PANORAMA ROUTE
Get your thrills on this four-day trip, says Melanie van Zyl
Prefer scenic and sedate escapes or adventurous, adrenaline-filled capers? MELANIE VAN ZYL discovered that South Africa’s most spectacular route caters for both leisurely and ballsy road trippers
‘I love hiking in the afternoon. It’s the perfect way to get rid of the day,’
said my companion Phillicity Flischman, owner of Lisbon Hideaway. Well, I’d had one helluva day and although an afternoon hike wasn’t high on my to-do list, the sunset over Lisbon Falls quickly rejuvenated my energy stores. The iconic Panorama Route in Mpumalanga had proved as picturesque as expected. Waterfalls spouted from almost every cliff face and secret swimming pools were tucked into forested ravines. But I knew it was more than just pretty. It was a daredevil’s delight. It was day three of my road trip and I’d decided to supplement the area’s scenic splendour with an injection of adrenaline. Kestell Barnard of Kestell Adventures has been working the adventure scene as a guide for more than 10 years and is based in Sabie. I was initially tempted by his canyoning activity (the opportunity to clamber up the Mac-Mac Falls rather than gaze down on it from the viewpoint), but decided that would be a much happier undertaking in summer weather. Instead, we went down the Sabie River – by gecko, a one-person inflatable raft with much-needed handles. I met Kestell at his headquarters in Sabie and we hit the road. ‘ This drive to Hazyview has 66 turns, so it’s popular with bikers’, he said before turning down a private plantation road. ‘Perfect for road tripping too,’ I thought. At the end of a 4x4 dirt track, Kestell stopped the vehicle at the edge of a tame-looking stream (what’s that saying they have about assumptions?) I donned the wetsuit, strapped on my tackies and plunged into the water. Kestell has permits to operate on this ‘rougher and more exciting strip of the Sabie’ called the U2 section. As he explained, ‘ There’s an optional eight-metre-high river jump involved and some fun rapids ... whenever you veer towards a big boulder in the river, just lean towards it and hug the rock. That way, you’re less likely to fall out.’ It was rougher than expected and boy, did I fall out, and at all the wrong places. I was repeatedly sucked down into the boiling water and unceremoniously spat out again – to be expected, I suppose, from rapids with names like ‘Hell’s Gate’ and ‘Pinball Machine’. Luckily, there were more leisurely stretches where I managed to recollect myself. Overall, I’ve never had more fun on a three-kilometre stretch of river. My Panorama Route meander was all about new adventures and, in keeping with this objective, my road trip had begun back in ‘The Devil’s Office’. I was joined by my friend and Lowveld local, Mia Louw, who told me that Kaapsehoop was once
known as Die Duiwel’s Kantoor. It’s not technically on the Panorama Route, but surely an appropriate start for a daredevil’s journey? Our first activity was trying out the Scootours route on their non-electrified scooters. After bouncing around a bit at first, I got the hang of it before we hit the exciting switchbacks and faster declines (I certainly knew where all my wobbly bits were afterwards). Six kilometres of downhill tracks saw us weaving across indigenous grassland and bobbing between pine trees. We ended in a natural forest beside a creek to clinks of Oros-filled glasses. From Kaapsehoop, it was an easy drive north towards the next stop, Sabie and Kestell Adventures. Bypassing the busier Mbombela road, I doubled back to Ngodwana and the N4, choosing to drive via Sudwala Caves instead. Following Kaapsehoop’s switchbacks and the riverine excitement on Sabie’s rapids, I then wound my way up Long Tom Pass to Misty Mountain, where a curious European invention waited on the hillside. As I clicked in the seat belt, I learnt that the Long Tom Toboggan could reach speeds of up to 45 kilometres per hour. Like Kestell’s rock-hugging philosophy, I was also told that I should lean into the twists of the steel railing, like you would on a motorbike. Only mildly terrified (having tackled grade three rapids, my bravado was pretty high), I pushed off. All brakes were up and I hurtled down the slope at an alarming rate. It was another bumpy ride, but as I slowed to the end of the 1,7-kilometre track the exhilaration of it smeared a grin across my mug.
‘All the brakes were up and I hurtled down the slope at an alarming rate’
Ready for something more dignified, the following morning I made my way to Pilgrim’s Rest for a tour of one of the mining town’s lesser-known museums. Most of the homes in Pilgrim’s Rest were ordered via catalogue, delivered and then assembled Ikea-style. Alanglade House, which belonged to the mine manager 100 years ago, was an exception and is more a magnificent manor than a mere home. It is furnished with vintage pieces from 1915 to 1950 and is also used in the spooky Ghostie Tours. My guide, Sharon Green, took me through each room to explain the history of the home and the area. The entire town of Pilgrim’s Rest is a museum – one of only two museum towns in the country. ‘Pilgrim’s was the second town in South Africa to get electricity – before the queen!’ Alanglade was designed in the style of Sir Herbert Baker, ‘but the toilets give it away,’ Sharon said. ‘Baker believed in much smaller, practical bathrooms. Many younger architects copied his buildings.’ The road back to the main street required dodging skills, and Sharon joked, ‘The number plate “MP” stands for “massive potholes”. Friends of mine lost two tyres on Robber’s Pass while driving the Lydenburg road.’ I suspected the ‘m’ stood for a more descriptive Afrikaans adjective. Just a short hop away from Pilgrim’s Rest, Graskop is surrounded by natural splendour – Berlin Falls, God’s Window, Pinnacle Rock, Bourke’s Luck Potholes, the Three Rondavels and, closest to town, Lisbon Falls. Phillicity Flischman and Ian Mashego kindly took me on a trail to Lisbon Falls and showed me the route to the bottom. Phillicity used to hike here with her parents. ‘This was my mom’s favourite. We would pack a picnic and come down for Sunday lunch.’ But for Ian and I, it was our first time at the bottom of the gorge. He agreed with me: ‘It’s much more beautiful. Everyone just comes here to see the top!’ We took pictures posing carefully on the slippery rocks and revelled in the spray. Proving that even for sedate activities, there are always new ways to see Mpumalanga’s famous Panorama Route.
‘Graskop is surrounded by natural splendour – Berlin Falls, God’s Window, Pinnacle Rock...’