Ride on the wild side in Addo park
Get set for the ride of your life. That is the call from the Addo Elephant National Park honorary rangers who have organised the Addo Elephant Cycle Charge, a historic fund-raising “ride and camp out with the big five” cycling adventure through the park.
Two armed rangers will accompany the group, which is being kept to just 20 people to ensure that they can be properly protected, former Addo honorary ranger chair Clive Gibson said on Monday.
“We believe this will be the first event of its kind in South Africa and possibly even in the world.
“It is not a race but it will be a ride for warriors. You will experience breathtaking, unspoilt scenery that most people never will,” he said.
The five-day expedition will start at the Darlington Dam in the northwest of the park and proceed along jeep tracks and narrow trails over the Zuurberg mountains.
It will cut through Bedrogsfontein, a Boer War hotspot, and link up with an off-road track built by former Cape governor Sir Harry Smith, crossing through the Zuurberg section into the Nyati section.
The rangers will ride quadbikes and the group will be further supported by an ambulance and two honorary ranger teams in bakkies, acting as pathfinders at the front and sweepers at the back.
“We’ll be carrying everything in the bakkies including food, water, camping equipment and all the cyclists’ kit.”
The route is varied in terms of difficulty and includes many climbs but also some long downhills, he said.
“You will be challenged to ride just 45km daily – but this is not a challenge for the fainthearted.”
Other members of the honorary ranger team would set up tented camps each day to receive the incoming cyclists who would then be “wined and dined in true bush style”.
Gibson said there would be fireside talks each evening from experts in different fields, including on the history of the area, the African penguin and SANParks conservation.
Gibson said cyclists might spot or encounter – or could be watched by – various animals, including elephants, lions, hyenas and buffalo.
“You will wake up to the sound of wild birds and possibly a jackal. You may see hippo in the Sundays River.”
The honorary rangers would organise watches each night on the trail to guard against unwelcome intrusions, he said.
The volunteer honorary rangers have 1,600 members countrywide organised in support of SANParks’s 21 parks, and the Addo corps has 120 members.
Gibson said the funds raised from the ride would assist the Addo team to continue helping the park with conservation and anti-poaching equipment.
The ride is scheduled for October 7-12 and the cost is R15,000 each.
Bookings can be made via cagibson@global.co.za or henwoodglass@iafrica.com