Brits, Boschoek and Swartruggens

After a later start , due to saddle hunting, I followed the bike map app route through some pretty marginal trail area, intersecting with the highway to Sin City on the outskirts of town. Sticking to the route I crossed over and joined a local eco trail, through bush and mixed sand and dirt. No one else in sight, it was a quiet 20 minutes to avoid 10 minutes of highway. It ended at a locked gate, fortunately low enough to enable a lift over, minus gear. A further 10 minutes and back on the highway I'd just taken time to miss. That's life.
As I sat outside the supermarket at Boshoek I, foolishly, gifted my pastry to a guy collecting bottles from the area. Immediately realizing the mistake, I started hunting for a place to stay. As I was doing that Lappies wandered up and started chatting. Shortly after we were getting a few beers and heading back home to meet his wife Ronel. We talked, as Ronel and Lappies cooked a substantial dinner and I washed and settled into a spare bedroom. Great folk, as have been all but a single Johannesburg big city moment , in South Africa.
Next morning Lappies and I walked down to the supermarket, I jumped on the N4 to the Swartruggens junction.
After 5 few ks a left sweep delivered me to the western access road. It is surrounded by vast fenced and gated scrub/bush enclosures. Game safaris clearly big business in this area. Some ornate ironwork, as well, as giant animal statues, at most entrances. Not much sign of game. Fabulous expansive landscapes and eroded rock and sandstone hillside dominating the horizon.
Being Sunday, most businesses were closed. The road was also largely traffic free till midday. The infamous Sun City was in these parts, but more northerly than my directly westerly route. Rolling hills once again reminded me about the extras I was probably unnecessarily carting. The folding chair and newly acquired folding table, 2kgs or theresbouts as well as the extra clothing more appropriate for ongoing safaris, which could happen in all of the upcoming countries.
It wasn't a long ride, but the temperature was climbing. Afterr 30 km I stopped into a closed roadside shop, set back about 200 meters and found some shade to shelter from the beating sun. Out popped a late 50s gent wondering what I was doing. Bike diplomacy swung into action and I ended up getting gifted a bottle of chilled water and some coke for my troubles. I've yet to have an angry word or an off hand encounter in my travels so far. If only the driving was the same.
Rolling into Swartruggens I skipped the set prices, single hotel , skipped the, cash only, cheaper option and found a quiet bnb on the town edge, cheapest of all. I'd had my first Wimpys, a chain burger joint, and grabbed some other food at the local supermarket. Being Sunday beer was not available. Although one of the local bars was pumping.Read more