Roadtripping South Africa | Part 2/3

Skipping ahead‚ I booked into the Protea Hotel Outeniqua in George which is centrally located to explore all that George has to offer. George is also just a short stint to the beautiful Wilderness and the town of Knysna along with shopping and restaurants in the newly (now not so new)‚ developed Thiessen Island. If time allows, you simply have to visit Wilderness and take a stroll on the beach that seems to go on forever. In the past, I would stay at the Wilderness Beach Hotel located on the cliffs (not to be mistaken for the Wilderness Hotel Resort & Spa) and see that it has seen somewhat of revival and revamp according to the website since then. Just a short stroll further and you will run into Views Hotel where the food is excellent and the accommodation at international standards. Even if you go there just for breakfast and laze on the patio area staring out at the sea view, you‚ll see the paragliders out early in the morning taking advantage of the sea breeze against the cliffs. George was only a starting point for me but there are a number of things that one can do in the area as it is located on what is popularly known as the Garden Route with golf courses, museums, botanical gardens and the many passes up and down the Outeniqua Mountains. 

The drive down to Knysna is one of the most picturesque and stop in Knysna for fresh oysters‚ they even have an Oyster Festival and wash it down with a Mitchell‚s Beer — I was lucky to be one of the first try this famous beer in 1988 in the tapas bar at the Heads. Head up to the Kysna Heads for fantastic views over the lagoon and the ocean or head out to Featherbed Nature Reserve opposite. For the more adventurous, there are loads of companies operating canyoning, rapelling, canoeing, sailing and mountain biking‚ George Tourism. 

From George I head toward Oudtshoorn via the Outeniqua Pass. The views are magnificent but unfortunately the best stopping points are on the other side of the road, on your way down back into George. It’s really not safe to stop on the one side and cross to the other, there are too many blind corners with fast traffic. Do take note however, that when there are clouds on the mountain, there won’t be much of a view and becomes very misty on the pass so choose a day when it is preferably a clear sky. It is such that because it is clear on one side of the mountain range, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is clear on the other so check the weather report. Oudtshoorn is famous for its Ostriches. What started out as feathers for headdress, evolved into dried meat or ostrich biltong and steaks. I can vouch for the biltong and steaks‚ delicious and one of the most healthiest meats available. My family have history in this town. With my mother not wanting to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a nurse, she worked as a factory worker in the original ostrich factory. My grandfather, was an accountant for the Queens Hotel for a number of years way back then and my grandmother, a district nurse, who travelled from town to town administering to the needs of school pupils in the regions schools. On the main road into Oudtshoorn I stop off at Smitswinkel. What used to be a padstalletjie (road stall) is now a full-fledged restaurant with an aviary, biker bar, with a few goats and springbok running around the back of the property. The front as you drive in is adorned with a selection of VW vehicles, Combi, Beetle and others. Chevvie olds-mobiles stand in the back rusting whilst the restaurant and bar are adorned with any number of push bikes, an assortment of larger bikes all in various stages of disassembly and Harley Davidson’s. There is a toy collection of bikes in the hundreds that adorns one corner and the entrance to the eatery and bar is a shop stuffed with eclectic goods from shoes to model yachts. The beer is cold and the burgers are tasty. Overall a very welcome experience and the staff are super-friendly. Stop by if only to have a look-in. 

From Oudtshoorn, the road leads me through the towns of De Rust, a wonderfully creative little town and Klaarstroom, appearing to have stood still in time, and then through Meiringspoort in the Swartberg Nature Reserve and on to Prince Albert. I chose this route as it is the easier option but you can also go via the Swartberg Pass and I highly recommend this route. As it was raining, I wasn’t confident my little KIA hire car would make it through but apparently the road is really good. You can even overnight in one of the reserve’s cottages in, Die Hel. There are any number of popular stories as to why it is called Die Hell but it is thought to come from the Afrikaans word helling or hel, which means a steep incline or dip. It is beautiful but only accessible by 4×4 and has seriously steep cliffs, so if you verge on the side of acrophobia, probably not a good idea. If you have a passing interest in geology, you will find the Swartberg fascinating but the views alone are breathtaking.