Oom Koos se Klip Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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The cache is hidden in the Swartberg Nature Reserve which lies in the Oudtshoorn district between the Great and Klein Karoo. The cache site is just off a public road.The terrain rating is a 3 merely because of the gravel road.
For more than 100 years after the first settlement in the Gamkaskloof valley the area was only accessible on horseback or foot. Anything that was too heavy to carry on their backs or by donkey the inhabitants did without. Every few months trains of more than 100 donkeys were packed with produce to be sold and trekked to the nearby towns such as Prince Albert and Calitzdorp. The isolated population that never reached more than 120 people lived a subsistence way of life.
In 1959 the then Administrator of the Cape, Otto du Plessis visited the area and promised the inhabitants a proper access route.
When the Gamkapoort Dam was built in 1962 it blocked the northern route out of the valley and the inhabitants became even more isolated. Fortunately the access road promised by the Administrator was started in March 1960 and completed in 1962. The Kloof became accessible to visitors, while the opportunities of the outside world were introduced to the locals and the valley slowly became depopulated.
The new 52km road from the into the Kloof that took 2 years to build and followed the eastern route into the valley simply because the geology of the route was predominantly soft shale that could be scraped away with a bulldozer. The other possible routes consisted of hard quartzite. The road cost R30000,00 to build (What would it cost today?) under the supervision of Koos van Zyl who had a small group of labourers and a bulldozer. One of the problems that Koos had to overcome was to move the huge quartzite boulder that blocked the path of the proposed road. This was done with the bulldozer. Apparently the operation nearly ended in disaster when the boulder suddenly rolled over and the bulldozer lurched forward and nearly overturned. The boulder became known as “Oom Koos se Klip” in future years. The cache is close to the boulder which is well marked.
The remote and isolated Gamkaskloof valley is about 90km from Oudtshoorn and 60km from Prince Albert and is only accessible via the Otto du Plessis Road, which turns off from the Swartberg Pass. The Otto du Plessis Road is only 52km long but the drive along this gravel road will take 2.5 to 3hrs. A raised vehicle may be required at times. The cache is about 15km from the start of the road on the Swartberg Pass.
The valley is of ecological, archaeological and cultural-historical importance and is now managed as part of the Swartberg Nature Reserve. This is an area of climatic extremes, with very cold winters, often with snow on the mountains and temperatures well below zero, while summers can be uncomfortably hot with temperatures reaching 40°C and more! Rain occurs throughout the year, peaking in early winter and spring, and with thundershowers in the summer months.
Visitors to the Kloof have accommodation options of 10 restored cottages, a bush camp and 10 campsites. Attractions and activities include picnicking, a Norwegian mill, angling in the Gamka River, and sightseeing, bird watching (130 species) and relaxing in this natural paradise as well 2 hiking trails to choose from.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Abg haqre gur ovt bar.
Treasures
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