Holgate sets off on an adventure with purpose

You get people who think they are celebrities or influencers, you get real celebrities and influencers in popular culture and then there's Kingsley Holgate.

Neither an influencer nor a celebrity in the modern meaning of the word, but the easily recognisable, tall, bearded man has done so much good work over the years and been instrumental in keeping up the Land Rover offroad ethos.

When the Covid-19 pandemic put a no-entry sign on borders all round the world, it would have been difficult for an explorer like Holgate and his son Ross to comprehend. There they were with brand new Land Rover Defenders and pretty much locked in.

But as with many things, adversity brings out the best in some and so the Holgate foundation, along with Land Rover, embarked on a trip that would circumnavigate the land borders of South Africa and in the process distribute more than 250 000 meals to the needy during some of the darkest times we've experienced.

The Defender Mzansi Expedition covered 10 000Km and when they dropped anchor they would have been on the road for 70 days.

We joined the team flying into Bloemfontein to drive parts of the Eastern Free State, as they kept as close as possible to the Lesotho border, to spend time on the new Defender and also take part in some of the humanitarian work the foundation, along with Land Rover, was doing.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have spent a lot of time in the Defender and have done some serious off-roading. It continues to impress with its ability both on tar and the dirt, where we spent most of our time.

My driving companion who likes a rival Japanese brand, was equally impressed and I couldn't agree more with his sentiments that the air suspension fitted to the Defender 110 was the best yet experienced in any vehicle, as it took gravel surfaces, potholes and corrugated surfaces in its stride.

We were behind the wheel of the D240 for the first two days. The vehicle is fitted with a two litre turbo-diesel engine that's good for 177kw and 430Nm of torque and more than ample for its application.

As part of the route and, to test its ability properly, we drove a bit of the Moolmanshoek 4x4 route which would also be our overnight stop (www.moolmanshoek.co.za).

There were some very steep rock ascents and descents which fully put the 291mm ground clearance and 500mm of suspension articulation to the test, thanks to the brilliant second-generation Terrain Response system, easily activated via the touchscreen.

Day two would see us first stop at a one-teacher, one classroom mixed-aged primary school in the mountains against the Lesotho border. The children were given instant sorghum porridge, with all the nutrients a growing child needs; also soap, masks and educational material.

We followed some dirt roads towards Clarence, with the chorus of the kids still in our ears to hand over the bulk of the food we were carrying to Bana ba Hlokang (Children in need).

Before that though we stopped at the As River where Holgate would throw in a thimble of water into a calabash – a tradition he has kept alive throughout all his epic travels as he crosses countries and their rivers. On completion it gets poured out, either into the sea or a river mouth, as a symbolic gesture.

Bana ba Hlokang is part of Combined Churches in Action where more than 200 orphans and vulnerable children are fed a good meal Monday to Friday and receive a wide range of educational programmes, computer skills, art classes, language training, choir, maths and indoor and outdoor sport.

We handed out 150 bags of food as the children sang, danced and thanked us. The food was enough for 15 000 meals and will last a couple of months and while the day was indeed very humbling and made you appreciate what you have, I couldn't help but leave with a tinge of sadness.

This was one facility in one town looking after 250 children that the community is aware of. What’ happening in other cities, towns and villages across the country? What happens to those orphans and vulnerable little ones that aren’t so lucky?

I doubt the first school we visited has ever seen an inspector from the Department of Basic Education. The children have to walk kilometres to get there because the transport system is wholly dysfunctional.

And remember when government decreed that all assistance to those in need during Covid had to be centralised? You think those children would have received anything?

So yet again it falls on private citizens, NGO’s and corporate South Africa to show empathy and caring.

Where is the outrage, moral indignation, marches and hashtags from political organisations across the spectrum showing their support and contributions to the marginalised?

Anyway, those were my musings and rants as we headed along dirt roads to our hosts Simon and Cheryl Blackburn at the splendid Three Tree Hill Lodge (www.threetreehill.co.za) in KwaZulu-Natal and our final night.

It's a stone’s throw from Spioenkop where the famous battle took place during the South African war. Interestingly, General Louis Botha, Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill all played a part during the two-day skirmish.

When we left to fly back from Pietermaritzburg we were behind the wheel of the Defender P400, a straight six-cylinder turbo-charged petrol mill with mild hybrid technology that delivers a sweet 294kW and 550Nm and sounds throaty to boot.

Throttle response is obviously a lot quicker than the diesel and it's quick off the mark should you want to give it a hard right foot, but the underpinnings are the same and the ride quality remains superb as does the look and feel of the interior.

So, after three days what do you take home?

My opinion of the Defender still hasn’t changed. It’s supremely good offroad (probably the best stock standard off the showroom floor). It's immensely comfortable to drive and a worthy replacement for the icon that everyone loves or loves to hate.

And... government can't or won't take care of the vulnerable and those struggling to improve their lives, especially in rural areas. That's up to citizen SA .

Exploration within our own boundaries is limitless. We have a truly beautiful country. Make the effort to get to know it better.

Kingsley Holgate is a legend, just like the Defender. He will keep you regaled with stories that will make you shake your head, belly laugh and even shed a tear, but most of all, he is a mensch.

The Saturday Star