Final Johannesburg days

The trek back to Johannesburg stayed largely on the main route, saving some time. The 120km/hr speed limit was more like an advisory, with 40% of the traffic easily above that. Fortunately the motorway was in reasonable shape. The haze from the coal burning was pretty evident, with few clear spots across the route over the Drakensberg ranges. Originally a riding target, but passed up as a very challenging start, and a long way off course. Such as it was.
Back to Ronel's slightly familiar bnb, where I reassembled the Pugsley, disgorged the gear trove and braved the Johannesburg streets and byways to shake down the reassembly. A couple of steep grassy climbs reminded me it was 1500 masl, 30x my usual NZ riding altitude.
A repeat the following day wasn't much better but covered a wider area 4 good bike shops including 1 where I was treated to decent coffee, and contained a pretty desirable Hope Pro4 single speed hub. I'd been looking for one for a couple of years. The irony. Not this time it seems.
These few days included a trip to Braamfontein. The base for Wits University and it's highly regarded museum, which unfortunately was undergoing renovation, so not much on offer. The nearby Origin Centre was a great primer fit the next days destination. The Cradle of humankind, probably the most important paleoanthropological site in the world, tracing millions of years of evolution.Leia mais