Luiperdskloof - 16th to 18th November 2007 Eight families were happy to get away from the strong South-Easter on Friday pm, to explore the Luiperdskloof trail, which lies 80km from Ceres, on the Cederberg road, on a protea farm owned by Pieter & Adele Vorster. Our group consisted of Corne` & Erika Smal, Darin Polly & Daniel Sacker, Lars Kessel, Jurgen Michelle & Lisa Steinicke, John Mc Gahey, Trevor &Sheilagh Dorington, Chris & Juanita Dorington and us. The camp site is very picturesque, with plenty of shady pines surrounded by rugged hills, and a central braai area. The bamboo-clad ablution room is exquisitely made, with good gas-heating, but needs a separate loo to make things easier. There are 2 trails and we chose the longer 35km route for Saturday, setting out at 9am, having enjoyed a group braai the previous night. It started with a pretty rough climb out of the farm area to an excellent lookout back over the farm and East to the Swartruggens mountain range. The convoy then wound its way down a long narrowing valley, providing plenty of hard work in 30+ temperatures, with our lunch stop deep in the ravine. We then had to retrace our steps, climbing out of the valley and returning to our shady camp at 3pm. Many of the group passed out before re-gathering for our evening braai on a perfect warm wind-free and moonlit evening. All vehicles other than the Sacker Pajero set out at 8am on Sunday to try the shorter trail, and it turned out to be a real gem! Interesting driving, wonderful views, and varied terrain kept us busy till nearly 12 noon. The general opinion was that Luiperdskloof offers a better-than-most trail package that will be pretty stiff when wet. Then a quick snack and breaking camp saw us all on the road before 2pm. Oh yes, Chris and Juanita introduced us to their favorite ice-cream shop in Ceres before we split up, vowing to visit Luiperdskloof again, as the whole experience was tops! A huge part of it was that we had a great bunch of club members with us. Thanks to all! Viv & Mary