MEMEL , WAKKERSTROOM - PATHFINDERS 18 -21 MARCH

[DOCTOR KLR]

Pathfinders once again headed off to the beautiful Memel and Wakkerstroom area in March for a weekend of excellent riding,  socializing and general camaraderie. Eleven brave and eager adventurers, all on KLR/KLX's and one unfortunate GS1150 took to the hills on Friday 18th returning on Monday 21st. Forum members who took part were Doc KLR, Orange KLR and Cyclops.

First stop on Saturday near Ingogo

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

After some spectacular mountainous dirt road passes we came across the spectacular Zaaihoek dam near Wakkerstroom. The views here were quite awesome which gave a good excuse for us to all stretch our legs and have a couple of smokes whilst admiring the view.

After the dam we headed towards wakkerstoom and the Ou Stasie for the mid morning refreshment stop and the traditional Jagermeister dop and bottle signing. this quaint pub is lined with literally thousands of miniture Jagermeister bottles all signed by explorers before us.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

Some pictures of the Ou Stasie, where we also added our names to the ceiling. This pub is very similar to Beestekraal north of Brits in North west province.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

After a prolonged stop  at the Ou Stasie as certain members of the group insisted that 3 brandy and cokes was just not enough, we then also had to stop at the Wakkerstroom hotel for yet some more. This was an interesting exercise as we were able to sit and watch all of the people who had come up from all around the country in their cages to take part in the Wakkerstroom art festival. The ingestion of said brandies made this a much more interesting past time.

As we did not want to offend any of these people we suited up and headed off to the ZAR tunnel at Laings Nek which was constructed by the British in 1891 during the Anglo Boer war to transport ammunition from Natal into the Transvaal. Our stop here was well worth while as it entailed a bit of technical riding down a very overgrown single track in order to find the entrance to this engineering masterpiece. Water continually seeps down  through the roof of the tunnel creating a very muddy and slippery surface on which to ride. This mud, and especially that waiting at the other end of this 640m long tunnel was bound to catch the unwary. as usual the Kawasaki's handled this little challenge with ease but unfortunately a machine of German uber alles heritage assumed its preferred position.

Here Doctor KLR points to this preferred position.

 

[Totos]

Great pictures Doc.......

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

After righting the said fallen german machine, we posed for a few more pictures before heading off Amajuba mountain where the boer forces bliksemed the  unsuspecting British forces.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

To all die hard Kawasaki fans, please note the Kawasaki green colouring inside the tunnel...... class!!!

After Amajuba it was time to head off back to our base for a few well deserved drinks and a braai.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

Sunday saw us head out for a secret waterfall nestled away on some private farm land. This we got to after many wonderful kilometres of dirt road riding and of course the ubiquitous refreshment stops. The last photo in this batch shows the approach to this wonderful place.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

The track down to this waterfall was not for the faint hearted but we all made it unscathed (albeit some of the less daring walked). Some of those who chose to ride fell off on the way back up', which made for some interesting extraction.What also made this part of the trip so great was that one of the guys who couldn't take part riding, due to a previous injury, took his bakkie down loaded with beer and burgers for the starving thirsty riders.

Pictures of this 30 m high waterfall and a naked Doctor enjoying the very cold water follow.

 

[DOCTOR KLR]

To conclude, special thanks must go to Robin (Buzz Caretaker), Kerry and Sandy the Stig for the great food and hospitality provided and to Cyclops for the photos and writing of this report. Thanks also must go to Orange KLR for his diligent sweeping, photo's and exceptional navigational skills.

To Cracker, thanks for providing the GPS tracks prior to this awesome trip.

 

[Laban]

Windgat Dok, windgat........... het geniet!! :thumleft:

 

[LOTTA]

Thanks for sharing. Very nice.

 

[sef156]

Great stuff Doc, next year I'm in!  :thumleft:

 

[Shaun]

Really Gr8 RR DR."K" :ricky: Thanks a lot for sharing your experience. :thumleft:

 

[Slaaiblaar]

Lekker!

 

[Harry the Buffalo]

:thumleft: :thumleft:

 

[mikedabike]

Nice one  :thumleft:  :thumleft:  :thumleft:

 

[Cyclops]

A big thanks to Doc KLR and the rest of the Pathfinders crew for a really well organised and enjoyable weekend. The quality of the accomodation and the food provided was exceptional and new friends were made.
We had lots of fun and rode some truly wonderful roads in what must be one of our fine country's most scenic areas.

 

[flipper]

How about posting the route please ?

 

[kevin]

Always enjoy the Wakkerstroom area for great rides - looks like you guys saw it all