This cache can be found on the Gantouw Pass Historical Wagon Tracks Trail. The trail is a loop of around 5.5km and can take about 2-3 hours to complete. It is classified as moderate. There are a total of 13 caches available on the trail.
In the Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve above Sir Lowry’s Pass village you will find the Gantouw or Eland Pass, which used to follow the course of an old game track.
Proclaimed a national monument in 1958, here you can see the old grooves left behind by many weary travellers. The furrows chiselled into the rocks tell a sad tale of heartbreak and struggle endured whilst traveling up this perilous route where oxen were often killed and wagons smashed along the way.
The mountain crossing was known to the indigenous Khoi people and was later used as a stock route. The Dutch and British settlers at the Cape built a rough pass called the Hottentots Holland Kloof Pass following the Gantouw route. The first recorded crossing was in 1662, and by 1821 the pass was seeing 4500 ox-wagons per year crossing into the interior, but the route was so severe that more than 20% of them were damaged. The pass would facilitate trade with the farmers in the fertile valleys of the Overberg to the east. The earliest recorded crossing of the pass was by a Dutch East India Company surveyor, Hendrik Lacus in 1662 in an effort to initiate trade with the Chainnouqua Khoi chief, Chief Sousa. Lacus travelled across the Groenland ('green land') - the richly forested area between the Steenbras River and Houw Hoek.
Apart from the history of the area, you will be surrounded by a natural environment filled with magnificent beauty, diverse flora and interesting rock formations. And as you make your way over the rise of the kloof, be prepared for a breath-taking scene before your eyes – the entire Helderberg basin.
Please be aware that there are baboons in the area so it is advisable to walk in groups of two or more and to take caution.
The trail is situated on the corner of the Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve, but there is no gate so it can be accessed at any time.
Please note that no pets or firearms are allowed, and you are not permitted to pick flowers or collect seeds. Obviously no fires allowed.
NOTE: Please be extremely careful when crossing the road from the parking to the trailhead, as it can get busy and is dangerous.