A Walk from Melkbos to Saldanha by Bernard Cassidy & Fr. Don Stephen, July 1972
Web site by Bernard Cassidy August/September 2003

9th August 2003:  In 1972 I was still an active member of the St. Margaret's Anglican Church in Parow, Cape.   The photo below, taken around 1969, shows the church from the Hopkins Street side. The next photo below was taken on Sunday morning 10th December 1972, outside the Smith Street entrance of the Church:  from left to right Lionel Prins, Sub-Deacon (Lay-minister); Rev. Ian H. Eve, Rector (Priest-in-charge of the Parish); Rev. Don Stephen, Curate (Assistant Priest); Dennis Alport, Sub-Deacon (Lay-minister) and myself, Sub-Deacon (Lay-minister).  (My VW Khombi is behind us.) During one particular church council meeting in the first half of 1972, the lack of church funds had been much discussed and it had been agreed that a sponsored walk of 10km would be organised for Saturday 22nd July 1972.  Although supposedly a Junior Church (i.e. Sunday School) event, it was in fact intended for all members of the congregation. During the tea-break, Fr. Don Stephen, approached me and suggested that he and I also do a walk over the same weekend - from Melkboschstrand to Saldanha Bay. Don was a great outdoors person - he loved to go camping and walking/hiking in places like the Cedarberg.   (I think his first child was a few weeks old when Don and wife Carol went camping with the baby in the Cedarberg!)  Don was also an amateur Geologist / Archaeologist.   He and 2 friends had apparently already done this particular walk.   A few evenings later, I went round to his place and we started planning the event. I told him that I would do it on 2 conditions: (i) no swimming across lakes, lagoons, rivers or seas etc. and (ii) no rock-climbing.   Other than that, I told him, wherever he walked, I would follow.   I was reasonably fit and was in good training with my weightlifting, squash and a fair amount of cycling.   It was agreed that wherever possible, we would walk along the coast and the intended distance was around 110km.   We chatted to the necessary people about this and it was on!!. Reg Scott, a very good friend of mine, was a fellow-councillor and was also the Junior Church (Sunday School) General Superintendent.    Reg had until then-recently been a Regional Commissioner in the Boy Scouts movement and, in addition to much experience in organising Camps and Jamborees etc., was also a seasoned Director of Companies and had much Senior Management and Sales experience. As soon as Don and I had told Reg about our intended walk, he started arranging that on the Sunday 23rd July, (the day after the Saturday 10km walk), after the morning service, there would be a car rally, from Parow to Saldanha, for the congregation.   This would make it family fun for everyone and Don and I would have a large reception committee in Saldanha!! In the ensuing weeks, usually on Sundays after the morning Church service, Reg and (some of) his family and I would travel out along the West Coast investigating sites and routes for the Sunday Car Rally. Below is a photo I took on Sunday 9th July 1972 somewhere on the West Coast road when we stopped for a bite to eat - probably around 10h00.  28th November 2011:  IF ANYONE CAN IDENTIFY THE LOCATION OF THIS PARTICULAR ROCK PLEASE CONTACT ME!!!) The dark-blue VW Beetle is my car.   From left in this photo: Penny, Reg's youngest daughter (11 in this photo) is in pink slacks, dancing and behind her is Reg's eldest daughter, Gillian (19 in this photo).   Then comes Jacky, the middle daughter (almost 16 - back to the camera) with Reg mostly obscured behind her.   The Peugeot 404 Station Wagon is Reg's car and Reg's wife, Yvonne, can be seen on the other side of the car.   On most of these trips Gillian travelled with me. In spite of my general fitness, I was not used to walking long distances in boots and with a pack, so, for several weeks before the walk, I would put on a pair of (borrowed) Army boots (wearing thick "Norwegian" mountaineering socks) put a pack on my back and walk a circular route of about 5 to 7 km in Pinelands (where my brother Terry and I were staying with my Mom at the time.) Reg apparently knew the people at the Navy Crash Boat Command at Langebaan and at one stage he wanted to organise with them that they would "ferry" Don and me across the Langebaan Lagoon from Churchhaven to Donkergat, but, although grateful and loving the idea itself, Don and I eventually turned down the suggestion as we felt we wanted to cover the WHOLE distance on foot. 1972 Walk Maps Photos from above 1965 Walk