(the Great Karoo continued) 
"Die Pophuise" the beautifully restored cottage where we stayed in Graaff-Reinet From New Bethesda our route took us through the mountains to Graaff-Reinet - the gem of the Great Karoo. I was looking forward to stay in "Die Pophuise" a guesthouse recommended by Glenda. I learnt beforehand that this guesthouse was one of the many restored historical buildings in town. We received a friendly welcome to a charming little cottage by our friendly hostess Ms De Matteus. She immediately told us about the myriad things to do and see in Graaff-Reinet but urged us to go to the Valley of Desolation first to experience the sunset in the mountains. So we settled in and were on our way soon again to the Karoo Nature Reserve just outside the town. The steep road to the top of the mountain nearly got the better of me and Peter had to take over the driving before we even got to the top. I am simply not made for these types of altitudes on narrow roads. The views however were nothing less than spectacular! The original road was constructed by labourers using picks, shovels and barrows, and some dynamite here and there and completed in 1930. It is still basically the same narrow road but was tarred in 1978. Information displays at the various lookout points and car park provide interesting facts about the flora and fauna of the park and the effect of bio-diversity brought about by the change in altitude. From the toposcope, a set off point for paragliders, one has a panoramic view of Graaff-Reinet way down in the valley 750 metres below the lookout point. A short walk from the next car park along a well marked trail through the dense vegetation brings one to what is known as the Valley of Desolation - also known as the "Cathedral of the Mountains". 
Graaff-Reinet as seen from the toposcope Gazing upon the enormous columns of weathered and eroded dolerite is almost a spiritual experience and emphasizes the unbelievable impact and power of the forces of nature and the effects of the elements over millions of years creating this awesome spectacle. One can almost "feel" the presence of the extinct ancient Karoo reptiles that roamed these plains even before the advent of birds, mammals and man. To many people the hot, dry plains and koppies (hillocks) of the Karoo holds little fascination but for scientists and those of us who stand in wonder at the forces of nature, the fossils found in this particular area of the Karoo provides insight into a land of hundreds of millions of years ago. After spending some time looking at the impressive dolerite columns we followed the crag lizard trail that starts at the car park. It is a mountain top walk that provides magnificent views of the surrounding Karoo mountains. It was getting dark however and I was a little anxious that we would not have enough time to complete the 45-minute walk before sunset. I must confess that I was scared of being trapped after dark having to go back down the steep mountain road. So we only completed a part of the trail before returning to the car and driving back as the sun set in a blaze of gold while we were travelling down the mountain. When we got back into town we bought some fresh food and wine at a supermarket and had a nice meal in our beautiful little "Pophuis". I spent the rest of the evening downloading the numerous photos that I took in the Valley of Desolation and reading pamphlets about Graaff-Reinet and the surrounding area while Peter applied himself to his important daily journal entries. A little about geology I was so fascinated by the scenery of the Valley of Desolation that I feel compelled to include some information on how this awesome valley was formed millions of years ago...so allow me a short lecture on geology and paleontology...
(Reference: I found the following interesting information in a brochure of the Department of Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism, Directorate of Nature Conservation of the Eastern Province.)
The typical Karoo hills and koppies around Graaff-Reinet (that forms part of what is known as the Karoo Supergroup), stands out as layers of rock that was formed from mud, sand and clay washed down by slow meandering rivers into the low-lying marshy Karoo Basin that existed around 200 million years ago. At that time Southern Africa was a flat land that formed part of Gondwanaland where lush vegetation supported a large and varied animal population. By looking at the land today one can hardly imagine dinosaurs and the early ancestors of warm-blooded animals roaming the vast marshes. Over many years time and pressure converted the sandy deposits to hard rock forming the sandstone and shales that can be seen in the various layers of the koppies today. Valley of Desolation Many years later - about 160 to 180 million years ago, volcanic eruptions laid waste much of Africa. Not all of the molten rock, called magma, found its way to the surface. Enormous quantities were forced into cracks and fissures in the sandstones and into the spaces between the layered sediments. On solidification the magma formed the rock known as dolerite or "ysterklip" (iron stone) in horizontal layers as well as vertical sheets. Over many more years masses of material eroded from the Karoo Basin and was washed to the sea where it now constitutes the continental shelf. A particularly thick sill of dolerite may be seen in the hillsides surrounding the Valley of Desolation. The Valley itself was formed by erosion along a narrow steep sided cleft on the side of the mountain, probably caused from stresses in the earth's crust a few million years after the dolerite was emplaced. The prominent rock pinnacles were formed by erosion along vertical cracks in the dolerite - cracks that developed as the magma solidified and contracted while cooling. The paleontology of the Karoo is also a fascinating field of study and fossils from the Karoo reveal much of the land that emerged from the Ice age around 250 million years ago. The uniqueness of the Karoo Basin, as known to geologists, lies partly in the fact that its 50-million-year fossil record, covering a period from 240 to 190 million years ago is largely unbroken. This means that the intricate evolutionary pathways followed by different animal groups through time can be more closely traced than in other fossil-bearing systems of rock strata. The fossils displayed in the Reinet Museum in Graaff-Reinet are from an extensive collection made over an 18-year period and are of interest to scientists from all over the world. Graaff-Reinet 
Graaff-Reinet Main Street Apart from its archeological and paleontological significance Graaff-Reinet is also one of the best preserved historical places in South Africa with more than 200 historical monument buildings! The town that lies in a crook of the Sundays River was established in 1786. This was the fourth district to be proclaimed in South Africa and received a "Drostdy" or seat of government named after Cornelis, Jacob van de Graaf and his wife Reynet and is only one of two towns named after Dutch Governors. Graaff-Reinet was also one of the starting points for the exodus of the Voortrekkers from the late 18th century and was a bustling center of trading as early as 1865 when there were "sixty four recognized public 'outspans'". These were places where the traders stopped over to rest, water and feed their oxen and inns were established to accommodate the travellers. So today Graaff-Reinet provides places of interest around every corner. The most impressive building is possibly the Dutch Reformed Church right in the center of the town. However, many other beautifully restored buildings beckon the traveler to walk back into history and enjoy a glimpse of what life was like many years ago. The Graaff-Reinet Publicity Association lists no less than 23 buildings of historical interest including ones such as a Victorian Pharmacy, an old library building, various art museums and many other interesting places.
Unfortunately we had too little time to visit many of them but we did pay a short visit to the Reinet Museum before we commenced our travels through the Karoo to George and the Garden Route. 
Grootrivier Mountains near Uniondale From Graaff-Reinet we travelled through the Karoo past the towns of Aberdeen and Willowmore. We stopped briefly at Aberdeen, the town where my mother was born. Along the way we made several stops just to enjoy the vast scenery. We stopped at the top of the Potjesberg pass overlooking the valleys near Uniondale. We drove past ostrich farms and orchards all through the mountains. Just before we reached the Outeniqua Mountains we came across the hops farms and we simply HAD to stop to allow Peter to give me an impromptu on site lecture on this very important ingredient of his favourite drink! We stopped at a road stall next to the hops fields and the owner of the farm and road stall allowed us to go for a walk right up to the hops to have closer look at the hops flowers and to take photographs. A few kilometers after the hops farm we stopped at the top of the Outeniqua pass and to look down on George far below in the valley where Glenda awaited our arrival. Upon arriving in George we spent some time with Glenda before we settled in at the guesthouse owned by her friends. Towards sunset we first drove south to Herold's Bay where we hoped to find a nice restaurant. By the time we got to the beach a thick mist started rolling in from the ocean and we decided to drive on to Wilderness where we found a nice restaurant where we had ostrich meat for dinner. A good start to the delights that awaited us in yet another scenically superb part of South Africa. 
A closer look at hops
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