Ride Report : Umfolozi River Ride - Sat 9 August

Team

Pathfinder on his Yamaha 400, Stewart on his Can-Am 800, Allister on his Can -Am Limited Edition 800 and myself on my Kymco 300, all rode from Stewart's workshop in Alton to the Bird Park at Eteza on Saturday.

Getting ready

Short stop before the forest section

20 km point in the forest - check quads for branches that often lodge in the CV joints

Lapa stop for a refreshment

Had breakfast at the 'Bird Park' and made our way down to the White Umfolozi riverbed for some action.

The river as we all know, is really dry while some areas seem to have a little more water. There are ‘pay loaders’ digging up sections of the river bed which makes some areas nonnegotiable, an alternate route must to be sought up on the river banks. Crossing the trenches is misleading as they are deeper than expected...

Kymco after a swim....

Clearing water from the exhaust..

First obstacle was a muddy patch of water, deeper than what it looked. The bigger quads sailed through effortlessly, ...thinking I was on par with them, got a little stuck and before I knew it the seat and rear part of my quad was covered with muddy water. Within seconds I was pulled out and the engine was started with much water out of the exhaust. Oh dear! would she ever be the same again?.......... yes as you see, after draining the CVT, we all rode on.

Its all plain sailing until you hit a patch of black clay like mud which lies below a thin layer of river sand and then you bog down…. as you can see. Much pulling and winching eventually got Pathfinder out and then myself, Much fun was had and laughter afterwards, as I tried to clean, not only my quad, but myself.

Lets try a push and some gas..... = no way's..!

Ouch!!!! ...going nowhere...

Bogged to the chassis

After much pushing and pulling, time for a rest and a laugh

On route back - crossing the same trench of water

Later we left the bird park at 17.30 cold, wet and tired, but needless to say, what an enjoyable day. Yet again I watched as the Can-Am's and the Kodiac refuel, whilst I completed the route on a tank of fuel which was 170 Km's …..very impressive used low range once and completed the route with the "big boyz".

Learnings
Beware of sections of the river bed which have soft mud underlying a thin crust of sand.
Worth another trip on the next weekend. Next time we will try and make it to the 40km river point.

Cya, Shelley

Ride Report : Stew and Pathfinder do the Umfolozi river ride - 2nd August 08

Ride Plan.
Two riders : Stew and Pathfinder (Can-Am 800 Max and Yamaha Kodiak 400)
Saturday - Leave Richards Bay, Alton area, head for the River View area and drop down into the White Umfolozi River bed. Head up stream for +- 20km.

Plot an uncharted route from that point to Hluhluwe crossing the N2 north of Mtubatuba. Refuel at Morrisons – overnight at Hakuna Matata Lodge.
Sunday, Leave Hluhluwe area and follow the Eastern Shores of St Lucia area till reaching Monzi area. From Monzi, head up to River View. Lunch at ‘Bird Park’ and travel back to Richards Bay.

Logistics.
Range 150km to Hluhluwe including the river route and 150km return trip via Eastern Shores. This meant that we were to carry extra fuel and water. Overnight goodies & food were transported by car direct to the lodge.

This trip was our fifth trip to Hluhluwe, and this time our challenge was to navigate up the Umfolozi river and then cut a trail from that point to Hluhluwe. With only the two of us riding, the 55km ride from Richards Bay to River View was quicker than normal.

Short stop at the 20 km mark - note the Can-Am's new Bear Claw tires.

Leaving the Bird Park area at Eteza, we traveled down the hill to the river and gained access to the river bed on the east side of the single lane bridge.

Once we dropped down into the river bed, the fun began. The bed is almost entirely flat and sandy with the occasional bolder that had washed down in heavy rains. There are straight sections stretching uninterrupted for almost 500 meters. This allowed Stewart to play with the Can-Am’s power. This quad is awesome, with plenty of sand spray from the ‘Bear Claw’ 27x12R12‘s. The water in the river bed was very low. The water course meanders down the river bed and crossing them was easy with water seldom covering the top of the tires. At one point, the water became too deep to cross and we had to navigate up the bank and around. Here we needed the 4x4 of the quads to climb the lose sand of the river bank. This section will become a problem for 2x4 quads and will require assistance to get through.

Wide open areas with no one else to be seen....

17km up the river we started checking the GPS for possible exits and soon found a road at the top of a hill.

To climb the hill we needed the 4x4 option again and here it became fairly technical until we reached the top, 150 meters above the river.

From here we could see Mtubatuba in the far distance and set a route to bring us out 10km north of Mtubatuba.

Traveling through the rural area we were greeted with the usual cordial waves from the locals. The GPS lead us to a bridge crossing the N2 and we found ourselves back in the familiar forest area heading towards Morrisons for fuel.

The fuel point is operated by friendly, smiling Nicolas of Nyalazi trading store. This point has become a regular stop on our route to Hluhluwe and is situated conveniently 24 km from Hluhluwe.

The return trip was via the eastern shores. The weather was not playing its part and we got soaked.

We arrived at our usual Bird Park point where we enjoyed a toasted sandwich and for the first time a cup of hot coffee rather than the traditional beer.

The last leg of 55km home was uneventful as we continued to be drenched with more rain.


Overnight in Hluhluwe

The overnight stay at Hakuna Matata Lodage on Saturday night, was hosted by Marius. The usual warm welcome and a log fire and braai brought out all the days events. In the morning Marius was introduced to Stewarts Can-Am and we have just learnt that he is now the proud owner of one too. Well done Marius, see you on the next ride…

Ride Summary
Umfolozi river route is certainly on the cards for the next ride. Easy going, but 4x4 is recommended to climb the banks out of the river. The distance over the two days = 300km. Extra fuel should be carried with a tow rope for recovery. Watch this space...

Regards Pathfinder

Ride Report : Richards Bay to Hluhluwe Via Bird Park

submitted by Shelley

Ride Team - Aroon, Zack, Vimal, Stewart, his wife Di, and their son Warren all the way from London, Pathfinder ‘Mitch’, and myself ‘Shelley’

We had discussed this trip on Tuesday over dinner, at that point, I unfortunately could not make it, and this was a trip that Pathfinder would not miss. Second option was to travel up in Aroon’s Colt with Di and my Kymco quad on trailer, then ride back to Richard’s Bay on Sunday morning with the team.

On Friday morning I phoned Pathfinder with good news I was to join the ride up to Hluhluwe,… a very ecstatic Pathfinder. Confirmed accommodation, packed bags with the necessities and dropped Pathfinders Kodiac 400, my Kymco 300, Aroon’s Raptor 700, Zack on Kingquad 700, Vimal on a Polaris 300 Stewart on a Can-Am 800, Warren, also on a Can am 800 Max Limited edition, at Stewart’s workshop in Alton where we were to leave from.

All gathered at 9.30, loaded up trailer with extra fuel and equipment that we did not have to carry with us in order to give more freedom. Waved Di on her way, had a quick briefing, started our quads and said good-bye to all. Left Alton and navigated towards Bird Park. Next stop was the Lapa’s, one of which has a resident owl, not easily seen, as he tends to vacate the lapa as we arrive.

Next stop was a visit to a second lapa picnic area with a swing bridge and a flat deck that looks out over a wetland. A very easy ride up till now, very dusty and stony.

All decided upon a stop at the Bird Park at Eteza for a bite and something cold to drink. Discussed the ride so far and every one was in good spirits.

Next leg was a challenging one as tractors had ploughed the road up for log carriers and heavy-duty vehicles and this went on for about 25 km’s through the forest. Stopped along the way to look for damage to quads and have a chat on how the ride was treating them.
All agreed, … not your average gentle off road.

Back on track and off to Morrison’s, a little trading stall along the way. Met up with the locals, had a chat and a laugh and Stewart entertained the locals with a couple of Can–Am doughnuts, with clouds of dust and a good laugh for all.

Back in the seat again this, this leg took us along a railway line all the way to Hakuna Matata, our over night lodge where Di had been waiting for us since 11.30 am, and being entertained by Marius and his Mom Rachel.

Rachel is quite a character, with her pet Kampuchean monkey’s, they are treated just like children, they feed every four hours and bathe just like human babies.

The sun was just above the horizon and it would be settling down in about an hour after our arrival. Loaded the away team's bikes onto the trailer and bid them a farewell, just after 5PM.

Myself, Pathfinder, Di and Stewart and Warren were to overnight and then ride home on Sunday morning.

The overnighters had a clean up and sat around a log fire prepared for us by Marius, all shared their opinions and ride perform ability and agreed My Kymco 300 handles well for it’s size and very economical, fuel wise.

Sunday dawned a crisp fresh day. We had a cup of coffee and rusk's and a good chat, Marius had a ride on Stewarts Can am and I think he is sold on it. Warmed up our engine’s and bade farewell and agreed to see him in the near future. Took the road down to Charters, Fanies and the St. Lucia estuary. Very impressive; tried to work around the fences that have been erected to keep all out... no chance. Some good challenges but easy riding....;)

Short stop on the banks of Eastern Shores

Crossing the stream on Eastern Shores

Warren has fallen for his borrowed Can–Am… he has to have one…. he was heart sore to have completed his ride. I did take the Can–Am 800 Limited Edition for a short ride, wow and what a beaut. It is a soft, cushioned smooth ride with loads of power, a little too much for my pocket to accommodate.

Fuel consumption comparisons : My Kymco 300 being the most economical, 6 L /100 km, Can – Am being 11 L / 100km’s, - accommodation at Hakuna Matata : R120, pppn, self-catering.

Cya, Shelley

Ride photos : Gorgeous Boy rides again !

A couple of Saturdays ago, Zac joined me on a great ride, with Mitch's crew, all the way to Hluhluwe....expect more photos soon, but here's one taken at the Morrison's spaza, with Zac, Mitch and Shelley in frame....