2004 Biking North Cape

By car to Lambert’s Bay, Thursday, Dec 30, Friday, Dec 31 & Saturday, Jan 1; White Sands, R400 total

Having decided the dirt roads originally planned were too daunting for me (the locals tell of 4x4s getting stuck and cyclists cutting their legs to shreds falling in what amounts to sea sand stretches) and being exhausted after a particularly tough day, we decided instead to drive to Lambert’s Bay. Once in Lambert’s Bay we cancelled our accommodation in Elandsbaai and booked an additional night at White Sands.

We did not do much! Some shopping, some driving, some walking. I went twice to see the ganets on Bird Island – once with mom and dad, once with Charl. The ganets are wonderful. With their blue ‘eyes’, and mellow yellow and clotted cream feathers. Nesting on the ground, feeding their young, beak rubbing, and wonderful take-offs and landings.

We dined out one night – new year’s eve. Read, slept, and watched in growing horror and distress several hours of tsunami reports on Sky and CNN.

By car to Velddrif, Sunday, Jan 2; Pelican Guest House, R340 total

We had planned to drive to Sauer and cycle the remaining 37 km to Velddrif. Stopped briefly in pretty Clanwilliam for dad to buy new vellies. Then down the N7 – through some stunning scenery – and right onto the 399. Where we unloaded the bikes and discovered yet another puncture. So called it a day…(Funny how, when one has once broken the pattern of cycling, one breaks it more easily a second or third or fourth time!)

In Velddrif we stayed in a wannabee youth hostel / guest house on the Berg River. And ate dinner in the attached restaurant. Good home cooking. Took a drive to check out the harbour and beach and a fancy housing development complete with yacht club. Would be fun to build there!

Langebaan, Sunday, Jan 3; Seagull Guets House, R600 total; 59.6 km @ 17 kph; max 54 kph; cycle time 3h23

We left Velddrif after 07h00 on a misty-cool, windy day – with the wind behind us. Pumped Charl’s tyres at the garage before turning right over the Berg river bridge past the Cerebos factory and the vlei with flamingos. Turned right again onto the 399 headed for Vredenburg (20 km) and Saldanha (another 12 km).

The first 10 km or so were pretty flat and quickly accomplished. Then some gentle climbs and a longish hill to Vredenburg and quickly through the outskirts of this sizeable town. From the hill on which Vredenburg sits one can see Saldanha 12 km away. And so we voohmahed all the way there in record time and with much enjoyment.

Saldanha is prettily placed on a series of hills on the shores of the Langebaan bay. We breakfasted there at the Curry Den on bacon and banana pancakes and a burger. And discovered as we were leaving that Charl’s back tyre was flat – we had awoken to a flat tyre on Charl’s bike this morning and had put in the first of the Pofadder tubes complete with incorrect valve. Luckily Charl was able to pump the tube using a valve from another tube – though this could only be done at a garage! So backtracked to a nearby garage to change the tube for the second one bought in Pofadder and back onto the road for the final 15-or-so km into Langebaan.

Unfortunately the coast road did not in fact run on the coast and so the scenery was uninspiring. But...we did see the iron-ore harbour and the train there being offloaded (moving slowly via gravity under a bridge on which we stood and watched).

Except for the last 5 km beyond Mykonos we had a shoulder all day – always a welcome relief. The last 5 km was very narrow, but there was quite a lot of slow-moving traffic into town and drivers seemed content to wait in queues behind us until it was safe to pass.

And so we arrived safe at the charming Seagulls Guest House – well-pleased to be back on the bikes after too-long a break. Mom and dad were at the casino. We swam and watched Dr Phil and the cricket and made enquiries about the nearby Fossil Park.

Which we all visited later in the day. Fascinating stuff. Mining here unearthed thousands of fossils. Including those of an African bear, a short-knecked giraffe, and a four-tusked elephant. We saw how trainee anthropologists sift through the tiniest bones, for example, frog bones, visited a giraffe skeleton – five million years old – in situ, and wondered at what could still lay beneath.

Dined in the garden on Spar chicken. A good day.

Darling, Tuesday, Jan 4; Maison Amnesia, R480 total; 62.4 km @ 14 kph; max 69 kph; cycle time 4h14

Last evening, when we were getting ourselves ready for today, we found my tyre was completely flat! What a pain! So we dashed out in dad’s car and were lucky enough to find a shop still open after 17h00 where we bought yet two more tubes.

We left pretty Langebaan at 07h00-ish, pumped our tyres at the garage, and took the rutted and rocky dirt road short cut (which avoids a helluva climb) to the gate of the West Coast National Park. We paid R15 each to cycle the 25 km from the Langebaan gate to the R27 gate. And well worth it it was. We cycled on a perfect, virtually traffic-free road that climbed and dropped over fynbos-covered dunes. Cycled on a lovely morning with mist lifting to show us the blue lagoon under the blue sky. Cycled past many tortoises and two vividly-coloured spiders in huge and stunning webs and several ostriches over there and yonder and one brave brave mouse and a frightened duiker surprised by me right at the edge of the road. And past several cyclists out for their morning ride.

Not a particularly easy ride, but a very pleasant one. Despite Charl getting yet another puncture and having to use the last of our whole tubes.

Then out of the Park and onto the busy, but well-shouldered, R27. Nine km of relatively easy cycling brought us south to the Darling turnoff and a super padstal at which we breakfasted well. Then onto the considerably narrower 315 for the last 15 km of our trip.

The wind had come up by the time we got back on our bikes, but was behind us for some time. We cycled through harvested wheat fields, had our fastest downhill of the trip – 69 kph and scary without a helmet, and turned a corner where the wind rushed at us from the side forcing me off my bike for a longish uphill walk. Then turned again and climbed again and there was Darling nestled below. And down we zoomed into town to be met by applauding parents at our comfortable guest house – wonderfully named Maison Amnesia.

Where we swam and dined well and celebrated an accomplishment less than hoped, but considerably better than expected or deserved!

And so ‘home’ to Paarl the next day where Charl and I borrowed the small car for a two-night visit to Neil and Theresa in Hout Bay; then back to Paarl for one night and onto the train for a night, Johannesburg-bound.

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