Tradouw pass

It was a moving on day.  We were up and away quite early, and drove up past Ashton to Montagu.  From there we headed towards Barrydale, stopping off for morning coffee at Akkerboom Farm Stall.  Whilst sitting there l studied the map, and suggested a short diversion over what appeared to be a rather nice mountain pass.  This was unnamed on the map, but the sign told us it was the Tradouw pass, tradouw meaning the lady's path in Khoi’san, the language of the bushmen who were the original inhabitants of the area.  There were some great views, and at one stop I caught a glimpse of red, and realised that the rather drab looking grasshopper in extras had spectacular red wings when flying.

Having been there and back, just for the views, we then carried on our original route towards Ladismith.  Here we had a large, tasty lunch in a whimsical cafe, which set us up well for the afternoon.   This was just as well, as I had spotted a minor road that would cut off a corner of our proposed route, but which turned out to be a gravel road; not a particular surprise as many of the minor roads in South Africa are gravel, but this one was rather poorly maintained.  But it was a fun route, through a really fertile valley.  

We were heading for the Swartberg Pass, which many people had recommended, but which also turned out to be a poorly maintained dirt road.  The views were incredible, second extra, but not surprisingly, W is very tired this evening.  The same road engineer, Thomas Bain, made both the Tradouw and the Swartberg. 

We spotted a little buck, possibly a klipspringer, but no chance for a photo.

Now just outside Prince Albert, in a little farmstay cottage, very quaint, but no Wi-Fi.  

Blipping on 23rd from a coffee shop.