Trailrider is a motorcycle enthusiast living in the Garden Route - one of the most beautiful areas in South Africa.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Day 3
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After the night with the dogs we woke a little late this morning. I was up at 5:20 and we hit the road at 7:20.
Originally we planned to sleep in Hogsback and Wartrail the night thereafter, but having slept in Grahamstown changed things a bit. Hogback was too close and Wartrail too far. During the planning stages of this trip GlenInk offered camping space should we be in the Elliott area. We had a look at the maps and it seemed perfect! So today we head for Elliott via all the passes on we can see on the map.
But before we head out we have a look at this interesting town and it's amazing buildings.
The St. Michael and St. George Cathedral in Church Square is the seat of the Anglican Diocese of Grahamstown. Building first started on the cathedral in 1824. St George's was opened for use in 1830 and became a refuge for women and children during the Xhosa Wars.
Grahamstown actually has 52 churches of numerous denominations, gaining it the name the "City of Saints".
What a beautiful town!
In 1859, Henry Carter Galpin bought a simple double-storey establishment in Bathurst Street for £300. During the next 23 years he made extensive changes. The front was elegantly decorated, and a basement and three floors added to the back. Rooftop developments included an observatory, from which the building took its name, and what was for many years the only Camera Obscura in the Southern Hemisphere.
Grahamstown also has the "tallest toilet in the world" (housed in an abandoned chimney) and Jeremy Mansfield, well known South African radio host, television presenter and comedian also hails from here. OK. Those are just goofy facts
Andrew Geddes Bain (The Dad ) lived here. He had a business, did some inland exploring from here and even tried his hand at farming before his land was given to the Xhosas. Later he was engaged to construct a military road through the Ecca Pass, and displayed engineering talents which led to his being permanently employed as surveyor of military roads under the corps of Royal Engineers in 1836. During this period he had a part in building the Fish River bridge, then the largest bridge in the country.
Time to hit the road:
We ride North to our first pass of the day: Ecca Pass. As mentioned Andrew Geddes Bain built this pass (his first) but I am unsure if this new tarred pass is the same pass or if the historic pass partially followed another route.
I'm sure it was more scenic in those days though.
We ride past Fort Beaufort and Balfour - today, come hell or high water, we cross Katberg!
That's one formidable mountain to cross:
At the start of the pass we ride into the forest at the foot of Katberg. This really reminds me of home.
The Katberg Pass was designed by a man who trained to be a saddler; it was built by convicts in the days before dynamite had been invented and before cement had found its way to the Cape. Different times those were. You made do with what you had!
Today the road is almost exactly as it was 140+ years ago - yellowwood bridge and all. Who was it built by?
Andrew Geddes Bain.
Throughout his career, Andrew Geddes Bain built eight major roads and passes; the Katberg Pass was his last. Before this pass was completed, Bain visited England. Just before he left he suffered a heart attack and when he arrived back in Cape Town, he was dying. His second son Thomas's brother-in-law, Adam de Schmit, oversaw the completion of the pass in 1864.
The road is not great these days with lots of ruts and loose gravel and stones. An in-ride perspective of the bottom part:
The GPS had a waypoint that indicated a bad spot. Smidty went ahead and waited camera in hand hoping for a action shot!
Sorry to disappoint. The TransAlp has never been on its side I have to mention that you really cannot see the incline on the camera. And of course you stop on the more level areas when taking a picture.
Further along looking back - look at how high we already are! This is about half way.
The view ahead. You cannot capture the majesty of these mountains on film. The scenery here is amazing.
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