31 January 2021
Meeting us at the start point was Dieter Mylo & Liechen, Walter Mohr, Ken & Shona Sturgeon, Dave & Anne Roy, Richard Jackson, Laurence, Mandy & Courtney Green with their son, Cameron, in his newly acquired Land Cruiser. Heading out, we took the back roads via Malmesbury and Moorreesberg on route to the farm at Koringberg. Taking back roads not only gives us chance to see areas one does not normally see when traveling the N7 but also ensured we missed any possible roadblocks. An important consideration for those transporting a drink or two for the afternoon!
After arriving at the farm, we set out on the trail following a relatively easy trail up the hill / mountain to the Vodacom / Telkom towers at the top, stopping to enjoy the views over the Swartberg. Fortunately the weather was only partly cloudy so unlike back in Cape Town, we were able to enjoy the views. The “difficult” section was supposed to be on the descent off the top but the track had been widened at some point making the going quite easy with only a few of the switchbacks requiring reversing to get around. Once at the bottom we stopped at an abandoned farmhouse for a look around and had the pleasure of seeing an owl in one of the dead blue gum trees.

Rather than driving around the hill back to the farm, all elected to drive back over the top and take a steeper road back. Going back up was definitely a more rewarding drive than the drive down and after passing the top, we took the steep cement road down. While going down, Dieter lost his power steering and found that one of his idler pulley’s had had a bearing failure with the fan belt coming off. As the fan belt also drives the water pump, Laurence, who was in front of him towed him back to the farm after he had freewheeled down to the bottom.

Once back at the farm, we settled down for a picnic under the trees at the campsite and had a very pleasant social afternoon. Richard Jackson, being a new club member, had chance to meet and get to know everyone and by all accounts, should become a regular on future outings. As all good things must come to an end, around 4PM we started to pack up and re-inflate tyres. We towed Dieter home and it was great having the entire group following us on the N7 warning each time a vehicle wanted to pass. Most people were responsible and gave us a wide berth but a few jack asses insisted on overtaking at dangerous times, including one fool with a caravan. Despite this, the tow went smoothly and having radio coms made it easy to communicate and keep the tow rope tight at all times while Dieter joking that he has never driven so close to another vehicle before and us joking that we’ve never had someone tailgate us for so long before!. This is one of the advantages of club outings as all members chipped in to help ensure Dieter got home safely.
Till next time…
Andy McMahon