HERE’S WHAT TO EXPECT
If you’ve ever wondered what it would feel like to be inside the world of Dalene Matthee’s stories, populated with phantom elephants, giant yellowwoods and lush ferns, here’s your chance. SANParks has awarded Bhejane 4x4 Adventures the exclusive rights to do day trips into the inner sanctum of Knysna Forest.
On this trip you’ll experience the indigenous yellowwoods, stinkwoods, ferns, bushbuck, blue duikers and Knysna turacos. Maybe you’ll even see an elephant?
This isn’t merely a drive-and-sightseeing trip. You will also learn more about the forest’s fauna and flora, Italian settlers who hoped to make their fortune in the silk trade, woodcutters and lost travellers.
We all meet at Harkerville, just off the N2 about halfway between Plettenberg Bay and Knysna. Here, the Bhejane crew members explain the day’s events and hand out two-way radios before we take to the tracks through the Diepwalle Forestry Station area.
The first stretch is a dirt road through the forest and our first encounter with real yellowwood, Outeniqua yellowwood, stinkwood, wild elder, ironwood, Cape beech, Cape ash, candlewood…
Then the forest becomes denser and the track narrower. It takes us through tree tunnels so dense they even shut out daylight. The lushest ferns grow among Cape blackwood, rock elder, wild peach and white stinkwood.
When we stop to stretch our legs, we’ll hear the sounds of the 40 resident bird species, including the red-chested cuckoo’s distinctive “Piet-my-vrou” call and the Knysna turaco’s “kok-kok-kok-kok”.
We stop in a clearing in the fynbos. It is on islands such as this that the woodcutters lived in the 1700s and 1800s, from where they penetrated the forest to fell one giant tree after the other. From here, the track becomes even narrower, more winding and overgrown with ferns.
We end with a lunch prepared by women of the local community at Diepwalle Forestry Station, before everyone drives back to the N2 in their own time.
You will leave the forest, but you will carry the experience with you forever. How long is the tour? It’s a day outing that starts at 8:30 and ends just after lunchtime.
When? Every day of the year (except Christmas Day). You must book at least one day in advance.
Do i need a 4x4? No, you can also drive it in a 4x2.
Where does the tour start from? From the Sasol service station in Harkerville on the N2 (halfway between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay).
What should i bring? • yourself and your family • your own vehicle and fuel • your own drinks and snacks And food? Lunch at Diepwalle Forestry Station is included, and we stop at one of the river crossings for coffee, tea and fresh fruit.
How much does it cost? R400 per adult, R200 per student and R100 per child under 10. The tour price includes: • Park entrance fees • Two-way radios • Lunch • A professional tour leader and
an experienced guide
What else? Only five vehicles can be accommodated per tour. This is not a technical 4x4 trail and no previous 4x4 experience is required. In case there are bad patches on the road, the Bhejane team members are on hand to help out with their experience and recovery gear to ensure that everyone gets safely to the other side.
The tour leader from Bhejane 4x4 Adventures and an experienced field guide are in contact with each vehicle at all times via two-way radios and gladly share their knowledge of nature, veld driving and the history of the area with you.