10 Sept
We take Saturday morning & afternoon fairly easy and just manage to get one update complete and another almost finished, La Ceiba II, for those of you wondering. In fact if you are reading this, it should be completed today(under it's original heading) so take a look if you haven’t yet seen it as it is a very different avenue for our trip just after John had broken his leg.
On Sunday morning we go off to find the Penguin viewing point, and on the way discover a whole lot of Southern Wright Whales doing their thing and so stop. This is the first chance either of us have had to try out Johns new Binoculars & my 2xTeleconverter for the telephoto lens and my new tripod. All works very well !
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Still haven't managed to get the whale breach shot since Alaska, however this will have to do for now.
Then it’s a Sunday roast, a three course meal for about 3.75 ! We eat outside and are able to watch some more whales as we do so. We discover from our waitress that the Penguin area, known as Boulders, is in the opposite direction…which is no problem as we’ve only travelled a few miles. We soon find the spot, park up and go off looking for them.
It’s not long before we find some Penguins, and some more and more. We had a great couple of hours watching their behaviour, including two which looked like husband and wife, with one having a bit if a go now and again……..I shan’t suggest anything but it looks like the bloke’s been a bit a careless eating his egg this morning and got his white shirt all messy !
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A group of penguins not long from the sea.
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A few close-ups.
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Before lunch, perfect harmony.
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Shortly after the egg incident(see text above) and the harmony starts to dissapear.
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Coventry begins for Mr Messy !
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This Penguin is in mid-flight as it launches itself to get from one side of the chasm to the other.
After this we shoot down to the Cape of Good Hope and manage to see 3 or 4 Ostriches on the way !!??, inside the national park, not far from where we saw the Baboons on Friday !!
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One of the Ostriches near the Cape of Good Hope.
The Cape is beautiful, lovely sunlight, huge waves and an excellent back-drop to our first most South-Westerly point anywhere on the trip so far photo. (having missed Usuiah) We meet quite a few Europeans there who are very interested in our trip and experiences. We also meet two Italians, who whilst very helpful taking the photos for us, were very critical of our bike choice, tyres etc. In the end I was getting fed up with it and pointed out that we had actually travelled 30,000 miles in the past year and our set-up was working just fine! We stay for the full sun-set & even John gets his camera out !! (YES, that good !!)
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We've arrived - This was quiet a land-mark for me.
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Some of the amazing views we got at the Cape.
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..and as the sun started to set.
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We had been desiring to do a White shark cage dive since we discovered they could be done here but a bit like the Huey helicopter ride, we had had trouble trying to fit it in. So we decide that before we leave the Cape we will make time and so I ring up a tour operator on Monday morning who informs me that the one and only dive for the day has already left for Gansbaai(The home of shark diving in South Africa). -“Could we make it tomorrow?”. We were offered a good price and so we took it and headed up the east coast of the Cape for Gansbaai.
It was quite a sunny day and the views were lovely . We also had enough time to take a relaxed ride for a change as we only had about 100 miles to do and so we took lunch on a pavement café in Gordons bay which overlooked the sea and even had a cake and coffee in the afternoon. We reach Gansbaii at just before 6, discover the Landmarks that had been described for meeting the Shark company the following morning, and set out to find some accomodation.
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Gordons Bay.
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A view from just after Gordons Bay.
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...as the sign says.
We do find some eventually overlooking the sea. Our host is great and we stay in the Leopard room…it is as it sounds and looks (see photos).
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The Bed cover on John's bed in the Leopard room.......
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..and the curtains in the ........just let me give you a clue....."LLLLL...
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The day-time view from our room......and.....
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.....the evening outlook.
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The following morning the alarm goes off and with it comes the awareness that it is shark day ! We get ourselves together (perhaps for the last time!!?) and meet up with the rest of the group in town for breakfast.
We board the boat on its trailer on dry land and are launched into the sea on the boat, which was quite a novel experience. Soon the boat is racing through the sea to get out of the harbour which looks pretty treacherous for the faint-hearted. I can be a bit subject to motion sickness but had decided not to take a sea-sickness pill on account that I’d heard you can feel just as bad from it’s side-effects if you only take the one on the day (as opposed to one the night before and then one 2 hours before sailing), something that also rings a bell from my own childhood.
Immediatley after anchoring we were given a briefing as to boat rules, including methods for preventing sea-sickness, or where not to be ill if the prevention methods weren’t working. Soon after that a Tuna head was thrown into the sea attached to a float, along with a very fishy smelling soup-conconction to attract the sharks-this process is called chumming and not allowed in Australia or the USA. We were also encouraged to get our wet-suits on as soon as possible so if a shark turned up we’d be ready to see them from the cage which was also being prepared by the side of the boat. The wet-suits were wet and cold ! Hhmmmm nice.
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Soon after stopping we were pursued by a few seagulls smelling the 'soup' that was being dished out for the sharks.
A shark soon obliged and we soon got to see the four rows of teeth totalling approximately 200(John refused to confirm the exact number !), in fact, this one tried to board the back of the boat !!
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One of our first sightings. We were all impressed. It was a bout 3.5 m long. The longest of the day was about 4m.
We all got about 10 mins in the cage on the first run through and each persons experience varied greatly. For some they got a whole facial ram into the side of the cage (John), for others(myself) we felt the shark body weight hitting the side of the cage as it swam by after the Tuna being dragged along by the shark handler.
I will explain the process for watching from the cage. The ‘Divers’ all stand in a metal cage which has a metal grab rail for the 'diver' to hold on to and two rails around foot height at the back of the cage to stand on. For our trip neither snorkels or scuba were used as water visibility was too bad to know where a shark might come from without the aid of a ‘spotter’ on deck….so…..we have to wait, eyes focussed on the float until we are told to “go down“. With that, we all push ourselves underwater to see the coming shark. I found watching the ‘divers’ very funny from above as they were all poised in the cage with their blue disposable under-water cameras in their right hands waiting to dunk themselves under water to get a brief glimpse and possible photo of one of the seas more dangerous animals.
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"Divers" in the cage.....I found this very funny. Note the holding of obligatory blue underwater camera in right hand !!
John did his first 10 mins, and along with many on the boat, decided that was enough. Visibility was far better on the boat, photo opportunities much greater and it was warmer-the sea was at about 15C. I did my first and as I was getting out of the cage a shark came hammering at the part of the cage I’d been standing in so it was just below me as I got off-It is all a bit surreal as I wasn’t frightened even though a few others around me seemed quite excited for me, however I did feel a bit cheated that I didn’t get to see its face close up so I went in again for a further 10mins later. This time it (there were a total of 5 shark visitors in total) came much closer to the cage and the whole thing got hammered about three times with one occaision where the boys at the other end from me got a good 10 seconds or so of action as the handler fought with the shark as to who was going to keep the Tuna head-the shark won ! (see photo of shark with bloody head.) Eventually time is called and we head back towards shore. A few people had been sick and a few more of us weren’t too far away, ironically most people felt the least queasy in the shark cage !
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A few shots of the shark coming after the Tuna head.
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...including a tustle with the boat crew as to who was going to keep the Tuna head.
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The blood on this shark was not caused by the boat crew as far as I could tell, and was a different shark friom those we saw earlier. It did however give up quite a fight for its Tuna head. The two black objects in the foreground are "divers" heads...you see how close we were.
Finally we’re back on dry land and get a lunch buffet and get to watch the video footage taking by the companies camera-man. John orders a copy for us and we get the opportunity to ask our shark expert a few pertinent questions with respect to risks of scuba divers & sharks. We learnt that as a scuba diver you are amongst the safest people in the sea as the sharks don’t like the sound of the scuba gear when the diver breathes out. (They are not alone-it freaked me a bit too the first time I heard it. (see Honduras - Utila entry for further details) So we were able to take some comfort for our forthcoming diving plans in Mosambique….where some great whites have been known to venture!!
Eventually we’re back on the mini-bus and John and I hop off at the meeting point café and decide to get a bit more lunch as the other wasn’t filling enough. After that we walk back to our B&B to download and look at the photos. That done, John practices on the pool table whilst I do some photo editing. We eat out in an Italian restaurant in town where we meet two Spanish girls again we’d met at the Cape of good Hope on Sunday afternoon-Small world ?!. More pool in our B&B where John nearly escapes a total thrashing and then to bed.
13th We want to get an early-ish start today as we are keen to start using our days a bit better. We manage to get up, showered and dressed, bikes loaded and breakfasted by 10am-not bad for us!
The weather looks a bit iffy and we are tempted to put the Blobby suits on, however the sun came out and so they go back in the pannier again. Before leaving we discuss with Tinus, our Landlord, our route, and after some discussion, decide to take a slightly shorter route than that discussed with the men from the BMW off-road course. We also hoped to fit in a ride on an Ostrich later in the day, along with a visit to a Crocodile farm and possibly have our photo taken with a Leopard. We set off and the day turned out to be largely uneventful. In the end, we arrive a Oudtshoorn at around 5 o’clock which we think is too late for any adventures today and so we settle for finding some accomodation early. This turns into a very funny scenario.
I see a sign for a B&B and so we go and find it, however it is full for the night. The owners do however know of another B&B 2 doors down who have rooms, as it turned out. However, initially I am led to believe that John and I can have one double room in this B&B where the Hostess will add an extra bed, however, we’re not too keen on that idea and so start to discuss in the street outside the original B&B what we’ll do. The man of that B&B though is very keen that we should take this room, eventually I have to thank him for his advice but affirm we will make our own mind up. Meanwhile the lady from next door sort of hisses to me and asks “have I been set?”, I’m not sure I heard her right so I ask her to confirm what she’s asking-I get the same question again and deduce that she is asking if John and I now have a room-I say “no”. She then says in a hushed voice that I’m to go back to her if we don’t get sorted. Meanwhile the Landlord of the original B&B is back again encouraging us to take the original room again and then says in a hushed tone with his back to his neighbour and his eyes and head gesturing her way in small short movements….”no..no ..no…no…no”. John and I decide to go into town to see if there is anything else going free without walking into the middle of a neighbourly battle-field, however I had promised the second B&B Hostess that I would confirm if we wanted the room or not so I return to say that we don’t. I then find out that she was actually also offering us two double rooms if we want them for R300 which is about 25pounds for both is us. The rooms are nice, and after confirming the price again, we decide to take them. Hhmmmmm. Nice !
14th We both sleep well but I awake with some concern that there might have been some confusion over the price agreement last night. Mainly as we have learnt that what sounds fine to us in “English” English doesn’t necessarily translate into South African English. By way of demonstration, “To make a plan” in South African means “we’ll sort it out”, not we’ll make a plan to sort it out. Whilst on the subject, the South Africans say yes in a rather exaggerated yuppy-like manner as from the 80’s in England, something like “Yaaaaaaaaaarrh”, which sounds initially as if they’re taking the micky out of somebody-they‘re not, well at least I don’t think so !!. Anyway, back to the issue of our accomodation costs. I’d asked if the R300 price was for John and I, I.e. “both of us”, and I had second thoughts as to how that might be understood, as in “is it the same price (individually) for both of us ?, however I was resolved to stand my ground were it necessary. After getting showered and the bikes loaded it came to bill-settling time and we were relieved that R300 was in fact what Olta had been asking for…phew, doesn’t sound much, but on our budget which is getting tighter, it was a relief.
Before leaving though we have a cup of coffee with Olta, and discussed our plans for the day, which were largely going to an Ostrich farm and starting our Northerly path up the “Garden Route”. Olta advises us of the general whereabouts of 2 farms…….but first we go for breakfast ! …. Then we leave for the farms.
(Meanwhile we decide to leave Crocodile wrestling for Australia, and as neither of us is keen on the humanising of Leopards, we also decline the photo opportunity considered on the way up.)
Looking at the Ostrich farms, we find the two and decide on the second one. It was positioned in a really nice farm-land area and we were both offered drinks whilst we waited to see if more would join our would-be group of four, which included a Dutch couple. (I mention the drinks as they were free, we hadn’t paid anything yet, and it was so nice to be given something without anything expected for it.)
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A novel use of an Ostrich egg-shell at the farm.
No one else came and so we took off on our tour. I won’t bore you with all the details….just some of them !! The main points were that an Ostrich egg can support 120kg !!! ……without cracking…so John was dispatched for this job. An Ostrich itself can support about 80kg on its back, as in a person. They eat gravel to mash their food in their stomachs as they have no teeth to chew. They have about 1.5kg in there at all times !! Apparently in the absence of gravel they will eat anything shiny, and in the macabre museum of eaten objects were found a whole spark plug, coins and a toy car…not very discerning !!
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This contraption was used to house 4 Ostriches for the launch of one of the Olympic games-Not sure which ones.
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One problem Ostriches have is keeping all thier eggs warm(as they can lay up to 16), those that get cold don't hatch. This device is a late eighteenth centry incubator which used steam to keep them warm. It wasn't completley predictable but worked sufficiently well.
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Aha...that's where those dusters come from !!
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A duster in the making.
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..and those Boa's so popular in the 20's.
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Origin of the Boa feathers. Apparently nearly all the Ostrichs feathers can be plucked and grow back in 9 months.
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John demonstrates just how tough Ostrich egg-shells are !!
We were also given the opportunity to feed them some dried corn….most amusing. They are big and they peck at your hand very quickly and very strongly. It doesn’t actually hurt hurt, but it is a shock as their beak thwacks into your hand at a fair old pace…they can also devour nearly a handful in one strike !! John & I, along with the Dutch couple, were also given the opportunity to sit on one (not with our full weight) and got to see the Ostrich jockeys race along on a race track on the farm.
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The only bird to have two toes. The outside smaller toe is for balance, whilst the middle one is for walking/running.
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An Ostrich chick as a result of incubation.
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The almost hazardous Ostrich feeding opportunity-note how much corn is in this ones beak from one beak-full.
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Their heads were ever moving and it was hard to get a decent photo.
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...but I managed !!
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John and bird so scared that the whole sitting on it process is endured with eyes closed, either that or John's grip is strangling the poor thing !
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An Ostrich race run with lighter participents than us. The winner ran under the name of Michael Schumaker...a lot of jostling at the begining and a smile the size of a cheshire cat at the end!
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1.5kg of this in their stomachs......or they resort to spark plugs and toy cars !!
The tour was interesting and good fun. We finished and decided to have lunch there before heading off. We decided to have the Ostrich salad !!(It was Johns idea…honest !)
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..and after dinner.......
We head off towards the garden route, the ride there is fine and we are soon riding along it. The scenery is nice but not stunning (as we had been led to believe-although this was only the first part of it) and we decide on a suitable point to aim for our accomodation tonight, Plettenberg bay. We are soon there but have trouble finding anything at a reasonable price. Finally we find a self contained unit at R360 for both of us including breakfast. The owner is very friendly and gives us the low-down on local security.
14th We were given an extensive and comprehensive breakfast soon we were packed and ready to leave. The weather looked very ominous, the skies were a dark grey and it was quite windy. The later of which had been forecast for the whole day. We set off and were soon cruising at about 70mph in the wind which was pleasing for both of us as we needed to make some distance today. This was a real result for John as it appeared the removal of the top tank etc had significantly cut down wind resistance for him. At around the 1st 100 mile mark the wind got stronger, and we had a few moments where it was very strong and you weren’t sure where it was going to come from next. John had had enough and so we turned off to find somewhere to get a coffee and rest for a while. Horror of horrors, as we turned off the N2(a Dual Carriageway) the cross-winds got even worse and as we descended down into a small town to get a coffee we were being blown everywhere-so much so that John had to stop for a few minutes as he’d run out of strength. A short rest later though and he was on the go again and we finally managed to get some petrol and get into the relatively safe premises of a Wimpy !(I ask you…a Wimpy in South Africa !!)
After 45 mins or so we’re ready to go again although John stated that he is not prepared to fight the wind all day and so we agree to give it another try for a while. We travel a further 50 miles at about 50-60 mph and I’m pleased with the progress we’re making, however a few minutes later John stops exhausted and just can’t continue, so we decide to find somewhere to set up for the week-end. A few dead-ends and either too expensive, too grubby or too full and we find a Hotel on the sea-front of Humewood. It’s Johns turn to do the asking and so he is despatched, meanwhile the wind picks up again to such a degree that I think it’s going to blow his bike off it’s stand, so I park mine perpendicular to his to effectively T-bone it against the wind ! John returns with news of R420 per night for a room. This isn’t cheap but it is a lot less than other quotes we’d been having so we took it.
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John sitting on my bike in the wind, still T-boning his. Note his hair !! We were almost blown off a couple of times.
I later learned that we were originally quoted R530 but as John turned to come back to me to talk about the price, he was told that we could have the “Sports” rate, whatever that is !, so we took it and turned one nice Hotel room into a Chinese laundry and computer centre in about 30 mins. The week-end was here and it felt like we’d just finished our week at work !!
We take Saturday morning & afternoon fairly easy and just manage to get one update complete and another almost finished, La Ceiba II, for those of you wondering. In fact if you are reading this, it should be completed today(under it's original heading) so take a look if you haven’t yet seen it as it is a very different avenue for our trip just after John had broken his leg.
On Sunday morning we go off to find the Penguin viewing point, and on the way discover a whole lot of Southern Wright Whales doing their thing and so stop. This is the first chance either of us have had to try out Johns new Binoculars & my 2xTeleconverter for the telephoto lens and my new tripod. All works very well !
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Still haven't managed to get the whale breach shot since Alaska, however this will have to do for now.
Then it’s a Sunday roast, a three course meal for about 3.75 ! We eat outside and are able to watch some more whales as we do so. We discover from our waitress that the Penguin area, known as Boulders, is in the opposite direction…which is no problem as we’ve only travelled a few miles. We soon find the spot, park up and go off looking for them.
It’s not long before we find some Penguins, and some more and more. We had a great couple of hours watching their behaviour, including two which looked like husband and wife, with one having a bit if a go now and again……..I shan’t suggest anything but it looks like the bloke’s been a bit a careless eating his egg this morning and got his white shirt all messy !
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A group of penguins not long from the sea.
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A few close-ups.
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Before lunch, perfect harmony.
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Shortly after the egg incident(see text above) and the harmony starts to dissapear.
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Coventry begins for Mr Messy !
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This Penguin is in mid-flight as it launches itself to get from one side of the chasm to the other.
After this we shoot down to the Cape of Good Hope and manage to see 3 or 4 Ostriches on the way !!??, inside the national park, not far from where we saw the Baboons on Friday !!
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One of the Ostriches near the Cape of Good Hope.
The Cape is beautiful, lovely sunlight, huge waves and an excellent back-drop to our first most South-Westerly point anywhere on the trip so far photo. (having missed Usuiah) We meet quite a few Europeans there who are very interested in our trip and experiences. We also meet two Italians, who whilst very helpful taking the photos for us, were very critical of our bike choice, tyres etc. In the end I was getting fed up with it and pointed out that we had actually travelled 30,000 miles in the past year and our set-up was working just fine! We stay for the full sun-set & even John gets his camera out !! (YES, that good !!)
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We've arrived - This was quiet a land-mark for me.
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Some of the amazing views we got at the Cape.
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..and as the sun started to set.
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We had been desiring to do a White shark cage dive since we discovered they could be done here but a bit like the Huey helicopter ride, we had had trouble trying to fit it in. So we decide that before we leave the Cape we will make time and so I ring up a tour operator on Monday morning who informs me that the one and only dive for the day has already left for Gansbaai(The home of shark diving in South Africa). -“Could we make it tomorrow?”. We were offered a good price and so we took it and headed up the east coast of the Cape for Gansbaai.
It was quite a sunny day and the views were lovely . We also had enough time to take a relaxed ride for a change as we only had about 100 miles to do and so we took lunch on a pavement café in Gordons bay which overlooked the sea and even had a cake and coffee in the afternoon. We reach Gansbaii at just before 6, discover the Landmarks that had been described for meeting the Shark company the following morning, and set out to find some accomodation.
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Gordons Bay.
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A view from just after Gordons Bay.
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...as the sign says.
We do find some eventually overlooking the sea. Our host is great and we stay in the Leopard room…it is as it sounds and looks (see photos).
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The Bed cover on John's bed in the Leopard room.......
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..and the curtains in the ........just let me give you a clue....."LLLLL...
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The day-time view from our room......and.....
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.....the evening outlook.
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The following morning the alarm goes off and with it comes the awareness that it is shark day ! We get ourselves together (perhaps for the last time!!?) and meet up with the rest of the group in town for breakfast.
We board the boat on its trailer on dry land and are launched into the sea on the boat, which was quite a novel experience. Soon the boat is racing through the sea to get out of the harbour which looks pretty treacherous for the faint-hearted. I can be a bit subject to motion sickness but had decided not to take a sea-sickness pill on account that I’d heard you can feel just as bad from it’s side-effects if you only take the one on the day (as opposed to one the night before and then one 2 hours before sailing), something that also rings a bell from my own childhood.
Immediatley after anchoring we were given a briefing as to boat rules, including methods for preventing sea-sickness, or where not to be ill if the prevention methods weren’t working. Soon after that a Tuna head was thrown into the sea attached to a float, along with a very fishy smelling soup-conconction to attract the sharks-this process is called chumming and not allowed in Australia or the USA. We were also encouraged to get our wet-suits on as soon as possible so if a shark turned up we’d be ready to see them from the cage which was also being prepared by the side of the boat. The wet-suits were wet and cold ! Hhmmmm nice.
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Soon after stopping we were pursued by a few seagulls smelling the 'soup' that was being dished out for the sharks.
A shark soon obliged and we soon got to see the four rows of teeth totalling approximately 200(John refused to confirm the exact number !), in fact, this one tried to board the back of the boat !!
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One of our first sightings. We were all impressed. It was a bout 3.5 m long. The longest of the day was about 4m.
We all got about 10 mins in the cage on the first run through and each persons experience varied greatly. For some they got a whole facial ram into the side of the cage (John), for others(myself) we felt the shark body weight hitting the side of the cage as it swam by after the Tuna being dragged along by the shark handler.
I will explain the process for watching from the cage. The ‘Divers’ all stand in a metal cage which has a metal grab rail for the 'diver' to hold on to and two rails around foot height at the back of the cage to stand on. For our trip neither snorkels or scuba were used as water visibility was too bad to know where a shark might come from without the aid of a ‘spotter’ on deck….so…..we have to wait, eyes focussed on the float until we are told to “go down“. With that, we all push ourselves underwater to see the coming shark. I found watching the ‘divers’ very funny from above as they were all poised in the cage with their blue disposable under-water cameras in their right hands waiting to dunk themselves under water to get a brief glimpse and possible photo of one of the seas more dangerous animals.
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"Divers" in the cage.....I found this very funny. Note the holding of obligatory blue underwater camera in right hand !!
John did his first 10 mins, and along with many on the boat, decided that was enough. Visibility was far better on the boat, photo opportunities much greater and it was warmer-the sea was at about 15C. I did my first and as I was getting out of the cage a shark came hammering at the part of the cage I’d been standing in so it was just below me as I got off-It is all a bit surreal as I wasn’t frightened even though a few others around me seemed quite excited for me, however I did feel a bit cheated that I didn’t get to see its face close up so I went in again for a further 10mins later. This time it (there were a total of 5 shark visitors in total) came much closer to the cage and the whole thing got hammered about three times with one occaision where the boys at the other end from me got a good 10 seconds or so of action as the handler fought with the shark as to who was going to keep the Tuna head-the shark won ! (see photo of shark with bloody head.) Eventually time is called and we head back towards shore. A few people had been sick and a few more of us weren’t too far away, ironically most people felt the least queasy in the shark cage !
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A few shots of the shark coming after the Tuna head.
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...including a tustle with the boat crew as to who was going to keep the Tuna head.
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The blood on this shark was not caused by the boat crew as far as I could tell, and was a different shark friom those we saw earlier. It did however give up quite a fight for its Tuna head. The two black objects in the foreground are "divers" heads...you see how close we were.
Finally we’re back on dry land and get a lunch buffet and get to watch the video footage taking by the companies camera-man. John orders a copy for us and we get the opportunity to ask our shark expert a few pertinent questions with respect to risks of scuba divers & sharks. We learnt that as a scuba diver you are amongst the safest people in the sea as the sharks don’t like the sound of the scuba gear when the diver breathes out. (They are not alone-it freaked me a bit too the first time I heard it. (see Honduras - Utila entry for further details) So we were able to take some comfort for our forthcoming diving plans in Mosambique….where some great whites have been known to venture!!
Eventually we’re back on the mini-bus and John and I hop off at the meeting point café and decide to get a bit more lunch as the other wasn’t filling enough. After that we walk back to our B&B to download and look at the photos. That done, John practices on the pool table whilst I do some photo editing. We eat out in an Italian restaurant in town where we meet two Spanish girls again we’d met at the Cape of good Hope on Sunday afternoon-Small world ?!. More pool in our B&B where John nearly escapes a total thrashing and then to bed.
13th We want to get an early-ish start today as we are keen to start using our days a bit better. We manage to get up, showered and dressed, bikes loaded and breakfasted by 10am-not bad for us!
The weather looks a bit iffy and we are tempted to put the Blobby suits on, however the sun came out and so they go back in the pannier again. Before leaving we discuss with Tinus, our Landlord, our route, and after some discussion, decide to take a slightly shorter route than that discussed with the men from the BMW off-road course. We also hoped to fit in a ride on an Ostrich later in the day, along with a visit to a Crocodile farm and possibly have our photo taken with a Leopard. We set off and the day turned out to be largely uneventful. In the end, we arrive a Oudtshoorn at around 5 o’clock which we think is too late for any adventures today and so we settle for finding some accomodation early. This turns into a very funny scenario.
I see a sign for a B&B and so we go and find it, however it is full for the night. The owners do however know of another B&B 2 doors down who have rooms, as it turned out. However, initially I am led to believe that John and I can have one double room in this B&B where the Hostess will add an extra bed, however, we’re not too keen on that idea and so start to discuss in the street outside the original B&B what we’ll do. The man of that B&B though is very keen that we should take this room, eventually I have to thank him for his advice but affirm we will make our own mind up. Meanwhile the lady from next door sort of hisses to me and asks “have I been set?”, I’m not sure I heard her right so I ask her to confirm what she’s asking-I get the same question again and deduce that she is asking if John and I now have a room-I say “no”. She then says in a hushed voice that I’m to go back to her if we don’t get sorted. Meanwhile the Landlord of the original B&B is back again encouraging us to take the original room again and then says in a hushed tone with his back to his neighbour and his eyes and head gesturing her way in small short movements….”no..no ..no…no…no”. John and I decide to go into town to see if there is anything else going free without walking into the middle of a neighbourly battle-field, however I had promised the second B&B Hostess that I would confirm if we wanted the room or not so I return to say that we don’t. I then find out that she was actually also offering us two double rooms if we want them for R300 which is about 25pounds for both is us. The rooms are nice, and after confirming the price again, we decide to take them. Hhmmmmm. Nice !
14th We both sleep well but I awake with some concern that there might have been some confusion over the price agreement last night. Mainly as we have learnt that what sounds fine to us in “English” English doesn’t necessarily translate into South African English. By way of demonstration, “To make a plan” in South African means “we’ll sort it out”, not we’ll make a plan to sort it out. Whilst on the subject, the South Africans say yes in a rather exaggerated yuppy-like manner as from the 80’s in England, something like “Yaaaaaaaaaarrh”, which sounds initially as if they’re taking the micky out of somebody-they‘re not, well at least I don’t think so !!. Anyway, back to the issue of our accomodation costs. I’d asked if the R300 price was for John and I, I.e. “both of us”, and I had second thoughts as to how that might be understood, as in “is it the same price (individually) for both of us ?, however I was resolved to stand my ground were it necessary. After getting showered and the bikes loaded it came to bill-settling time and we were relieved that R300 was in fact what Olta had been asking for…phew, doesn’t sound much, but on our budget which is getting tighter, it was a relief.
Before leaving though we have a cup of coffee with Olta, and discussed our plans for the day, which were largely going to an Ostrich farm and starting our Northerly path up the “Garden Route”. Olta advises us of the general whereabouts of 2 farms…….but first we go for breakfast ! …. Then we leave for the farms.
(Meanwhile we decide to leave Crocodile wrestling for Australia, and as neither of us is keen on the humanising of Leopards, we also decline the photo opportunity considered on the way up.)
Looking at the Ostrich farms, we find the two and decide on the second one. It was positioned in a really nice farm-land area and we were both offered drinks whilst we waited to see if more would join our would-be group of four, which included a Dutch couple. (I mention the drinks as they were free, we hadn’t paid anything yet, and it was so nice to be given something without anything expected for it.)
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A novel use of an Ostrich egg-shell at the farm.
No one else came and so we took off on our tour. I won’t bore you with all the details….just some of them !! The main points were that an Ostrich egg can support 120kg !!! ……without cracking…so John was dispatched for this job. An Ostrich itself can support about 80kg on its back, as in a person. They eat gravel to mash their food in their stomachs as they have no teeth to chew. They have about 1.5kg in there at all times !! Apparently in the absence of gravel they will eat anything shiny, and in the macabre museum of eaten objects were found a whole spark plug, coins and a toy car…not very discerning !!
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This contraption was used to house 4 Ostriches for the launch of one of the Olympic games-Not sure which ones.
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One problem Ostriches have is keeping all thier eggs warm(as they can lay up to 16), those that get cold don't hatch. This device is a late eighteenth centry incubator which used steam to keep them warm. It wasn't completley predictable but worked sufficiently well.
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Aha...that's where those dusters come from !!
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A duster in the making.
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..and those Boa's so popular in the 20's.
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Origin of the Boa feathers. Apparently nearly all the Ostrichs feathers can be plucked and grow back in 9 months.
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John demonstrates just how tough Ostrich egg-shells are !!
We were also given the opportunity to feed them some dried corn….most amusing. They are big and they peck at your hand very quickly and very strongly. It doesn’t actually hurt hurt, but it is a shock as their beak thwacks into your hand at a fair old pace…they can also devour nearly a handful in one strike !! John & I, along with the Dutch couple, were also given the opportunity to sit on one (not with our full weight) and got to see the Ostrich jockeys race along on a race track on the farm.
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The only bird to have two toes. The outside smaller toe is for balance, whilst the middle one is for walking/running.
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An Ostrich chick as a result of incubation.
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The almost hazardous Ostrich feeding opportunity-note how much corn is in this ones beak from one beak-full.
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Their heads were ever moving and it was hard to get a decent photo.
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...but I managed !!
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John and bird so scared that the whole sitting on it process is endured with eyes closed, either that or John's grip is strangling the poor thing !
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An Ostrich race run with lighter participents than us. The winner ran under the name of Michael Schumaker...a lot of jostling at the begining and a smile the size of a cheshire cat at the end!
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1.5kg of this in their stomachs......or they resort to spark plugs and toy cars !!
The tour was interesting and good fun. We finished and decided to have lunch there before heading off. We decided to have the Ostrich salad !!(It was Johns idea…honest !)
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..and after dinner.......
We head off towards the garden route, the ride there is fine and we are soon riding along it. The scenery is nice but not stunning (as we had been led to believe-although this was only the first part of it) and we decide on a suitable point to aim for our accomodation tonight, Plettenberg bay. We are soon there but have trouble finding anything at a reasonable price. Finally we find a self contained unit at R360 for both of us including breakfast. The owner is very friendly and gives us the low-down on local security.
14th We were given an extensive and comprehensive breakfast soon we were packed and ready to leave. The weather looked very ominous, the skies were a dark grey and it was quite windy. The later of which had been forecast for the whole day. We set off and were soon cruising at about 70mph in the wind which was pleasing for both of us as we needed to make some distance today. This was a real result for John as it appeared the removal of the top tank etc had significantly cut down wind resistance for him. At around the 1st 100 mile mark the wind got stronger, and we had a few moments where it was very strong and you weren’t sure where it was going to come from next. John had had enough and so we turned off to find somewhere to get a coffee and rest for a while. Horror of horrors, as we turned off the N2(a Dual Carriageway) the cross-winds got even worse and as we descended down into a small town to get a coffee we were being blown everywhere-so much so that John had to stop for a few minutes as he’d run out of strength. A short rest later though and he was on the go again and we finally managed to get some petrol and get into the relatively safe premises of a Wimpy !(I ask you…a Wimpy in South Africa !!)
After 45 mins or so we’re ready to go again although John stated that he is not prepared to fight the wind all day and so we agree to give it another try for a while. We travel a further 50 miles at about 50-60 mph and I’m pleased with the progress we’re making, however a few minutes later John stops exhausted and just can’t continue, so we decide to find somewhere to set up for the week-end. A few dead-ends and either too expensive, too grubby or too full and we find a Hotel on the sea-front of Humewood. It’s Johns turn to do the asking and so he is despatched, meanwhile the wind picks up again to such a degree that I think it’s going to blow his bike off it’s stand, so I park mine perpendicular to his to effectively T-bone it against the wind ! John returns with news of R420 per night for a room. This isn’t cheap but it is a lot less than other quotes we’d been having so we took it.
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John sitting on my bike in the wind, still T-boning his. Note his hair !! We were almost blown off a couple of times.
I later learned that we were originally quoted R530 but as John turned to come back to me to talk about the price, he was told that we could have the “Sports” rate, whatever that is !, so we took it and turned one nice Hotel room into a Chinese laundry and computer centre in about 30 mins. The week-end was here and it felt like we’d just finished our week at work !!
Mike and John. I am Mercedes, we met you at cape hope and gansaabai, and I just found your web. Happy to know you did mention us... small world.Nice of you. We will follow your trip a. t. w. virtually. Safe trip. 
