Born and bred in the little English-like village of Hilton, Kwazulu Natal, I grew up gazing at the Inhlosane through the car window on my morning drive to school. Admittedly I was usually in a sleepy daze and the view was usually hampered by the ever-present mist that blankets our town in a cozy whiteness reminiscent of the inside of a ping pong ball. The name Inhlosane is the Zulu translation for "The Maiden's Breast" - an accurate description of the mountain that forms the corner boundary to several farms in the rolling green serenity affectionately known as the Midlands.
In 2007 Luke and I were still in the nervous beginnings of our new relationship, the point at which you dare not blow your nose in front of your significant other for fear of sounding like an elephant with its trunk immersed in a swamp. For this reason, my excitement for stretching my fifteen year old legs on a much loved morning hike up the Inhlosane was tinged with apprehension at how attractive Luke would find me once my disloyal body dispelled my Wonder Woman aura by sweating - alas that I am forced to suffer from this human tendency!
On the day of our planned hike we woke early to long shadows and a clear crisp African sky stretching azure and limitless above us. When Luke's maroon Ford bakkie (named Rufus - don't ask me why) pulled up to my house, it became clear I would have to squeeze into the five-seated vehicle with five other people. Luckily the group consisted of Andrew (Luke's dad), Luke's sprightly six year old sister Kelsey with arms and legs like noodles and the fat content of a button, Luke's eleven year old brother James who was built along the same lines as his sister due to his fussy nature when it came to food (many a meal was accompanied by the words: "Daaaad, what's that white thing?" to which his father would sigh deeply and reply: "James, it's rice - just eat it!"), and finally James's friend who shall forever be known to me as the Energizer Bunny. I say "luckily" because having three very small people in the car with three normal sized people made the 45 minute drive to the mountain far more comfortable than expected.
We started our actual hike up the Inhlosane from a farm based at the back of the mountain. It didn't cost a cent although Andrew did phone the farm owners beforehand to obtain their permission to the parking of Rufus on their property. The first section was very gentle as we were tramping along the flat meadows grazed by the local livestock of cows, cows and more cows. Once we had hopped, skipped and jumped our way past the landmines left by said cows and the trenches formed by meandering streams, it was time to charge the steep incline that made up most of the hike. Up one hill, down a cleft, only to climb the next section to higher heights was exhausting but highly rewarding at the same time. Luke and I strolled at a reasonable if somewhat breathless pace, holding hands and chatting our way through our life stories, future goals, likes and dislikes. Not far behind us Kelsey ambled along in a dwaal, and behind her Andrew constantly encouraged his faltering son James to keep going. The first of our little group to make the top of the mountain was the Energizer Bunny - surprise surprise. That boy bounced up the mountain like a goat on steroids a full half hour earlier than Luke and myself!
All in all the hike to the top spanned about two hours. Had we all been fit and healthy adults it most certainly would have taken less time, so bear that in mind if you ever decide to 'take a hike' (so to speak). Sitting on a big rock, munching on biltong, apples and other yummy things, the term that most aptly described the stretch of farmland so far below me was "patchwork quilt". It became clear to me just how much we as a human race worship symmetry, with all the roads, fences, avenues of Plane trees and even rivers being manipulated towards a straight and square world defined by boundaries. To be sitting so far above that hazy view, in a detached way I felt that I had no boundaries. I believe that this feeling of elation and self-sustaining freedom is the root to my addiction to getting myself lost in nature, and true to the definition of every addict I would not give up my total immersion in God's splendid Earth for all the cheddar cheese in the world (Wallace: "Cheeeeese Gromit!").
An hour long jaunt down the mountain had Luke and I waiting by Rufus first. Unfortunately by this time Luke was suffering from a raging thirst. His need was so great he even attempted drinking from the windscreen washer before he was abruptly made to realise that this water contained soap. When his family arrived half an hour later, he begged his father to stop off at the nearest shop for something to drink. After five minutes of driving Andrew stopped the car midway across a bridge and pointed to the river flowing beneath us with a grin on his face. Luke got the point and made do with the cold fresh berg water - officially the most thirst-quenching and delicious water to be had in Africa!
The morning hike was a success, and the only major cost was the petrol required to get there and back. To this day, it remains one of my fondest memories and I strongly recommend anyone and everyone in the area to make the half-day trip to the top the Inhlosane as it is one of the most rewarding experiences to be had on a sunny day in the Midlands.
In 2007 Luke and I were still in the nervous beginnings of our new relationship, the point at which you dare not blow your nose in front of your significant other for fear of sounding like an elephant with its trunk immersed in a swamp. For this reason, my excitement for stretching my fifteen year old legs on a much loved morning hike up the Inhlosane was tinged with apprehension at how attractive Luke would find me once my disloyal body dispelled my Wonder Woman aura by sweating - alas that I am forced to suffer from this human tendency!
On the day of our planned hike we woke early to long shadows and a clear crisp African sky stretching azure and limitless above us. When Luke's maroon Ford bakkie (named Rufus - don't ask me why) pulled up to my house, it became clear I would have to squeeze into the five-seated vehicle with five other people. Luckily the group consisted of Andrew (Luke's dad), Luke's sprightly six year old sister Kelsey with arms and legs like noodles and the fat content of a button, Luke's eleven year old brother James who was built along the same lines as his sister due to his fussy nature when it came to food (many a meal was accompanied by the words: "Daaaad, what's that white thing?" to which his father would sigh deeply and reply: "James, it's rice - just eat it!"), and finally James's friend who shall forever be known to me as the Energizer Bunny. I say "luckily" because having three very small people in the car with three normal sized people made the 45 minute drive to the mountain far more comfortable than expected.
We started our actual hike up the Inhlosane from a farm based at the back of the mountain. It didn't cost a cent although Andrew did phone the farm owners beforehand to obtain their permission to the parking of Rufus on their property. The first section was very gentle as we were tramping along the flat meadows grazed by the local livestock of cows, cows and more cows. Once we had hopped, skipped and jumped our way past the landmines left by said cows and the trenches formed by meandering streams, it was time to charge the steep incline that made up most of the hike. Up one hill, down a cleft, only to climb the next section to higher heights was exhausting but highly rewarding at the same time. Luke and I strolled at a reasonable if somewhat breathless pace, holding hands and chatting our way through our life stories, future goals, likes and dislikes. Not far behind us Kelsey ambled along in a dwaal, and behind her Andrew constantly encouraged his faltering son James to keep going. The first of our little group to make the top of the mountain was the Energizer Bunny - surprise surprise. That boy bounced up the mountain like a goat on steroids a full half hour earlier than Luke and myself!
All in all the hike to the top spanned about two hours. Had we all been fit and healthy adults it most certainly would have taken less time, so bear that in mind if you ever decide to 'take a hike' (so to speak). Sitting on a big rock, munching on biltong, apples and other yummy things, the term that most aptly described the stretch of farmland so far below me was "patchwork quilt". It became clear to me just how much we as a human race worship symmetry, with all the roads, fences, avenues of Plane trees and even rivers being manipulated towards a straight and square world defined by boundaries. To be sitting so far above that hazy view, in a detached way I felt that I had no boundaries. I believe that this feeling of elation and self-sustaining freedom is the root to my addiction to getting myself lost in nature, and true to the definition of every addict I would not give up my total immersion in God's splendid Earth for all the cheddar cheese in the world (Wallace: "Cheeeeese Gromit!").
An hour long jaunt down the mountain had Luke and I waiting by Rufus first. Unfortunately by this time Luke was suffering from a raging thirst. His need was so great he even attempted drinking from the windscreen washer before he was abruptly made to realise that this water contained soap. When his family arrived half an hour later, he begged his father to stop off at the nearest shop for something to drink. After five minutes of driving Andrew stopped the car midway across a bridge and pointed to the river flowing beneath us with a grin on his face. Luke got the point and made do with the cold fresh berg water - officially the most thirst-quenching and delicious water to be had in Africa!
The morning hike was a success, and the only major cost was the petrol required to get there and back. To this day, it remains one of my fondest memories and I strongly recommend anyone and everyone in the area to make the half-day trip to the top the Inhlosane as it is one of the most rewarding experiences to be had on a sunny day in the Midlands.
