody and nothing is a secret. The people are extra friendly.
The weird thing about Haenertsburg is the cemetery..........
The people in Haenertsburg love their cemetery. They say it is the friendliest cemetery in the country. The locals often take a bottle of wine and glasses and then go to the cemetery to relax. They also have picnics there quite often.
To be quite honest, I could understand why, after a visit to the place. It is right on top of the mountain and one has the most fantastic views from up there.
It is also neat as a pin with lots of very old graves. Some are so old you can no longer make out the writing on the headstones.
There are “Restaurants” in the village. The Iron Crown Pub & Grill which also caters for biker’s breakfasts and the Red Plate Restaurant. They even do cooking classes..............
The locals recon the owner of the latter is the best chef in the country. I would not really go that far, but it is quite pleasant to sit on the deck and watch the locals go about their business.
More to follow.....................
