Chilling in Clarens…

I passed quickly through Vrede, eager to get to Clarens, where I had planned to stop as early as I could to get some work done on my website… More rolling grassland on the way down to Warden, where I skipped down a short section of the N3 and then turned West, onto the R714 to Bethlehem… The clouds had by now dissipated, and I rode in bright sunshine all the way into the bustling town of Bethlehem, home of one of the most successful BMW Motorcycle dealers in the country, Hochland BMW…  I rode straight through town, and out onto the R711 until I got to the turnoff to Clarens… Here I stopped for a short break, to get some liquid down my throat while my mind went back to previous rides I had made down this same country road… This is a very special place to ride… The Maluti Mountain foothills, with their sandstone Inselbergs rearing their multi-coloured heads out of the undulating countryside around them… Amazing formations, many of them the guardians of ancient Bushman Art, detailing rituals and hunts from long, long ago…a heritage that we should all strive to preserve…

Turnoff to Clarens, and some quiet contemplation...

I had made good time up until this point, so decided to slow things down a little while I considered my options for the next few days… I had “lost” a day in Swaziland due to the weather, and would have been riding into Lesotho today and on to Clocolan tomorrow, but decided to change my routing and ride back this way on my next long leg to Uvongo… My sponsors were expecting me to spend Friday and Saturday at the Maluti Adventure Rally (more about this later…) and if I went into Lesotho today, it would possibly cost me yet another day….

I tootled along, enjoying the scenery and taking some photos “on the fly”… I crossed over the “neck” just outside of Clarens and let gravity take the Big Fella and I down the winding road to the entrance of this picturesque and famous little town… I had hoped to spend the evening with old friends, John and June Matchett, at their home Highland House, but they were not at home, and after riding around town and checking out the various B&B’s that have proliferated here, I opted for a self-catering establishment instead… “Aksente”, was both comfortable and spacious, and after lugging a few pieces of kit up the stairs and into my room on the second floor, I settled in for an evening of “keyboard tickling”…

Aksente Guesthouse, Clarens - Eastern Free State.

But first, the bane of the traveling biker’s “end of day” tasks…washing socks and underwear !! I hung my stuff out to dry on the balcony, trying to keep it out of the landlady’s line of vision… It hardly made for a great advert for potential visitors to her establishment !!

I stood out on the balcony, watching the clouds build up over the Maluti mountains in the distance… Jagged bolts of lightning zapped the peaks as I stood gazing out over the valley below… The sun broke through from somewhere behind me, lighting up a scene that my photographic skills can do no justice to… But I took a stab at it anyway… The valley stretched out before me, bathed in a warm glow that belied the dropping temperature that eventually sent me indoors for a t-shirt…

The sun breaks through, lighting up the clouds over the Maluti's...

I rustled up some coffee from the ample supply of sachets provided by Aksente Guesthouse, and after getting a few of my electronic bits and pieces plugged into their respective chargers, I sat down to think about the the good times and the great rides I had made in these mountains… Rides I had shared with Debbie, and more recently, with my eldest daughter, Roxanne, with whom I had made my “Goodbye Ride” in December, before she flew off to the U.K. , to join Vanessa and her sister, Robyn… There to begin a new chapter of her life…  I had hoped that we would share more of these precious moments together, riding all along the coast and into the Cape, but time and the weather contrived to cut short our time together…. A line from an old Rod Stewart song came to mind, as I sat contemplating my recent past…

“Life is so brief, and time is a thief…,

And like a fist full of sand, it can slip right through your hand…”

The very best of Luck to you Roxanne, may all your dreams come true… And God willing, we’ll ride the high roads again one day… Until then, know that I carry you with me, wrapped tightly, … close to my heart, your name a tattoo on the fabric of my soul…

Some photos to remind you and I of that great ride we made together, and the fun times in Clarens…

Father and Daughter Reunion...

Peek-a-boo...!!

Hers and His... Women and their toiletries !!

Dad's Little Biker Chick...!!

Thinking of Robyn... While she couldn't be with us, we had my younger daughter, Robyn, on our minds... This was our nickname for her when she was just a chubby little girl with a cherubic smile.... Love ya, Robyn !!!

© GBWT 2010