B2 = Brenda + Bump, who did excellent work as support team for the cycling team, budgie photographer and mattress inflator
C1 = Convict 1 (alias Theo), cyclist, abseiler and braaier
C2 = Convict 2 (alias George), cyclist, setup photographer and hairdresser
C3 = Convict 3 (alias Tiger), in jail for most of the story
The main characters, after much planning, went on a camping holiday along the Garden Route and in the Western Cape. This turned out to be an excellent and very memorable adventure! Featuring many sunrises and sunsets, budgies, wild animals (over and above the cast!), and a tree!
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| Friday 28 | C1 and C2 cycled 40km from Grahamstown while B2 visited Beryl (28.7km/h average). Arrived in Stormsriver and set up camp on the edge of the rocks. Stunning sunset (the first of many excellent sunrises and sunsets). |
| Saturday 29 |
Woke up at Stormsriver. Weather warm and nice sunrise colours. Packed and changed bike tyres. Walked along the boardwalk to the river mouth and saw the suspension bridge and cave. We will be back!
C1 and C2 cycled from Grootrivier to Plettenberg Bay and up the Plet hill while B2 shopped. Excellent ride! Ave 28.6 for 41km but serious uphill. Lunch at a beautiful picnic spot 12km west of Plet. Then to Buffelsbaai. Spot for tent just on the seafront 10m from waters edge. Threw frisbee. C2 cut C1's hair #4! Amazing supper (T-bones). |
| Sunday 30 | A lazy day. Saw dolphins in the bay. C1 swam (in icy conditions)! Bought ice-cream. Wors for supper. |
| Monday 1 |
Packed up. Went and looked at Sedgefield and saw a fish eagle. Then to Pine Lake Marina and the beautiful lakes around Rondevlei and Swartvlei. Parasailers at Wilderness. Then to Victoria Bay and saw Carmel.
Shopped and bought the awning in George. Weather gruck (the only day in the entire time we were away). Looked at Heroldsbaai in the rain. Then to Mosselbaai - lunch from viewpoint. Visited the "Postal Tree" - used by early Portuguese mariners. Camped at Concentration Camp Bakke! Dried clothes at a laundromat. Malay chicken for supper. |
| Tuesday 2 | Drove around Mossel Bay and posted postcards at the Postal Tree. Then to Albertinia (No comment). Stunning Stilbaai (where we had lunch). Back to N2. Through Swellendam to Bredasdorp. Cycled to L'Agulhas against horrible wind but a stunning ride especially the last part into L'Agulhas! Went to the South-most point of Africa. Nice camp site close to sea. |
| Wednesday 3 | B2 & C2 explored the lighthouse. Bredasdorp - Napier. Stanford. Gansbaai. Stanford again! Cycled into Hermanus. Then to Betty's Bay - no caravan park (decided Betty was probably a miserable old hag!). Went back to Kleinmond and found a lovely camp site. Braaied hake for supper. Saw genet (cleaning hake off the braai). |
| Thursday 4 | Up early to watch the sunrise, then spent the day on the beach relaxing, enjoying God's blessings in nature, and chasing a frisbee. Snoek braai for supper. Treated the genet to more hake! Experimented with "hotrock" as sleeping bag warmer. |
| Friday 5 | Early start. Stunning sunrise as we drove through Gordon's Bay with Stephen Curtis Chapman's Great Adventure Overture playing on tape. Late to Aunt Nienke where B2 stayed while C1 and C2 went to the Higher Ground Conference in Paarl. C1 and C2 late to Paarl! Higher Ground Conference good. Went to Taal monument. C1 and C2 camped at Berg River resort in Paarl. |
| Saturday 6 | Great sunrise in Paarl. Rest of conference. Back to Nienke and Johan's in the late afternoon (the view from C2's bedroom window!). Found dog walkers. Fishy supper. |
| Sunday 7 | Church. Nice roast lunch. Washed the tent then explored the V&A Waterfront (developed some film). Watched "Bicentennial Man". |
| Monday 8 | Signal Hill. Clifton. Camps Bay to Hout Bay (rather over-rated). Back though Constantia then onto Durbanville, where B2 spent the afternoon with Linette while C1 and C2 mooched around the Tyger Valley shopping complex and watched "Rules of Engagement". Braaied with the Feldmanns. |
| Tuesday 9 | Muizenberg. Fishhoek. Simonstown: Penguins at Boulders Reserve. Lunched on fish and chips on a boat trip around Simonstown harbour. Then on to Cape Point. Ran out of petrol on the way back into Cape Town! C1 and B2 visited Mike Simkins. We treated Nienke and Johan to pizza for supper. |
| Wednesday 10 | Packed up. Went up Table Mountain (by cable car!). C1 abseiled off Table Mountain. Then travelled through to Stellenbosch. University campus very picturesque. Camped at Simonsberg campsite (Presbyterian). |
| Thursday 11 | Quiet day. C2 went for a walk visited neighbouring wine farms (Kanonkop and Uitkyk). We all went for a walk later. Got "chalet" for the evening in preparation for an early morning departure. |
| Friday 12 | Left early Stellenbosch and drove back to Pretoria. |
| Saturday 13 | Staged jailbreak and set C3 free! |
Thank you Lord for an amazing break!