An unexpected message sent to me one day led to a most enjoyable trip to the hills, with fellow club members Kobus, Teretha, Clifton, Annalet, Charles, Corlius, Bruce, Gillian, Greg, Cheryl and Sandy.
Katot Meyer is a legend in the 4X4 and conservation communities (see, for example, https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-06-meet-river-guardian-who-protects-plettenberg-bays-catchment-areas/). Having heard of the MCSA and its objectives, he contacted me to invite our Section to visit the Pietersrivier Nature Reserve (https://www.pnaturereserve.co.za/nature_reserve/index).
This contract reserve has been set up on his family’s farm, on which he grew up and where he still spends much of his time. A date was duly set, and the opportunity was advertised to our Section.
Members began arriving in camp on the Thursday, and tents were set up next to a dam on the property. Shower water heated by paraffin burners, and flush toilets with paper holders fashioned from Chinese jerry cans enabled comfortable living.
Most of the group arrived after lunch on Friday. That afternoon saw us hiking up and round the closest ‘peak’ Rondekop, which gave us a good vantage point from which to examine the lay of the land. That evening some rain came in, dampening the campfire, and saw all of us heading for our tents after supper for an early night.
A network of trails and jeep tracks provided a range of routes for hiking and trail running, and the adjacent dirt road from De Vlugt provided a cycling option. Katot proved to be an able raconteur, and regaled us with stories of history and nature, displaying his innovative and practical approaches to land stewardship.
On Saturday we congregated at the information centre. There we were met by Katot who led us up a ridge and into a kloof. There we helped him move a redundant water pipe into a position from which he would later be able to extract it himself. Following the stream down the kloof, Katot showed us some rock art. Thereafter we extricated ourselves from the kloof on the route of a water furrow originally constructed by his grandfather.
That afternoon saw some resting while others explored the area on foot or by bicycle. The evening was wrapped up around a blazing fire, after an illustrated talk about the pioneers and their ox wagons, and a communal braai.
On Sunday morning we once again gathered at the information centre where Katot met us and directed us to a black wattle grove. There he demonstrated his personalised skills of hacking, chain sawing and bringing the invaders to their knees, hopefully to rise again more slowly, if at all. We ascended the hill to be introduced to the remarkably industrial naturalist William John Burchell. From this point some of the group investigated a portion of the wagon trail Burchell made, heading up to a ridge. The rest of the group followed Katot on a circular path down to the Keurbooms River, along it, and back to camp. The wind picked up that afternoon, and later some rain arrived, but conversations ran late into the evening as tales were told of past exploits.
The next morning dawned fair, and some short hikes and a trail run were enjoyed. Bruce and Gillian were presented with their 20 Peaks certificates. Thereafter camp was struck, with all arriving home safely.
A return to the reserve is already being planned, probably focused on a backpacking excursion on part of the route used by Burchell (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_John_Burchell). Some are also talking of making this an annual excursion, including a mix of alien invasive clearing, hiking, cycling and camping. The reserve offers much, and is within a short drive of the Garden Route coast.
Meet Leader ~ Gary Cundill