Three Passes Hike

During the Easter Weekend we hiked with a group of passionate hikers  in the Lotheni area of the Maloti/Drakensberg. We spent 4 days of bliss in the mountains going up Taylors Pass on the 1st day to a tenting spot below The Sisters at 2300m. During the afternoon we were entertained by swirling mist and clouds. We arose the 2nd morning in thick mist and drizzle and not pleasant in the cold weather. We headed off below the The Gable on our way to Elandshoek Pass. The path we walked is used by smugglers who bring dagga down from Lesotho into KZN.....very evident by threads of Basoto blanket and threads of white bags which they carry it in. We finally got to the bottom of Elandshoek Pass and made our way up in the mist and then into the clouds. Our heavy back packs made some of the rock sections and climbing on the pass quite hairy. At some places a slip would have been fatal! As we got near the top of the pass at about 3000m we climbed out of the clouds and into sunshine.....amazing and excited to get some warmth....even though the temp was a couple of degrees above freezing. We came out at the top of the pass at 3100+ m and made our way up a valley towards the top of Giants Castle. The ground was very wet with streams of water everywhere and in places ice on the water and rocks. After an exhausting climb for me, we finally got to the top at 3300m and set up our tent site. The weather that evening was good without any wind or clouds (unusual for the Drakensberg escarpment) .....we awoke the next day to minus 4 temps and the water in my cooking pot frozen.
Before sunrise I walked around looking for a decent photography spot. You will see the panorama I took of the position of our tent site and magnificent views. Warmly dressed we broke camp and headed down towards Lotheni Pass which we were going down off the escarpment. The views were amazing and the first time I have seen a place called Makasa where climbers do winter ice climbing.

As we approached the top of Lotheni Pass I noticed some Basoto poachers going down the pass with 12 hunting dogs. This made me furious as these poachers are depleting the vast herds of Eland which have lived freely in the Drakensberg areas for hundreds of years. This is not our first time to witness this and we have on a previous occasion watched how their dogs pull down an Eland after running it into exhaustion and then chasing it over a cliff. At this time we watched the poachers chop up a carcass and then in bags, take the meat up a pass into Lesotho. We hope that KZN Wildlife get on top of this poaching crisis which could eventually wipe out the Eland population in the Maloto/Drakansberg World Heritage Site!!!! This is the way of Africa... to strip, rape, destroy, kill, wipe out and abuse every natural resource that is left.
We enjoyed coming down Lotheni Pass in sunshine. We picked up another well worn smugglers path which took us onto Ka Pitoli Ridge, a huge ridge from the 2400m level ending near the Lotheni Camp Site. That night we tented by a Tarn in lovely weather and awoke the last day before sunrise to take photos.
We continued walking out along the ridge and finally down into the Lotheni/Elandshoek Valley back to the Lotheni Wildlife office where we had left our vehicles.
A great hike was had by all....batteries recharged and ready to tackle the things of this world.

To see all the photos of our adventure please click on this link........

http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/blog-page_22.html

Vergelegen Hike with 3 ladies.

Had a great hike in the Vergelegen area, up Mlahlangubo Valley and down eMahoshiya Ridge. We tented to the side of Mlahlangubo Pass at the top of eMahoshiya Ridge and in a place for great sunrise photos. The colors of the sunrise were amazing and the big slog in very long grass to get there well worth the effort! This part of the Drakensberg used to be well visited in the old days but now due to a diminishing hiking community the paths are very overgrown and in many places hard to find. The dirt road to Vergelegen definitely needs a bakkie or high clearance vehicle. Well this hike I was outnumbered 3:1 and the ladies did well in the difficult terrain. All the photos can be seen at......  http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/vergelegen-hike.html

A Visit to J&Y and of course the little Noo-noo

Had a nice visit to Jeremy, Yuli & Mila at Salt Rock. How can I describe Mila: good, happy, joyful, confident, kind, intelligent, peaceful, bubbly, outgoing, fun and so much more!! Wow, what an amazing daughter you chaps have.....I wonder what the secret recipe is? .........and Max is on the way, I suppose he will be surfing and kayak fishing by the age of 6. What an awesome family>>>love you all ൠ

See the other pics here.....  http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/j-y.html

Cathedral Peak Photography

Cathedral Peak Photography:

Elaine and myself set off up Mikes Pass on Saturday morning morning on a very hot morning. Our plan was to hike up to the contour path and overnight in a spot where we could photograph the Cathedral Spur coming off the Escarpment. After a 4pm shower under a waterfall (Elaine will tell you that story!!!!) we continued a short distance to a ridge for suitable photography.

Rain drops were falling every now and then...and during the night would continue at times quite hard. At 5pm we poured ourselves a sun downer, watching the ever changing light play before our eyes. It is times like this that will forever remain etched in our minds forever. Better than any TV or movie or anything else, this was just plain awesome! This photo was taken at 5:39 pm....click on these photos for a real view.

A back lit silhouette is very different to a sunrise/front lit mountain. It was moody and ever changing, actually every 5 mins it would be different. At one time a huge sun ray shone through the clouds saying "I am who I am" Wow what majestic presence. At 6:39 another light display came into play...we had to haul our camera's out and capture this mood:

What an amazing time we had and then it was time for a second whiskey :)

Birthday Hike

We planned to celebrate Elaine's birthday in the mountains...in style....well not quite. For us a hot shower, real bed and full course meal is luxury, compared to tenting or sleeping in caves as we normally do. It does come with its disadvantages though, too many people and usually those of the wrong type as we found out. Without going into detail we never slept at all on Saturday night, continually woken up by noisy, inconsiderate and rude people, on a tourism conference hosted by the local government authorities. This bad experience left a bad taste in my mouth and a diminished confidence for the future of our country. The managers of the Lodge paid us back our money in full and were not prepared for the unorganized and disorder that happened that weekend.
All was not lost as we thoroughly enjoyed our hike up from Royal Natal National Park to Witsieshoek Lodge and back the following day. The hike up the Mahai Valley was great with all the rivers and waterfalls flowing strongly. We walked in mist most of the way, a blessing as the next day was a scorcher.

Our return hike was back through The Crack and down some chain ladders into the Mahai Valley and very scenic.

 We arrived back at Royal for a picnic lunch by the river. Thanks to the birthday girl Elaine, Thora, Mark and Irene for a nice time with lots of fun. To see the rest of our photos please go to.......http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/blog-page_24.html

Flowers & Thingies (Macro Photography)

Flowers & Thingies

This is an account of my introduction to macro photography. Father xmas brought me a new toy, a Canon 100mm L  f2.8 Macro Lens and this last weekend was able to try it out in the Drakensberg....more exactly on our hike from Royal Natal National Park to Witsieshoek Lodge. I enjoy landscape photography but the best time for good light is early in the mornings or late in the afternoons and because I enjoy all the thingies along the way have taken to macro photography to fill in the gap when the light is bad during the middle of the day. What I realized is that it is not easy to do macro photography on the move. I did take a tripod but after the 2nd photo stopped using it as it is time consuming, especially when walking with a group of hikers who have no interest in stopping continually. I soon found out that it is better to focus manually as the auto focus is very limited and does not work well when photographing close up. Most of the time I had the end of the lens about 8cm  from the subject and found out that even a 1mm movement changed the focal point in an instant.....so I practiced holding the camera as still as possible, taking a few photos of each subject which would end with maybe one usable photo. To get decent sharp images a studio type set up would be best, but of course all the beautiful thingies are hidden in the wilderness. The more I looked into the beauty around the more I was consumed in it, getting totally lost in my thoughts....totally drowned in the peace of nature. On the last hill just before Witsieshoek Lodge were the most flowers and the rest of the hiking group got there 1 hour before me, as a whole new world opened up before me!!  I would say that I am totally hooked on macro photography....just love it. I shot most of the photos on 200 ISO @ f2.8   so the fast shutter speed compensated for my shaking. Most of the photos have a very small area in focus as you see....I did this on purpose so as to achieve a light blurry feel to the photos, more artistic than exact. The bad blown out light during the day which is terrible for landscape photography, at times enhanced the macro photography giving it an airy overexposed look.

To view the macro photos I took please click on this link...   http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/blog-page_23.html

  

Mellow Yellow

Mellow Yellow

I have known Shaun Smith for many years as he owns the local mechanical workshop where we all take our tractors and implements for repairs and servicing. What always caught my eye was a classic yellow pick up parked in his garage. I have never done motor vehicle photography before so made a date with him to take photos. Shaun is an excellent mechanic and he told me that his apprenticeship was served at Mercedes some 42 years ago. He told me that just as I enjoy hiking in the Drakensberg so he enjoys restoring motor vehicles and this is his passion.....and of course Jenny his wife comes 1st (only if she stops calling it the Yellow Monster) just joking 😁😁😁
Also he made a bucket list earlier in his life and it goes as follows:  To restore (1) a Pick Up (2) a Willys Jeep (3) a Vintage (woody) Pick Up (4) a Worsley car (5).....and a Hot Rod.
Well the Pick Up and Jeep are complete, no 3 and 4 still being worked on and the Hot Rod still a dream.
The International Pick Up was the first completed. An original 1956 S1 20 4W/D (6 cylinder/3.8 lts) complete with original gear box. This pick up I heard was the fastest on the road during its time. Shaun explained how he had to knock out the very rusted up pistons with a block of wood and the steel was so tough that nothing broke. It took 2 years to restore, was bought for R2300 and cost R50000 to complete. Last week he had an offer for R150000 which he turned down...why??? because every time he drives it there is a priceless mellow yellow feeling!!
One thing he mentioned was that the one head light ring was made from a s/steel dog bowl which Jenny bought from PnPay. Can you tell the difference?

The imported one from USA would have cost too much. I asked what was the biggest challenge and he said that the windscreen agents when fitting the original windscreen broke it.....and he could have killed them!!!!! A new windsceen was made in JHB at a cost and installed with rubbers from USA.
Next Shaun built up a 1977 CJ6 Willys Jeep and it took 1 year to complete. The red color suites it totally.
 A 1955 Worsley 1500cc and 1955 International C1 Truck (woody) are being worked on at the moment. Shaun is doing all the wood work himself which is a huge challenge.
The Hot Rod is still in the dream process and I can just imagine the vibrant wild colors and design.

Thanks Shaun and Jenny for a fun photographic session which was done in the late afternoon for decent light and reflection issues.

Enjoy the photos on this link  http://richardhuntphotographer.blogspot.co.za/p/mellow-yellow-photos.html    :)