Advertisement
We wake up in Dunfeld Estates to another fantastic day. Perfectly blue sky. We have been so lucky with the weather on this trip.
We can now see where we have ended up. The location is idyllic: a circle of cottages around a central pond surrounded by tall trees. The air is filled with the sound of birds.
Buffet breakfast at Dunfeld. Standard fare with an egg station. But there's pap en sous, which makes the whole thing African.
Bakkies brings the van out back and we pile in for our day's adventure. He starts with a tour of Dunfeld estates. It's absolutely huge, and actually comprises three separate adjoining operations, all family-owned, one of them devoted exclusively to equestrian pursuits. One yearly visitor is apparently Bruce Murray, Anne's brother. The roads around Dunfeld are lined with Canadian oak and maple trees, which are dutifully changing colour and dropping their leaves because winter is coming.
Another long drive eastward to our first destination. Fortunately, I am feeling slightly better today. No queasiness, just an annoying cough and some congestion.
Once again Bakkies keeps us entertained with a constant flow of information about the surroundings. For instance,
we pass through an area that was the site of a major battle in the Boer War between the British and the SA farmers. In that battle, a young British soldier named Winston Churchill was captured by the Boers, was sent to Pretoria, and managed to escape and return to England via Mozambique.
Bakkies pulls over to the side of the road to point out the last cannon fired in the Boer War, still pointing in the direction of its last salvo. It is now a memorial.
On the road again, the discussion turns to sport. I mention to Bakkies that we saw part of a rugby match between SA and Canada, but that Canada lost. Apparently, that is old news, as Canada went on to win the international tournament, quite the upset. Bakkies mentions that Canada's women's rugby team is highly regarded as well, probably rated #3 in the world. Unfortunate that this sport has such a low profile back home.
We pass by massive cultivated fields of sunflowers. SA is a major exporter of sunflower oil. Other prominent crops include bananas, oranges and other citrus fruits, potatoes, and wheat. Trees include blue-gum, rubber, baobab, and
thorn trees. There are quite a few conifers, which surprises me a bit. As we travel eastward the terrain becomes more rocky and mountainous, with fewer trees. Massive red cliffs rear up unexpectedly and occasional streams cascade in ribbons off them.
After almost 3 hours, we reach a town called Hazyview. Nearby is Elephants Whisper, a commercial operation with six elephants.
The manager of the facility provides some background information on the operation. All of the elephants are either born in captivity or rescued. The handlers are called "grooms." They rotate among the elephants, unlike the mahoots of SE Asia, who bind to a single elephant for life. The philosophy of Elephants Whisper is to always respect the dignity and individual personalities of the elephants and to not use physical coercion unless unavoidable.
We descend a short path to the viewing area. What an awe-inspiring sight! The six elephants with their grooms astride await us in silence, the elephants softly swinging their trunks, moving their ears and shuffling their feet. The star of the show is Tembo, a massive elephant 3 1/2 metres tall at the shoulder. The manager introduces us to the animals and explains the
Ride on Shawara
Elephant Whispers, Hazyview, SAdifference between Asian and African elephants. One of the elephants (not Tembo) approaches our group and lets us pat, inspect and feed her. It is an amazing experience being this close to such a gentle giant. The elephant then lies down on command, which is quite a show in itself, so that we can get up close and personal by running our hands all over her body. At the same time, the manager provides a steady flow of information, a lot of which is new to me. For instance, did you know that elephants have a gland in their heads near the neck, just behind the ear, that secretes moisture? The composition of the secretion reflects the elephant's physical condition and state of mind.
Our friendly elephant suddenly decides that she's had enough and lumbers to her feet. It impresses me that the manager says, "Ok, that's it" and makes no attempt to prolong the session.
Then Tembo is brought forward. We take turns standing beside this massive animal. Tembo will raise her head and show her tongue on command, which makes for a great photo. Another great elephant factoid: If you measure the circumference of the front
foot (which is slightly larger than the rear foot) and double it, you get the elephant's height at the shoulder.
We then have an opportunity for a short elephant ride. Vi and I have done this previously in SE Asia, but those rides involved sitting in a wooden box strapped to the elephant. For this ride, we get to straddle the elephant's back, which allows us to feel the movement of the animal's muscles and the actual heat from its body. Our elephant is a young female named Shawara. We take a swing along a path that winds down along a stream and back around up the hill on the other side. Our groom uses our cameras to take copious pictures. A great experience.
After the show, in the parking lot, Bakkies offers us some traditional SA snacks: biltong (a thinly sliced, air-dried meat) and droewors (an air-dried sausage).
On the road again, now heading north. We reach a fairly sizeable town named Grascop, which stands at the beginning of the Blyde River Canyon. As we leave the vehicle, we are besieged by locals selling macadamia nuts and various handicrafts. We succumb to the lure of macadamias.
Lisbon Falls
Blyde River Canyon, SA Lunch is at Harrie's Pancakes, which Bakkies says is famous for its signature pancakes. These are more like thick fluffy crepes into which a variety of foods can be rolled. I have mince (ground seasoned beef) with cheddar and mushrooms, and Vi selects babotie (curried meat and fruit) with almonds. Interesting and excellent.
Bakkies claims that the Blyde River Canyon is the third largest canyon in the world, some 60 k long. Our first stop in this area is to Lisbon Falls, where a rushing stream throws itself over a sheer precipice and rushes into the first stretch of the canyon. Quite beautiful.
We continue to follow the Canyon northward. It grows deeper, wider and more impressive with every passing kilometre. We stop next at a place where a second river, the Treur, joins the Canyon. The interaction of the two currents has created what are called the Potholes, a.k.a. Bourke's Luck. There's a huge termite mound just off the parking area, the first we've seen. We walk down a prepared path to teach the location. Two bridges have been built to allow visitors to view the geological phenomenon. The river currents have carved out two or
three large, round holes in the rocks below, through which the water whooshes and churns. It reminds me of a pelvis skeleton with the two hip ball joints. Neat.
We continue north until we reach what is known as the Three Rondavels. These are three rounded mountains in a row that are supposedly reminiscent of the round thatched huts built by the Swazis. The story is that a mighty king gave one to each of his three wives. The last supposedly is shaped like a perfect female breast, given to his youngest and favourite wife.
The Canyon is extremely deep here. We are standing at the edge of an incredible precipice, a sheer drop of 100s of metres to the river far below. The rondavels stand on the opposite side. The sun is just starting to set and the whole countryside is bathed in pink and orange pastel tones. An incredible vista.
It is a long slog back to Dunfeld, heading first south then southeast. We have covered a lot of ground today. My rump and tailbone are quite sore by the time we return. My cough is bad.
Supper at Dunfeld. The Internet is still
Three rondavels
Blyde River Canyon, SA down.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.065s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 12; qc: 28; dbt: 0.0403s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
