Mel & Trinity

Three days in a nutshell – this will be a challenge! Okay, here goes.

I left Hermanus on Saturday morning following an early morning walk along the coastline towards Hermanus town centre. The coastline is so rugged and beautiful (see photo below)! It was just a slight shame that it was overcast but it’s been overcast and rainy at times for the last three days – not the weather I’m used to at this time of the year in the Cape but maybe I’ve generally been lucky.

If you have ever been to this part of the world then you will know that everything around here is gorgeous! The only thing that changes is the landscape. So with that in mind I’ll stick to the facts of my trip and I hope you can image the scenery as I take you along my journey with me.

I rode along the R43 between Hermanus and Gaansbaai, stopping briefly at De Kelders just before it, only because I saw a sign saying there were caves. I’m always a sucker for a cave!

When I reached the caves I got chatting to a very friendly old guy who explained that the caves are only open for tours – apparently they are gated up otherwise. Really? That put an end to that then as he also said that you need to get geared up to explore the caves. It sounded like my US Lava Cave Monument experience all over again i.e. I wasn’t dressed for the occasion (fancy that). The one particularly bit of useful information that the guy gave me was that one of the roads between Gaansbaai and Cape Agulhas had been tarred so I wouldn’t need to backtrack on myself as I was expecting. Result!

On that note, I moved onto Gaansbaai where I visited the information centre and met two lovely people in the process. The first was the lady in the information centre called Doulene, and the second an older chap who I saw eyeing up Butus, called Neville. Both were delightful!

After possible a 20 minute chat to Neville about the motorbikes he rode in his youth, I hit the road to Cape Agulhas, stopping at the Black Oystercatcher for lunch, which Doulene had recommended. It was a good choice. Only one thing struck me. This was the first place that I had stopped at that was ‘very local’. Pretty much everyone was Afrikaans speaking where almost every other place I had visited or stayed in where predominantly English, Dutch or German tourists. To be fair, this play is in the middle of nowhere!

Cape Agulhas itself was great. This is primarily from a scenery perspective as the town itself is like most coastal towns in these parts – pretty quiet! It was very exciting to be at the southern most tip of the African continent. Of course I captured the moment (see below).

Besides being amazed at how gorgeous the colour of the ocean is at Cape Agulhas, my next surprise was arriving in Swellendam. What a fabulous little town! I really wasn’t expecting much, so I was blown away when I was approaching it and was left in aw at the imposing mountain which forms it backdrop. The best of all is that the place where I was staying was at the foot of the mountain. I felt so ridiculous spoiled (see the photo below) and loved every minute of it.

My room remained me so much of the place I stayed in at Lake Tahoe. It felt like I was only my honeymoon, again! Haha..rather amusing since I’ve never been married.

From Swellendam I took the Tadouw Pass which links up with the R62. What a fabulous ride!

I am so glad I took my dad’s advice and drove along the R62 rather than the N2. It is such a great ride and so varied in its landscape, which really breaks the journey. I now understand why it’s such a popular drive. Below is a photo along the route.

Before finishing my journey in Herolds Bay, I stopped off in Oudtshoorn to see some Ostriches. I had not researched the various Ostrich farms but when I saw that one of them was called Highgate I had to visit it. This WA because I lives in Highgate, North London with my friend Nicola for three years and it brought back so many wonderful memories. Thus, it was a logical choice.

The ostrich tour was loads of fun! They showed us how they make feather dusters (it takes 1 minute and 43 seconds by hand to make one – I timed the guy); to showing us 7 day old chicks; to feeding adult ostriches to standing on their eggs; to riding adult ostriches. It’s definitely worth doing if you’re ever in this part of the world. Below are some photos.

It’s an hour’s ride from Oudtshoorn to Herolds bay where I was staying. I was so excited about riding over Outeniqua Pass which I had heard so much about but sadly the clouds had completely covered the pads that I couldn’t see more than 50m in front of me. Needless to say I was a little wet by the time I reached Herolds Bay.

Fortunately for me I was staying with Mick and June last night. Although I’ve only met June recently, I’ve known Mick for 30 years. It was such a pleasure spending the evening with them – they totally spoiled me! Thanks guys – I hope I can return the favour one day. Below is the sunset their deck. How can you argue with that view! WOW! Another day in paradise.