{go hiking} midlands hiking club · 2016-02-01 · an excellent club to be-long to and to actively...

{go hiking} MIDLANDS

HIKING CLUB

NEWS

Go Wild @ the Wild Coast

CONTENTS GO WILD @ THE WILD COAST; CHAIRMAN’S CHIRP; HO,HO,HO; ; THOSE MAG-

NIFICENT FLYING MACHINES CALLED MICROL;IGHTS;..WE HIKED TO…

HOWICK, BEACON HILL, BUSHMAN’S NEK;; YOUR OUTDOOR CARTOONS,

MAGAZINES, LIBRARY & MOVIES.

MIDLANDS HIKING CLUB COMMITTEE Chairman: Neville Lee ([email protected]) Vice-Chairman: Alistair Nixon ([email protected]) Treasurer:

Sven Jager ([email protected]) Secretary: Cathy Stevens ([email protected])

Fixtures Manager: Katy Hart ([email protected]) Webmaster: Rod Hart ([email protected])

Membership Manager: Peter Rippon ([email protected]) Newsletter Editor & Activities Manager:

Brigitta Simpson ([email protected]) Special Projects Manager: Charles Guiot ([email protected])

Volume 3 Number 10 19 January 2016

GO TO: www.gohiking.co.za

www.gohiking.co.za

Next Social

15 March

The Wild Coast is one of South Africa's most

remote stretches of shoreline. Stretching from

East London in the Eastern Cape all the way

north to Port Edward and the southern border of

KwaZulu-Natal, the region is home to some of

the most beautiful coastal scenery in the world.

It is a place of steep green hills atop which sit

clusters of traditional Xhosa mud huts; a land of

windswept cliffs, deserted white-beaches, for-

ests, untamable waves – and numerous ship-

wrecks.

The area is still somewhat lost in time – a place

where hippies, surfers and Xhosa people live

side by side, with little in the way of posses-

sions and much in the way of hospitality and

friendliness.

Read more:

http://www.southafrica.info/travel/surf/

wildcoast.htm#.

In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.

Aristotle.

EEEEditor’s Letterditor’s Letterditor’s Letterditor’s Letter

As Aristotle says,

nature is marvelous.

Enjoy this issue

which tries to capti-

vate those marvels.

Go hiking to enjoy

the magic of nature.

BrigittaBrigittaBrigittaBrigitta


We are well into 2016 already and it’s time to flush our arteries of all that mince pie, glazed gammon, roast potato, Christmas cake, custard, champagne, etc. etc. And what better way to do it than out in the fresh country air with no car ex-haust fumes anywhere near and with like-minded companions.

We have a great line-up of hikes on offer in Q1, so there is plenty to look for-ward to. And some Lead-ers are already planning fantastic hiking experi-ences for Q2.

Your Management Com-mittee is hard at work as well to ensure that we complement the efforts of our Leaders by providing good administration so that, together, we provide all of our members with

Keep Hiking

Andean JungleAndean JungleAndean JungleAndean Jungle Chairman’s Chirp by Neville Lee

an excellent Club to be-long to and to actively participate in.

And don’t forget our Club Socials - there are some very interesting talks in the pipeline.

Let us all get together

in 2016 and

Go Hiking.

WELCOME

Ansie Cronje

Jerry Degenaar

Anna Kapp

Bibi Mitchley

Robyn Nicolay PHOTO OF THE YEAR


Christmas Party

6 December 2015

Report and photos by Rod

Hart

Now for the third year Carolee

arranged for the Hiking Club

Christmas party to be held at

the EAGLE RIDGE ESTATE

Clubhouse. In addition Carolee

and Keith Ashton led the pre-

party hike around the Beacon

Hill conservancy.

Following the hike,

back at Eagle Ridge Estate,

Brigitta once again filled the

roll of Master-of-ceremonies,

or rather "Evil Queen", as she

was so dressed to go along

with the party theme of Fairy-

tale characters. So the "Evil

Queen" led us in singing of

Christmas carols followed by a

quiz on the topic of Fairytales -

some rather difficult questions

sorted out the problem of peo-

ple shouting out the answers

and had the majority of mem-

bers scratching their memo-

ries - nice little chocolates for

those who did get the correct

answers in first.

Judging the "Best

Dressed Character" was carried

out by Chris Dobson's family

who on a visit from the UK

had joined us for the day. The

characters lined up and each

explained their character,

though some i.e. the Ogres,

required very little explaining!

Chairman Neville decribes the

characters as "We had all

types - Little Red Ridinghood,

vicious ugly frightening ogres,

sweet innocent Gretel with her

somewhat retarded brother

Hansel, the wicked (muslim)

witch, the evil Queen, Puss in

Boots, a lovely lady with

Christmas tree earings, many

reindeer and elves, and of

course Father Christmas him-

self with his delicate, petite

sidekick, the gorgeous Christ-

mas Fairy who gracefully

handed out desperately

sought-after blessings with a

tap to the forehead". Congratu-

lations to the winning

Little Red Riding Hood (1st)

and the Ogres 1 & 2 (2nd),

Following the more

frivolous festivities we got

down to the serious matter of

announcing the winner of "2015

Report of the Year" - announced

by Brigitta was Deon Small,

who unfortunately was not with

us at the Xmas Party to receive

his winner's gift voucher.

Brigitta explained that predomi-

nantly the judging panel were

looking for a report which was

technically well structured,

grammatically correct, informa-

tive and interesting - a report

that takes you on an adventure

and makes it exciting, and this

Deon did with his piece. Well

done Deon! (19-20th Septem-

ber - MARBLE BATHS)

A change introduced by

the committee this year saw a

number of others who had con-

tributed reports rewarded for

their efforts with the gift of a

bottle of wine - thank you com-

mittee!

The 2015 Photo of the

Year was announced through a

slide presentation of the top

twenty photographs culminating

in the winning photo as judged

by our independent photography

jLeon Heyes (thank you once

again Leon for your impartial

judging). Congratulations once

again to Deon Small in sweep-

ing the board not only with 2015

Report of the Year but also the

2015 Photo of the year,;runners

up were Katy Hart (2nd) and

Dave Sclanders (3rd).

HO HO HO


In Europe the sporting (FAI)

definition limits the maximum

take-off weight to 450 kg (992 lb)

(472.5 kg (1,042 lb) if a ballistic

parachute is installed) and a maxi-

mum stalling speed of 65 km/h

(40 mph). The definition means

that the aircraft has a slow landing

speed and short landing roll in the

event of an engine failure.[1]

In most affluent countries, mi-

crolights or ultralight aircraft now

account for a significant percent-

age of the global civilian-owned

aircraft. For instance in Canada in

October 2010, the ultralight air-

craft fleet made up to 19% of the

total civilian aircraft registered. In

other countries that do not register

ultralight aircraft, like the United

States, it is unknown what propor-

tion of the total fleet they make

up.[2] In countries where there is

no specific extra regulation, ul-

tralights are considered regular

aircraft and subject to certification

requirements for both aircraft and

pilot.

Ultralight aviation (called

microlight aviation in some coun-

tries) is the flying of lightweight,

1 or 2 seat fixed-wing aircraft.

Some countries differentiate be-

tween weight-shift control and

conventional 3-axis control air-

craft with ailerons, elevator and

rudder, calling the former

"microlight" and the latter

"ultralight".

During the late 1970s and early

1980s, mostly stimulated by the

hang gliding movement, many

people sought affordable powered

flight. As a result, many aviation

authorities set up definitions of

lightweight, slow-flying aero-

planes that could be subject to

minimum regulations. The result-

ing aeroplanes are commonly

called "ultralight aircraft" or

"microlights", although the weight

and speed limits differ from coun-

try to country

Those magnificent flying machines called

Microlights

From: Wikipedia


We hiked to ...

patable with conserving the

unique biodiversity of Midlands

Mistbelt Grassland - a critically

endangered vegetation type.

Our lunch break was on freshly

mowed lawns on the banks of the

Umgeni where bird life is inter-

esting and varied.

Part of our hike took us through

opulent suburbs of lovely old

homes interspersed with some

innovative architecture to liven

things up.

What a hidden gem there is on

the outskirts of Howick. Then it

was back through the streets of

downtown Howick – with its

ubiquitous shops and taxis...

finally reaching the famous

Howick Falls where we were

happily surprised by the amount

of water flowing – Keith and

Margaret – once again, a heart

felt thank you for a wonderful

day.

ANOTHER AMAZING

ASHTON ADVENTURE

15ks - Keith's Howick Hike

described somewhere as a

Meander, but certainly NOT

one!

22 November 2015

Report by Rose Dix and photos

by Keith Ashton and Rose Dix

Hiking isn't always about slog-

ging up every available hill at an

age when one should know better,

it’s also about the wonderful hugs

and the laughs and the joyous

greetings we exchange with our

friends – friends who share the

pain of those same ‘sloggem

hills’.

And so a jubilant and expectant

crowd of 31 hikers from Midlands

Hiking Club, Durban Ramblers

and Pietermaritzburg Ramblers,

met for a beautiful hike through

Symmonds Stream Conservancy.

The "Friends of Symmonds

Stream", all volunteers, have ob-

viously put in a huge amount of

work to clear aliens, to make in-

teresting paths and to install very

smart signage for our benefit.

After a short hill, we reached the

Beacon on top of Beacon Hill

where we walked through fields

of gloriously budding new flowers

and savoured a short break with a

360 view over Midmar Dam and

the Ambers. We were indeed

blessed with incredibly clear skies

of deepest blue and huge fluffy

upcountry clouds with a faint

breeze to keep us fresh.

After six years of background

work by various organisations and

people it is very pleasing to note

that Beacon Hill has recently been

formally proclaimed a Protected

Environment in terms of the Bio-

diversity Stewardship Pro-

gramme.

The proclamation, signed under

the Protected Areas Act means

that for the next 99 years, Beacon

Hill will be relatively safe from

other forms of land use not com-

Beacon Hill,

pre-Xmas Party Hike

6 December 2015

Report and photos

by Rod Hart

From Eagle Ridge Estate

eight intrepid hikers led by

Carolee's chocolate labrador

"Sundae", set off through the

mist onto the Curry’s Post road

towards Beacon Hill, then

veered off onto what appeared

to be termed the "10km" track

through the Mondi plantation,

some of which we had seen

being harvested last December,

now showing new growth.

After looping back off the

"10km" track we parted com-

pany with Brian, Carolee and

Sundae as they returned via the

quick route back to Eagle

Ridge to prepare for the non-

hiking guests that were due to

arrive for the Xmas function.

then turned right, crossed the

stream and climbed a rather

cheeky steep hill to get into an-

other valley. At the top of the

climb, a rest was taken for all to

recuperate. A very pleasant sur-

prise awaited us along this climb.

The very short but beautiful Pro-

tea dracomontana was in flower

all around us, and with beautiful

colours of red, yellow and white

flowers, helped us up the steep

incline as worked our way up-

wards, and for part of our after-

noon return trip to the hut.

Back at the hut, it was time

for tea and Xmas cake, and to

watch a brilliant sun setting on the

old year. A variety of differing

suppers and drinks were enjoyed

by the preparing chefs, from sim-

ple pre-cooked and frozen food, to

freshly fried steak, eggs, onions,

tomatoes and potatoes. Due to the

early start for some, and a long

pleasant walk during the day,

midnight started at 20h00, when

all went to bed.

2016 was ushered in with

an amazing sunrise, however rain

clouds were gathering, and the

forecast was for a wet morning.

However, once again Keith

"had a plan" and no weather was

going to make anyone deviate

from it. So with rain gear on and

rain gear off, a new route was fol-

lowed. The changing weather

made the decision hard as what to

wear, from full on rain gear to

umbrella's, to well - let's get wet if

we had to. At times the peaked

rain gear was in "sync" with the

high peaks ahead of us.

From the hut we had

climbed significantly, then fol-

lowed a long winding path that

took us back down to the river. A

lot of stops were made to enjoy

the ever changing scenery.

A long walk was taken up

the valley where the party hoped

to have lunch and swim in a large

pool. However, the signs of an

imminent storm at the pool,

helped the decision to turn for the

hut, and maybe swim later.

We hiked to ...


MHC - New Year's Hike

Bushman's Nek Hut

Southern Drakensberg World

Heritage Site

31 Dec 2015 - 2nd Jan 2016

Report and photos by Dave

Sclanders

Keith and Margaret

planned their usual Midlands Hik-

ing Club New Year's eve outing

to take place at Bushman's Nek

Hut in the Southern Drakensberg.

The hut is the last hut on the well

known Giant's Cup Trail, a 4

night - 5 day hiking trail in the

Southern Berg. As the hut is only

a short distance from the Bush-

man's Nek EKZN Wildlife's of-

fice, it meant participants could

pack a few extra New Years Eve's

treats and drinks with them for

New Years Evening. Some of the

hikers went down on the 30th, and

a few brave souls left Durban in

the early hours of the 31st, to

meet at the hut by 08h30.

Once everyone had re-

packed their day packs for the

day, Keith outlined the hike, and

we set off. The weather was going

to be unpredictable, so each hiker

packed as they saw fit.

The day started coolish,

there were streams and rivers to

cross, and the inevitable helping

hand was given at crucial times. A

good pace was set at the early

stages, and one or two started to

feel the thin mountain air on their

breathing. A rest break was taken

for the back markers to "re-

breathe". Then it was off to

Cedric's pool for another rest, and

a swim. The area was green, but

dry, the rivers low, and the water

was warm. From around the cor-

ner the magnificent "Devil's

Knuckles" stood high and menac-

ing on the skyline. Back at the

pool, Keith was the ever watchful

"lifeguard".

The heat of the day had

now started to be a factor, and

Keith changed his earlier plan for

a long hard day to a shorter hard

one. From Cedric's pool, we

headed up the valley towards the

foot of the steep climb to Cave,

At this time of the year, one would have thought that water would be plentiful in the berg streams.

The fact is, that due to the drought, water is very scarce, and hikers are advised to plan their trips

carefully around well known, constant water sources. Check with the officials at your departure point

as to what the water situation is at the place where you intend to spend the night. You may have to

carry water from far to overnight in certain caves. Ensure that you have adequate water carrying

containers to supply you with the water needed for a night camp. This is especially so if one is high up

in the mountains.

Bushman’s Nek continued

The last morning broke very

bright and hot. Some of the hikers

had planned to head for home after

breakfast, and others to do a morn-

ing hike. So back at the cars, the

homeward bound left the party, and

once again were "under Keith's

command." He pointed to a mast

high up on a steep sided mountain,

and said "we won't go there!!!"

Well, we did, after much

huffing and puffing the mast was

reached, the view made for a longer

than usual snack break, before we

headed down again. Back at the car

park, some left for a nearby coffee

shop, and some stayed for a swim

and lunch at a nearby pool. By now

the sun was really "up" and the

swim in the river was a great ending

to a great "Old Year's, New Year"

mountain outing. .

Thanks to Keith and Margaret for

organizing, and leading this 3 day

hike.

We hiked to ...


Ha Ha Ha Ha HAHAHAHA ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha HA HA HA HA hAhAhAhA ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha HA HA HA HA hA hA hA hA ha ha HA ha ha ha HA ha ha ha HA ha ha ha HA ha hahahaha hahahaha hahahaha YOUR OUTDOOR CARTOONS

YOUR OUTDOOR LIBRARY

YOUR OUTDOOR MOVIES

YOUR OUTDOOR MAGAZINE


367 pages of 17 x 24 cm. Hard, glossy cover. This

book, which is apparently unique in its scope, cov-

ers the history of the Wild Coast and the many out-

standing characters featuring in that history. The story starts with the

earliest Khoisan inhabitants, followed by two waves of Bantu people,

Portuguese seafarers and Dutch and British colonizers. An outline of

global politics, especially the contest between Britain and France, is

given by way of an explanation of why the British took over the Cape,

almost by default. Later the British took over the Transkei Territories,

for multifaceted reasons but partly to prevent them being taken over by

Germany. An iron age culture, surrounded for hundreds of years by a

non-trading stone age culture, was thus brought into traumatic contact

with one of the world’s greatest trading nations of that time. The results

were dramatic and continue to reverberate to this day. The narrative

continues through the 2nd World War period and the battle against the

U-boats, and on, through the Transkei Independence period, up to the

present. Punctuating the history of the Wild Coast are many shipwrecks,

including that of the East Indiaman, the Grosvenor, the mystery of the

Waratah and the dramatic sinking of the Oceanos, among many others.

For anyone interested in the Wild Coast, this is a “must read” book.

http://www.thewildcoaster.co.za/2.BOOKS.htm

{go hiking} midlands hiking club · 2016-02-01 · an excellent club to be-long to and to actively...

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