Celebrating a Circumnavigation pt. 2

West Coast National Park

Our short getaway wasn't quite finished. After a lovely B&B breakfast at the Oystercatcher, we headed out, but we weren't in a big hurry. We wanted to explore a bit more of Shelley Point first and then dawdle down the coast on the way back to Cape Town. It turns out Shelly Point has lots of wildlife. We'd seen a “watch out for wildlife” sign, but on our arrival hadn't seen a thing. We drove through the winding roads of this exclusive community on the way out and saw all sorts of critters … tortoises, lots of birds and even a fleeting glimpse of a mongoose.

We had noted a lighthouse on the point and drove closer to get a better look. The Stompneusbaai Light isn't really a lighthouse at all, but rather a leading light. Evidently, the developer of the Shelly Point Estates was a lighthouse enthusiast and built the “lighthouse” to suit his fancy.

We took a washboard,gravel road from St. Helena Bay to Paternoster, shaking a few fillings lose en route. There were a few farms along this route, some abandoned. Tumbleweeds blew across the road, reminding us of eastern Colorado. There were odd rock formations here and there, and the land looked parched and barren. We were intrigued by the number of raptors sitting on fence posts and utility poles on the look-out for lunch.

Paternoster is a pleasant, touristy little town that sits out in the Atlantic just north of Cape Columbine. We drove through, admiring the white-washed cottages and sweeping expanse of the busy beach. It wasn't time for lunch and the gas station was out of gas. We headed towards Saldanha Bay in hopes of finding some petrol there.

We'd stopped at Saldanha Bay with Nine of Cups on our last departure from South Africa to fix a furler problem. It definitely looks different from the sea. Driving through this mineral export town, the red dust of iron ore seemed to cover everything. We found gas, filled up and headed south on the coast road for Langebaan Lagoon and West Coast National Park. A very good decision.

Again, we were off-season for the spectacular aspects of the park … wildflowers. August and September are the prime months. I nicked a photo from the national park site to give you a glimpse of the flower extravaganza in season. Wow!

We weren't deterred, however. The views of Langebaan Lagoon were spectacular from our vantage point as we watched pale pink greater flamingos swinging their heads back and forth, filtering the water for food.

Not far away, wild ostriches stomped around the dry bush, looking as if they had some place important to go, but clueless as how to get there. We stopped for several more crossing the road in front of us. Obviously, there was a meeting somewhere.

There were several lookout points along the road providing gorgeous vistas of the lagoon and informational kiosks about the park, its history and its inhabitants.

We stopped briefly at the Geelbek House Restaurant and Visitor's Center. This picturesque Cape Dutch building, now a national monument, was originally built in 1744 and was the original homestead of the Geelbekkenfontein farm, named after the yellow-billed ducks that live in the area.

The highlight of our day was a bird blind in a marshy area at the foot of the Langebaan Lagoon. Accessible by a boardwalk, the hide was perfect for viewing African spoonbills, sacred ibis, ducks, dabchicks, coots … just us and so many birds. They were oblivious to us and I just kept snapping pix. Bird photography heaven.

The day was waning and it was time to head back to Kaapstad (Cape Town).  No regrets … the overnight getaway was a perfect celebration and going home to Cups was a great ending to the day.

Celebrating a Circumnavigation pt. 1

St. Helena Bay

We were hard put to come up with a good way to celebrate our circumnavigation. We wanted it to be memorable, of course, and fun and also within the budget. Most of our cruising friends have already departed South Africa, so a big party didn't make sense. It's a big event for us, long in the realization. Since it's been just we two for all these years, we thought maybe a romantic getaway for two might be an appropriate celebration though neither Jelly nor Nine of Cups would be with us. For most people, getting ON a boat is a vacation. For us, spending time on land is a welcome break once in awhile. So, off we headed, up South Africa's west coast to St. Helena Bay, not so far away.

We got a late start and followed the R27 coast road north out of town. By chance, we stopped in the little Cape Town suburb of Bloubergstrand for lunch at On the Rocks. Situated right on the beach, this restaurant had great curb appeal, as well as a good menu posted at its entry.

We  didn't realize that it would also provide superb views of Table Mountain from a totally different perspective. We sat on the patio lingering over lunch, appreciating the day, the view and each other. A good start to a romantic getaway.

We hugged the coast for awhile then headed across the peninsula across dry, parched land to St. Helena Bay. The little town of St. Helena isn't much … a couple of restaurants, a Spur mini-supermarket, a couple of shops and a very large fish processing plant that emanated such a malodorous stench as we drove by, it could make your eyes water. The Oystercatcher Lodge, a quiet, 4-star B&B, nestled in the beach dunes at Shelly Point in St Helena Bay was our choice for the romantic getaway and we prayed it was a safe distance from the fish factory. It was. Whew! The lodge was accessed through a securely gated, rather ostentatious entrance arch.

A giant-sized Vasco da Gama greeted on the way in.

Our room was lovely with an Atlantic view and a two minute walk to a shell-covered beach. We walked the beach hand-in-hand, then sat on a well-placed bench, all snuggled up against the ocean breeze, watching a superb sunset that lingered, causing the sand and beach scrub to turn shades of pink and orange. Cormorants, gulls and terns worked hard for their dinners.

We took selfies on the beach.

We ventured back to St. Helena Bay to the Alegria Restaurant for dinner, thankfully upwind from the fish factory. The Alegria was a friendly, pleasant place on the ocean with a good menu and an attentive wait staff. It wasn't busy and we enjoyed our dinner at a private table on the outside patio.

David had chilled champagne for our return. We sat and listened to the surf, sipping champers and sharing a chocolate bar under a near full moon. It's only one overnight away before we need to return to Cape Town, but this night, we were celebrating us in style.