I’d intended wading across and back Salt River, to see if there was interesting debris from the massive storm Knysna had experienced last week, but found myself working my way inland – the beautiful day had begged me to stay longer.

It was low tide so where there were grass banks it was easy to walk. However, on the Western bank, more often than not, i found myself trying not slip on the slippiest mud and struggling, sometimes knee-deep, through muck that had me wondering if it were sinking sand and my last thought would be, “Eish, it smells” – yep, Knysna Municipality has yet to fix sewerage leaks that pass through here on their way to the Knysna Estuary.

Don’t you dare let me put you off! I may not recommend kids exploring that side but it was well worth it to satisfy my curiousity and discover natures contrasting colours and different shades of green. After clambering up a stony bank, i found myself on pretty forest path that came out by the backside of Narnia Village. Some kids were playing on the other side of a fence. They never knew where the path went so i decided to play it safe by not possibly trespassing were dogs may not be lovable to me.

It was a productive choice because, returning, it gave me the excuse to explore the Eastern bank that runs parallel to the road that takes you to Simola. Here, clean-smelling water ran cold above my knees – invigorating. Northwards, the river seems to head to a farm because i saw distant horses. Since i couldn’t tell how much deeper the darkening river got, and i was barefoot which made snakes in the bush an uncomfortable thought, i left that for another day.

If i’d had money on me, i would have walked further down the road to find a coffee but since i didn’t i encountered my biggest crab of the day. I’d seen hundreds but this fellow was a marvellous specimen. He waved his pincers at me, as if saying, “Thanks for coming, now goodbye.” Knackered, i agreed with him.

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