The Karoo
Across the Plains
The bulk of this day will be spent in the car. We started out this morning in Royal Natal National Park and did some hiking, but we weren’t out too long since we had a long drive ahead of us today.
We headed north to pick up the N5 road and, as we did, the terrain became more flat and prairie-like. We’ll leave KwaZulu-Natal today and enter the Free State, formerly known as the Orange Free State—the state borders on the Orange River, and Orange reflects the Dutch who settled here in the 19th century.
Not long after we found the N5, we ended up in a long traffic jam outside Kestell. We sat for about 40 minutes with no motion, engines off. Finally, a woman drove up the road on the wrong side to see what was happening. She was gone for awhile, out of sight over the distant hills, but she returned and told us that there’s a major smash-up and it won’t be cleared up for at least 5 hours. I’ve never heard of such a thing… Five hours!
We decided to return to a road we just passed and drive around this mess. We took two roads that essentially bypassed the accident, leading us through Bethlehem and toward the N1. The N1 is flat and featureless—like Kansas.
A miles-long traffic jam on the N5 outside Bethlehem in the Free State. We sat here for the better part of an hour before turning around to find another way. Highway smash-ups are common in South Africa.
Another crash on the highway, this time involving trucks.
If one considers the frequency of car crashes, the N1 is the most dangerous road in South Africa—we will see two other accidents today. As we drove southwest, the horizon opened up and we could see out to quite a distance. We could also see rain showers moving across the plains.
Around 6 o’clock, the sun began to sink beneath the horizon. All the rain and clouds awarded us with a magnificent sunset.
We were lucky to see a wonderful sunset along highway 1.
As we drove across the Free State, and waited for construction, the most beautiful sunset began to take shape.
Sunset along a weather front, captured perfectly as we waited on the highway for the construction to clear.
This is the edge of a rather large storm we drove through in the Free State. The sun has just passed below the distant hills.
Temporary road closures along highway 1 means we get to sit for 20 minutes.
Dusk is upon us.
Graaff-Reinet
We’ve lined up a place tonight in Graaff-Reinet, a small town in the heart of the Karoo. But, we need to get there by 9 o’clock tonight. With all this construction, that was going to be difficult. We made our way down the N1, past Bloemfontein, the state capital, and picked up the N9, which leads to Graaff-Reinet.
We arrived just in the nick of time, at about 9:15. The woman from our hotel called our cell phone when we were just a couple blocks away. We got checked in—our room was not warm and inviting, but it was luxe compared to our previous night’s accommodations—and then ventured out to quell those stomach pangs. It turns out, everything closes in this town at 9 o’clock. Not one restaurant was open. We had to settle for a convenience store on the edge of town which sold some cooked food. My mouth was watering at the prospect of fried chicken, but, alas, they were out of chicken. We settled for grilled cheese with tomato. One of the more pathetic dinners we’d had, but it was food.
When all restaurants are closed, there's always the fried chicken place on the edge of town.
Everything here closes at 9, so we ate our convenience-store dinner in our room.
To my surprise, we had a great breakfast waiting for us this morning. The quality of the food certainly exceeded that of the room.
The next morning I was looking forward to a hearty breakfast, but given the state of the room I didn’t expect too much. There was a bug problem in the kitchen and the room was well worn. To my surprise, breakfast was delivered to our patio table and it was great. It was so delicious, I wanted to personally thank the kitchen staff.
We stayed in the Obesa Lodge in Graaff-Reinet, which is in the Eastern Karoo, an arid part of South Africa.
The vivid-blue office of our accommodations last night in Graaff-Reniet.
The owner of the Obesa Lodge told us that her ex-husband planted the cacti across the street, and they have grown since he left.
I have to say, Graaff-Reinet did not live up to our expectations. I thought it would be a quaint town in the middle of the desert. Instead, it was rather spread out and there was hardly anyone on the streets. We did not feel free to walk around town at night, there were just not enough people.
Camdeboo National Park
Today, we will see the nearby Camdeboo National Park, which surrounds the town. First, we will drive up one of the nearby mountains to get a bird’s eye view of the town.
Jackie posing on a mountaintop overlooking the Karoo town of Graaff-Reinet. It's very dry here, reminiscent of the southwestern U.S. The town is circular in shape, and adjacent to it are the nearby townships.
In Camdeboo National Park, a scenic overlook above Graaff-Reinet. Jackie points toward the 1,315-meter (4,300-foot) Spandaukop.
Jackie and me in Camdeboo National Park.
On the other side of this mountain is the Valley of Desolation, a small rift in the side of the mountain. We ventured to the edge of the cliff and, even though Jackie has a fear of heights she pushed herself.
Jackie is poised above the Valley of Desolation in Camdeboo National Park.
Jackie, who is troubled by heights, sits on the edge of the cliff overlooking the Valley of Desolation in Camdeboo National Park.
On the lookout over the Valley of Desolation is this sandstone boulder with ancient potholes. This short-lived puddle teams with life, including tiny shrimp, small creatures that twist themselves in order to move through the water, and algae.
In English and Afrikaans for good measure.
High atop the mountains in Camdeboo National Park, we can see far into the Karoo, the arid landscape reminds me of Nevada.
Exploring the edge of the Valley of Desolation.
I'm leaping from one huge rock to another along the edge of the Valley of Desolation. It's a long way down between rocks.
A cactus grows from a crack in the rock on the cliff's edge.
The mountain view of the arid Karoo was beautiful, it reminds me a lot of the southwestern US. The other section of the park was the wildlife area. We were hoping to see the rare mountain zebra. Instead, we saw springboks, a few buffalo, and some birds.
A black-headed heron in the Camdeboo National Park's wildlife reserve, outside Graaff-Reinet.
A springbok keeps watch for the herd in Camdeboo National Park.
These trees did not survive the persistent flooding of the reservoir in Camdeboo Park.
Return to the Garden Route
After the park, we headed for our next destination. We will revisit the Garden Route for a night, creeping ever closer to the Cape Town airport, where we have a flight to catch in a few days.
Arid, worn hills are characteristic of the Karoo.
A lot of straight roads in the Karoo, just like the western U.S.
We stayed south on the N9, which ends up hugging the northern side of the coastal range, dividing wet from dry. Only small towns exist in this baked landscape. One of the towns along the way is Uniondale which, like every town, has a white area and a surrounding black township. The stark contrast between these areas is tough to comprehend, and the feelings conjured up are difficult to put into words.
Where the white people live in the small town of Uniondale.
Beyond Uniondale proper lies the black section. Better than most townships, the wooden shacks are joined with brick houses, but the dusty roads and yards look bleak.
Once again, green awaits us over these mountains—the clouds flowing over the mountaintops indicate there is moisture over them hills. Tonight we will stay in the coastal town of Wilderness along the Garden Route. But first, we must get over those mountains.
Clouds often cover the mountains here from the rain-soaked Garden Route on the other side.
Pasture behind the coastal range which deprives the Karoo of moisture.
Clouds creep over the coastal ranges, where they quickly evaporate.