READER STORY
Want to sleep under the stars in a hidden canyon? Susan Skog and her friends were the first to do a new two-day trail in the Schaap River Canyon.
Susan Skog hikes a new trail in the Schaap River Canyon in Namaqualand.
Our group of 10 hikers met up in Springbok. Some came from Hermanus, others from Kakamas and Vredendal. We drove in convoy to Nigramoep, a guest farm about 45 km north-west of Springbok. Managers Suzette Louw and Johanna Dirksen van Schalkwyk welcomed us on the farm. After we unpacked, we headed out on the Vingerklip Trail (4,5 km) to warm up our muscles. The veld was scenic – the farm is known for its variety of local vegetation, including Namaqua red balloon, baboon toes and bushman’s candle.
Suzette and Johanna accompanied us on our hike. Suzette ambled along at a slow pace while Johanna moved through the veld like a klipspringer. We soon reached the fingershaped rock formation that gives the short trail its name.
We were excited about the next day’s route. As the people of Namaqualand say: “Maak los die honne en kô stap saam!”
DAY 1 13 KM
After breakfast, around 8 am, two pipe cars transported us to the starting point of the Schaap River Canyon. The veld had perked up after the first winter rains. I saw several colourful pelargoniums – apparently up to 18 species have been recorded on the farm. Quiver trees and butter trees dotted the landscape. We followed a foot path next to a fence. The landscape was rocky and we carefully made our way down a slope to a tributary of the Schaap River. The cliff faces around us glowed redbrown in the sun.
After about an hour, we took out our gas stoves, made coffee and ate biscuits. Then we slung our backpacks over our shoulders and climbed over some big, flat rocks into the sandy riverbed. We walked in the riverbed for about two hours. Quiver trees stood guard on rocky slopes that enclosed us like curtains.
We had lunch in the shade of a big rock, then carried on along the river. Later in the afternoon, we passed a herd of wild donkeys. The canyon had so many stories to tell: Here, an animal had met its end, its skeleton bleached white by the sun; there, a baboon walked past; further on, a leopard…
We stopped for a few minutes at some rocks shaped like organ pipes, and soon after we came to a low-water bridge where we found our luggage – this is where we’d set up camp for the night. We pitched our tents, boiled the kettle and cooked meat and roosterkoek over the coals.
After dinner and a cup of coffee, silence descended on the camp. When I looked up, it felt as if I could reach out and pluck a star from the sky.