Being tamed by the mighty Fish

Being christened into the hiking fraternity by starting with the ’Hell’ back in ’88, I stacked up an impressive array of hikes in a relative short space of time. These included, The Hell, The Otter, The Tsitsikama (3, 5 and 7 days), the Swartberg (3 and 5 days), the Outeniqua (3,5 and yes the 8 day course), the Hakerville and the Swellendam.

Those were the days, merrily hiking in the wonderful wilderness areas of the Southern Cape. But, as with us all, life sometimes takes funny turns and it was nearly 20 years later that Niconette phoned me to ask if I would join them on the Fishriver. With my heart jumping out of my chest and a smile as big as a Peugot 206 grill I calmly said yes as not to sound like a schoolboy who just had his first kiss!

Preparation "F"

Our booking was for the last hike in of the season, which gave us plenty of time to prepare. Asking information about the Fish was like asking for someone to give up state secrets! Some conversations were as follows;

Me; “We’ll be hiking the Fish in August”

Reply; “bad time you will be hiking in other peoples faecal matter (actually the word was K%$k)”

Or

Me; “Do you have any advice on hiking the Fish?”

Reply; “Yes prepare as if you will be running the comrades!”

Or

Me; “what did you pack when you did the Fish river?”

Reply: “Everything, you are in the bush for 5 days!”

Needles to say these conversations made me a bit nervous, as the last time I did anything more physical than channel hopping (on my coach that is) was back in the day when I was a weapons instructor in the Police. A good 5 years has passed since then and I became scared!

Thus began my vigorous regime which included;

·         Talking about hiking the Fishriver;

·         Dreaming about hiking the Fishriver;

·         Finding gadgets to take on the hike;

·         Promising myself to stop smoking before hiking the Fishriver; etc,

Everything except physical exercise! 
Now we all know that before you can attempt the Fish your Doctor has to complete a medical certificate stating that you are in good health, well the problem is that the strain test is not fully explained, thus Douw completed my form in the clubhouse after a round of golf (with a cart that is!).

The smile on my face is fear!

Being in Pretoria we knew that we had a 14 hour trip ahead (15 h 31 min according to google maps) of us. We set of at 02:00 AM heading for Ais-Ais. With the Padkos packed and taking turns to drive and stopping regularly, we still reached Ais-Ais at 16:00. 

We spent our evening at Ais-Ais making the final preparations with Justernini & Brooks consultants and Oom “Ryk-Gert-Louw” for moral support. The ambiance was amazing with the fire burning in one of the most peaceful places in the world.

Here we go!

FLTR: Elke, Ettiene (aka Verkenner Swemmer),
Niconette (aka Nurse Niconette),
myself, Oom David (aka Uncle Davie) 

With my heart pounding, and being short of breath I heaved my bag onto my shoulders and started an experience that will change my life forever!

Standing on the lip of the Canyon with the chain tightly gripped I thought to myself “this is it”, and all the exercise which I did came flooding into my mind, and then the next thought, “I’m stuffed” (actually it was “I’m F@#$ed”)! Many people will tell you that descending is the most strenuous part, don’t believe them, if you are unfit the worst is still to come.

My first evening in the canyon was a blur. I could only focus on food and rest. Lots and lots of rest!

As I’ve mentioned, with all the exercise which I did, it is not wise to enter into the canyon unfit! You not only endanger your own life but also rob your fellow hikers of a great experience. 

Fishriver Paving

Waking up the next after what felt like a coma, I really was in the same position as when I went to bed!, flashbacks of the previous day came flooding into my mind. I knew that we only covered about 6km for day one, which meant that there was still at least 20km for “Fishriver Paving” ahead.

 We reached Palm Springs early and had a brunch and a nice bath (yes greenies, we used bio-degradable, wildlife friendly, very expensive, lightweight soap). The going was good and our spirits were high.

What does this tell you?!

Sticking to our time schedule gave us time to organise the camp and enjoy the offerings which
 we carried with us, sitting in the cool water with a glass of red or a Whiskey while the sun slowly changes the colour of the canyon walls from brown to a bright yellow and then darkness slowly creeps up the wall changing the browns to the full palette of greys and blacks. I will not admit to making a fire in the canyon, as it is illegal, however I can admit to enjoying a nicely “cooked” steak while basking in the glow of a “Bushveld TV” enjoying stories of the day, and what might wait tomorrow.
The "Fish" truly changed the way I see things,it inspired me on a different level, will I go back?, the answer is DEFINITELY!, will I do it differently?, DEFINITELY!
The next trip is planned for 2013 and I am sure it will be a blast.

Well till next time.