EXPLORING FRONTIER COUNTRY and other areas.
Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2015 6:42 pm
It has always been on our bucket list to visit Clarens, Golden Gate, a hot water spa at Aliwal North, Stutterheim, Hogsback, Kenton on Sea, Addo National Park, re-visit The Willows Resort in Port Elizabeth, Valley of Desolation Graaf Reinet, Gariep Dam and finally to stay in guesthouse in the middle of nowhere in the Free Sate. There are other towns and places we want to visit but this one seemed to make a nice round trip so these others will have to wait until another year. And so it was that in October 2014 I started poring over books, maps and web sites such as "Distancefrom" and "Mountain Passes of South Africa" to plan our trip.
Phase 1 was to try and avoid as many N roads as possible and not to travel more than 400kms in one day.
Call me an old softy if you will but besides wild life we also have a passion for mountain passes and those old steel girder bridges that have since been replaced by concrete highways. One does not even realise that you have crossed a river.
So phase 2 started recently with the planning getting into a lot of finer detail in trying to find mountain passes and old steel bridges even if it meant a slight detour off our planned route. Up to today we are going to go over 23 mountain passes, 7 old steel bridges and 1 old stone bridge built in 1844. Also included is the more modern longest road/rail bridge in South Africa. It is 1.2 kms long and crosses the Orange River near Bethulie.
Our trip starts in 2 weeks time and we will be away for 3 weeks. Cannot wait.
Phase 1 was to try and avoid as many N roads as possible and not to travel more than 400kms in one day.
Call me an old softy if you will but besides wild life we also have a passion for mountain passes and those old steel girder bridges that have since been replaced by concrete highways. One does not even realise that you have crossed a river.
So phase 2 started recently with the planning getting into a lot of finer detail in trying to find mountain passes and old steel bridges even if it meant a slight detour off our planned route. Up to today we are going to go over 23 mountain passes, 7 old steel bridges and 1 old stone bridge built in 1844. Also included is the more modern longest road/rail bridge in South Africa. It is 1.2 kms long and crosses the Orange River near Bethulie.
Our trip starts in 2 weeks time and we will be away for 3 weeks. Cannot wait.
