The end of the Garden Route Adventure- Days 5-7.

Almost Tip of Africa

Welcome to the final installment in the Garden Route Series!  Congrats if you made it this far.  You can find Day 1, Day 2,  and Days 3/4 hyper linked here.    Day 5 brought the longest drive in our journey, but some of the most scenic views.   We woke early and left Mossel Bay and headed to Cape Point.   We passed many coastal towns and one of the largest and most famous townships in South Africa, Khayelistsha.  It is the second largest in South Africa, with a population of over 400,000 people.

Khayelitsha Township

Cape Point

The Cape of Good Hope is located in the Table Mountain National Park.   We made our way through the park, stopping at several points to take pictures, our ultimate goal was the Cape of Good Hope.   It was incredibly windy, it felt like we'd be blown into the ocean.   Luckily, we arrived right before 2 tour buses and didn't have to wait long to take picture in front of the sign.

Leaving the Cape of Good Hope, Phil decided to ignore Google and "take a short cut".   This short cut in fact was a pretty intense mountain pass.  Luckily for us, it was two lanes and tar.  It could have been worse.  The views of the bay from the pass were absolutely amazing.

We checked into the Vethos Villa in Camps Bay.   On a previous trip, I had stayed in the business district close to the wharf.    I guess it depends on what you are into, but I would definitely recommend Camps Bay over the business/wharf area.    There is more restaurants, a grocery store (and the beach!) within walking distance, there's a red bus stop right there and a short Uber to Table Mountain and the Wharf.     I felt that in Camps Bay we had more access to activities and night life and it felt safer:  there was just a whole lot more people around and shorter walks to points of interest. Vethos Villa is nice, more of a small hotel/lodge.  The hostess was nice, the rooms were clean and stocked with beach towels and a full bar.  The bathroom door was clear glass, which was a little strange, but fun to harass Phil when he was trying to have private bathroom time.  There was a large common room that always had coffee service and light snacks.  The only complaint was that there was supposed to be parking and we were told all the spots were taken.   There was ample street parking, so it really wasn't a problem.

The first night after check in, we walked down to the beach to play in the surf and watch the sunset. Dinner was on the promenade at The Raj.   The Raj had fantastic  service which we have found hard to find in South Africa as a whole.  There was a large and diverse selection of food (including a large vegetarian selection) and cocktails.

After dinner, it was an Uber ride over to Long Street to check out the night life and a DnB event.   The club had a balcony over Long street, which allowed for some great people watching.  There's a lot of opportunistic crime on Long street.   From our vantage point we could see all the pick pockets walking around... the are pretty obvious from above.  Almost all have backpacks and either walk back and forth or hang out in the shadows.   There was also a TON of police but it wasn't really clear what they were doing.   They seemed to be checking bars, but maybe not.

Our morning began fairly early, taking an Uber after breakfast to Table Mountain.   We had purchased our cable car tickets in advance, but there as a still approximately an hour wait, even though we arrived shortly after opening.  We had considered hiking up the mountain- but heard/read varying reports of time and difficulty  I think we still would of tried, but I wasn't feeling so great when we woke up.   There are some trails on top of the mountain, so we did hike around those... which offered some great views and picture ops, that I hadn't gotten to see the first time.  

After Table Mountain it was off to the V&A Waterfront, which is incredibly crowded and touristy.   We needed to do some souvenir shopping and the V&A Waterfront has a market with upscale Arts and Crafts.   I had eye'd a vendor the first time I was at the market and was happy when Phil also picked the same artist, without me pointing her out.   The vendor we chose sells art made in the townships from recycled materials.   When we can we try to support independent artists or groups supporting the community, rather than just buying something mass produced from a tourist shop.   We also bought some small gifts for our co-workers and some carved animals for our living room.

Dinner was at the sushi place on the strip, which was okay, followed by gelato and a walk on the boardwalk.

Our guide was a political prisoner in the '80s.

In the morning we were off to Robben Island by ferry.   We were treated to views of whales breaching and the African penguin colony that lives on the Island.  The island houses the prison that held political prisoners, including Mandela, during Apartheid. Our guide was an ex political prisoner who was imprisoned in the '80s.   I read the Long Walk to Freedom, so it was especially interesting to see the places that Mandela had described in such detail.   Having read the book, I was able to whisper- fill in details to Phil.   An aside, I highly highly recommend this book, especially if you are coming to South Africa.   I gained deeper understanding of South African culture and history. I think it allowed me to really connect on a deeper level and thus enhanced my experience here.  It also gave me a good jumping off point in beginning conversations on the Apartheid.

After Robben Island it was lunch at the Waterfront before heading off to the airport.

And this ends our trip on the Garden Route!

Stay tuned for my reviews of Chobe National Park (Botswana), Livingstone, Zambia and Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

And always feel free to leave comments or direct message me!

Travel: Garden Route Days 3 & 4: Cango Caves and Mossel Bay

Welcome to our review of the Garden Route Days 3 and 4!!  For those of you that are new to the party  Day 1 and Day 2 are hyperlinked here.  I left off in Oudtshoorn and that's were we begin today.   Our first adventure of the day was Cango Caves.    We were presented with 2 tour options-  Heritage and Adventure.   After making sure we fit through the cardboard demonstration holes in the lobby, we choose Adventure-  which means lots of climbing and sliding and tiny spaces.   And you know how much I love tiny spaces  (not too much- I once got stuck (paralyzed)  in fake caves at the St. Louis museum).    I kept telling Phil, every time I did something that made me uncomfortable, he would have to do something that involved heights. I learned really fast that our relationship really doesn't work that way.   No romantic balloon rides in our future.
My recommendation for Cango Caves is to book in advance, especially in summer and over holidays.   We had to wait a couple of hours for the next available Adventure tour, but it wasn't too bad.  It was a beautiful day and there's a cafe with an outdoor seating area.    The tour itself starts with the Heritage tour and then continues on deeper into the cave.    It's moderately difficult and there a plenty of spaces that require duck walking or wiggling around on your belly.  I got slightly stuck at one point where you have to wiggle up a tall narrow slit and they slide down at the top on your stomach.  I got to the top but then beached myself.  Phil had to push my feet while someone pulled my arms.  Also I smashed my knees and head quite a bit.   I would get tired of squatting, forget where I was and just stand up.  Each time I was no less surprised how hard rock is.

Next is was back down the  mountain.   We decided to skip the Ostrich Farms- because riding ostriches is weird and pretty much animal abuse and the Swartburg pass because 1 lane dirt road mountain passes are scary.  Our next stop was Mossel Bay for the birthday leg of our journey.  After being non-stop go go go go go, it was nice to stop for a couple nights.

Hubs trying to steal my swing

It was a little chilly as the sun set

Our guest house in Mossel Bay was 3 Colors Guest house, which is up on the hill with a fantastic view of the bay.  Excellent location- A quick walk down to the ocean and a little slower hike back up (for the record, I beat Phil up the hill 3/4 times).  Our room was one of two that opened directly on to the pool and deck.   Right in front of our door was a basket chair that swung out over the pool.  I immediately claimed it as my birthday chair and vowed to spent a lot of quality time in my chair with a bottle of wine.  Breakfast wasn't included in our booking, but available at a nominal charge.  And it was fantastic.  I had stuffed french toast one morning and an omelet the next.  There was also amenities such as a common room with an expresso machine and fluffy pool towels in the room.  AND 2 fluffy dogs that come to visit the rooms.  We highly recommend this B&B.

Hi fluffy new friend

looking for sea treasure

After we settled in, it was down to the ocean to play in the tidal pools and to find some dinner.  We choose Delfino's which had plenty of outdoor seating right on the Ocean.   I ordered my bottle of wine (I think I ordered pizza) and Phil ordered a couple of Cape Velvet's, a South African liquor and calamari.  The food was decent, but the server wins all the points for packing up my wine as take away and aiding me in sneaking it out.   It had a party for one on a swing that it needed to attend.    

I finally got my bottle of wine

The next day began with a hike of the St. Blaize Trail.   The entire trail is about 13.7 kilometers.    We started at the entry point near our guest house and hiked about 2 hours up toward Donna Bay and then back all the way to the light house and restaurants.  So about 4- 4.5 hours total.  The entire hike is said to be about 6, but I think that is point to point and not round trip.  The website lists the hike as moderate difficulty, but we found it pretty easy.        A note, part of the hike is on private property and the gate is only open certain times.  The hike was along the coast with breath taking views and lots of little creatures to see.

St. Blaize Trail

St. Blaize trail

We had booked a sunset cocktail cruise, but unfortunately it was canceled due to high waves.   bPhil did book a fantastic spot in town  for dinner, Route 57.  It is owned by a golf pro.  We had a cute little table for two on the porch, with lot's of great people watching.  The food, service and ambiance was amazing.   It is a perfect date night/ special occasion spot.

That ends days 3 & 4.    Stay tuned for the final installment of our Garden Route trip-  the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Town.

view of tidal pools from the trail

Dassie on the trail

Travel- Day 2 on the Garden Route

Hi Readers!    For today's travel blog it's back to the Garden Route for Day 2!  (Day one is here)  I left off last in Plettenberg Bay and that is where I will begin here.   

We headed out from our B&B,  Beacon on the Bliss (reviewed here),  early to Robberg Nature Reserve, which was just a few kilometers up the road for a morning hike.  The day before when Phil and I were playing on the beach a couple of life guards had told us we could hike the whole island in 1.5 hours so we where fairly ambitious when we woke up. That ambition was quickly shot down when our hostess at the guest house told us it takes her 4-5 hours.   

We estimated our fitness level somewhere in between the two, so we expected a a 3-ish hour hike, which was about right- although we did a sort of a convoluted path- hiking first one side of the island and back and then the other side and back, instead of making a full loop.     The hike itself was on the moderate to advanced side with some parts of the trail marked with a skull and cross bones.  There were definitely parts that were more like bouldering than hiking.  The risk of tumbling off the mountain was well worth it!  The views were breath taking.   We  encountered a little rain when we rounded the mountain to the island, but luckily it was more of a warm rain, and we were semi-prepared with jackets and hats.   I was really jealous of Phil's water resistant safari gear that I had relentlessly teased him about.   There were a lot of serious hikers on the trail with a lot of serious hiking gear, including pack-covers.   That would have been helpful.

It's cool, waves, let your freak flags fly high. 

This technically was the trail.  

 There were also a bunch of trail runners!  I have no idea how running on this trail was possible.  The trail itself is made of several different substrates- wooden planks in some places, dirt and gravel in others, but also straight up rocks- where any resemblance of a trail was minimal.  The main hike is a loop, with the right hand side's reward being a beautiful beach and an island that can be explored- if you are cautious of the waves that have the potential to crash over the island.    The other side of the loop treats you to views of seals.

At least this part had a rail.

Horns for not breaking my ankle!

Interesting, due to my public health back ground, there were boxes and boxes of free condoms in the the ladies room at the park, in packs of 20, with visual instructions. These were sponsored by the South African Health Ministry.   Phil claims they were not in the men's room. South Africa has one of the highest rates of HIV and AIDs in the world.

Bathroom Condoms

Stop 2 for the day was Knysna.    Here is one of the major stops on the Garden Route, the Heads.

All bundled up

Here is a webcam view if you'd like to see the heads in real time.  The heads are 2 hills that form the passage from the harbor into the ocean.   If you are running a ship and wish to come into the harbor additional insurance is needed....   the waves near the heads are that powerful.   Phil and I took a cruise around the lagoon.   It was chilly at first, but warmed up.   Luckily, there were heavy wool blankets to cuddle up with.

Knysna Heads

Stressed out mountain driving

After the cruise we head up to the mountains to Oudtshoorn.   Oudtshoorn is about an hour up into the mountains.  The drive was a little bit terrifying.   I almost crawled into the back seat.  It was a two lane highway with very little shoulder separating us from the vertical drop.  The little I saw from between my fingers was pretty stunning.  To make it worse, it was misty and raining a bit and the sun was starting to set.  When there was opposing traffic, Phil would pull to the left, where there was no shoulder, just a death drop.  I was glued to the side mirror, singing/screaming "TAR! TAR! TAR! TAR! TAR!" every time the touched the side of road.

Garden at Tierra Bianca

We finally made it to our third B&B, Tierra Bianca  without either of us crapping our pants, but it was a close call. When we first pulled up, we couldn't figure out where to go to check in.  There really wasn't any doors or signs, other than the main sign on the building.   We finally found a door and knocked and a man in a skirt answered and there was some confusion on his part as to why we were there and whom we were looking for.  He finally said, "Oh, you  must be looking for Morkel...  I will call him."  And shut the door.  Phil started humming the theme song for American Horror Story.   Morkel did show up relatively quickly after and he was fabulous.   He took us down to our room in the garden and had laid out menus in three categories on the bed for us:  his favorites, fancy places and places with a free pick up.   Free pick up???  Hell, yes.   That pretty much made up our mind.   Morkel called up Blackswan, made a reservation for us and arranged a pick up.

30 minutes later we were being shuttled away for wine and dinner.  The restaurant pretty empty when we arrived and we were seated at one of several empty 2 tops in the main dining room.    I picked out a bottle of wine, happy that Phil would be able to share since we would be shuttled back home after. Wine choice: One Tree Hill, Pinotage by a local winery Karusa Vineyard.  It was delicious.  I  regret not stopping at the vineyard to pick up  a few bottles.  I hope I can find it locally.  As we were looking at our choices for mains, the waitress came over, flustered and embarrassed and said that we'd need to move because an "old lady" had requested that table.   We moved one table over.  When the "old lady" came in later, it was really a rich old dude with his young trophy girlfriend.   Seriously, there was nothing special about that table... I think it was just an exercise in fake power and the need to feel important.   .The rest of our dinner was pleasant.  The food was good-  Ostrich filet for Phil (we were in the ostrich capital of the world) and a vegetarian pasta for me.  We shared a yummy traditional bread pudding custard for desert.   Then it was into the shuttle to be shuttled back to the B&B.

Stay tuned for Days 3 & 4 in Mossel Bay.