Leaving the vineyards behind

As we headed north from Robertson, we assumed that we would be leaving the vast fields of vines behind us. However after climbing over Bain's Kloof Pass  - an unintended detour thanks to the satnav, but an impressive drive which was very popular with Sunday bikers - we came down to Wellington and large rolling hills which were covered with vines. This is the Swartland and there are vineyards as far west as Darling which benefits from the cool ocean breezes and produces some excellent Sauvignon Blanc - Groote Post was our favourite.

Our destination for a couple of nights was Langebaan, its lagoon and the West Coast National Park. The Lagoon is over 15 km long and an important breeding site for thousands of waders and other wetland birds. There are a variety of hides on different sites and we spent a few hours trying to improve our identification skills. Hard to do when you are constantly distracted by the antics of the Flamingos.

Choosing our B&B was a little easier since we found a place called Emerald View  which was run by an Irish couple - he was an Irish international rugby player who also made one or two Lions tours - but they had clearly been in SA too long as there was almost no chat at all! However the B&B was very comfortable with excellent views over the Lagoon.

We had a great day in the Park and walked on beaches on both the Atlantic and the Lagoon sides. It was interesting to note the difference in air temperature on the Atlantic from those we had experienced down south on the Indian Ocean. There was also a substantial difference in the water temperature - not much swimming here in the big Atlantic breakers - probably about the same temperature as it is at Lahinch.