We get in South Africa early, and we follow a narrow road with lot of traffic, a bit dangerous. The road is hilly, by farm land, mangos, sugar can, pineapple, papaye, and some groves of eucalyptus or cedars. Behind are mountains, on West side, the first line smooth, and then more abrupt with peaks, but they are in the fog. The rain saison is starting. We are approching Kruger game park, and the farm land is now remplaced by private game parks with lodges. It is natural forest, small bush with acacias and thorn trees behind high fences. We join the main highway Maputo Nelspruit, with very a lot of traffic and noise. We cross again sugar cane fields, and it is hilly. We stop at a gazoline station and ask to some van drivers if they go to Nelspruit, but none goes. So we continue on bicycle. When we arrive in Meleulane we go to a BB to sleep.
Next day it is sunny again. we continue cycling the highway, more hilly, along a canyon made by a river, , with bush, at the foot of escarped mountains. It is beautiful, but we cant apreciate it, because of the trafic. And it worsts, as there are road works. half day we turns on left to follow the old road, asfalted too, also with trafic, but with cars mostly, by farms and suburbs along the road. Before Nelspruit we turn on left way to the airport. We stop at a gazoline station for a while, and the owner phone to a friend for a place to camp. The guy should wait for us at a stand with fruits along the road, but we didnt meet him. So we continue a short while, and we ask to camp at a farmer. He drives us to his dam.Today we continue by farm land, very hilly and steep, and very hot, till Riverwhite. This is a town, and we stop to lunch. Martine feels tired so we find a lodge and stay.
Today again is very hot. The road is very hilly, with long steep hills, along forest plantations, mostly eucalyptus, cedars and sometime pine trees. A plantation of alien trees is quickly sad and boring. It misses all the canopy, little trees, flowers, grass, plants and animals and birds. Local plants and animals dont adapt quickly enough to survive inside. Also the farmers harvest the wood each ten years, cutting all the trees, so all the canopy dies by the way. Well they dream to get a lot of money quickly, but I wonder if they realize what that means eucalyptus forests. They get big fires now. Well we continue slowly, hill after hill. The last one is the longer, about 8 km, under a terrible heat. I get slowly at the top. Near the end I have to walk, from a shadow to the next. It is too hot. At the top I stop and seat in the shadow, waiting for Martine. After a while, a van appears and stops at my level. Martine is in. A woman picks her up, she didnt want her to continue pushing the bicycle in that heat. So I put too my bicycle in the van and we fo downhill to Sabie. The woman invites us to stay in his home nearby. Here we meet a neighbour and friend of us. He propose us to bring us back to Nelspruit airport, where we could rent a car. As Martine would like to see animals, I agree too, as by that way we could visit Kruger park. It is too late to get a reservation for a car, so the lady agrees we stay at his home one day more. We just rest and goes shopping in Sabie, which is half a tourist city, half a village. Martine spend all afternoon using internet on her phone to prepar Kruger park visit, and I read about cycling the South Mozambique to choose the following of the travel.
On Sunday morning Roy brings us to the airport where we get a car. And we go to Kruger park where we will stay 2 days. We see a lot of animals, and it is a bit funny to look for them in the small forest. We see also hyenas, as we get to the campsite late. but as we awake late we dont see lions. But it is rather expensive. 250$ for 4 days renting a car with 970 km, 100$ petrol, 90$ fee to stay in the park 2 days, 18$ for camping one night, 40$ for restaurant by the evening and cantine at midday. Then we add 60$ for the transport to the airport, 16$ for the campsite out of Kruger, and 80$ for the room in Pieterburg where we let the car and take one day rest, as Martine drives all the 3 days.
After Kruger park, we get of by Arpen gate and all around are private game parks. We camp in a campsite.
We use the car too to visit Blyde river canyon. The entrance by Arpen side is wonderful, with high mountains in the distance, and then we approach the peaks and see the colourful rocky slopes. Infortunately we are in a car so we cant stop to admire the countryside or take photos. Well we continue, we cross the pass, and we arrive after a long climb on a flat land with fields and farms. The river is further. After a while we get a bit downhill and follow the canyon, but again we cannot stop, cars are stupid things. Then we make a detour and pay 1$ to go to a view point on the lake, beautiful colours and steep falaises. Next view point we have to pay 8$ but we are seek to pay so we dont go. Then we go to see 2 other view points, 1$ each, to see a waterfall and a view of the valley down covered with forest plantation. We walk too a few minutes in the last very small piece of mountain raining forest of South Africa. Well it would be nicer to pay once for all than each time. Then we go to Graspock, which is just a village for tourists, with lodges, restaurants and shops. We continue by a hilly and steep and winding and narrow road, way to Pilgrim Rest, by the forest. We cross the tunnel, and get off the hills. We enters in the platinium mine aera, with housing everywhere, rather flat land between two slopes in the distance, trafic and smoke, sad place. We cross the pass, which is not hard in the end, and the road continues slowly to climb till 1800 m high. We continue by flat farm land and we arrive late in Petierburg, where we go to a lodge. We take one day rest in Pieterburg, just a modern city. The centre is used by official buildings and poor black shoppings and stock halls, and the nice malls and parks are outside.
Next morning the plan is to get a lift by car till the border of Zimbabwe, 230 km away. We cycling till the gazoline station near the airport, and with the help of the employees we ask to van drivers. Quickly a teller finds us a lift till Prichard, 100 km away. We have an interessant chat with the 2 black guys in the car. For the second time we have the opinion of blacks about what is happening now in South Africa. The lift coasts us 10$ and they let ud to the gazoline station by midday. Then we try to get a lift to Messena, but all the van are just local trafic, noone seems to want to go to Zimbabwe. By 5 pm we ask to a farmer in a van, and he proposes us to bring us at the top of the hill, 6 km away, to a farm of his friend. We go there, and we are nicely lodged in a chalet along the dam For free.
The next day we go back to the main road and continue cycling to Zimbabwe. The countryside is totally different. We get off the small bush we had from Pieterburg, to enter since the start of the climb yesterday evening, in a plantation forest, eucalyptus and cedars, and fruit farms, a wet mountains zone. We go down quickly by a very long downhill along a river, which is deep in a narrow canyon, between two cliffs, with peaks here and there. Then we enter in a slighly hilly land with local bush, grey and without leaves as it is yet the dry season. All is highly fenced and used as private game reserves and expensive lodges. We understand it will be impossible to find a place to camp, so we stop 20 km before Messena, at a gazoline station. The lodging is expensive, but the owner proposes us to camp in a lodge she have 3 km before for cheap. So we go. The place seems good, very quiet, in the bush, and used mostly by groups, as there is a big comun hall with bar. In fact by 7 pm it turns in a night club with very loud music and drunks, till 4 am, and we have a very bad sleep.
Next day we move a bit late, tired, and I am in bad mood. But the hilly and easy road cleans the anger, and we arrive in Messena, which is a noisy town crossed by the main highway, with shops and supermarkets along. We stop at the end in the mall to make some shopping and continue way to the border. We stop at the gazoline station just before the border, and we ask the permission to put the bikes in the very large and empty hall of the take away time we eat. But they refuse, so I decide we move away. They dont want the bikes so I dont want the food. We go to the border. On the South African side things goes quickly and easy. It would be harder on the Zimbabwe side.
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