Saturday 4th November 2017
Hermanus to Franschhoek

From Kleinmond we followed the rocky coastline through small villages. It was a scenic route with a good twisting road along the coast with huge rocky mountains on the other side. Being the weekend lots of cyclists  and motorbikes were also on the road (and the usual baboons).

Leading up to the gravel section we passed large acres of apple trees and apple processing plants, also wineries, pine forests and gum trees. The gravel section was about 20kms over the Van Der Stel Pass, passing farm houses and derelict buildings. As this was a pretty fast section there were four code boards which cars had to slow down or stop to note down the letters & numbers. 

On the way to Franschhoek we crossed over the Threewaterskloof Dam. No wonder the towns have water restrictions, the dam water level was extremely low.

At Franschhoek the town was buzzing with cars, people, shops & markets so it was difficult to find parking. We had a quick look around and went on to the Motor Museum.

The museum consists of four large barns in beautiful gardens with the stony mountain as backdrop.

Amongst the collection there are some interesting and valuable cars, a D-type Jaguar, a Ferrari once owned by Nick Fleetwood (of Fleetwoodmac), some early Aston Martins and Formula 1s.

Our hotel, a collection of small buildings, set in lovely gardens was about 16kms out of town.

Not long after our arrival we received a call to say that Peter & Jenny Dimaio, local Morgan members had come to see us in their 2017 Roadster. Peter had organised the rally we are going on with the Cape Town Morgan Club but has had surgery so cannot go. We were very pleased to meet them and chat over drinks.

During the last few days the ever growing hire car contingent decided to have a scavenger hunt competition, using the first letter of each of Endurance Rally Association VIP Hertz Rental Club. Jim and Skippy were the judges. Four cars competed in the final, laying out their goods to be judged. The items had to have something to do with Africa or with rallying. The winner will be announced tomorrow evening.

Friday 3rd November 2017
Plettenberg Bay to Hermanus and Kleinmond

Breakfast on the terrace overlooking the ocean and some spotted whales passing by.

Passed the roundabout with the dolphin statue and on to Knysna. Along the way and going in the opposite direction was a bright orange Anglia. We certainly didn't expect to see an Anglia in South Africa. Pity it wasn't Harry Potter blue and white.

                                                       Knysna

Around Oudtshoorn there were hops and vines growing. This is also ostrich country so there were paddocks with hundreds of ostriches. Some came close to the fences and stared back with their long necks sticking up over the top rail.

Heading into the township of Outshoorn and the coffee stop at Smitswinkel Farm we were pulled over by a policewoman manning a speed camera. Janet & Ed were in front of us and stopped thinking the policewoman was hailing them. We were exceeding the speed limit and were let off with a caution. Marco & Claudia were similarly treated.

                                       

At the Passage Control we were informed that the 43km gravel section via Lategansvlei was cancelled due to the condition of the road.

Via Calitzdorp on the R62 which was a scenic route with lots of viewpoints looking out over the Little Karoo we reached the lunch stop at Ladismith at a restaurant in an olive grove. You'd think they were expecting an army so much food was laid out.

Between Ladismith and Barrydale there was a road sign to VanWykdorp (Van Wyk Town) so Chris & Marlene must be expanding their Morgan dealership to their own town.

Over the Tradouws Pass of 351mts  we got onto the N2 to Caledon. As far as the eye could see it was a scenic picture of yellow fields, wheat growing, newly mown hay, and huge wheat silos. We passed the pretty town of Hermanus and turned onto the R44 to Kleinmond, on the Whale Coast Route.

Our hotel overlooked a lagoon and golf course.

Mike & Lorna caught up in a hire car. Near Cradock their Volvo had broken the front suspension for the second time. 

Thursday 2nd November 2017
Cradock to Plettenberg Bay

The first test was about eleven kms out of town on gravel roads, over the Swaershoek Pass. Scrubby country with isolated farm houses, lots of windmills and narrow bridges.
We then got onto the R61 and tarmac to Somerset East and Cookhouse. This area is called the Golden Valley with vast stretches of wheat and paddocks with recently harvested hay and large wheat silos.
Through the Olifantskop Pass to the N2 to the very familiar Port Elizabeth (quite a few ships anchored out of the harbour) and the Sunshine Coast.

Reaching Jeffreys Bay we had the choice of a two hour route direct to the hotel or the more challenging route on the Prince Alfred Pass, a narrow twisting gravel road which would take over three hours.

Via more roadworks around Kareedouw and many apple orchards (the trees seem to be espaliered to a certain height and then left to grow upwards allowing space for more trees), we reached the gravel road turn-off on the R339 to Avontuur and 53 kms of gravel road. This was a spectacular narrow road through several gorges on gravel that was orange coloured. Thankfully there wasn't much traffic as the drop on the passenger's side was steep with no barrier.

After this very scenic and enjoyable drive we reached the roundabout with the whale tail statue and our hotel at Plettenberg Bay.

Not long after our arrival, Peter, a local Morgan owner came to say hello as he lives in the area and is going on the Morgan rally in a week or so. He has retired to the area and says there are about 11 Morgans around these parts.

Our accommodation here was actually a villa overlooking the ocean with two bedrooms with ensuites, dining room, lounge kitchen and swimming pool. We shared the villa with fellow Australians Jillian and Gunther. Unfortunately it was only for one night!

We heard that De Sousa's clutch in their Volvo was unable to be repaired and they are now in a hire car, hoping to catch the rally tonight. This hire car club is expanding.

Wednesday 1st November
Umngazi to Cradock

Our bungalow hotel on the river was eleven kms off the main road so on the way out there were cows wandering all over the road. Interestingly from our hotel room we could see cows wandering along the stretch of sand between the river and the sea. Cabbages (we've seen so many of them) and silver beet were being sold at stalls on the roadside.

Heading towards Mthatha on twisting roads through the rolling hills there were yet more roadworks. It is astounding the amount of roadworks seen in South Africa. Although most of the R61 had 100kph speed limit, we averaged 49kph on this stretch. Toyota Commuter vans holding about 12-14 people stop and start along the roads. Some are loaded to the gills with people, shopping and goods.

Ngcobo was a hive of activity with people & cars everywhere. Stopping to refuel there was a queue of about 30 people lined up outside the fuel store. We asked what they were queuing for and the attendant gave us a brochure of the daily specials, soft drink and lollies. This town apparently has a high crime rate. Stopped in Queenstown for a break and then headed on the R61 to Tarkastad and eventually Cradock, our stop for the night.

                                             Doctor Delle on duty as a Marshall

Cradock is known for its perfectly preserved street of Victorian and 1840's houses. The Victoria Manor hotel owns many of the houses and we were given the Frontier house, an 1840's house with a telephone booth on the verandah.

At dinner a group of four local ladies sang, all with strong voices, traditional songs and songs of welcome. The man who introduced them said they practised witchcraft but were also Christians! They took up a collection afterwards.

Tuesday 31st October 2017
Umhlanga to Umngazi

Breakfast was on the hotel terrace overlooking the ocean with southern right whales passing by on their way south. We got on to the N2 and skirted Durban which is a very spread out city. Traffic police and speed cameras were about as we headed south to Port Shepstone.

Sugar cane is growing all around and trucks carrying it are not covered so there are pieces of sugar cane all along the sides of the road.

We cannot understand the tollway tag in our hire car. Sometimes it bips and we don't pay, other times a toll fee is payable. In any event the tolls are very cheap compared to Japan.

The first test of the day is at the Dezzi Raceway. Once around the track with three witches hats (which actually turned out to be 40 gallon drums) on the final straight. It was amusing to watch from the sidelines the number of cars being driven straight past the drums, or entering from the wrong side.

The raceway is close to the coast so we drove through many areas with holiday or retirement homes, Shelly Beach, Margate & Port Edward.Back on to the R61 there were lots of roads under construction and the inevitable delays. We passed many villages with flat roofed houses and painted in bright colours. Women by the roadside selling bits & pieces had smeared their faces with yellow powder as sun protection. Not sure what they used but it looked like the fever tree powder.

Still on the R61 we passed through rolling hills and the villages of Bizana, Flagstaff and Lusikisiki. More rondavels around here with washing hung out to dry. The most popular colours for houses appear to be peach, turquoise or yellow. The roads have numerous speed humps which certainly slow down traffic but is mighty uncomfortable for those in the car. Cows and goats wander at will so it was not surprising to see that we averaged only 67kph this afternoon.

Our hotel for the night was on the Umngazi River.

Everyone had to dress for a Halloween dinner tonight. As a witch with a long horrible nose and bat hat I won second prize.

Monday 30th October 2017
Umhlanga Rest Day

It was nice to have a sleep-in this morning and a leisurely breakfast.

The hotel has a resident cat named Skabenga (which means hooligan or vagabond in Zulu). He was a stray who has certainly made himself at home on the lounge cushions and has his own bed in the gift shop. He wears a diamente collar. He is very fat and is currently grumpy because he has been put on a diet.

Our first priority was to get the car washed as there was red sticky mud all over it from the drive into Phinda.

On arrival at the hotel last night there were halloween decorations (including cakes and biscuits) everywhere so it seems it is celebrated here and many children were dressed in scary outfits. The concierge told us that there was a Party shop not far away so we checked that out as it was close to the car wash.

A good steak at Turn N Tender for dinner.

Sunday 29th October 2017
Phinda Game Reserve to Umhlanga

We are marshalling again this morning, seeing all the cars off at the Main Time Control.

But first it was an early morning game drive and what a finale it was. We started off looking for the cheetah and her cubs which some trucks had seen yesterday afternoon. No luck finding them.

The highlight was coming across a lioness suckling a two month old cub. Apparently there were a few more cubs but they couldn't be seen amongst the bushes. Another lioness was resting nearby. The ears on mother and cub were twitching. Mother turned her head and in the blink of an eye she was off after a warthog. The warthog squealed, the birds twittered and the lion had the warthog in her mouth. The guides hadn't seen a lion kill since March so we were quickly off to get a better view.

                                             Lioness resting with her cub

                                             The two month old cub

                                                                Catching the warthog

Our presence didn't disturb the lioness as she dragged the warthog to a more secure spot near some dead tree branches and chomped into it with blood all over her face. The other lioness came closer but was warned off by the deep growl of the killer. The cubs stayed where they were, apparently too young to eat meat yet.

Packing up this morning I noticed an unusual cream coloured frog sitting on our balcony railing. At first we thought it was plastic but I was sure it wasn't there yesterday or maybe someone was playing tricks. It moved slightly when touched so it was real!

After breakfast we made our way to the N2 exit and took up our position as marshalls.

After all the cars had been stamped and timed off we followed. Heading for Hluhluwe we passed acres of pineapples growing. These are much smaller than the ones grown in Australia and are yellower. Stalls along the side of the side were selling them, despite road signs indicating "no roadside stalls"!

On the way to Mtunzini we passed hundreds of acres of pollarded gum trees, and also timber yards selling the finished product.

We had lunch at the Mtunzini Country Club and met up with Richard (Inca Rally) who lives nearby and is an ex-President of the Club. 

After a few kms on the N2 we exited onto the R66 and drove through lush green paddocks growing sugar cane which was thriving in the rich black soil. A few toll roads later we reached Umhlanga on the Indian Ocean where we are staying for two nights.

The Oyster Box Hotel (Tollman family ownership) was built in the 1950's and the decor is Hollywood style. Our room is painted candy pink with white furniture. The balcony looks over the ocean with the old lighthouse nearby. Many container ships are still anchored offshore (as many as 25 in one count).

Not long after we arrived we heard that Stephen & Samantha in the Datsun 240Z had had an accident. They were turning right when a local car overtook them and slammed into the driver's side. They were not seriously hurt but the car was badly damaged but still driveable. The driver of the other car was driving barefoot, had unrestrained children in the car and had apparently been drinking. The police were at the scene.

Saturday 28th October 2017
Phinda Game Reserve

Another two game drives today. The reserve is about 27,000 hectares, including 3,000 recently bought. Apparently the Getty family have a large shareholding in the reserve and there is a private jet airstrip. The reserve has been operating since 1991 and Phinda means "return", ie returning the farmland to its natural bush.
There are a large number of Fever trees in the reserve. The Zulus called them "trees that glow in the distance" because of the yellowy powder that covers their trunks. The early settlers called them "Fever" because they were suffering from malaria and believed it was the trees that were causing their fevers.

                                                          Lionesses resting

On the afternoon drive back in the dark we saw a Pennant winged Nightjar. The guide was terribly excited and later told us there hadn't been a sighting of this bird in the reserve for 17 years.

Dinner was in the BOMA (British Officers' Mess Area).

Friday 27th October 2017
Cathedral Peak to Phinda Game Reserve

Up at 5am for an early breakfast then on the road for 207 kms to get to Rorke's Drift where we are manning the Passage Control. Up in the mountains it was foggy and drizzling rain when we left. By 6.30am school children were walking along the roads to school.

We didn't take too much notice of the fuel in the tank, thinking that if Rorke's Drift had a Museum, it would have fuel and we were anxious to take up our official position!
As we were early we had a quick look around the small Museum commemorating this battle and surprised to see eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded.

Our Control was in the coffee shop which was nice & warm. Soon the cars started coming in and we recorded their arrival and stamped their time cards with an official elephant stamp.

It was obvious by now that there was no fuel in this village and the GPS indicated that the nearest was 21 kms away. We had 26 kms left in the tank! Placing our trust in the GPS she took us through rutted tracks in paddocks and over gullies and we began to wonder whether we should we turn back & hope that the sweep car was still at Rorke's Drift, or keep going. We decided to keep going.

Whilst we should have been heading east we had to go west for the nearest fuel at Nqutu. It was pretty tense as if we ran out of fuel here, nobody would know where we were and it was fairly isolated. We got to the main road, the R68, and arrived at the petrol station with 6 kms in the tank.

We eventually caught up with other rally cars and came to the busy town of Nongoma. It was market day and there were people, stalls, cars and trucks everywhere. It probably took us 30 minutes to get through the congested main route through town.

                                                 Nongoma

                                               Men's Hair Stylist

                                                   Roasted corn for sale

About 30 kms out of town we turned onto Route 22 and had 42 kms of red dirt and gravel roads. It was raining and cars were covered in the red sticky mud.

We arrived at the Phinda Game Reserve and were allotted different lodges as none were big enough for our group. We were in Mountain Lodge which was luxurious. Same rules applied to walking about after sunset.
Not long after we arrived we had a 3 hour game drive.

                                                       Mr M, our tracker