Where We Be
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| The Three Rondavels are the three conical formations at the left of the photo -- the ones topped with green and shaped like traditional African huts (rondavels) |
| Blyde River Canyon, South Africa |
We pick up our car rental at Joburg airport and
begin our one-month road trip through north-
eastern South Africa. This trip is mainly about
exploring Kruger National Park, where we plan
to spend nine whole days reveling in self-drive
safaris and wild animals galore. But before that,
we want to visit another special place called the
Blyde River Canyon, and especially its endpoint,
known as the Three Rondavels (pictured left).
We base ourselves in the tiny town of Graskop,
which is tucked up in the northern Drakensberg
Mountains. Graskop makes a perfect base for
exploring what's known as the Panorama Route,
which includes not only the Three Rondavels
Lookout but also a spot called Bourke's Luck
Potholes (more on that below) and several
other scenic overlooks. As it turns out, the one
day we have to visit the Panorama Route is
socked in with fog and rain, so it's an act of faith
to even begin driving towards Blyde River
Canyon. But by some miracle, the fog and rain
abate enough for us to get some lovely views
of both Bourke's Luck Potholes and the Three
Rondavels before the day is done. Hallelujah!
begin our one-month road trip through north-
eastern South Africa. This trip is mainly about
exploring Kruger National Park, where we plan
to spend nine whole days reveling in self-drive
safaris and wild animals galore. But before that,
we want to visit another special place called the
Blyde River Canyon, and especially its endpoint,
known as the Three Rondavels (pictured left).
We base ourselves in the tiny town of Graskop,
which is tucked up in the northern Drakensberg
Mountains. Graskop makes a perfect base for
exploring what's known as the Panorama Route,
which includes not only the Three Rondavels
Lookout but also a spot called Bourke's Luck
Potholes (more on that below) and several
other scenic overlooks. As it turns out, the one
day we have to visit the Panorama Route is
socked in with fog and rain, so it's an act of faith
to even begin driving towards Blyde River
Canyon. But by some miracle, the fog and rain
abate enough for us to get some lovely views
of both Bourke's Luck Potholes and the Three
Rondavels before the day is done. Hallelujah!
| Now back to Blyde River Canyon. A forty-minute drive gets us to Bourke’s Luck Potholes, so-called because Bourke thought gold was here (but it wasn’t, so his luck wasn’t very good) |
| It’s an odd geologic phenomenon with scooped-out rocks in a deep river canyon |
| Over thousands of years, swirling eddies of pebble-filled water formed these huge cylindrical potholes in the sandstone |
| Artist's name: Erosion |
| Bridges and viewing platforms let you see the artist's work from different angles |
| Water still carves away at the rocks -- but much more slowly now |
| Our luck is better than Bourke's -- no gold, but the rain ends and the sun pops out just as we start touring here |
| We continue up the road to Three Rondavels Lookout -- and the higher we go, the foggier it gets. By the time we reach the lookout, this is our view. Bourke's luck strikes again! |
| This is the premier stop along the entire Panorama Route -- but not in a fog bank. Patience pays off, however, and after half an hour the mists begin to part. |
| Conditions change from minute to minute -- and at one point we see an almost-360-degree rainbow |
| Then disippates again -- and slowly but surely, the view unveils itself before us |
| Finally the view becomes splendid, and unlucky Bourke crawls back into his pothole, never to be heard from again |
| We return to our cozy little nest at Zur Alten Mine (about seven minutes outside the town of Graskop) |
| A roaring fire is just the ticket as the day comes to a close |
| FYI: you'll be charged double the usual rate as an international tourist: 130 rand (~$8 US) each. Still, that's less than the cost of a movie, and for a show that took millions of years to create. |
| We love our little Suzuki S-Presso, which has more clearance than your average econo-rental, making it great for exploring Kruger and other parks in South Africa |
| This is what we're supposed to see |
| The fog bank returns in force... |
| Our cabin (#7) sits at the edge of a lovely pond |
| Let's step back for a moment and have a look at our entire one-month loop through northeastern South Africa, beginning and ending in Joburg. It's ambitious but manageable in a month. Note that it does not include Cape Town (much further southwest). Nearly one third of our trip (9 days) is spent in Kruger National Park, but that still leaves 21 days to explore other less touristed regions, including landlocked Eswatini and Lesotho. |
