LESOTHO: SANI - KATSE - 14 - 16 JUNE 2008 (Many pics)

[SwannieBraai]

DAY1: 14 JUNE
Tar road Vbg to Winterton, 330km

Hello all  people!
Last Saturday the 14th,  23 â??wildathearted onesâ? from different places gathered at our home in the  small dorpie Ventersburg to take off for Lesotho. From left to right, Nico v Zyl from Hennenman (1150GS), Piet Ehlers(Schweizer,1200GS), Boet Wessels (Vbg, 1200GS), Piet Labuschagne, (Hoopstad, KTM 950 ADV), Me & Riana (Vbg, 1200GS), Burgert Naude @ the back (Hoopstad, 1200GSA), Caroline & Hannes van Saasen,  front yellow clothes, (Hoopstad,1100GS), Janes Barnard (Hoopstad, KTM 950 ADV), Braam Wilken (Hoopstad, 1100GS), Johan Slabbert besides Braam, (Welkom,1200GS)Herman Wilken with Frane, my daughter front, (Hoopstad, 1200GSA), Jaco Slabbert in red ( Hennenman, 1200GS) and Fritz our son who pillion with Burgert.

Here is Annelien & Lukas Kleynhans (Our 4x4 backup and catering people)  and Martiens Aveling (1200GS), all from Bethlehem.

Andre Lombaard (1200GS) also from Bethlehem . .

Christo van Aswegen from Welkom (African Twin)

And Hendre and Sarita form Jhb ( V-Strom  DL1000).

Job And Wena van Eeden met us in Bethl and rode with us to Winterton

Those are the people, here is some of the rides . . .

We took off from Vbg at around (9H45, heading for our first stop, the Ster Kafee in Behlehem, to meet the Bethl group there and to skep some â??Brandwereâ? for brunch at the Ash river outfall en route to Clarens. Here are some of us munching away on these â?? 4 course meals in a vetkoekâ? ( Vetkoek with mince, bacon, cheese, tomato, onion, banana and much more). A lekker weighty 4 in 1 for a hungry biker! Go get some, the cafe is on the road coming in from Lindleyâ??s side.

The Ash river outfall is where the water from the Katse dam comes out through the tunnel, a real beautiful site to relax for a while.

We then rode via Clarens, Golden Gate,  Sterkfontein, Little Switzerland  to our fuel stop in Winterton. This concludes the tar section for the day, a total of 330km from Vbg, for the guys and gal from Hoopstad about 480 km for the day.

Winterton via Lower Loteni to Khotso Trails, 194km

From  winterton we took a gravel road south via Lower Loteni, a 182 km stretch of gravel varying from rocky bergpas to smooth and nice going dirt. Be carefull of the road after turning from the tar, there are some sharp rocks in the road and one of us got a sidewall puncture, he put in a plug but  had to do the whole trip, stopping every 50 or so km to inflate his tyre, loosing air after putting in 3 or 4 cans of Tyreweld. Later we inspected and saw the rim was also slightly bent and it was loosing air there also.

At one of the turns the sun were shining directly into our dusty visors and Braam had to put down his 1100 as he did was not able to see the turn clearly, he was fine , a bit of ankle bruising, bikeâ??s rearlight came off, otherwise nothing wrong. He mounted and rode off with much enthusiasm and expectation of the trip still to be completed. Go Braam you winner you!

We were stopped by Lukas & Annelien for a much needed cool refreshment about 50km from Underberg on the beautifull bergpas road.

We came into Underberg about 18h00, filling up and heading off for Khotso Horse Trails where we were booked in for the night.
We were welcomed by Steve and Lulu, a wonderful couple with warm hearts and  a warm and comfy backpackers lodge. An inviting fire was burning in the lounge and Steve already prepared a fire outside for us to braai some great wors for the eveningâ??s Boeries prepared by Lukas & Anelien. We all found a place to sleep and for some of my unfortunate friends who dared to share a room with me, a night of thunder and V-twin snoring did not want to pass soon enough for them. I was also awake a few times, wondering and visualising the next dayâ??s trip up the Sani. In Jan 2007 my son, myself and a dear friend with his two sons went down the Sani with 2 GSâ??s and yes believe it or not a XJ900. That previous night I also had scary dreams of this curly snake lying waiting to be  conquered downhill. We did it very much as rookies at that time but we succeeded without trouble, the road also was much better then.

Eventually the snoring ceased, we all got up at 5h00, loaded and packed oor scoots and the had a hearty breakfast at 6h30 prepared by the man, Steve and his wife Lulu with the ever present help of Renier, a helpful and kindhearted adventurer.

 

[LeonDude]

That's a serious big group to take, good going so far. Can hardly wait for the rest.

 

[Brink]

Nice report and good memories of the FS

 

[Zeff Cowboy]

Baie nice thanks vir die post

 

[SwannieBraai]

DAY 2 : 15 JUNE
Khotso Lodge to Katse dam, 258km.

This is our ninjas, Hendre & Sarita being prepared for the cold that we all expected.

We were greeted by our hosts at the gate as we left this lovely lodge to be on our way for day 2 of our trip up the Sani onto Katse. Khotso is 11km out of Underberg on the Garden Castle road, call them at 033 701 1502.

Looks cold but really were not what we expected.

The road to the grenspos is a bit of everything, a good starter of what is still to come.

About halfway up towards the pass, taking a much needed break and waiting for some 4x4â??s to pass. No, its not Lemon Twist but Unleaded in my spare â??fuel cansâ?.

It was a heavy struggle for some of us who were fully loaded and had pillions to get up the pass through the rocks and past the 4x4â??s coming from all directions.

In some places my GSâ??s nose lifted up as I went over the rocks and things due to the  heavy load. I was very mad at myself for not asking the guy with the Landrover passing us to carry my luggage to the top.

Me not being a expert yet at riding these kinda rocky passes with full load and pillion, learned a lot and will urgently suggest that if possible to go up there as light as possible. Janes & Piet with their KTMâ??s together with Boet, Jaco, Andre, Braam, Johan and the other loneriders traversed the pass with much more ease and speed. IMHO the thing is to travel light and to net let the  bike  stall, keep your momentum uphill, even if it means to ride over some of the rocks lying around, keep in mind to not hurt yourself or your ride and rather wait for the 4x4â??s to pass, some of those are even more scared than the bikers as they keep close to the mountainside and you have to pass sometimes inches from the edge of the afgrond.

Wat, daar op? Riana asking this demoralizing question at this time of the war!

We were told of the â??black iceâ? beforehand but were really much blessed with not only warm and wonderfull weather but the snow up the pass and on all the other roads have melted away and only traces of black ice could still be seen in the shadow side of the mountains.

Of all the 17 bikes going up Sani, none of us fell or had any trouble although at some times I could see ourself taking a plunge among the rocks. Afterwards rethinking the whole trip up Sani, I came to the conclusion that it was only by the grace and help of our Dad that we did not came short and not because of my or our exceptional riding skills.

We had some Gluwein and coffee at the Pub and were ready for our next stretch of road up to the St. James turnoff.

The morning we decided that to keep 17 bikes together at all times was a difficult thing to do, so we made groups of 5 or so bikes, each with a leader with a GPS. The Katooms and GS manne opened up and the older and rustiger  ballies and their pillions followed on own time towards Mokhotlong.

What an awesome route, riding  between snow filled passes, the next moment your in a dry and desolate rocky desert.

In 2007 when we came  up this way, we encountered rain and with only dual purpose tyres on we had some lekke slip and slides.

This time like a real experienced dirt rider I put on my TKC80â??s and rode with much confidence and ease. By the way there were about 4 or 5 bikes that had DS tyres on and they conquered Sani without any trouble, If however it would have rained or snowed it most probably would not have been a wise idea.

The faster group were waiting at the St.James school turnoff,having and sharing oranges and sweets with the local children before we took the even more scenic route towards Thaba Tseka.

Burgert and Fritz had the task of riding behind and seeing that everyone is fine and on the right track, stopping may times to pump tyres, jump here and there and being our â??rear watchersâ? all the  time, baie  dankie ou Burgert, julle Kokers!

Our only other encounter with mother earth was when Burgertâ??s heavy laden Adv slipped a gear going into neutral, revving up as a result and then suddenly engaging the gear again, having them pulling an  non- anticipated wheelie while on a narrow road up Menaoneng pass. Burgert kept cool and had to put the Adv down to avoid going off the mountain, him and Fritz biting the dust, only a pannier slightly dented.

They were up and going in no time, headed for the God created serene nature down into the most breathtaking valleys you can ever imagine. At times like this , looking around and seeing the absolute glory of our magnificent God and Father, it is hard to believe that He does not love His children, creating all of this for His kids to enjoy! Thanks Daddy!

Now who of you WDâ??s have seen this one, hey? We have some seriaas supporters in the Mountain Kingdom!

Coming down the winding road we came to the Senqu river, finding some of our friends settling down and  having a much needed lunch, consisting of biltong, droewors, cookies, coffee and  other lekke blikkieskos,spaghetti never tasted so good as their in the tranquil setting of the banks of the now calm and  still Senqu river, only a little quite flowing of  the streams .

We reached Thaba Tseka at around 3h30, finding gas ( no unleaded) at a price that seems cheaper than SA. We all had a fill, at that stage our cycles gave about 20km/l. The â??recce groupâ? were way in front allready waiting at Katse for us to arrive.

We booked the dormatory for the 23 of us, the most softest and snuggiest beds, white linen, white feather â??donskombersâ?, soapies, towels etc. After a long days ride we really felt spoiled and blessed heavy.

Lukas & Anelien with the help of Martiens braaied the most lovely sosaties for us ( will have pics later, I think  we were all too tired to remeber the camera) and we ate like kings, all off early for the beds to retire to a much needed sleep after a wonderful day of awesome riding, breathtaking nature and a sweet sense of uttermost fullfillment, especially also for conquering Sani without incidents. What an awesome opportunity we as bikers have to see this awesome continent from the back of a roaring steed, we are so privileged, blessed and favoured, wow, life rocks man! Thanks Father, we appreciate it so much!

to continue . . .

 

[BMWPE]

Great pics
and report
keep it coming
Thanks

 

[milkybar]

Hats o to the gals that had the guts to pillion out Sani - Great stuf!! You must trust your blokes to the extreme!
More pics?

 

[SwannieBraai]

Thx Milkybar, ja they are real ysters our wifes, will tell them so, they will appreciate it much, will do the last day this evening.
Have a great 1!

 

[iep_kruger]

wow,,,,what a great group of people,,,,

well done to you all for going and sticking it out,,,,,u really can feel proud about yourselves

how did the AT do????

 

[SwannieBraai]

Malles, die AT het  uitstekend gedoen, Christo ry hom soos die beste PRO nie kan doen nie, ek dink hy was amper die swaarste gelaai ook van die klomp, awesome fiets!

 

[SwannieBraai]

DAY 3 : Katse to Ficksburg and Home (Final leg)

Distance 285km to Vbg

We all slept late and I could only hear the excited voices from around 6H00. Perhaps some of their excitement was because I was not there to snore them out of the rooms, we slept 2 in a room, not 6 or 8. Before the sun came over the mountains, the Temp meter showed    â?? 4,9 ºC, we were soon all outside, packing, pumping tyres and gettin everything ready for our final leg towards home.

Lukas & helpers were making a lovely brekkie inside, the smell of bacon, egges, smokes sausages soon draw us all to the kitchen area where we sat and had great laughs and sharing the past 2 days wonderful experiences  we learned in this beautiful country.

After brekkie we were ready to go to the info centre for a tour of the dam wall starting at 9h00. Th huhe and awesome masses of water was still and reflecting the upcoming sun as we headed towards the damwall.

The tourguide really knows her story and it was really educating to learn all the facts surrounding the Katse dam, the planning and building and all the other info. South Africa is still paying R25m p/m to Lesotho for the use of the water, so sorry we ourselves had not thought of the idea earlier, we could have had a nice little pension there! Nevertheless all the engineering that went into the wall is amazing!

We took a tour after the briefing of the inside of the damwall where we were not permitted to take pictures, it  was truely stunning. Afterwards we went around to the top of the wall for a magnificent view of the wall and waters.

We left at around 11h00 and as soon as we hit the tar, the twisty corners were calling to us. After 2 days of dirtriding, the lovely twisties was a climax of another kind, mingled with the spectacular views around each turn, the combination was dinamyte! It was great to scrape the pegs here and there and running in harmony with the road and each other. The TKCâ??s were gripping the tar somewhat better than the Tourances i had on, or so it felt. Funny the notion of the bike to fall quicker into a turn with the knobbies than with DS tyres, am I correct in stating this phenomenon?

Look at the reflections in the still waters as we went over the bridge across the Katse dam.

We were chasing each other around the lovely twisties and enjoying the trip immensely. What a lovely ride it is on this awesome road towards Ficksburg.

We were so privilged to still find snow next to the roads, luckily all the " black ice " were allready gone when we got here.

We turned off at the â??rock restaurantâ? or info centre to enjoy the snow, have a cooldrink and a look around. Only after we entered, had a look around, bought something did we find out that you actally have to pay R10 to enter, pity they did not put it on a sign outside before you enter. Nevertheless a spectacular view from above there.

The climax for me personally was once you get on top of the Mphosong pass, (S 29 03 36, E 28 24 02) then take a sharp turn left and look down into the valley below, one of the most beautiful views the whole weekend! Wish I had a helmet cam then, all the stopping and taking pics were slowing down the pack and we all wanted to go home now!

We got to Ficksburg around 13h00, had a fill and a pie, greeted the Bethl group and all headed off for their homes and loved ones.

We were a bit tired but the sense of fullfillment and achievement were settled seep in our spirits as we enjoyed the last stretch on our awesome rides. We were so immensely blessed and favored beyond understanding.

If I reflect back on the weekend and visualize all the great moments with awesome people among some of the most glorious nature and surroundings to be found in this world, for me and I suppose for the greater part of all bikers around the world, this is  what makes you come back or go out and look for more of this Godly places still out there, just waiting to  be found and enjoyed by Godâ??s â??wildatheartâ? kids riding and enjoying their motorized stallions!

[size=10pt]"Father, so very much thank you for the wonderful â??playgroundâ? you speaked into existence with a â??great bangâ? and  for great minds You gave to Your children to build the beautifull powertoys we can so much enjoy in this playpen called nature! Thank You for the wonderfull gift of life,we so many times ignore and take for granted.  Father God, may all your â??Wilddogâ? sons & daughters experience Your love and blessings everytime they start their engines and head off for this great place Lesotho and every other place they dare to tread upon in this world! You are the best Daddy ever and allways!! We appreciate you!
Jesus Christ, you rock!!
We love you !!"[/size]

 

[ballies]

Lekka report 

 

[Jacoslab]

Hey, hier is nog n foto wat kort...

He he... leke oom Willie...

 

[Raggety]

Willem, thanx vir die nice RR.

Man , ek's spyt ek kon dit nie bybring nie.

Eeendag, ja , eendag.

 

[JourneyMan]

Lekker report!