Five hours later, we pulled into Howick to visit the Falls. I haven't seen the falls in years and years and Ruth has never seen them, so it made a nice break in the journey.
The whole journey to the Bushman's Nek Berg and Trout resort took us approximately 8 hours. Quite a distance for a long-weekend!Below is the view from our log cabin's veranda.
Early on the Saturday morning, we set off for Bushman's Cave and Ngwangwane Pass. We first had to go through the border gate at the Bushman's Nek Police station.
After an hour or so, we came across this waterfall. The water was crystal clear. In the distance, you can see the "Devil's Knuckles".....
Nice shot of me posing on the trail with the Devil's Knuckles in the background.
Below is a good example of Natarajasana, or "Lord of the dance" yoga pose......
Early on Sunday morning, we set off to find Langalibalele Cave. We parked the car at the National Parks Board office, bought our hiking permit and set off up the steep climb to the top of the mountain. I was surprised to see frost halfway up. By that time my lungs were heaving and we had built up a sweat, so we didn't really feel the cold.
I broke the cardinal rule of hiking here. "Leave only footprints"....... I am sure over the next few hundred years the rain will wash away any evidence of 'civilisation'.....
Below is a great shot of Langalibalele Cave. You can see Ruth sitting a the cave's entrance. For some history, go to: http://www.berg.co.za/langalibalele_cave.htm
There are a few caves around Bushman's Nek. Most you can sleep in. However, it is forbidden to sleep in Langalibalele Cave because of the Bushman paintings below....
The above painting looks like hunters and the one below looks like an Eland buck.
The photo below is another shot of the "Devils Knuckles" from a different angle on our way down from the Langalibalele Cave.
We were quite fortunate as we had some drinks at the Australian High Commission that afternoon, so we managed to park there too. It is only about 10 minutes walk from the High Commission to Loftus.
When I was younger, English speaking South Africans never used to listen to to Afrikaans singers like Koos Kombuis, probably because a lot of them were banned in the old South Africa because of their political lyrics. Anyhow, Afrikaans music was not regarded as being 'Hip' to English speakers.
A few years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to Koos Kombuis' music and I have been listening to him ever since. Koos Kombuis is heavily influenced by Bob Dylan and Neil Young, but his lyrics are contemporary South African, all of which are sung in Afrikaans.....
