Trip report: Karoo & Southern Cape Dec & Jan 2014
Posted: 07 Jan 2014 18:44
As per usual at this time of the year, we travelled to the Southern Cape via the Karoo.
Spent a few days in the Karoo to break the trip down a bit and give to kids exposure to farm life (our 6 year-old also got to milk the cow) .
In doing so we tend to take the roads less travelled.
Fewer cars, no trucks and lots of dirt roads. Certianly safer and a lot more fun in a great tourer vehicle.
Once arrived along the coast we took one day of from the beach to drive the Paradise 4x4 dune track near Wilderness (http://www.paradise4x4.za.net/html/4x4_route.html)
This is not a guided tour, but the map and numbering of the trail is easy to follow.
Commentary on this clip, driving up an obstacle called Fugly's, is courtesy of my beautiful and beloved wife (now married to me for 18 years!).
We were on our own on this trail.
Consequently no waiting at obstacles.
The trail took us 30 minutes.
Normally it takes between 90 minutes and 3 hours.
But, I also had a few adults in the car whose understanding of fun does not include adrenalin.
So it had to be done quickly.
Question: With what other proper 4x4 can you have 5 adults and 4 smallish children as passengers in one vehicle, driving a grade 3+ track?
Conclusion:
The trail is no challenge for a petrol powered Patrol.
It is fun though, and much, much better value for money than the Vleesbaai route (now, I believe, at R500 per vehicle!)
On our way back to Gauteng (5 January), the Karoo reached 40 deg Celsius at some points.
There were pockets of rain and thunder though which was a welcome relief.
We reached one such pocket on the N9. What a pleasure. We all got out of the car and soaked in the rain.
Temperature dropped from 40 deg to 15!
5 minutes after being back on the road, temps got up to the high thirties again.
Oh, we also lost a bike due to a strap that broke off.
Lesson learned: One should invest in proper straps for tying up your things.
We searched for about an hour between Stilbaai and Vleesbaai until we eventually found my sons' bike.
We could have missed it quite easily as well. Hidden in the long grass!
Spent a few days in the Karoo to break the trip down a bit and give to kids exposure to farm life (our 6 year-old also got to milk the cow) .
In doing so we tend to take the roads less travelled.
Fewer cars, no trucks and lots of dirt roads. Certianly safer and a lot more fun in a great tourer vehicle.
Once arrived along the coast we took one day of from the beach to drive the Paradise 4x4 dune track near Wilderness (http://www.paradise4x4.za.net/html/4x4_route.html)
This is not a guided tour, but the map and numbering of the trail is easy to follow.
Commentary on this clip, driving up an obstacle called Fugly's, is courtesy of my beautiful and beloved wife (now married to me for 18 years!).
We were on our own on this trail.
Consequently no waiting at obstacles.
The trail took us 30 minutes.
Normally it takes between 90 minutes and 3 hours.
But, I also had a few adults in the car whose understanding of fun does not include adrenalin.
So it had to be done quickly.
Question: With what other proper 4x4 can you have 5 adults and 4 smallish children as passengers in one vehicle, driving a grade 3+ track?
Conclusion:
The trail is no challenge for a petrol powered Patrol.
It is fun though, and much, much better value for money than the Vleesbaai route (now, I believe, at R500 per vehicle!)
On our way back to Gauteng (5 January), the Karoo reached 40 deg Celsius at some points.
There were pockets of rain and thunder though which was a welcome relief.
We reached one such pocket on the N9. What a pleasure. We all got out of the car and soaked in the rain.
Temperature dropped from 40 deg to 15!
5 minutes after being back on the road, temps got up to the high thirties again.
Oh, we also lost a bike due to a strap that broke off.
Lesson learned: One should invest in proper straps for tying up your things.
We searched for about an hour between Stilbaai and Vleesbaai until we eventually found my sons' bike.
We could have missed it quite easily as well. Hidden in the long grass!
- Beautiful Karoo, in the middle of nowhere, near a place called "In de Middel"!
- Karoo1.JPG (220.85 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Karoo2.JPG (295.85 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Karoo3.JPG (348.58 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- LostbikeInTheLong grass.JPG (501.76 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Paradise4x41.JPG (546.16 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Paradise4x43.JPG (506.47 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Paradise4x42.JPG (654.83 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Petrusville, fuel availability is variable. Overall consumption, being fully loaded as per picture and aircon on, was 17l per 100km. 5.9 km per litre.
- Petrusville.JPG (74.23 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
- Single track bridge crossing the Orange river, somewhere between Luckoff and Koffiefontein
- OranjeRivier1.JPG (535.07 KiB) Viewed 4350 times
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