This post is for the #wednesdaywalk challenge and the #makemesmile challenge collaboration. This collaboration initially took place once a month, but due to its popularity, @tattoodjay (of the #wednesdaywalk) and @elizacheng (of #makemesmile) decided to make it a weekly thing.
If you want to know more about the rules, visit this post by @tattoodjay where you will find all the rules at the bottom of his post after you've enjoyed his beautiful photos from his walk.
On Sunday afternoon, we had beautiful sunny weather...the ideal weather for a nice walk.
We also decided it would be nice to take our dog out for a walk with us.
I thought it would be nice to go for a walk in the nature reserve in the Everton Gorge. It is a beautiful area and traveling from Everton towards Waterfall, you drive through the nature reserve.
A typical view of the road ahead of you while driving through the nature reserve.
There are signs up along the road to remind motorists to slow down and take care as there are wild animals roaming free in the reserve and often cross the road.
The only frustrating element to be found in this area is the human element...
Some people love taking this route as a shortcut between Everton and Waterfall and drive through this area as if something is chasing them. This is irrespective of multiple warnings along the road to slow down and the road being so narrow in some areas that two vehicles can barely pass in opposite directions at the same time (as can be seen in the next photo). It is common to frequently pull over to let oncoming traffic pass before carrying on along the route.
About halfway through the reserve, there are some hiking trails. There is enough space for some cars to park here. So, you can leave your vehicle here and go for a nice hike, which was what I had planned.
But what I didn’t keep in mind, was that we would not be allowed to take our dog along on this hiking trail. In all honesty, I didn't give this any thought, as we often drive through this area, but this was the first time that we actually wanted to get out to walk one of the hiking trails here.
As you can see in the photo above, it would be a 3 KM hike through the forest to the Everton Waterfall.
My wife insisted that I go out to at least get some photos while she would be strolling around with our dog in the area of the car.
Although I knew she would be safe having the dog with her, I was still not fully comfortable with leaving them behind for too long. Besides, when I go out on a walk alone, I know I’m alone and I go wherever I want and as far as I want. But when we go out together, the whole point of it is for us both to enjoy it together and share in the fun of whatever we do.
Eventually, I agreed on getting some photos...but remaining close enough to hear when she would be calling out and not for too long either...
The next photo, shows the trail leaving the road and moving toward the forest. These hiking trails are also popular among joggers.
Then you enter the forest area...
Not too far in, you have the option to carry on straight or cross the little stream (Molweni River) to the opposite side.
I went back to check on Elmarie and Arrow (my wife and our dog). They were still fine, having a ball with Arrow exploring the terrain around the car...
I then entered another hiking trail on the opposite side of the road, leading in the opposite direction.
I went back to Elmarie at the car, and I had a new suggestion...
We were not too far away from the venue where our oldest daughter got married back in 2014. The venue where they got married is called Camelot. It is located in a golf estate and the venue building look like a castle from the era of Camelot.
We had arrangements to visit our daughter after our outing, and with time running out, I thought I would just take some photos outside Camelot. But guess what...? Camelot has just gone onto our to-do list to get some photos of the venue in the near future.
But for now...
Approaching the last bend before turning towards Camelot...
The road leads to the Camelot Estate. The entrance is at the end of the road, but I pulled over instead of entering the estate. Entering through the gate that can be seen in the photo below, will take you to the venue where the castle can be found, and you can also get access to the golf course from here.
Before entering Camelot, you find Hathaway Village on the left. I took this photo of the entrance to the Hathaway Village.
A nice, colorful scene next to the Hathaway Village entrance...
Looking back up the road...the route we would be following out again.
And that was our outing for the day, folks.
Thank you for reading my post. I do appreciate it!
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