40 days ~ 40 hikes ~ Walking 4 Education
Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire. ~ W.B. Yeats
This morning we joined the walk to Jackal Hill and the Silent Woman. This is a lovely, relatively easy walk through the Fern Forest and then along Bushbuck Ridge towards Sungubala Farm. We passed above the Sungubala Camp and ambled through the forests and over streams on an lovely contour which is Jackal Hill. We ducked down to the river for tasty crunchies and tea. Somehow tea brewed in the mountain tastes extra special!
We paid our respects to the one and only Silent Woman – carved in the 1950’s by William Chalmers. The story goes that he had studied rock art in Cannibal Cavern, became ill and was nursed back to health by Doreen Coventry. The Coventry’s lived on the Cavern farm and then moved to Sungubala and it was at this time that Willy did this carving.
We walked home along the old jeep track. This does bring you past the school, Royal Drakensberg Primary, and then there is the long uphill home….
This walk is definitely one of my favourites and good to do with oldies and kids alike and you are never too out of breath to chat!
An update to our progress…
| Day | Destination | Distance KM | Gain M |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sugarloaf | 7.08 | 565 |
| 2 | Cannibal Cavern | 7.75 | 475 |
| 3 | Natural Pool | 2.72 | 87 |
| 4 | Echo Cave | 5.63 | 321 |
| 5 | Witsieshoek | 12.08 | 886 |
| 6 | Amphitheatre | 9.62 | 726 |
| 7 | Mahai Valley | 11.76 | 143 |
| 8 | Back to Cavern | 14.96 | 477 |
| 9 | Jackal Hill | 7.28 | 206 |
| Total | 78.88 | 3886 |