Rain in the Richtersveld and refloating the SAS Wildehond

[geopat]

Hahaha thats awesome, respect to Kyle and the guys at Uitspankraal for ensuring the wildehond still lives

 

[Amsterdam]

Well done for retrieving the pont and crossing the river. There is no way I would go across. But then, we have the option to choose the good times of the year for it.

 

[DustySprocket]

What date was this crossing.

22 August 2023

 

[Merino]

I cannot recall the name of the guy from the lodge. He was so thankful to the bunch of "Rowwe Bikers" who have managed to salvage the pontoon out of the thick bushes that he promptly, on hearing our bikes, walked down to the river and offered us a free round of beers.

We were all suffering from the cold, so no-one took up the initial offer for a round of free beer and gulped down the coffee that a second round of coffee was needed.

Nice spot to get away from it all. They have a number of plastics to do outrides with, some nice, clean stand-alone rooms as well as a good braai / social area.

Die ou se naam is Thai YenYen. Ons het maar omgedraai daar.
Die fietse was te swaar gelaai. En die vrouens se swembroekies te dun.

 

[Oubones]

Dit is nou lekker een, regte ouens om mee saam te ry!
Ek ry lekker saam.
Dankie vir die moeite en ons rusbank ryers se saamvat.

 

[51Mobile]

Our commotion attracted the attention of Kyle’s friend (sorry I too can’t remember his name). He arrived with a mountain of a dog whose name I do remember as being Blunt – because I figured he could inflict some serious Blunt force injuries.

Kyle’s friend ran up, apologising for not having come out when we went past.

I was confused, “we did not come past this side.” he was equally confused, at which point he looked up to see Lohan about to disembark the SAS Wildehond.

He was beside himself; he could not believe that it was still in one piece, fully convinced that it had long since been scattered across the landscape with any floating bits making their way headlong towards the sea in the Olifants river.

“How……?”

“Where …..?”

“Impossible….!”

“thank you, thank you, thank you!”

 

[51Mobile]

I have to admit to breathing a sigh of relief, normally when the world darkens due to a farmers dog, both farmer and dog and not on the friendly side. At least today I would not end up as an appetiser for a monumental Boerbul.

 

[51Mobile]

He invited us back to the lodge for free beer! Whilst we were deeply grateful (for not being fed to the dogs) and the offer of free beer, a chilled Castle was not high on our wish list. His attentive hospitality eye noticed this and changed the order to COFFEE!

Hell yes! Now we are talking.

 

[51Mobile]

Coffee got the team's creative juices spluttering into life.

 

[51Mobile]

We all agreed that the Hermanus Adventure Bikers deserved a huge shout-out for their masterful construction of such an elegant, durable and functional pont in such an inaccessible place.

The SAS Wildehond bears testimony to the ingenuity and sheer bloodymindedness that possess all adventure bikers.

Thank you, Hermanus Adventure Riders!

 

[Grootseun]

Thanks for sharing. A most enjoyable read.

 

[51Mobile]

We reassembled ourselves and gear and rolled into the lodge at Jai Yen Yen.

 

[51Mobile]

The skies were clearing with bursts of sunlight offering intermittent warmth, and a chance to dry out a few pieces of kit.

Copious cups of hot coffee arrived with a large assortment of biscuits – not your OK variety, these were bites of sunshine and warmth, Tuis gebakte Kookies!!! I am not sure which was demolished first, the coffee or the cookies.

Either way, neither lasted long. Both were replenished almost immediately. Heaven!

In between coffee and cookies we stripped off our drenched kit and festooned the area with classy arrangements of motorcycling kit seeking the smallest advantage to get rid of as much moisture as would be possible.

 

[51Mobile]

As our energy levels slowly moved out of deficit, we started to become aware of the magnificent setting in which the lodge was sited. Vast swathes of colour painted on the flats, changing colour as the ground level rose.

 

[51Mobile]

Bust! Refuelling with a mouthful of the most delicious shortbread biscuits this side of the equator.

 

[51Mobile]

It seems that the dystopian artistic theme of Stonehenge upstream was starting to make inroads further downstream. Apparently, this sculpture was made by (one of?) Kyle’s girlfriends.

Most of us were content to save our energy and leave the front to our imaginations.

 

[51Mobile]

Other amongst us were unable to restrain themselves.

I preferred my mental version.

 

[51Mobile]

Not only did Jai Yen Yen have fuel for our bodies, but they also had Fuel for the bikes that desperately needed it.

"BACKOFF!"

”Don’t even think about it”

“this is mine!” Henry satiating his ever thirsty 990.

 

[51Mobile]

One thing we all agreed on was Jai Yen Yen’s philosophy toward motorcycles.

For anyone planning a ride into this area, we can HIGHLY recommend Jai Yen Yen as a stop-over. Great location, terrific facilities, good accommodation and magnificent riding on its doorstep.

The guys are definitely going to see me again - hopefully soon.

 

[51Mobile]

We set off out along the Biedou valley.

Climbing out on Hoek se Berg pass, which offered extraordinary views.

The view of the Biedou valley from Hoek se Berg Pass. These photos do not do justice to the magnificent beauty of this spectacle.

Nature had shaken off the dystopian artistic style of the Tankwa area and was now stretching her artistic abilities and exploring the extremities of her palette.