south africa and totally non bike !

Well, my sticky fingers couldn't resist your gift – in the interest of preserving the natural beauty of the place, of course. :D

DSC09969.jpg
 
Hi Birdseye

Came across your thread today ...... and can see you've already received loads of info/advice/suggestions for your trip. Here's my 2penneth......

Like you, I'm retired :clap. Did my first trip to South Africa in early 2006. I was lucky enough to have a friend in CT who was happy to loan me his GSA for five or six weeks! Travelled alone, which is the way I prefer. In my experience I find I get to interact with the locals so much more .... and only have myself to worry about.

Guess your itinerary is going to be shaped not only your budget and available time but also the things you're attracted to. (I also took in parts of Namibia & Botswana while down there.)

IMO, you should not pass by the opportunity to get your hands on a GS for at least a part of the trip. The country has some superb dirt roads and amazing landscapes. Many tarred roads seemed to me to surprisingly empty by UK standards! I opted not to go near Joberg ..... in fact apart from CT I stayed pretty much in the rural areas trying to put my available cash into the local black communities. It may not be your cup of tea but, for me one of the most memorable experiences I had was spending three days in a black township (Langa) on the eastern fringe of CP, before flying back to the UK. There are now one or two black run B&B's established in the townships and you live very much as part of the family.

Don't pass up the chance to go out to Robben Island .... I didn't book in March ..... just bought the ticket and straight onto the boat.
The drive (IMO best ridden:thumb2) down from CT to Cape Aguilhas is STUNNING. Personally found the Garden route over-rated. Addo is well worth the visit. I'd also recommend the coast line east of East London up to around Port Shepstone (the Wild Coast).

Loved Lesotho ..... fairly mountainous, great scenery and people. The ascent up the Sani Pass was amazing, if a little hair raising! If you opt to go over to the battlefields in KNZ, really think it's worth hiring/sharing an authorised guide.

As regards personal safety, I can only say I spent six weeks traveling alone through five countries and experienced nothing but friendliness. Think its down to taking sensible precautions and just not placing yourself into situations where the risk level is high. Just maybe I was plain lucky!

As has been mentioned, B&B's are a good option and their numbers are growing. I ended up mixing off road camping, B&B's and Backpacker hostels (along the coast).

Sure you'll both have a great time .... and suspect once you've had a taste, you will be planning a future return trip :thumb2
 

Attachments

  • IMG_1015.jpg
    IMG_1015.jpg
    87.9 KB · Views: 95
South Africa Trip

Great to read all the info on SA. Mrs Pughy and off to Cape Town in two weeks for a 4 day conference and then hiring a GS from Karoo rentals - Jurgen at Karoo has been really helpful and is coming back to us with some suggested places to stay for our proposed route:

19th - Cape Town to Cape Agulhas via R43 - Overnight Agulhas
20th - Agulhas to Mossel Bay - Overnight Mossel Bay Area
21st - Mossel Bay to Port Elizabeth - Overnight Port Elizabeth Area
22nd - Addo ElephantPark - We would like to do a day in the park "safari" and stay overnight - do you have any suggestions / contacts?
23rd - 26th R62 back to Cape Town

If anyone has any thoughts additions comments it would be really appreciated especially any suggestions for the ride back from Addo to Cape Town on R62
 
[
If anyone has any thoughts additions comments it would be really appreciated especially any suggestions for the ride back from Addo to Cape Town on R62

Pughy,

There are lots of options ito different routes for the places you want to get to. I have listed some of them below, but would be happy to hookup for a beer some time and discuss with you when you are in CT. Send me a mail to daleedwards [at] iafrica.com and I will send to contact details.

For the CT-Aghulas leg ....
... make sure you include the R44 section from Gordons bay to Kleinmond ... beautifull road right on the coast and much more fun than the N2. You will hookup with the R43 anyway. Also
... the "fynbos" road from Stanford to Aghullas is also very nice, but not tarred - not sure if you are happy to get off-road.

Addo ElephantPark - Have a mate who's on his way there tomorrow... will revert once I have spoken to him.

R62 back to Cape Town -
from Addo, I'd take the N2 to Plettenberg bay, then the R339 to Die Vlug (gravel) or N9 (tar) , then turn West to Outdshoorn. Vist cango caves and Cheetah / Croc park. Possibly drive to top of swartberg pass while you are at cango. Overnight in Outshoorn.
Then head for Montague along R62. Stayover at the hot springs there - very pleasant after some long days in the saddle.
On way back, I'd turn south at Wellington and head for Villiersdorp. From there over a very nice mountain pass to Franschoek - a very pleasant little village in the mountains. Is only an hour from CT, but there are lots of really good restaurants and nice places to stay. I'd stop here for the last night before heading back to CT.

Happy planning
Dale
 


Back
Top Bottom