Field Notes from Klasies River Main Site: Mud, Caves and Bleach

There is a beauty in the simplicity of life in the wilderness - Delia & Mark Owens

Wowee, what a week. I’ve just touched down from South Africa and, honestly, I’m still buzzing. I was incredibly fortunate to visit Klasies River Main Site, a stunning complex of caves on the southern coast of South Africa, famous for its Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Later Stone Age (LSA) archaeology.

This story is more of a “life of a palaeoclimatologist in the archaeological world” type of read. The main thing the two fields have in common? Mud. Lots of glorious mud.

Getting there: flights and a see-through shower

Our journey from Bergen took three flights to reach Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth). We had a stopover in Cape Town where Ella and I shared a hotel room and, unexpectedly, a bed. The room also featured an open shower with absolutely zero privacy. Bonding experience? You could say that…

The next morning, we caught the short flight to Gqeberha. We each grabbed a new book at the airport shop, Ella went for Cry of the Kalahari by Delia & Mark Owens (an excellent choice), and I picked up a collection of Nigerian short stories called the thing around your neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Once we landed, we collected our luggage and our hire car, a massive automatic 4x4, or “bakkie” as we later learned to call it. Who even drives an automatic 4x4? Apparently, us.

We stopped in Jeffreys Bay for supplies, hitting Woolworths (basically M&S - classy snacks only) and Pick n Pay for the rest. And, the liquor store, where we grabbed some Chocoholic wine.

The final leg was a dirt road adventure to our lodges at the Fynbos Golf Resort, where we met with Professor Sarah Wurz, unpacked the truck, and settled in for the first of many wonderful dinners.

Settling in: pancakes, whales, and a “flat” run

Our first night was mellow - leftovers from the previous braai (South African BBQ), chats with the archaeologists, and a promise from one of them that he’d go for a flat morning run. Of course, I joined. Of course, it wasn’t flat.

Everything hurt, but at least there were pancakes waiting afterward (after I demolished avocado toast). We even spotted whales from the lodge, full tail and blow. It was spectacular.

That evening another archaeologist arrived, we had a braai, and then watched F1.

First day on site: the Witness Baulk and opercula hunting

Every morning started early at 7:30 am sharp, and then followed by a bumpy drive to the site. We’d bounce through dairy farms and forests before emerging onto the coast, greeted by jaw-dropping ocean views and the famous caves of Klasies River. The archaeologists were excavating the Witness Baulk - a leftover slice of sediment intentionally kept by earlier excavators so future teams could “witness” and learn from the stratigraphy.

I was lucky enough to help with sampling for opercula (the tiny snail shell lids) alongside another archaeologist, who patiently showed me the ropes. We found two! Later, another opercula was uncovered more from the Witness Baulk. I also got to try a bit of ‘excavating’, loosely speaking, and managed to unearth some shells without completely ruining anything.

Left to right: Sampling AA43, happy with an opercula in my hand, and the Witness Baulk

Evenings were relaxed: showers, admin, and dinner at the lodge, often accompanied by a perfect sunset.

The daily rhythm: leaf wax sampling, caves, and dolphins

Our days fell into a rhythm of, leave early, coffee break at 10:30 am, lunch at 12:30, and another break mid-afternoon. The archaeologists were militant about tea breaks, which I respected deeply.

One morning, I collected leaf wax samples from my new favourite unit, AA43 - it’s basically the supermodel of stratigraphy, with shells and stones sticking out, and layers of brown, orange, grey, white and black. Later we visited Cave 3, which meant a beach walk, some rock pool scouting for Turbo sarmaticus, and a rope-assisted climb up to the cave entrance.

Myself sat admiring AA43

It smelled awful - likely bats… though some suggested a leopard’s dinner. There were, after all, fresh prints and suspicious noises.

Back at Cave 1A, we sampled Howiesons Poort layers until the heat became unbearable (it hit 30°C that day). That evening, we ate fish and chips, watched a pod of dolphins swim past from our lodge, and had dessert which was Melva pudding and custard - heavenly.

Last one on AA43 - a thing of beauty

By Wednesday, I finished sampling AA43 and helped Ella with post Howiesons Poort layers. The day blurred together - a mix of sun, sediment, and tea breaks. Dinner that night was an incredible creamy pasta which we all could’ve eaten for days.

Thursday was eDNA day. What an interesting one. Bleach, DI water, ethanol - repeat 16 times, for 16 samples. I was on glove sterilisation duty, which basically meant spraying bleach a lot. It was useful that the wind picked up on that particular day because it meant drying was quicker, however bleach spray to the eyes, I do not recommend.

We wrapped up early as a storm rolled in and made it back. Dinner was sausages and mash (I “helped” by mashing the potatoes).

The final day

Despite a lack of storm rolling in, there were no excavations. We still however visited the site briefly to grab some photos, film outreach footage, and document the sample finds. Back at the lodge, we spent the afternoon organising all our samples, this involves labelling, photographing and listing what analyses would follow.

Dinner that night was burgers, our “last supper” followed by one of the most magical sights, fireflies twinkling in the dark.

Saturday: parkrun in the rainforest

Our final morning started early with a drive to Stormsriver parkrun, about half an hour away. It was raining (at stormsriver?), but utterly beautiful - lush, green, and alive. We signed a guestbook (it’s in an indigenous rainforest), listened to the usual parkrun intro along with a prayer, and then off we went. The first half was great, chatting away on the downhill, until I inevitably died on the uphill. Then it was back to the lodge for a quick pack-up, one last coffee, and the long trip home.

Reflections

It’s hard to sum up Klasies in a few paragraphs - the mix of sea spray, seeing time travel literally before your eyes, mud, and science. There’s something humbling about standing where early humans once lived, working alongside archaeologists and seeing how the story of climate, landscape, and humanity intertwines.