Words by Patrick Cruywagen Pictures by Patrick Cruywagen and Alison Cole
CARACAL ECO ROUTE NAMAQUA NATIONAL PARK
I’ve driven the N7 north from Cape Town towards the Orange River and Namibia a good number of times. This road takes you through some interesting dorpies – places like Vanrhynsdorp, Bitterfontein and Garies, where a pee and a pie are normally the only reasons for stopping before you get back onto the long road north. The next dorpie is Kamieskroon; you have to leave the N7 and drive through this town to reach the Namaqua National Park.
It was late Sunday afternoon when we drove through Kamieskroon and the only hotel in town was all locked up, but we were able to top up on fuel and buy a few bags of rooikrans wood before pushing on to the park, which is about 20 km from the N7.
Park manager Bernard van Lente would later tell us that one of their long-term plans for the park is to extend it all the way to the N7 where they’ll place its entrance, a campsite and other accommodation options – similar to the Karoo National Park which gets many overnight visitors who just happen to be passing by. It’s called passing trade, and it’s a concept that works…
But for now the park’s HQ is at the aptly-named Skilpad, which must have one of the biggest concentrations of tortoises in the world – they’re everywhere! On the road in to Skilpad we see some gemsbok, tortoises and a klipspringer. Just before reaching Skilpad, three bat-eared foxes run just in front of our Nissan Patrol; we crawl along behind them for about 100 metres before they detour off into the bush.
Our chalet was one of the best I’ve come across in any SANParks facility; not only did it have privacy and awesome views over the Kamiesberg Range but it also had DSTV! So we were able to watch South African Charl Schwartzel win the US Masters in Augusta. Less than R500 gets you a top-notch four-sleeper chalet and because you’re staying in the park you don’t have to pay the R100 (also good value) for driving the trail!
We awoke to some light rain and cloudy skies so before hitting the trail we met with Bernard for a trail and park briefing. The Caracal Eco Route is a long one – anywhere between 176 and 200 km, depending on which route you take. Some folk do it all in a day from Skilpad, returning back here via the N7, after reaching the end of the trail at Groenrivier.
To me this is a rushed option plus it’s foolish not to spend at least one night in one of the eight coastal campsites. Leaving our comfortable chalet was difficult so it was already late morning when we left Skilpad; there’s no way we’d be able to drive it in a day. Our destination for the day was Luiperdskloof Cottage, the only other accommodation option before you hit the coastal section of the park.
The Caracal Eco Trail isn’t a vehicle breaker. Explains Bernard: “I don’t like to use the term 4×4 trail; it’s more of a nature drive that gives people the opportunity to see places they wouldn’t normally have access to in one of the fastest growing parks in the country.”
Because visitor numbers are still low (except during the flower season) the park authorities cannot justify spending vast amounts of money on road maintenance and construction so one needs a 4×4 on some of the badly-corrugated roads and the thick sandy sections at the coast.
Navigation on the trail is simple: just follow the numbered yellow caracal signs, plus you get an informative route booklet at the Skilpad office, which includes GPS co-ordinates. But we didn’t have to turn on our GPS even once, as the signs and booklet were more than sufficient. Most people visit this park during the flower season (July to October) as this is when the veld is at its colourful best. During our visit the veld was bare and brown, the rivers dry and the estuaries at the mouths of the Groen and Spoeg Rivers didn’t have any water in them. But this is the easiest time of the year to drive the trail as it’s bone dry; during the rainy season traction isn’t as good and the rivers flow so one has to be more cautious.
The trail begins with a steep cement road descent down the Kamiesberg Mountains; the surrounding kopjes are covered with massive red rocks and reminded me of Mapungubwe. We see a few gemsbok grazing on one of the mountain slopes not far from the road, which don’t seem fazed by our presence – a good sign for this park in progress. We turn off the main road to Soebatsfontein and head in the direction of Kookfontein. There’s no water in the Swartlinjies River so our powerful Patrol easily crunches its way over the sand and rocks of the riverbed. During the rainy winter season this very same river is oft en impassable!
The trail passes several abandoned settlements; we stop at one of these, Kookfontein, which is based around a permanent fountain and some green palm trees. It looks as if they ran some sort of school camp in the area. We treat this stop as a leg stretch; I climb the windmill while Ali practises her balancing skills on some of the obstacles.
The grey clouds above us look heavy – maybe we’re about to have the first decent winter rains for this arid region. After about 60 km of driving we reach the turn-off to the Luiperdskloof cottage, where we’ll be spending the night. You’ll only be able to drive this road to the cottage if you have the key for the gate and cottage with you. I find the road down to the cottage to be the roughest of the whole route. Water has caused erosion and the formation of gulleys, but we keep our big wheels clear of them and easily reach the cottage. Luiperdskloof is dramatically set below some rather huge granite boulders. It’s early afternoon so we decide to go scrambling up these boulders where we enjoy a lovely view.
The cottage derives its name from the leopard which is known to be in the area. Previously, motion-sensor cameras managed to get some pictures of this leopard and today officials know of eight different leopards in the park. During our exploration of the area we manage to find some leopard spoor, but a sighting eludes us.
Unlike at our chalet at Skilpad, there’s no electricity at Luiperdskloof Cottage, only gas for the stove and paraffin for the lanterns. We make a fi re in the braai area outside the back door and light some lanterns, and very quickly we have that delicious feeling of being completely isolated.
One of the highlights of the trail has to be the descent down Wildeperdehoek Pass, which was constructed under the supervision of Duncan Fletcher, whose portrait adorns one of the walls of the Luiperdskloof Cottage. Descending the pass one can see the coast, or in our case the mist covering it. At the bottom of the pass the landscape changes and we drive through one of the only grassy areas in the whole of Namaqualand.
It was tempting to take the direct route to Hondeklip Bay and the coast but we decided to stick to the official trail. I was glad we did as the trail took us through the middle of the Riethuis quartz fields. The landscape here is covered in hundreds and thousands of pieces of quartz. We had to stop and take a walk because in this field of quartz lie various rare succulents. To fully appreciate the flowers of these tiny plants I had to lie on my stomach – I wished I had a magnifying glass to properly see the colours and shapes.
Soon we were at the turn-off to Hondeklip Bay; we could’ve continued straight towards the coast, but as I’m in love with this town, we didn’t. People oft en ask me where they can find the real West Coast and not the overrun Paternoster and Langebaan versions. I say at Hondeklip Bay! It’s a short detour to this town when driving the trail but it’s one definitely worth taking. We had fish and chips at the Skulpieskraal and Rooi Spinnekop Restaurant. They still have an old record player and you can put on your own albums, so you get to choose your food and music! Another must-stop place is the harbour; we timed it perfectly and saw the fishermen coming in. The snoek had just started running in the area and one could pick one up here for much cheaper than in Kalk Bay. That’s how you know this is still the real Weskus.
One can break up the trail by staying at one of the several accommodation options in Hondeklip Bay, but we pushed on to the coastal section of the trail and park. Here one has eight overnight options – all coastal campsites with braai areas and basic toilets. I have driven this coastal section several times but never visited the Spoeg River estuary and caves, so this was our first stop. The caves are protected by the National Monuments Act as this is where the earliest traces of sheep in southern Africa can be found, dating back over 2 000 years. It’s thought that the Khoi people stopped over at these caves as they headed southwards.
This section of the park is one of my favourite places in the world as there are no permanent residents, just people like you who are camping and driving the route. The lack of water makes it a relatively inhospitable area – there’s only one fresh water fountain along this 50 km stretch of coastline. We found many tracks when heading south from the Spoeg to the Groen River. Some have been cordoned off to allow the area to rehabilitate, and turn-off s to the various coastal campsites are all signposted. We’d been told that Koringkorrel Baai was a good one and so that’s where we turned off.
It was here that the returning South African Nazi sympathiser Robey Leibbrandt came ashore and buried his rowboat during WW2. This former South African heavyweight champion was also a trained paratrooper; he was eventually arrested and sentenced to death for being a spy but this was changed to lifetime imprisonment. When the National Party came into power he was released as part of an amnesty deal; he would later return to the very same beach we were camping next to, to recover his buried boat.
Even though we were the only people camping at this specific bay there was a large old army tent pitched here too. I can only assume that people come and put up a tent for the summer and then stay in it when it suits them, which means it takes up a prime camping spot! The reason they’re able to get away with it is that even though the coastal section is officially part of the park, the minister still has to approve specific legislation so that the park can charge for accommodation along this section. We hope that this is done before next summer as the current situation cannot be allowed to continue.
The mist and cloud continued to linger so we made an early evening fi re to warm ourselves. I put a few potatoes in some foil and threw them into the fire. The sun burnt through the clouds while I got our snoek ready for the braai. The coals were still a little too hot, so I went and sat on some rocks so that I could look out at the ocean.
Except for our little foray into Hondeklip Bay, we hadn’t seen another soul on the trail. Tonight I would fall asleep to the sounds of the sea. All this for R100? That’s what it costs to drive the trail. Yes, one day the minister will sign a document and you’ll have to pay to camp along the coast too. I had just fallen in love with the West Coast again for the umpteenth time. I’m already making plans as to how I’m going to convince my editor that I have to come back again during the flower season. That Caracal Eco Trail is like no other 4×4 trail in South Africa. Well done SANParks!
Nissan Patrol GL Diesel
R608 300
On a previous trip to this area I got stuck in the sand. The Patrol was having none of that. What a powerful pleasure it proved to be when driving the thick, sandy sections along the coast. Some of those tracks are pretty badly worn with deep ruts which cause the vehicle to sway from side to side. They say momentum is your friend in sand but I went as slowly as the Patrol could go to prevent us from being thrown around in the cabin.
Once we descended the Wildeperdehoek Pass there was a longs stretch of gravel and I came to understand why the Aussies love this vehicle. I was surprised at how nicely it sits (even in the corners) when powering along the gravel roads. Yes, it’s not the quickest vehicle, and overtaking at freeway speeds takes some planning, but that isn’t a reason not to buy this vehicle.
Overall I was impressed especially when going along at speed on gravel roads or when powering through the thick sand. It is a big vehicle with ample packing space. The Patrol comes standard with a long-range tank. I’m still puzzled as to why this vehicle doesn’t sell well in SA.
GPS POINTS
Skilpad Office
S30°09.489’
E017°46.429’
Turn-off to Luiperdskloof Cottage
S29°57.457’
E017°38.869’
Groen River mouth
S30° 49.751’
E017°34.950’
WHERE WE STAYED
Farr Out Guest House, Paternoster
Once off the trail we headed south and stopped off at Paternoster. This guesthouse, as the name suggests, is set just outside of the village, giving it a bush feel even though you can see the ocean and beach. One of its unique features is the hot tub! More details: www.farrout.co.za or 022) 752 2222.
Namaqua National Park, Skilpad Chalets
Stunning setting, nicely decorated with aircon and DSTV. Has inside and outside braai areas. Towels and lined provided. To book contact the park on (027) 672 1948 or see www.sanparks.org.
Namaqua National Park, Luiperdskloof Cottage
A great stop-over for those doing the trail. Cost is R1 000 per night and it sleeps six. Has paraffin lamps, a gas stove and is fully kitted with all the utensils you might need. To book contact the park on (027) 672 1948 or visit www.sanparks.org.
Namaqua National Park, Koringkorrel Campsite (on the coast)
For now they don’t take bookings and the use of the sites is free on a first-come-first-served basis. It can get busy during crayfish season or holidays. Facilities include braai areas and toilets. The rest you have to bring yourself but it’s worth it. This is the wild West Coast, unspoilt by man.
ROUTE
They will give you a useful brochure when you start the trail at Skilpad. We did not use a GPS and just followed the little yellow caracal signs. The distance can be anything between 176 and 200 km depending on whether you take short cuts. Some do it in a day, I say take your time and overnight at least one night on the trail. If staying in the park you don’t pay to drive the trail; if not you pay R100. To book contact the park on (027) 672 1948 or visit www.sanparks.org.
FUEL
You can fill up at Kamieskroon, but the petrol station closes early evening. You can also buy wood here.
WHERE TO BUY PROVISIONS
You can buy snoek and basics at Hondeklip Bay, but for the rest the trail is in a rather remote area so be prepared to be totally self-sufficient. If staying on the coast don’t forget to take water with you.
ESSENTIAL GEAR
For the thick sand on the coast you must have a tyre pressure gauge, compressor and a snatch strap. You may not pick up wood in the park so bring your own along.
CONVOY OR SOLO
We did it solo, but just make sure you know how to drive your vehicle through thick sand.
ROAD CONDITIONS
The road from the N7 to Skilpad is badly corrugated. So too are some of the roads in the park. The sand tracks along the coast are rutted and full of holes. As for the rest it’s pretty easy going and in good condition.
MAPS & DIRECTIONS
All tracks are on Tracks4Africa and they give you a good trail guide brochure when you start the trail at Skilpad.
VEHICLE REQUIRED
Any 4×4 will be able to do this trail.
RISK
Except for Hondeklip Bay there are no human beings so you are the biggest risk to yourself.
