July 23

After checking in on things at St. Rodrigue (very quiet, a little snow) I headed out on my 2nd winter break trip. I really enjoyed my time in Grahamstown, but I was a little exhausted by planning out which parts of the arts festival I should/could see each day. This time around I wanted a more relaxed schedule. I ultimately decided to go to Wilderness, which is part of the Garden Route. I could get there quickly from Bloemfontein, and the location sounded like the perfect combination of ocean and hilly forests. The backpackers where I stayed was called The Wild Farm, and it was indeed an old farmstead a mile or two outside the town of Wilderness. It was a very charming little place with very helpful staff (and, true to its name, a handful of cattle and horses and waterfowl) but its best feature was the spectacular view. Wilderness is basically right on the beach but inland the terrain quickly gives way to forested hills (foothills to the Outeniqua mountains). The backpackers was at the top of one of these hills, giving a stunning panoramic view of both the ocean and the mountains.

I spent my first full day on a bike (rented from the backpackers) checking out the area. It felt so good to be on a bike, even though the tires could’ve used a little air, the gear shift was wonky, and over six months away from a bike left me pretty out of shape (although being near sea level with my altitude-adjusted lungs gave me a little boost). I went at a pretty leisurely pace and took a trail (well, not a trail trail, it was gravel roads, but there was almost no traffic) to what was called the “Map of Africa.” This was a scenic overlook across a valley where a river wrapped around a hill in such a way that it looked like an outline of the continent. You know, with a little imagination. Across the road there was another gorgeous view of the ocean from a  field used by paragliders as a take-off .

I biked down to the village for lunch and on the way saw loads of big gorgeous houses – the kind built into the hillside with giant windows and spacious decks for sipping mimosas and gazing at the ocean. But all the neighborhoods I passed through were ghostly quiet. I recalled that despite the sunny days and mid-seventies temperatures, I was visiting during the winter off-season, meaning most of these vacation homes were unoccupied. The town of Wilderness clearly depends a lot on tourism, so all the cafes and shops were quiet, and the beach was practically deserted. This also explained why I had a 6-bed dorm room at the backpackers all to myself. I hardly saw anyone else during my stay there, so I essentially had an enormous oceanview suite all to myself for less than $20 a night.

The next few days I spent exploring Wilderness National Park – a straightforward name for a national park if I ever heard one. There was a particularly pretty boardwalk trail along an estuary, where the river (whose name escapes me) empties into the ocean. It was actually really cool to see – I’d be walking along the beach, and then suddenly there’s this river meeting the ocean. Anyway, my incomplete Environmental Studies concentration taught me that estuaries are chockablock full of wildlife and complex ecosystems, which in this case meant lots of birds. SO MANY BIRDS. Well, so many different types of birds is what I mean; there weren’t mass colonies or anything. But it made me feel like I should take up birdwatching. Instead of actually learning their names they existed in my mind as the-white-heron-type-one and the black-cormorant-type one and the bluish-egret-type-one. Actually a few helpful signs did educate me somewhat, and I’m pretty sure I saw Knysna Turaco Loeries, Greater Double-collared Sunbirds, Cape Bulbuls, and Cape White-eyes.

Another trail took me on a hike through the mountains for a few hours, and ended at a picturesque waterfall. Aforementioned birds were still abundant, and it was just as mesmerizing to watch them flit through the trees and glide over the river as listen to their calls echoing across the valley. In many places the path was really a tunnel through trees with long draping limbs and names like Sagewood, Forest Elder, White Milkwood, Tree Fuchsia, and Cheesewood. It made me feel like I was wandering through an enchanted forest or Dylan Thomas poem or something.

Eventually I had to cross a river, and I had a couple options for doing so. At one place on the bank there was this really cool raft constructed in such a way that you could pull yourself across the river on an overhead pulley. I was super impressed and eager to get my Huck Finn on, but unfortunately it was too heavy for me to push off the sand by myself. So I had to settle for the alternative, which was following the signs upriver to where the ‘stepping stones’ were supposed to be.

I’d heard upon my arrival in Wilderness that earlier in the week there had been really heavy rains, so I think the river was higher than usual. In any case, if there ever were stepping stones across, they were completely submerged now. So I rolled up my shorts, decided I was 90% sure schistosomiasis isn’t a risk in running water*, waded across where the water was calm and only thigh-deep. I was most concerned about slipping on a rock and dousing my sack lunch, but the water was as clear as I think it is possible for water to be. So I could see exactly where to place my feet as I made my way across.

Shoes back on and fruit snacks (FROM AMERICA – thank you package senders!) safe & dry I hiked up to the waterfall, where I had a lovely picnic lunch. Once again, there was practically no one around – for all the hours I spent in the park I think I only saw two people.

In all I spent several days just enjoying the gorgeous landscape and solitude, and by the time I returned to Lesotho I only had a few days to clean up the house (and beat back the mice again) before my new co-fellow arrived(!). He’s arrived now and has settled in well. So much has happened since the second semester started at St. Rodrigue, and I have so many stories to share. It’s a challenge every time I briefly have internet access to transcribe them from my journal to this blog, but I promise they are coming! Thanks for being patient. And in the meantime, please enjoy this favorite comic of mine, which pretty much expresses my feelings when I do manage to post.

*Turns out this is NOT TRUE, haha WHOOPS. Pretty sure I don’t have shistosomiasis though.
Stray thoughts:

• Hashing seems to be pretty popular with the expat community in Maseru, including with my usual weekend host. Unfortunately hashes usually take place Sunday morning, when I’m grocery shopping and tracking down a taxi back to St. Rodrigue. So I always heard from her about how much fun hashes are without fully understanding what they entail. So when I was in Maseru on my way to Wilderness I finally  got to experience a hash for myself. Basically, different hiking/running trails are set in places near Maseru, and there are some scavenger hunt elements involved. I still don’t have a firm grasp on all the rules and symbols used, but it was a lot of fun, and it’s always great to spend time getting to the very open and friendly expat community of Maseru.
• Because the lodge where I stayed at the backpackers was practically empty, every night I could listen to the ocean and the frogs as I fell asleep, which was pretty fabulous. Especially considering that the only things I could hear at night in St. Rods in July were snow falling and my chattering teeth.
• Every time I need to take a bus somewhere in South Africa I go through Bloemfontein, and I usually have a few hours to peruse the more well-stocked South African grocery stores. And I actually managed to find maple syrup!! I cannot even convey how happy it made me, or how nervously I wrapped the glass bottle in my clothes and stowed it in my backpack. Happily it made it all the way to St. Rods, and I’ve been savoring my pancakes and french toast ever since.