On Safari - More Animals

Before we started our third drive, we found this Nyala with half a dozen others relaxing in the shade by our hut.

As we left the camp, Shaddy found fresh Rhino tracks and after a short drive through the bush we came upon a family group of three who were happy to pose for the camera for a short while - until they were disturbed by another truck approaching from the other side.

As they disappeared from view and we headed back to the track, we came upon another group and followed them for a little while. 

Of course not all the creatures we saw were as large as the Rhinos. We came upon this Leopard tortoise sitting on the road and stood guard over him until he got up and continued his journey to safety

On Safari - People

Our Game Drive truck

Once you are assigned your guide, you stay together for the game drives and bush walks and for breakfast and dinner – which means that you spend about 10 hours each day in each others company. However, it is a very mobile group which changes as people leave and arrive every day or so.

The young couple from Chicago – Maggie and Rohit – were pleasant company and seemed to enjoy every aspect of the experience – including their night in the tree house – just disappointed that they didn’t see any lions on the game drives. However I am always surprised by people who come on a safari without binoculars, or with a new camera that they haven't learned how to use. The Swedish couple were good company and we had some amusing discussions over dinner.

The other group included 4 Brits from Newcastle and another Swedish couple who were approaching the end of their 5-month round-the-world trip who were all very easy to get along with. However, on day two they were joined by a young American honeymoon couple from N Carolina. 

While pleasant enough and very polite, they did demonstrate some of the more annoying traits of their nationality. There never seemed to be a conversation anywhere in the camp where their voices were not the loudest and despite being around 30 years old and on only their second trip outside the US, they were keen to expound on their expertise of International travel.

I was a little concerned when the young woman started to lecture Linda on the subject of wines from South Africa – based on her visits to 3 wineries. Thankfully, no blood was spilled as Linda smiled gracefully and excused herself. Much more James Page than Jimmy C!

They also left to spend a night in the tree house but called out the guide and tracker to bring them back to camp at 1.30am because it had got a bit windy and the mosquito net was blowing around.

Luckily, we had very little other interaction with them, and when our American and Swedish friends departed we were joined by another pleasant younger Swedish couple and there were only four of us in the truck for the last two drives.

On safari - Animals

On our second drive, we saw more Elephants, Giraffe, Zebra and even a Golden Orb Spider breakfasting on a moth

Golden Orb Spider

before we caught up with the wild dog pack again - finishing off their meal of impala - and some hopeful White-backed Vultures.

White-backed Vulture

Then we found a Black-backed Jackal enjoying a Scrub Hare carcass which he had managed to steal from a Tawny Eagle.

Black-backed Jackal

 On the way home we left the truck in Ephraim's care and with Shaddy's safety lecture fresh in our minds we had a 90 minute Bush walk back to the camp where we came upon the Elephants and Buffalo again - without incident - and a group of vultures feeding on a carcass in the grass. By the time we got back to the camp it had got hot and we felt like we had earned our breakfast!

An slightly unhappy Bull Elephant

Steenbok

On Safari

It didn’t seem right to spend this much time in South Africa without a trip to one of the game reserves, so we booked ourselves a few days at Umlani – in the private reserve at Timbavati which borders the Kruger Park.

We booked a direct flight from Cape Town to Eastgate airport at Hoedspruit – a SAF airbase which earns extra income by allowing commercial aircraft to land and support the local Safari trade. It’s other claim to fame is that it has a 3.5km runway which was an alternate landing site for the US space shuttle – in case they missed California or Florida.

We arrived in time for lunch and then had an hour to get organised before our first game drive. We met our guide and tracker – Shaddy and Ephraim (more on biblical names later) – and the other 6 people in our truck – a couple each from Sweden and Chicago, a single American lady from Boston and a South African tour organiser. 

A good sighting of a herd of Elephants was followed by solitary male buffalo, then Giraffe, Zebra, Impala, and Waterbuck before a radio message had us haring across the plain to catch up with pack of African Wild Dogs. By the time we arrived we could only see the Alpha Male & Female – the rest were hidden in the long grass but we did see them later.

After the obligatory sundowner, we made it back to camp in time for a pre-dinner drink and an excellent meal. We were here 6 years ago and while there have been some changes, it still has a special feel and it was very easy to slip back into the Safari routine – even if that did mean getting up at 5.00am each morning.

There's more to life than cycling and wine

Well, it’s not all cycling – there will always be wine. 

We have managed a bit of hiking while we have been here – last week we went to La Motte – a wine estate near Franschhoek – and hiked their 5km trail. The climb was enough to raise the heart rate and afford us some great views over the valley.

We stopped for wine tasting on our way back to the car but they seemed too busy to bother with us and after we sat with empty glasses for 15 minutes we left them to it. Our next stop was a nearby winery which was advertising a Rosé at a price that would have made Jimmy C happy. Despite the sign at the entrance gate which claimed they were open, we found when we reached their tasting room – along a mile of dirt road – that they were not.

Third time lucky – we stopped at the Lynx winery to find that they were open and welcoming and had a couple of drinkable wines. It’s a very small operation - they only produce 85,000 bottles each year - but while we were there we watched a contractor with a truck based bottling machine which was turning out 3000 bottles an hour – very simple effective operation and so much cheaper for the winery.

We have also managed to keep up our yoga classes – both with the private routine which Sharon helped us with in Edinburgh and with a local teacher - Carelene -who has just opened her own studio in Paarl.

Finally...

Not smiling at this point!

After my early healthy breakfast and hydration - and a farewell from Linda - I made it to the start at the Grand Parade an hour before my start time as recommended. Interesting to see how many people were queueing for a bit of maintenance on their bikes.

The event organisation was excellent and despite the challenge of starting 36,000 riders it all seemed to move along flawlessly. As I was waiting to enter my start gate, I met a young woman from Woking Cycling Club - a South African who works as a lawyer for a Canary Wharf bank. Despite the fact that she was a committed club cyclist - and a good bit younger - we had similar target times and agreed to cycle together - always better than cycling on your own.

As our start time arrived we headed off straight into a strong crosswind which caused a few problems however we made it through the early stages. The ride up Edinburgh Drive - one of the steepest
inclines on the course - was an early challenge but then followed by the long downhill to Muizenburg - straight into the wind.

By the time we got to Fish Hoek, the wind was blowing across the road and blasting us with sand from the beach - thankfully only for 3-400 metres but as we turned down through Simonstown the wind was in our faces again.

Unfortunately I lost contact with her as we started the climb up Smitswinkel - I was focussed on the long climb and some amazing views - and she never appeared again although she finished less than 5 minutes after me. From there, I rode down through Norddhoek, up Chapmans Peak Drive, through Hout Bay, over Suikerbossie and then 15km home for a fast finish along the shore road through Camps Bay and Sea Point which was almost all downhill.

Think I'm in there somewhere towards the back

I didn't make my target time of 4 1/2 hours - I'm blaming the wind - but was still home under 5 hours and even managed to find Cam when I got there - he'd started about an hour before me and had already had his post-race big Mac and fries.

Now I can smile

Linda was waiting for me with Chocolate Milk and egg custard tarts - the ideal after race combination in my view. I was happy to wait for beer until after I had cleaned up and we were back at La Parada watching the Ireland-France game with a pint or two Devils Peak Wit Beer to aid the rehydration  process.

World Naked Bike Ride

As I listened to the news this morning I had to wonder if I've entered for the right event??  perhaps that would be a better option next year.