Queen Rose hiking trail Nov 2009

I picked Gordon up at university and drove through to Middelburg to pick Nicola up. We left her place at 4pm and drove without incident first to Machadodorp then on the R541 towards Badplaas and then towards Barberton. The directions given were very good and we reached the hut at dusk in very rainy and wet weather. It was the XTrail’s very first trip, having bought it only 3 days previously – it did marvelously well on the muddy and rocky track into the hut. We were dismayed to discover there were no electricity in the hut – at least, it was off at the time. But we were happy to see that someone had the foresight to store the wood for a fire on the stoep where it was kept dry. There was a mobile braai drum in the lapa which Gordon, Nicola and I promptly moved onto the stoep, stacked some of the blue gum logs in it and got my stove out to start the fire with. Another couple arrived in the mean time and settled in as well. It took us some time to get the logs burning with the stove and it was a smoky business. Eventually I managed to chop some finer pieces with an axe and it wasn’t long before we had a pretty decent fire going. The owner of the hike popped in to say hi and apologise for the lack of electricity but it wasn’t long after that the electricity did come back on. I was impatient for food and before the embers were properly settled, had our meat going. Another couple arrived and also settled in and after dinner we spent some time reading before going to bed.

Day 1 (07 Nov): Soon after first light, the three of us were up and about, had breakfast and packed up without a peep from any of the other people. We had our packs on our backs at 06:15 and started up the driveway towards a pine plantation. The weather was overcast and cool – very pleasant walking conditions. We gained some height through the pine before starting a more level walk through some indigenous forest and open grassland. Gordon went ahead while Nicola and I brought up the rear. We were lucky to spot a Red-chested cuckoo and later heard the continuous calling of Black cuckoos. We reached the top of Roland’s staircase, a steep and slippery descent to the river through some evergreen forest. At the bottom we found Gordon waiting for us and as we rested a bit, I spotted an Olive woodpecker flying in and out of a dead stump close to us – a lifer! From here we walked next to the river, crossing it many times with only a rough cable spanning the stream. We estimated that the water level is quite a bit higher than usual as it didn’t take us long to get quite wet – at one point I slipped and ended up face down in the river, with my binoculars, bird book and PDA all getting drenched. Luckily the PDA got saved by its neoprene cover but the binoculars got wet inside and it wasn’t until I got home that I was able to let it dry out properly. After about 14 or 16 crossings we finally got onto a faint jeep track that eventually turned into a track again that climbed across a rocky slope. We traversed along this slope until suddenly some farms appeared directly below us. The path then descended sharply back to the access road and it wasn’t long before we reached the hut. In the mean time it had started dripping lightly so we were glad to be under cover. The hut had a nice tiled stoep in front and we spent the rest of the afternoon lazing about. The other people showed up about an hour after us. Around 4pm, Nicola started the fire and by 6pm we had decent coals for a nice braai that included coconut marshmallow starters. Not long after dinner we hit the bed and read for a while before drifting off.

Day 2 (08 Nov): Once again we were up at first light, ate and were on our way around 06:20. There were some clouds around but it promised to be a hot and sunny day. The path veered down to the stream and then next to it for a considerable time. Before halfway we were rewarded with clear calls of an African emerald cuckoo – lifer number two for the trip! The path ascended steadily and it proved to be hot going in the early morning sun. After the GPS point, Gordon and I went ahead for a while but before Kupid falls I waited for Nicola to catch up. From there I kept on waiting now and again until she caught up with me shortly before the final climb to the hut. By this time we were all sore and tired and relished the shower despite it being cold. We were on our way just after 11am.

A really delightful hike with fantastic birding, lots of indigenous forest and streams. Its not even that difficult a hike – perhaps the erosion protection in places could have been a bit better but all in all a really great trip.