Was supposed to arrive at 2pm but Dad didn’t realise Storms River was 60kms past Plett so he spent the whole drive biting his nails and swearing at the nice lollipop ladies at the four ‘stop and go’ road works between Riversdale and Mossel Bay. And then he rambled on about his fear for Garden Route tourism if we’re supposed to drive everywhere at 60 km/h, so I just played on my phone whilst pretending to read my book. Checked the booking form that says you can’t start the trail after 4pm but thought better of mentioning this.
4.15pm – Struggle to keep up as we finally head off into the forest and down to the coast. Feels like I’m carrying all the heavy stuff. The trail is pretty obvious but Dad keeps stopping to look at the map and points out the different species of fynbos (which all look the same to me) and wild flowers. I’m already getting hungry. Hit the shoreline and turn west. After a bit of rock scrambling, there’s this amazing waterfall where I fancied a swim but apparently it was getting dark – which it wasn’t.
Arrive at the first hut (which is called Ngubu) and meet ‘Ouma and Oupa’ – a really nice couple from PE who have hiked here before. Dad makes an embarrassing joke about thinking we were sharing a hut with the Swedish ladies topless volleyball team - which I ignore. So he starts to cook 2-minute noodles with biltong and a sachet of cool drink powder “because it’s light to carry” whilst our new companions tuck into their steak and wine. Water is brown but sweet to taste. Braai wood is provided so I keep the fire going. The stars are amazing and as I discuss Orion’s belt with Oupa, the wors disappears and Dad blames the monkeys but I think he stole it because he was jealous. The hut has six bunks so I choose the top one and we go to bed early.
Day Two: 7.9 km (± 4 hours)
Dad wakes me up with coffee and rusks at 7am and says we should get going. He sends me ahead with a stick as ‘the leader’ but really he just wants me to clear the spider’s webs. Really tough hiking with the backpacks but, thankfully, mainly in the shade of the forest. We get to an amazing rock called Skilderkrans and take pictures. The sound of the ocean is deafening! A bit further on we look down on a pristine beach called Bloubaai and if I’d had Polaroid glasses I could have seen the fish, I’m sure. The route is marked with yellow Otter prints which is practically the same colour as some of the lichen markings on the rocks and trees so I didn’t always know whether I was going the right way - fortunately there are a number of escape routes on the hike. Hectic climb at end of the day but the most amazing lookout at the top. Dad said the knee-jarring descent made Smuts Track seem like “a walk in the park” but I think he meant the Table Mountain National Park, actually. The Scott huts were really nice by the river mouth and Dad and I went for a swim where the water was crystal clear and warm. More 2-minute noodles for dinner…
Day Three: 7.7 km (± 6 hours)
Thankfully no sign yet of vultures but the bats are circling at dawn as we make coffee and stretch our tired legs - the huts are clean but the mattresses are pretty hard. Early on the hike we pass some graffiti on a rock which said ‘Lisa + Jordan 2.2.12’ which really annoyed Dad who went on about “pristine environments” and “the youth” for about half an hour afterwards. Tough, but not as tough as yesterday and the best bit was crossing first the Elandsbos river where we had to strip down to our onderbroekke and carry everything over. Most of today was in shade, thankfully, and right at the end of the hike there’s an amazing drop down into Oakhurst Hut across the Lottering River. Dad said this had the toilet with the best view in the world – and was there for about an hour enjoying it while I went for a swim in the river mouth. A pod of dolphins were smacking their tails on the water which Oupa said was to attract the fish and we watched the Gannets diving for fish out to sea until the sun went down – a really great feeling! Spotted our first Otter footprints in the lapa next to the hut, they were smaller than I expected.
Day Four: 13.8 km (± 4 hours)
You can order food and drink to be delivered to Andre Hut on the last night so we did that with intermittent cell phone reception. The thought of a couple of Coke’s later kept me on my toes all day - I never felt so alive! The longest day at 13,8km and although flatter than days 2 and 3 is certainly not flat! All the way I added stones to the cairns (piles of stones) that walkers have built up over the years and we worked out that only about 3000 people get to do this hike each year. Dad said he felt like Butch Cassidy looking back the whole time for the other group (they were six) and when we finally got to the Bloukrans River after about 10kms, it was high tide so we chilled by the river mouth and caught some rays. This is the one where they do the bungy jumping at the N2 and the cliffs are just as steep at the river mouth. As we were preparing to cross at mid-afternoon the other group arrived so we leant them our rope and helped them cross so that no-one got their stuff wet. That was really cool! After crossing, the hike up to the top again offered our first real view of Robberg so we knew we were not too far from the finish. That final night I slept like a baby after an open shower with a view of the Klip River mouth. We were so lucky to have met Ouma and Oupa - imagine sharing a hut with people you don’t like for four days!
Day Five: 6.8 km (± 3 hours)
The final day offered more amazing views and for the first time in four days the trail left the shoreline and we could experience the silence of the dense forest. After a couple of hours and a few small waterfalls, you see Natures Valley and hike (slide!) down onto the most beautiful beach at the finish. From there we got a lift back to Storms River and headed home but the drive was easier as Dad was more chilled. I’d definitely do it again – even though it was harder than I thought. I feel great!
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