Monthly Archives: July 2014

Little nesting huts provided

Costal Road on the cape

Fish Hoek

Family meal with Robert Martin. I am inspired by him, he has made a journey in life the makes my cycle trip feel like a stroll in the park.

Cape of good hope

Table mountain

Much of my fuel through South Africa consisted of fish and chips! When it’s £1.20 for a good size portion, why not..

Camps Bay

Oh dear, not a good look!

Cape Town

Noon canon firing ceremony

Attractive Dutch style architecture

Male choral Orchestra. The Wiffenpuffs! The were great.. They sang at the hostel I was staying at.

Climbing table mountain.. Up in 1 hour, cable car down. Not a breath of wind on top. Beautiful.

The Vineyard Hotel

Cedric kindly invited me for lunch at this fancy hotel / restaurant. We met in Hermanus a few days before, he was playing golf and DIVING WITH GREAT WHITE SHARKS! Glad to see the limbs intact.

Cedrics son, Blake, who also amazingly kept his limbs and can still count to ten using his fingers.

The vineyard hotel, I spent some time exploring the former governors residence when European influence in South Africa stretched as far as a refreshing station and some farms in Cape Town to supply ships sailing the spice route

Sylvia and Mirek

We me in Namibia at Ai-Ais the day before their 5 day hike down fish river canyon. I was kindly invited to stay and helped with the logistics of getting me and the bike on a plane back home in London.
Walking on the “snake” in the Botanical gardens. It’s a treetop walkway.
Merik is a walking encyclopedia of plants and birds. I could not be better informed about what there is to see – or furnished with funny stories..

Flower and brid

I would have never had spotted this fellow unless it was pointed out to me. Even then, it took a little time to find!

Rhodes Memorial. Good views of the city

Last meal in South Africa

Dropped off at the airport

How to take a bike on a BA flight.. Add on extra item of checked luggage. This is the bike. £60 extra charge.
Remove handlebars and pedals.
Deflate tyres. Wrap to avoid getting scratched.
Then wrap the two rear panniers and tent using the film wrapping service. This is checked in.
Empty both front panniers, place on inside the other. Fill with all the heavy items. This is hand carry.

Riebeeck Kasteel. Wine and fruit growing region

Riebeeck Kasteel again. Richly fertile area.

Groenberg Nature reserve, on the mountain pass towards Worcester

Bains Pass

Early morning view from a veranda I was invited to camp under, lucky as it really rained that night.

Vineyards in the area near Rawsonville

Cycling out of Bonnievale at dusk I was flagged down by the Jonker family and kindly invited to stay at their cottage for the night. The nighttime temperature dropped to a few degrees. Next day we motored to the top of a nearby Hill for some picturesque views across the countryside to watch the morning mists clear.

Good cycling roads look like this..

The Oaks Farm, Greyton

Gert and Marianas Ehlers (centre) surrounded by farm administration staff, house keeper and gardener.
I met Gert outside Peter Beckers farm in Namibia, we swapped contact details and a promise to visit should I pass by. On my second evening there I gave a talk about my cycle trip to invited neighbours and friend of the Ehlers.
The next day I was given a whole tour of the farm operations and administration covering drainage clearance, fruit farming, cattle farming, feeds, pasture irrigation, invasive tree clearance, damming, worker training, some hands on experience, family meal and more besides.

Pruning the fruit trees on the farm. Although cattle is the traditional family business, with the new farm they inherited a sizeable pear plantation, which is proving to be quite profitable.

Nguni cows, indigenous cattle to South Africa. Although lower weight they are more drought and disease resistant than other breeds

Game drive with Gert up into the mountains at the back of the farm. The mountains provide a reliable water source in addition to the river that runs through the valley below.

Finished by tossing pancakes in the farmhouse kitchen for our evening meal. I didn’t tell them it was my birthday that day. Given the circumstances I couldn’t wish to be with better people in a more beautiful place to celebrate it.

Lovely rooftop apartment where I lodged

South Coast towards Cape Town

Fisherman’s cottage

A Cape fur seal that owns the place, just don’t get in his way..

Cape Agulhas

The southerly most tip of Africa. From this point on its all back home!

Protea, the national flower of South africa

Short days means long shadows

Lynx with a kill

Hermanus, invited by Paul and Yvonne to their home for a chat, dinner, beers and a bed for the night. We bumped into each other 3 times in Namibia and swapped contact details. Fun and kind people. Another rainstorm passed over that night..

Chased by rain stories and squalls