Africa Geographic: Into Africa: Wild Coast Meander – February 2006 – page 76

Stepping Out
Written by : Geoff Dalglish

In a complete change of gear, Geoff Dalglish and Adelle Horler swapped their tyres for takkies and took a walk along the former Transkei’s Wild Coast.

If you’re the sort who is never too far from a 4x4, do you also sometimes wonder what you’re missing as Africa flashes past your car window?

For a change of pace, we took Lou Reed’s advice and signed up for a “walk on the wild side”, a slow five-day hike along the deliciously isolated bays and beaches of Pondoland (formerly the Transkei), where rolling green hills tumble down to the sea and cattle are the only others sharing the sand.

Billed the Wild Coast Meander, the trail pioneered the concept of walking from one beach hotel to the next, starting at Qora Mouth (about 220km from East London), overnighting at Mazeppa Bay, Wavecrest and Trennery’s, and ending at Morgan Bay. The Meander covers around 53km, but we’d opted to dip into the Wild Coast Amble as well, which extends the hike south to Haga Haga and Cintsa West.

And not only is there the luxury of a hot bath, great meal and a glass of wine at the end of each day’s walk, there are porters to carry your baggage, leaving you free to wander with just a daypack for a camera, water and a packed lunch.

Still, 60 or so kilometres on beach sand is not exactly a walk in the park. At the hike’s starting point at Kob Inn, our party of friends and friends-to-be felt fairly intrepid, with dinner table talk dwelling on how much to carry and which shoes were most sensible.

The first blow to our explorer zeal came when we met the party of porters. In their teens to middle-aged, they shrugged our bulging packs onto their backs – or their heads. Worse, they were wearing slip-slops or no shoes at all. With a look that said, “This is just a walk along the beach you know…” they set off at a brisk pace, leaving us to settle into our relaxed stroll, get some beach sand between our toes and take life a little less seriously.

The porters aren’t simply a perk – creating employment for local communities was the motivator for tourism mastermind Nita Ross, who developed the Meander, Amble, Wild Coast Pondo Walk (at Mboyti River Lodge) and the newly opened Hole-in-the-Wall Hiking trail.

Most of the porters and knowledgeable guides come from villages along the way are drawn from families that have no other income.

Nita Ross also cheerfully takes the credit for both the controversial bans introduced by former environment minister Valli Moosa. “We invited him on the trail to demonstrate that it was safe – he wasn’t allowed to bring bodyguards – and he saw the trees covered in every shade of plastic bag. We also showed him how 4x4s had made some parts of the beach look like a traffic jam. And that’s where those bans came from!”

Now, aside from teams of beach cleaners, all guides and porters walk with a rubbish bag, picking up any litter they see.

And it’s worked. The beaches are pristine and the scenery spectacular, each rise or curve of the coastline offering a fresh green and blue visual treat, often including a cow or two that come down to the beach for salt. Dolphins put on a performance every day, with whales making the odd guest appearance too.
Since the walks are a manageable six to 14 kilometres a day (except for a more taxing 21km on Day Two), there’s time to explore each overnight spot. At Kob Inn before the walk started we indulged in a last dash of speed aboard quad bikes, soaring over the fields and hills, before slowing down on a gentle cruise up the river.

Trevor’s Trail is an option at Qolora River Mouth’s Trennery’s Hotel, where a three-hour exploration of riverine forest and a boat trip through The Gates – an extremely narrow gorge where the river split the hillside – delivers you to what must be one of the most beautiful rock pools. Wear your costume, as the brave-hearted will want to take the plunge.

Crowned cranes danced on the beach at Wavecrest Resort, which nestles on the banks of an estuary that supports the continent’s southernmost natural community of mangroves. A special trip out to sea in a rubber duck had us surrounded by hundreds of dolphins, slicing through the water at breathtaking speed, with gannets soaring overhead.

At Inkwenkwezi Private Game Reserve – an optional extra on the Amble – game drives provide a whole new inland perspective, from plains game, warthogs wandering around with a gaggle of geese at the lodge, and even two young white lions.

It was a fitter, supremely relaxed and tanned band of wanderers that sank down on the sand at Morgan Bay with a sense of triumph, reaching our destination just as the setting sun bronzed the river and sea.
While it’s hard to beat packing a vehicle and setting off to discover this spectacular continent, we were reminded that sometimes it’s even better to switch off the engine, get out and explore at a slower pace, up close to the land and the people who live there.

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