Trail Low-Down
Have iron horse; will travel. Without a doubt the Baviaans Conservancy is a pedal-paradise, with loads of 4×4 routes, dirt roads and gravel passes that can be tackled by bike. (Most of the routes can be travelled in a 4×4 vehicle, so you do not have to be an Ironman.)
Either way, take the road over Wienands Nek and pass Avondale, but take it easy because the bridges are narrow and the curves loose and sharp. Glen Lynden’s historic charge is lovingly maintained by the community and is definitely worth ten minutes of your time.
Wind your way past Lynedoch’s old manor house where guests such as the Prince of Wales and Churchill are said to have stayed over and crank over the hill above Silverbrook turnoff. Look out for a little monument (an upright obelisk-like tower) just before you reach Cameron’s Glen. It is here that the late Hendrik Bezuidenhout was shot by a soldier whilst sheltering in a cave near his home, and his death was the spark that ignited the 1815 Slagtersnek Rebellion – and subsequently the first Anglo-Boer War.
However nowadays everyone sits around the same fire, and it is especially the Pringles – most of Scottish descent – who contribute to many of the legendary Baviaans stories. Ernst and Anne Pringle have the largest private collection of bird eggs and butterflies in southern Africa, so it is worth making a detour to their farm, Huntly Glen.
Check out Eildon’s stone charge or visit Crusaders Safaris’ superb lodge, but know that you are really here to experience the mountains. All around you there are 360 degree dramas playing out against the horizon, with the Kagga and Winterberg ranges offering breath-taking views around every corner.
Things to Do
We haven’t been back to the Baviaans River Conservancy in quite a few years,so what a pleasure it was to see the kids once again experiencing this visceral space. Life is more real and connected here, with the locals living an earthy existence in symbiosis with the planet: meat does not originate from the supermarket; you grow much of what ends up on your plate; and early nights equate to dawn missions, which soon resets your Circadian rhythms.
Clambering up creaking CLIMAX wind pumps; farm dam swims with a water scorpion or three; wrestling old-skool farm gates; out-running an Ooskaap thunderstorm with the smell of cordite on the wind; the roil of a mud-water wall cascading down a riverbed that was dry an hour before; bottle-feeding nuzzling ‘hanslammer’ lambs; building fires without Blitz; and having a skaap-drol spitting competition high in the hills … this resets your soul and enables you to makes sense of a life more real, and many miles away from the fear-mongering ‘New Normal’ crowds.
The Great Canon – visit Skelmkloof and ask Francois Marais to demonstrate his gunpowder canon. You can also tackle their rugged 4×4 route by bike, but phone before you tackle this rough road – Tel: 087 350 1769.
Butterflies and eggs – Ernest Pringle is the editor of the world renowned Pennington’s Butterflies of Southern Africa and his knowledge is unparalleled when it comes to any flying insect. Aspiring entomologists can completely lose themselves here.
Make biltong – Andre Pringle is regarded as one of SA’s top professional hunters. With 800,000ha of hunting ground in the Baviaans River, Umkomaas Valley and Storm Mountains, he hunts in the most ethical manner possible. And, I have to confess, there is very little better than a piece of kudu biltong from the Baviaans River – www.crusadersafaris.com
Kudu Classic – come and run to your heart’s content here on the slopes of the Baviaans during Taryn and Jane Pringle’s annual Kudu Classic Trail Run. The Greater Kudu is a 50km mountain route suitable for the tough guys while the 20km Lesser Kudu is less strenuous – www.kuduclassic.co.za
Best time to visit – The best time to visit is Spring or Autumn as it can get extremely hot in summer and bitterly cold in winter.