One of my South African travel bucket list items I got to tick off during 2017 was going on a motorcycle sidecar tour in the Cape. A visit to a conference in Stellenbosch had the opportunity arise to join a tour from Spier via Strand and Gordon’s Bay as far as the Stoney Point penguin colony in Betty’s Bay and back and I just could not say no come rain or shine. Which turned out to be the case. Literally.
The guide from Cape Sidecar Adventures picked two of us up from the hotel on a wet and dreary day. We both received calls from the owner early morning already to check if we were still interested to go even though it was wet out, and we were both still game. So the trip was on. Kitted out in rain pants and leather jackets my companion for the day slipped into the sidecar while I hopped onto the back of the bike. The first sheet of rain hit as we went through Stellenbosch but neither of us wanted to miss out on the experience and with the guide willing we kept going.
Chapman’s Peak may be rated as one of the ten most scenic roads in the world, but I’ve got to be honest, the R44 from Gordon’s Bay to Rooi-Els doesn’t have to stand back one step. It really is a stunning drive along the coastline even with rain in your face. Ordinarily, this specific tour would go on to Kleinmond but once we got to the penguins at Stoney Point it started coming down a bit so we settled for hot chocolates in the coffee shop before backtracking to Pringle Bay for a fish and chips lunch by a fireplace. Did we mind being slightly wet (because the layers kept most of the water out)? Hell no. We were having too good a time.
The weather started clearing on our return journey so we got to stop at a couple of the viewpoints along the way. The views really are stunning but the highlight is definitely being able to go on a trip on one of these beautiful historic bikes. Being able to tick this off my bucket list is one thing, but now I am hooked and next up would love to do their full day Peninsula Tour with visits to Hout Bay, Chappies, Cape Point and Boulders in Simon’s Town.
PS, I would have loved to take some stunning pictures of our ride, the scenery and the bike itself, but the weather just didn’t play along and I kept the camera hidden away cosy and dry for most of the trip.