Under the canopy of the winding Bloukrans Pass

In the late 1870s, master pass builder Thomas Bain arrived in the Tsitsikamma to look at the possibility of building passes through the three gorges standing in the way of a road linking the Plettenberg Bay area to Port Elizabeth in the east. Bain plotted the best and easiest way through the Groot River, Bloukrans River and Storms River gorges by following the elephant footpaths and construction started in 1879. The Bloukrans Pass was completed in 1880 with the Storms…

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Road scenes of Nieu-Bethesda

Nieu Bethesda's Dutch Reformed Church The village of Nieu-Bethesda really is a special one. High on the to-do list of travelers wanting to visit the Owl House, learn more about fossils or just experience Karoo country life. It's also somewhere to go and find yourself, recharge your soul and rediscover your being. Nieu-Bethesda only had dirt roads, no street lights nor a petrol station. The best way to explore the village is literally on foot with your camera in hand,…

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The roads of Nieu-Bethesda

The village of Nieu-Bethesda is located about 30 minutes north of Graaff-Reinet and literally feels like another world. It is so different from most small rural towns as there is very little development around which makes the place feel sleepy and peaceful. The road to about 4km from the outskirts of the village was tarred a couple of years ago which makes getting to it a little easier, but town itself has no tar roads, no street lights, no petrol…

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Oh I wish I had a 4×4

Oh how I wish I had a 4x4. A proper bakkie (or SUV, I'm not picky) to explore the backroads with. I love my Polo, don't get me wrong, but I feel for her every time I hit a dirt road. But a bigger vehicle would allow me to discover places I've been avoiding. Crossing the Zuurberg Pass, taking the Elands River road, have a proper Wild Coast trip, do the Baviaanskloof from end to end for the first time,…

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Marine Drive on the Wildside

Marine Drive along the Port Elizabeth beachfront and the Wildside all the way out to Schoenmakerskop probably has some of the best scenery in PE. Sea views, a rugged coastline, gullies to enjoy with kids, fishing spots, coastal fynbos, shipwrecks, whales and dolphins, hiking trails, nature reserves, picnic spots, camp sites, tons of photo opportunities and so much more.

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Tsitsikamma cattle roadblock

We decided to break away to the Tsitsikamma for the day and rather than just driving in and out on the N2, we took the scenic R102. The three biggest industries in the area are forestry, tourism and dairy so everywhere along the way you pass plantations, dairy farms and accommodation and activity establishments. What we didn't expect to encounter was a roadblock made up of cattle. As we crested a little hill I realised that there was something in…

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Late early still… is tired

I are tired... tired is I.  Probably more like exhausted.  Makes it feel even worse when you go home, got to stop at the shop and join a queue of 30 people to buy electricity (yes I know I've got to register to do it from my phone if I can find the time), pick up one of the kids and rush off to drop them back at school for their school concert (which is going to be all week),…

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Constance Hair Salon

A couple of years ago the (not so) Grand Hotel in Central started to encourage small businesses to rent space on Whites Road to trade from what I think used to be garages. Not many took them up on the offer. Some of those who did painted the outside of their shops pink to try and attract the clientele. In this case pink doesn't mean "Pink". So if you need a hair cut, give Constance a call.

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