Not much longer (28 Oct)

Hiking and the journey of life 

Walk Day 28

By first time hiker and survivor of GBV from the Saartjie Baartman Centre

On Sunday the 5^th of October, I found myself standing atop the King’s Blockhouse after completing my first ever hike. This monument, which I had driven past countless times without giving it much thought, became a sight of reflection on life today.

 From my vantage point I couldn’t wipe the smile off myself as I gazed down at the breathtaking beauty of Cape Town - the beach, the harbour and the amazing architecture both classic and contemporary.

As I stood there, looking back at the past hour and a half of my ascent, I couldn’t help but compare the parallels between hiking and the journey of life. The hike started out beautifully and I was filled with enthusiasm. When I looked up to what I presumed to be the destination, I was both daunted and excited by the challenge.

 A few kilometers into the hike, panting and groaning from exertion, yet determined to complete the trail, I heard a fellow hiker asking how far we are from the destination. I was quite eager to hear the response to this question, and it came, ‘not much longer’. As a first-time hiker, I had no idea how long ’not much longer’ was and all I could do was keep breathing and place one foot in front of the other. What felt like millennia later, we still were not there yet, but the hike organisers asked us to pause for a little while we waited for those trailing to catch up. This moment was to me a Godsent, as I got some time to just breathe and take in the view.

 We eventually got to our destination, and I got to sit on the ground, breathe while simultaneously taking in the spectacular view and congratulating myself for reaching this point. About 10 minutes later, after taking pictures and getting some refreshments, we began our descent. Just when you think the ‘pinnacle’ is the best you’re going to experience and anything after that is less than; a hike shows you that the way down is also an adventure which can be as treacherous and as spectacular.  

Whether I am on my way up or down, one thing for sure is that this month I experienced two firsts; my first ever hike and my first ever blog.

Key links

• Please donate today – to help make the target for Saartjie Baartman Centre's income generation programme for survivors of gender-based violence (you can set the tip at R0)
• Read other Steps for Saartjie blogs

Next walk in Cape Town 

• Date: 29 October
• Time: 15.25 for 15.30pm
• Difficulty: Moderate
• Duration: 2hrs, 7.5km
• Route: From the mountain end of Chelmsford Rd, Vredehoek, to the Kings Blockhouse - Starting point Pin  📍