Cape Town - Some think of the Karoo as flat and empty, a desert of sorts. Hike the Erdvark Trails and you’ll find a different story. The trails are in the Great Karoo’s Nuweveld Mountains, on the working sheep farm Rooiheuwel, north of Leeu Gamka.
Third-generation farmer Flip Vivier inherited the farm from his dad and turned to eco-tourism seven years ago.
Remembering the animal paths from childhood, Flip has created a network of routes spread over the 13 000 hectares of remote mountain land.
They are the first Green Flag-accredited hiking trails in the Great Karoo.
Nights are spent in comfortable, fully-equipped accommodation where Flip will assure you that you are perfectly safe: “You might hear knocking at the door but it’s just a goat,” said Flip.
Hikers spend four days following Erdvark signboards.
Sometimes these signs point to the ground, possibly warning of a steep descent, sometimes they are covered in a profusion of coloured dots, each one representing a hiking, cycling or 4x4 trail.
The routes are well-marked, although some cairns are difficult to see, knocked over by baboons in search of scorpions.
At first the terrain appears harsh, with broken rock devoid of plant life. But this is deceptive. On closer inspection dry-looking grasses soft to the touch blend into sensuous folds on the slopes of mountains. A single flower erupts from multi-coloured pebbles as drops drip slowly from a mossy waterfall. Miracles of nature!
The trails cross parched riverbeds of sand and mud in layers of Beaufort Group rocks. These layers of sandstone and shale indicate a different time, when the area was formed between 235 and 270 million years ago.
The landscape is scattered with enormous “onion-peel” boulders formed by years of harsh sun and wind.
Hikers traverse sheer cliffs, undulating hills with frilly rippling folds, and flat table mountains resembling the shaven heads of monks. Slabs and shale-bands occur in shades ranging from deep red to dusty pink, mauve and olive green.
And everywhere is yellow grass that looks dry but is pliant, soft and alive.
In kloofs there are occasional emerald fountains, amphitheatres and waterfalls streaked white with dassie poo. In deep silence, bokkies, birds, rabbits, frogs and possibly a mountain tortoise can be seen.
Here and there a flower appears like a jewel in the parched landscape.
l Watkins is the author of Adventure Hikes in the Cape Peninsula and Off the Beaten Track.
The trail at a glance
DAY 1, Boplaas to Grootdroom, 13.2km
Hikers set off from Boplaas, possibly to the call of a butcher bird, and follow a jeep track to the turn-off where they join a path and clamber over a fence.
The route ascends a ravine towards Tafelkop, 1 456m, before reaching Sinkdammetjie and the top of a dry waterfall.
The route crosses the plateau and overlooks the Koekemoe River, which flows in March and April; Grootdroom can be seen on the other side. In the distance is a silhouette, resembling Lion’s Head and Table Mountain, known locally as ‘tittie en die tafel’.
DAY 2, Donkerhoek, 8.3km
This circular hike may be short but it certainly is not easy. Initially meandering across the veld, there’s a gradual ascent before reaching enormous black boulders, one with 1920s rock art on it. Karoo fossils are discovered regularly and attract the interest of scientists from all over the world.
After ascending, the route follows the rim of an amphitheatre; the steep loose descent commences at the halfway point.
The rest of the route follows a meandering riverbed where we were lucky to spot a Greater Kudu.
DAY 3, Grootdroom to Boplaas (over Tafelkop 12.8km, or 14.3km around it)
Time to return to Boplaas; the route initially ascends a ravine to an impressive amphitheatre, then onto the plateau where there’s the option of ascending Tafelkop or hiking around it.
Both trails re-join at Taaibosfontein before descending Piekniekval back to Boplaas.
DAY 4, Circular Aar trail, 9km
Starts and ends at Boplaas taking hikers to Erdvark Miernes (ant nest), a beautiful gorge with a ladder descent before returning across a plateau.
Day hikes
Apart from the Aar trail which takes about five hours, there is the 6.2km Piekniekval Trail and the 5.8km Bulhoek Trail.
They also have a 500km network of horse trails.
There are no stables (bring your own horse, fodder and equipment).
Rooiheuwel is also a base from which to take bicycle trips to Sutherland, Merweville on the Rooiberg Pass, Fraserburg on the Oukloof Pass returning via Theekloof Pass, or Beaufort West on the Molteno Pass.
There are three mountainous 4x4 routes with an average grading of between 2 and 3.5, plus two riverbed 4x4 routes.
BOPLAAS
Three nights are spent at Boplaas, previously an old farmhouse now converted for accommodation. Two nights are spent in a solar-powered mountain chalet (Flip and his wife Marge named the cabin ‘Grootdroom’ as it is their dream to retire there one day). The routes will challenge the leisurely hiker but will be relatively easy for experienced hikers. You can carry all your gear in a backpack from from Boplaas to Grootdroom, or take the slackpacking option for a small fee.
The hottest months are from November to March. The Green Flag accreditation system recognises hiking trails that meet minimum standards in terms of trail outlay, accommodation, facilities and service, as well as the conservation of natural resources.
To get there: From the N1, take the tarred R353 from Leeu Gamka, about 80km west of Beaufort West. To book, call Flip and Marge Vivier at Rooiheuwel Guest Farm 023 412 1669, 083 387 6699, flip.marge.vivier@gmail.com, www.rooiheuwel.com
Cape Times
