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It felt like we were driving to the edge of the world. Once we left [Bloemfontein](https://peakd.com/hive-163772/@fermentedphil/visiting-the-oliewenhuis-art-museum-in-bloemfontein-free-state-south-africa), after having a [delicious lunch at a brewpub](https://peakd.com/hive-187719/@fermentedphil/grabbing-some-beer-and-pap-en-sous-from-the-famous-brew-and-still-in-the-free-state), we found ourselves on a stretch of road that took forever to complete. Or again, that is what it felt like. But even though this is what it felt like, I really enjoyed the driving. The roads were empty, it felt like we lived in our own little apocalyptic nightmare; however, there were no zombies and we were the only ones on the road. It felt good to be alive, at this moment, and driving on a stretch of road I have never been on. Our goal from Bloemfontein was to reach Gariep Dam, a small town built on the edge of a massive dam, and which touches three border provinces: the Free State, Eastern Cape, and Northern Cape. So, come with me as I show you how beautiful this small border town is! ___

![3.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/242XtwrnhDThbTJfZyzYSSGhGhiPhavD5j1is97MpyAJLqy6f2tg3vdQHhZ7Gaf5CPy4y.JPG) ___

# Roads That Just Go On... At times it really felt like the roads were just carrying on with no real end. And this is the trademark of the "Karoo" in South Africa. These roads stretch on and on and on, in a straight line, through the karoo desert. While there are some turns on the road, it at times can be somewhat scary with how straight these roads are. The biggest issue with them is that you can easily fall asleep behind the steering wheel...

![5.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/242Ncf9EM17VgWX5fmTQ7tHNn42EJjaFpoTJjFW7igaJEi7HY5LYhotgj8c8WTXaG4FpB.JPG) ___

But luckily I am fine with these stretches. My mind goes to different places, and I did not at any time feel sleepy. Even though it was supposed to be summer, and even though the sun shined, it was not that cold. We found the weather to be pleasant. Even though we drove quite fast, we rolled down the windows to allow fresh air to breathe over us. As we entered the small and sleepy town, we saw all of the beautiful mountain rocks that hugged the roads. These always look so beautiful, almost like you just want to get out of the car and rub your hand across them. ![4.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23tkovVc6i6vhhTcLgi9fgDXLtVMjU59Qpc8pDGe61QjhQbezJk1CfndzofhGcTBRZNS9.JPG) ![6.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23wWpaaKF17dRfDsuyca3c1kJw5RVHkFeFXD2rARsGu6MJhKgTmFJbXAkiCXVPeg2wkgv.JPG) # Views of the Dam Wall The first stop, and what turned out to be the only stop, of the trip was the dam wall. After booking into our room for the night, we saw the most beautiful dam wall, one we could drive on. I took my partner and we drove to the most beautiful place we have seen in a long while. ![7.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23wLzRnaoMh9BEazmTggDckKUYGyHgmeSsBmov4FT7zk6seHwhP886w22VvT8SLHGFeGz.JPG) ___

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___ |![12.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/245Sy67d9sPGCHSdG5mLL1HDcjqKf6b5KqFpmmWmNJF8EJLu8a3E27nGnE8FPvLNXpg2P.JPG)|![9.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23ywH1wH4dP3zFwtKYBnFsUmU7gGqZdwK3eYxZDc96owpKXnryhqpwWyrX789y86gkQmi.JPG)|![10.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23vYWnCgxXYzjmbwtmCD8NkG9x6fZMSkdqyNPGTm2Dj9EUCMBn7ZU5ba72Y1e1h8GjwJM.JPG)| |-|-|-| ___

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For a short while, we stood on the dam wall to experience the views, the scenes, and just the beauty of our country that goes unseen. You hear about so many locals who either want to leave the country (who all then complain about coming back and missing the place) or those who do not travel much. Few people enjoy the beauty of the place, just allowing the country to imprint itself on us. So my partner and I stood on the dam wall, taking photographs of each other, laughing, thinking about how we were spending our time, and hoping that we could do this again. This was our first stop of the trip, our first evening, and it was a long day. We started at about 4 am, driving through the city, stopping in Bloemfontein, and now standing on the dam wall. We were so tired that we did not even think about anything to eat. But who needs food when you have such stunning views? ___

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![14.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/2449uwHxjb46zT2ttwe1xv2JznnWcMXJ9c6pXXvBrdDGkiRes3ZrnbCjvcLZyCjwyfMwe.JPG)

___ ![16.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/243WJyDYBY1Fnc7arpcMgip66vWSgu95CMaLJKsCZpvudDK7mkSRV4R8Lwsdp2v1Gv9Ky.JPG) # Crossing the Oranje River As we were about to drive, we saw a bridge on the other side of the dam crossing the orange river. We set off to find the road that led to the bridge! ![17.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23tknNtkmVdQe9czHcS7pCGsLnBn37yBGkh1dXk5738mate4AhzwzLPhRcob6VoJHitWW.JPG) ___ And wow, what a find, we thought to ourselves. It was an incredible view from the top of the road. We could also see the dam wall we were just driving on from the viewpoint. ___

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___ |![22.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/246RVQ6gn83inPm8CM8xPLhWFbGFTRWGwnuffDjLEpkGWq8VDkJPSHGM2DU7X7qinheBB.JPG)|![19.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/243q4Pczgdas2rWVxRKNkbKzBtL5r8ryhB9oNfi8C594w9A9m1og1ZjQhqHc1uN8dVtqQ.JPG)|![20.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23tGY5DL6x7YDaKiS73Xrp3y3f5rTvC64qeudbJquUfonc9rRxng15EPzEPQJJ8WQy3jB.JPG)| |-|-|-| ![23.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/242NBEzesUc7nULyM17Z93cSpUL5gXe4Eh5f7dGVhq1xhG8sfBzBUt71bSQMpvCaMDRX6.JPG) # Sunsets and Drinks It was at that point, standing in the middle of the road to take the above photograph that we decided to grab a drink and watch the sunset. But before I show the drinks and the sunset, I first want to show the views as we arrived. The views by themselves are stunning, but comparing them to the sunset ones you just see how beautiful it was. ### Before Sunset ___

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___

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The sun was still a bit harsh. But the views were already beautiful. We stood at the edge of the viewpoint from our room for the night, and it was stunning. The small town was sleepy, it was not in high season, everyone was already gone and we were some of the few who still were there for vacation. But that was how we planned it. Either way, we enjoyed the view a bit too much! But we knew the sunset would be a good one... ### Sunset at Gariep Dam (Hotel for Sunset Drinks) This was after our visit to the dam and the bridge. It was stunning from the top of the small hill, at the local hotel. We knew we were going to have drinks there, but now we were there. The sun was setting and strange enough the wind was blowing so bad we were almost blown away! ___ |![27.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/241ZhDhnoMq2XcQeMz62QRpwWrGMKZ9kDsNsgGqC2HMNrmcXvo7htCUsV5G7Pcu97trsf.JPG)|![28.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23vPGqwEUoEqj3gMnBns7KwFdL89KoN9ccDEWZKAJ53t3Xdh49nJKXYWthvsZRRquFWji.JPG)|![29.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/245HcaCj9EVgmTo2VaT1mPdAPyw9BaGK4CB9BE8nKqBCA1BCoGMNK9oHsN63Ptp77EVmM.JPG)| |-|-|-| ![32.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23zRrnDAwXqEBuhDivLNmGKauaNWyb2WxtcH9tTA8c21gUn3QeUiuSb5PcnpxWKAYFEbV.JPG) |![34.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23wMMUsKRJ5PQUxndqMccUX2LCiStTSxCi5atJXMQnoA5PimbGbLrEdEtFtBLjFfByWBy.JPG)|![36.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23ynLDBhG8bAVMmnbCVasXNZyPKXrFgkp7EYxFP7WTNNqPjouou5wX79CQkNL2gpE9zxy.JPG)|![35.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23tbPFcf6yrBu1YNVjdvmZRUWNaaaKc5Gc4jLP5qtwmWHY1S286eCZsuD54ZkXJGRPkRn.JPG)| |-|-|-| \*** ___ ![37.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/244UfUo39qY13RuqvEzxoQJyqtF8XokwFuxFSaeW9XYXaBeeY6dkCLmR2nwrLvKm3Zy4y.JPG) ___

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# The Next Morning: Carrying On Our Adventure And so, like so many other things, our journey was done. We woke up earlier than usual to drive to our next destination. The sun was already out, and we knew the road would be a good one: we just felt it in our bodies. It was already such a beautiful journey, and it was only a third done. Two thirds of our journey was still to come... I hope that you enjoyed the virtual journey with us. On toward the next one! For now, happy travels, and keep well. ___ ![39.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/2449orKnauQCwh6LZeaodF1H2M9L4RnitFtrsHYL5b7MTxGvaHsyrVLRCt2gGjF6y6Rkq.JPG) ![40.JPG](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/fermentedphil/23zRVP15dykEXCeUKsEqh8cWb24rEtdnVGdJn24AEwThGU9CUW8xuSztjaYkdDYouQi1R.JPG)

___ # From Pretoria to Stellenbosch 📍[First Stop: Bloemfontein](https://peakd.com/hive-163772/@fermentedphil/visiting-the-oliewenhuis-art-museum-in-bloemfontein-free-state-south-africa) 📍[Second Stop: Brewpub in Bloemfontein](https://peakd.com/hive-187719/@fermentedphil/grabbing-some-beer-and-pap-en-sous-from-the-famous-brew-and-still-in-the-free-state) ___ [//]:# (!worldmappin -30.58718 lat 25.48978 long Gariep Dam at the Borders d3scr) [//]:# (!worldmappin -30.58718 lat 25.48978 long Gariep Dam at the Borders d3scr)