The Munchkin, Griffin, Lisette and I took a slow meander up to Harrismith - we had arranged to meet some friends from Johannesburg and deliver some patchwork quilts, bags and t-shirts to them. In another life we co-own a company called
TwigaDudu and hand-dye fabric for patchwork quilts, duvet covers, curtaining etc.
The original reason for the trip to Harrismith was to take my son David and his companions up to the Sentinel car park to start the Grand Traverse (GT). For those not familiar with the GT, it's an epic trek across the top of the Drakensberg Mountains, South Africa. The hikers start at the Sentinal Car Park in the North, climb up the chain ladders at Mont Aux Sources and descend either at Bushman's Nek or St Bernard's Peak, 13 - 15 days later. Most of this hike is spent at altitudes of over 3000 metres above sea level.
Enough about the GT...I'm running out of breath just thinking about it. We were only about 1740 metres above sea level and it is a lot harder to run and breathe than it is at sea level (on the Durban beaches).
Our SAR training aim for this weekend was to do some easy finds and get the puppies used to running and playing in different environments and at different altitudes. I also wanted to drive up over
Oliviershoek Pass to see what state the road is in and how easy it is to travel along the R74. The road up the pass itself is in good condition. It's just the section that runs past the Sterkfontein Dam that is in terrible condition. There are 2 30 minute stop-go controls as half the road has been dug up. There are no contractors working on the road. All in all, it's a good route to take if you have time, want to enjoy the scenery and are wanting to avoid van Reenen's Pass.
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| Looking from above Swinburne towards van Reenen's Pass |
Back to the puppies and the purpose of this post.... On Saturday afternoon we took the puppies up the mountain overlooking the
Riverview Country Inn and looking towards van Reenen's Pass (see the photo for the stunning view). They loved running through the grass and playing with each other. So many new smells and things to look at. Griffin chased butterflies at the top of the hill/mountain - I'm not sure what it is.
On Sunday morning early we did some fun searches. Lisette hid for the Munchkin and I hid for Griffin. We let the dogs see us hide each time. All in all the training session was a success. The puppies found us and loved working. It's safe to say that we had great fun and THE MUNCHKIN is back. Watch out world - HERE WE COME....
Walking up the side of the mountain. It's a lot easier running/walking at sea level on the beach than up in the mountains.
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| Griffin, standing next to Lisette, working out out where to find more butterflies to chase |
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| Puppies running through the grass above the tiny village of Swinburne |
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| The Munchkin is tired - its hard work having so much fun |
More fun to be had after a short rest.
We also practised loads of recalls and the puppies came back to us .
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| Running down the mountain side toward Lisette. |
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Ooh - what can we smell in this bush.
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| Mom I'm tired but I want to play some more (the Munckin was rolling in the grass under my legs) |
Here I was being an over-anxious Mom. David was climbing the chain ladders up the Amphitheater and I was concerned about the level of cloud cover over the Drakensberg as he was climbing. Fortunately the whole party got up safely. The chain ladders can be treacherous in bad weather.
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| Looking over Swinburne toward van Reenen's Pass. Watching the cloud cover. |
