Our approach to Leg 2 was different from Leg 1 because we knew some of what it was all about. We adjusted our equipment slightly, and I chose a pair of white desert gaiters to completely cover my shoes and prevent anything coming in through the mesh of my trail running shoes. They stood out like sore thumbs and attracted a few laughs from the group which had also adjusted, but only by one person. Fortunately, the bush changed them from white to brown quite quickly, they were almost torn off completely and were not a success.
We left Howick on August 17, 2019, and headed for Kaap Se Hoop, just outside Nelspruit. We would overnight there before heading for Shingwedzi to meet up to start the second leg of our biggest walking adventure.
I made the same mistake I had on the night after the previous leg, and stayed up too late and had a few too many beers around the fire, talking to a good friend about life and relationships. While worth it at the time, the next day I paid the price and struggled to shrug the hangover and we walked down the widening river bed. It was not only physically hard, but I also struggled to connect to the bush and nature, and it felt a bit flat compared to what we had experienced in the first leg. In hindsight the beer was to blame. Most impurities, including digital and food, dampen my ability to be in tune with nature and feel immersed.
We enjoyed a few breaks under the trees along the way, with some of the group choosing to climb the trees, perhaps searching to reestablish that connection with nature.
The sun was hot in the afternoon, and the number of dongas we had to walk through as we followed the dry river increased in number and size. So, while a river can be quite a flat place to walk, our route meant lots of short, sharp descents and climbs. Our water supply meant digging in the riverbed, so we needed to get them with some light, so we pushed through. The elephants had done some of the work, but we needed to go deeper and secure the sand with rocks so we could scoop our bottles fill. We set camp at the top of the river bank with a steep drop-off, which meant that nothing could approach our camp from that side.
That night, our guides sat separately for the first time. We lay on our backs and gazed at the stars, it was a dark night. In the morning, a fresh set of lion tracks was on the path only 50m from our camp.
Over the next few days, we would sink deeper, and nature would take effect. But Leg 2 had a different tone and feeling. While on leg 1 there had been almost no conflict between people, leg 2 felt different, and the people element would enter the fray. In leg 1 we were all so overwhelmed by the experience, and we didn’t all know one other very well, some of the group only met for the first time on leg 1. Only 1 person changed into leg 2. Now the honeymoon was over, and being out there with no comforts can be intense. You are around other people most of the day, often in a quiet and peaceful way. You only get snippets of solitude, like when you go to the toilet, shower or in your tent at night. There is the present, the other people and your own thoughts. I find those are the three dimensions. Breaks and campfire sides mean chatting. Funny, serious, arbitrary, all the different topics come out. Walking means silence other than the sound of the group feet and the rub against trees, grass and bushes. The toilet/shower means alone, quiet and naked.
How much you bring on the trail is up to you, not only in equipment, but also from your life and in your thoughts. It can be a great place to let go of things, but if you find yourself absorbed or preoccupied by something happening in your life back home, being present on the trail is difficult. To get the full dose of nature’s medicine, you need to be present, there in nature, living, being present. That’s when the magic happens. We can help one another with this process and journey. But it can also cause conflict between people because when we don’t journey together we can easily land up on different pages.
There are six legs to this journey, all with six days. That’s 36 blog entries and this is number 7. From here, each blog entry will share details of our daily experiences on The Kruger Trail and insights into the people and dynamics within our group. The overall experience was not just about walking through the bush and seeing animals, that was an aspect of it, but the whole experience had many more levels to it than that, and I want this blog to convey the full experience.
