Slept like a baby last night, and woke up bright and early. Nothing like a nice cup a coffee first thing, and not to mention eggs on toast – thanks Elsalie, you're a honey. We didn't get away as early as we wanted though, because we were carrying on like we had all the time in the world, which of course, is one thing we have a lot of now. Anyway, so pushed off at around 10am, straight up the mountain behind Aunty Tina's house, and headed in the general direction of Rustenburg.
I managed to balance my pack a little better, but it's still not a pleasant weight I carry around. There wasn't a path for a while which was a touch and go, because the grass is tall, and loads of thorn trees, rocks, and goggo's. Once we found the path, we moved a lot faster too. A bit out of shape, got blisters in no time and we had to climb a considerable lot, so the muscles are stiff.
We hiked until we reached Voortrekker Avenue, but had to walk around the Wonderboom nature reserve, and it was a long way before we could climb to the top again. Dante & Katryn is having a great time, but didn't enjoy walking beside a busy road, and rushed to get back to the bush, where they could run free, and be rid of the leads. They were going so fast, they were pulling us along, and nearly chocked themselves a couple of times.
We could only go back up at Van Riebeeck Street again. This is Pretoria North. It was hectic, the bushes were dense, and so many thorn trees! We could see there wasn't enough rainfall this year, because it's extremely dry and dusty. Once we reached the top, we were all four of us, exhausted. It was a nice hot day, got sun burnt a little, but nice, considering that winter is on our doorstep.
A very nice young lad, named Sarel, drove past us as we were walking up the last very steep uphill, before we set up camp, and offered to give us a lift, which we gladly accepted (there's a service road on the other side of the mountain, heading towards the Transtel towers). Aching muscles, blistered feet, and a broken back, who would refuse? We set up camp where these guys are busy with construction of another tower. They were kind enough to give us plenty of water (iced), and access to their amenities.
So, here we are, our first night on top of the mountain, and it is breathtakingly beautiful! I can see Hartebeespoortdam, in the distance, towards Rustenburg, Pretoria North to my right, and Capital Park to my left. Behind my in the distance, is the Voortrekker Monument.
You cannot believe how lucky we are! There is a full moon rising, and I have to go and appreciate it for a long while. It's also cooling down rapidly, so best I get a move on!
