The gold from Skippers Canyon

When I took over the camper, one of the things I had to sign was that I wasn't allowed to drive on certain roads. One of these roads is the one in Skippers Canyon. However, I was told that this area should be very, very beautiful. That's why I looked for alternatives and found them. A company offers guided tours there in small groups. I booked a tour like this and was even picked up from the campsite. In the jeep, next to the driver, we saw a couple from England. So we were really a small group. After a short drive, the driver explained that today we would be driving one of the most dangerous roads in the world (which is probably why I wasn't allowed to drive it with the camper), but that I don't need to be afraid because he is a very good driver. I wasn't actually afraid, but I was very excited about this road.

The road was then a narrow gravel road, on one side it went steeply up and on the other side it went steeply down - there was also oncoming traffic. I was really glad I didn't have to drive here...

Gold was found in this canyon over a hundred years ago. At that time there was only a narrow footpath and over several years this road was built and carved into the hillside. After the road was finished, the golden times were already over 😀.

A river flows in the canyon, the water of which is incredibly blue again. We drove for almost 2 hours in the canyon to an old school building. There was then tea and pastries. We then went back the same way, over old bridges and past waterfalls. Shortly before the end of the tour we stopped at the river. We were allowed to pan for gold. Our guide showed us how this bowl works and loaded the bowls for us, then everyone was allowed to work on their own bowl. In the end, all the sand and stones were out of the bowl and I actually found a tiny piece of gold (well, what exactly: piece? leaf? grain?) 🎉. So small that I couldn't grab it, so it went back into nature 😢.

During this time on the river I also had my first encounter with sand flies. They look so harmless, but their bites hurt a lot. You notice it as soon as you prick it because it hurts so much. The beasts stung me in the hand 5 times. I'm still struggling with the stitches now, a week later. I had to treat the stitches several times and they still swelled up quite a bit and itched a lot. That was definitely a lesson for me - only travel with insect spray!!!