Robber's Pass and Pop's Birthday

Today was Theo's Dad's birthday. So we all jumped on his bed for a happy birthday and unwrapping of gifts. We'd been eyeing the Robber's Pass as a cycling challenge all week and Pop decided that it would be his birthday challenge to conquer! (Are we nuts or what?!?)

So, after a hearty breakfast and eyeing out the somewhat rainy-misty conditions we decided to go for it. A short drive brought us to Pilgrim's Rest and then we faced the challenge of the steepest bit of road we have ever dragged our bicycles up! We struggled, sweated, wobbled and gasped for breath, but we made it and it was a great feeling to reach the entrance to Crystal Springs at the top of the pass and head down the other side.

Brenda, Granny and Caleb explored Pilgrim's Rest, looked for a cache which seems to have gone awol and then went on a very memorable donkey cart ride with a gentleman who has retired from the rat race and entertains tourists with a lovely ride and lots of banter about the town and the characters that live there. He has named his two donkeys after his mom and mom-in-law and claims that they are quite ok with it because the two donkeys have lovely dispositions.

When Theo and Oupa had finished their ride we headed back to Graskop for a very welcome shower and then a nice lunch in one of Graskop's restaurants. The afternoon and evening were spent starting to pack and get ready for the return to Pretoria.

The phone rang at about 21h30 with the very sad news that Theo's Dad's Mom ("Ouma") had passed away aged 92.5 after a short illness. It was tough news especially on Theo's Dad's birthday, but we were able to stop and give thanks for her very full and blessed life. We'll miss her.