Forests shrouded in mystery...
Belief in mischievous faeries …
Inexplicable magical events …
WELCOME TO HOGSBACK!!
Last weekend, Chida and I took a girls’ road trip to
Hogsback, a community located about 1.5 hours from Grahamstown (or 2.5 hours if
you drive 30 minutes in the wrong direction like we did…). Hogsback is a small
village located in the Amatola Mountains, where the locals fiercely believe in
all sorts of myths and stories. Among these false tales is that JRR Tolkein was
born in Hogsback, which naturally inspired Lord of the Rings. Tolkein was
actually born in Bloemfontein, and left South Africa when he was three years
old. Nevertheless, LOTR tourist attractions can be found all over the place.
After winding our way up to the village of Hogsback for several kilometers, we were greeted by aggressive vendors attempting to sell us small hog tokens and walking sticks. We avoided them and headed to the Information office, where we received a map and instructions to check out several waterfalls along a forested hiking trail.
After spending about 4 hours hiking (with no strange
mystical events having occurred), we drove to the world’s 2nd
largest labyrinth where there are also beautiful views of the Tyhume valley. We
were uninspired by the labyrinth, but amazed by the view. We drove back to
Grahamstown tired but pleased by another beautiful day in South Africa.
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