The Wilderness

Wild Dog & Rustig

The weekend that was, felt rejuvenated, I had no energy for adulting and life-ing—a much-needed appointment with nature. Technology detox and lots of laughter were exactly what I needed.  A few weeks prior, Pumza told me about the back-to-back hiking she and her group want to do in Haarties. I said she must count me in, it sounded like it was very far, so I committed. That’s just me, when my friends and family invite me to anything fun, I agree instantly. For some reason, the dates always sound far when I agree, and then I get a reminder from nowhere. LOL. The same thing happened here, I committed to this back-to-back hiking thinking oh well, it is still far. Next thing I know I get a reminder message on Wednesday from Pumza with excitement that Saturday is the day. Yoh! Did I get a shock, I was in all the way, excited about spending the weekend away from the city buzz. Off we went early Saturday morning for our first 8.5 km hike at the Cheetah Lodge (Wild Dog). The energy was great, and we were geared for back-to-back hikes. I was excited cause I had never been to this trail before, that’s one of my favorite parts about hiking, new spots.

It was scorching in the North West. This trail did not have shade at all, I would not recommend doing it during spring or summer, it is best to do it in winter.  It is not an easy trail; it has rocks and loose stones throughout, making it tough to maneuver.  I think it is moderate to difficult. I broke a sweat which is something that never happens to me. I’m glad we were ready for it; we had enough water and snacks. The property was breathtaking, with amazing views surrounded by mountains. All we could hear were birds chipping. On challenging hikes like this one, I always reflect on how I can endure and yet finish strong. It reminds me of my resilience and can-do attitude that I have.

At some point we found this lovey rock that had shade and big enough to accommodate all of us. We sat under the shade and wished we could drag it with us, yes people it was that hot.  The last two kilometers were tough, it was all downhill from there, it felt like we were in a desert. We finished our 8.5km hike and at the finish line by the property, there was a lovely, manicured garden with the biggest trees that gave us the best shade. Shoes were off, some laid down, some stretched, and the snacks were out. We had so much fun under those trees, that we didn’t want to leave the spot.  Hunger spoke, and we decided to find a nice restaurant before we could go to our accommodation. There was a board that read” if you’re lucky you might spot the Cheetahs”. We decided to use the exit towards the Cheetahs. We spotted the Cheetahs and OMG!  It was a treat; it was my favorite moment of the day, but you could tell how they looked at us; all they could see was lunch.🤣.

Our accommodation was at another location, our next-day hike location.  Lunch was amazing, we had Portuguese food, and the aircon felt like heaven. After being in the sun for 4 hours, trust me aircon is a jackpot.

Anyway, after lunch we now had to think of dinner and snacks. Others went to check in, and myself, Pumza, and Jen went to a supermarket to shop for our home. LOL. Shopping was so funny; Jen was very full, and she could not fathom that we would still eat later. I get where she was coming from, I am like that when I am too full as well, I just cannot see beyond my full tummy. We kept on convincing her that we need to shop for later, it was the funniest thing. She ended up giving in and pushing trolly and letting us choose whatever we thought we would need. Off we went to our accommodation, by the time we got there it was early evening, we freshened up and chilled. There was no reception nor Wi-Fi at the property, I was so happy, detoxification mode from technology was activated. I loved every minute of it, we prepared a light dinner and morning breakfast that we were going to eat on top of the mountain the next day. We went to bed to rest for our next 9km hike. Peter was the only one doing 15km, I called him a show off, 15km is nothing to him, he runs comrades’ marathon, so, go figure. It’s all love Ntate Peter. 😊

The second day began at Rustig, we began early as we slept within the property, we didn’t have to wait for opening time. We started preparing and we were out by 6:30. As we were leaving to start our hike, we walked past a few monkeys hanging around the property. They had naughty faces written all over them.  We began our hike on the Rustig trail and off we disappeared into the wilderness. This trail had lots of shade, so it was a relief as it was still hot.  Rustig is an Afrikaans word which means restful. There was nothing Rustig about this trail, it was difficult. The trail just goes up and up and through that you must use ladders that are on the edge of the mountains. It tests your concentration cause one mistake you might find yourself rolling back to where you began. I was impressed with my level of fitness. I did not hike a lot this year, so I thought I was going to struggle hiking back-to-back.

I must admit after hiking 9km I wished I hiked 15km because 9km trail has a stretch that is so painful to hike, it’s painful on your knees and toes. It is infested with loose rocks. I think it is a 1km stretch, but it felt like ten. When you hike 15km you avoid that devil. 😢We separated by 6km point, and off Peter disappeared on his 15km trail. Some were left behind and others managed to pass through the devil faster than some of us, so the last 3km we separated. I was happy when I saw the sign with 1km to go. It took us 4 hours to finish 9km, we normally do 10km within three and half hours. This goes to show the level of difficulty of this trail.

By the time we got to the property the ones who were in front of us were already chilling and having drinks waiting for us. When we stepped on to the porch, they told us to stop right there, we were wondering what could be wrong. Remember I told you when we left for our hike, we saw monkeys chilling next to our house! We were told to step into the house and see the mess. These menaces ransacked our house, we left the windows open. I’m sure when we left in the morning, they were laughing at us thinking, there goes our victims. They had a party I tell you, opened packets of chips, sugar sachets, they opened everything and pooped everywhere. We were not impressed at all, especially me. Listen I understand that we were in the woods, but I still don’t do that much level of nature. There is nature and then there is NATURE, I don’t do the latter. LOL. It was quite gross, I didn’t want to touch anything afterwards. Pumza kept on saying we are in the woods, and I said poop is poop. Any way we packed our stuff and off we went our separate ways. It was an amazing weekend, amazing company and the property was beautiful. I would do it again, except this time I will remember to close the windows.

Until then fabtastic people

Moira