Cape Town - A group of four dedicated women, with two men, from South Africa, hiked the Fish River Canyon trail in Namibia from July 28 to August 1 to commemorate the start of Women’s Month.
CEO of Bridge of Hope Wines, Rosemary Mosia; group executive Corporate Services at Airports Company, Laurie Less; and bookkeeper Shelley Veldsman said the experience taught them that when you work together, you can achieve what might seem like an overwhelming challenge.
It was their first time hiking the trail, while team leader Lorna Daniels, who has done the trail, said taking on the Canyon as a beginner illustrated the courage, confidence and conquering spirit of a woman.
“The growth in confidence and the expansion of the internal limitations we might have set for ourselves changed positively for us from day to day on the hike.”
Mosia, who climbed the mountain for the first time, said the trip was challenging, yet productive. The group aimed to showcase that women can conquer the Canyon.
Mosia said in between the trails they discussed challenges women faced daily. The talks were broad, and involved, among others, current issues in governance.
“It was my first time camping, and having to be part of this and being able to see it through means a lot to me. From this experience I’d like to encourage other women to go there and be in the moment. As a group we even forgot about the outside world. For once I was not stressing about load-shedding because there was no power to begin with,” she said.
The allure of the Canyon, attracts many South Africans and international tourists, yearly. The challenging, yet deeply memorable hike, has much to offer, as many hikers return to the canyon for different reasons.
For some, it’s about the physical challenge; for others it is a spiritual and internal pilgrimage of sorts.
siviwe.melapi@inl.co.za