Steynsburg

April 22, 2021

There was a small thunderstorm over Burgersdorp last night and it had not yet worked itself out of the system by this morning. In fact, it has been thundery all day and continues be so this evening.

It was pretty cold this morning and we took some time to get going. We didn't want to stay in Steynsburg again so I called a guest farm north-east of the town. Unfortunately they were booked up due to a cycling event taking place, the Trek 2 Teebus MTB race, but the owner quickly organised a cottage for us on a neighbouring farm.

Before leaving town we had to stock up on groceries. As per usual, Leigh waited outside the shop looking after the bicycles. This means she gets to chat to any locals who strike up a conversation. She is far better at it than I am but she does get to enjoy some real gems. Two days ago in Aliwal North she got talking to a Sotho guy who owns a number of bicycles plus a unicycle ! Not what I would have expected in a rural town.

Cloudy and thundery the whole day today.

Just after the halfway mark I picked up the first puncture of the trip - a small piece of wire from a disintegrating truck tyre.

This bridge was a comfortable place to change the tyre.

The top of the last climb gave us lovely views through the rain squalls towards Hofmeyr in the south.

Our digs for the night are a lovely cottage on a farm a few kilometers off the main road.

Today's ride: 65 km (40 miles)
Total: 1,742 km (1,082 miles)

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