August 30 continued again...

I was surprised to learn that timber production is a large part of this area. There are many paper mills in the region. Pine and eucalyptus are the two trees grown specifically for harvesting.

We also stopped at Berlin Falls. Absolutely beautiful! There are forty waterfalls in this area. Tours are offered that spend a full day traveling from one to another. Interestingly, all are quite accessible and only short walks are needed to reach each sight. Sounds like a great day of photography to me!

God’s Window is at elevation of 4000+ and so called due to the magnificent views, canyons, rock formations, cliffs and waterfalls. Although it was a bit misty when we arrived, the view was spectacular!

Aloe grows wild at this elevation.

We stopped by a local tourist attraction.
Swing jumping... not for the faint of heart.

We stopped for lunch at Harries Pancakes in Graskop. Harries serves traditional African food but is most popular for its pancakes… sweet or savory. I had a pancake wrapped around a banana with cinnamon and caramel. Scrumptious! Barney had a selection from the savory menu… pancake stuffed with trout, avocado, cucumber and other ingredients. How fun to be dining and watching the street vendors, natives and other tourists. The street vendors are very pushy… selling cashews, macadamia nuts, carved figurines and anything else they think you will buy. I did go into a local store and purchased some dung paper items for use as gifts. I have also purchased a number of small items from the vendors at various stops along our route today. Prices are reasonable and always negotiable. Barney has been a great help with all of this. I am not accustomed to this idea of haggling over prices.

We headed back to Gomo Gomo through a number of villages. It was interesting to see the natives and especially the children getting out of school for the day and all the activity in each area. Barney and I had great discussions that included South African politics, tourism, religion, weather, ideas for day trips, South African culture, languages, etc…

I enjoyed my day and the information Barney shared. Guides in this area must pass tests for each province they wish to guide in. Barney was most knowledgeable and an enjoyable companion!

Returned to Gomo Gomo at 5 pm. Time to start packing. I leave tomorrow at noon. Not ready to go. Dinner tonight was beef wellington and pork chops. The menu is repeated every five days, so it all was familiar… and again, delicious.

Spent some time after dinner with Aurobind, a 14 year old boy from Joberg, doing night sky photography. Phil and I had wanted to do this earlier in the week, but the last few evenings that he was here were overcast. Iwan joined us in the far parking lot and we had fun exploring the various camera settings and what we could capture on film. What a feeling it was to be out in the open away from the torches that surround the camp! The heavenly sky was amazing! The quietness, indescribable. Iwan hopes to eventually be a wildlife photographer. He has been blessed with great creativity, as well as his ranger skills. Aurobind and his sister Mandira were a joy to get to know over the past couple of days. They traveled to Gomo Gomo with their mother and grandfather for a brief vacation before school started. Smart, friendly, polite children! How refreshing! Some of the children that I have met this week have not fit that description!

The Milky Way is in the bottom right corner.