Days 69 thru 71

(Rhia’s comments are italicized)

We spent day 69 relaxing and trying to recover from the crud! We went out later in the day for a much-anticipated curry, only to find the restaurant was permanently closed! I continue to be fascinated at the strength of people’s necks…I don’t think they have arthritis 😂

The Panorama Route is a scenic road in South Africa connecting several cultural and natural points of interest. It also features numerous waterfalls and one of the largest afforested areas in South Africa.

We began the route in Hazyview (on the right) and went to #14 Long Tom first. During the second Boer’s War, Long Tom Pass, which is situated along the Panorama Route, became the sight of many battles. In 1985, to commemorate the event, a replica Long Tom Cannon was placed as a memorial.

Also featured at the Second Boer’s War, a toboggan ride!!! Ok, maybe not, but after the bouncing and jerking of the ride, it did feel like I had been through a war. Additionally, the person following Rhia down did not know how to brake, so shot through the end like a cannon and crashed into our two recently exited toboggans.😨😮‍💨 We need to talk a little bit about this! In my younger days, I wouldn’t have thought twice about doing it and would have enjoyed the (fast, out-of-control) thrill. With age comes wisdom…or fear. I spent the whole 1.7 km ride white-knuckled and certain I’d have a heart attack during the ride! I didn’t but was too shaken up to say anything at the bottom except ‘Well, that was a thing!’ I try not to limit myself in life because of my age, but I am too old to be doing things like this!

We then made our way back north to visit #1 Sabie Falls and #4 Mac Mac Falls. We decided to only visit the landmarks that were close to the road. Rhia was still recovering from a cold (hmmm…you wouldn‘t be so blase if you were the one still coughing up phlegm) so would easily get winded from the steps. But the falls we did see were beautiful!!!

Further south we visited #6 Pinnacle Rock. Umm, alright, it is a cool looking rock, but it cost us 120 ZAR (approx. $6) to park and walk to a fenced ledge and look at a rock. There was no placard describing its significance, so I’m left to assume that its claim to fame is that it is just a cool looking rock. I’m so jaded 😔

The bees knees of the Panorama Route is #7 God’s Window. This is a vantage point on the Drakensberg escarpment. The cliffs drop 700m from the highest vantage point. It is a great place to see part of the afforested valley below. The path up was gorgeous, but a little steep, so Rhia stayed back, but got the same view that I did, with no crowds.

Aside from the distinct landmark along this route, there are also beautiful towns tuckeded into the forested hills. Sabie was the most beautiful one we visited. It had the feel of an alpine town without snow, and hosted a silk museum/shop. The hostess greeted us upon entry and gave us a wonderful tour of the building, complete with working looms, unprocessed chrysalises, and demonstrations of how to process the chrysalis into a single 1400 to 1600 meter silk thread. All the silk at the shop is produced just 23 kilometers away at a farm that was once government owned, but now is privately run. I was really glad that Rhia decided to walk in there. It was a great end to the Panorama tour.

The only way to finish our Kruger stay is by another safari drive! I have got to admit, though, that the day started out really slowly. Each water hole we saw had a dismal showing. The only good thing about them was that there was nobody there so I didn’t have to jostle for a good spot (to see nothing). They were pretty spots, though…and almost made you feel like you could take a walk around the water!

But by the afternoon, we started seeing some uncommon things.

We found a bird blind for sneakily watching animals up close and personal. We kind of put ourselves in a cage 😜

The most exciting part of the day for me was seeing a baby elephant moments after his birth! We had spotted a small herd of elephants acting a bit weirdly (the five of them were acting as though they were trying to figure out how many elephants can stand on a sixpence!). It took a while for us to see the baby! As soon as the baby was on his feet, the others wandered off to graze…until baby fell down and his mama called out; in no seconds flat, the herd was back surrounding the baby while mama warned us to stay away! The herd stayed until baby was on his feet again. Baby elephant looked exhausted…and mama grazed swishing her tail constantly to touch baby and make sure he was still upright. It took a while but, in time, baby started moving (clumsily) and the herd slowly moved away.

As a final farewell to Kruger, Rhia locked herself in a toilet stall at the gate. That was definitely uncommon! Okay people, this sounds like I was having a tantrum and locked myself in the bathroom purposely! This was not so…the lock broke and I had to enlist some help to get out. In the end, a couple of soldiers broke down the door (when a Philips-head screwdriver would have done the trick)! I was just grateful to be free!!!