The interest of the unforeseen

Wilderness

I've already said it, the unforeseen brings the best surprises. Whether you panic trying to fit everything in the schedule like it was planned from the start, or you do with what you have and you have fun no matter what.

When we woke up in Knysna, before visiting the township, we wanted to leave as soon as possible towards Cape Town so we could spend at least one more full day in the big city. But knowing it would be impossible to visit Robben Island, we knew we could take it slower.

In the end, after the township and a more than welcome meal, it was already late. So we opted for a one or two hours drive before stopping in Wilderness, a city that wasn't on the radar at first.

Wilderness, it is the calmness in the outdoor. It is also one of the most interesting hostels we found, the
Fairy Knowe Backpackers, with its volleyball field, its meals served on a big common table, and a bar outside, under a roof.

We met interesting people and chose, the next morning, to go horseback riding in south african nature. Our guide was going slow, knowing we were not used to that activity, which didn't stop my horse scaring me by tripping... After, we stayed, rented a kayak to go up the river and walked to a waterfall.

Back in the hostel, we decided to drive to Swellendam. But to make sure everything would go well, we tried booking a room. Surprise! No bed left.

And South Africa isn't France. No way to find another city around there to spend the night. After some useless maths, we had no choice but to book the last two beds in the dorm, in Wilderness. The next morning, we would have to drive for five hours to reach Cape Town.

We had fun anyway in that calm city and we forgot we had less than 24 hours before we would leave Mandela's country.

Visit a township

Knysna

Enough with the elephants! To leave Addo park, we made our way towards the south part of the reserve. Slowly. And there was a lot nothing out there. Until we ran into an elephant alone on the road. Nearby! Nearby! Nearby! At the exit gate, the guards made sure we were not leaving with an animal... or anything else that was forbidden.

We then stopped for one of the best meals we had in South Africa, in Jeffrey's Bay. Still, we had to make our way near the water, to Die Walskipper.

Built on the beach itself, directly on the sand, the restaurant offers portions so big you will probably need to bring the leftovers with you. There is homemade bread, meat cooked on a fire and a magnificient view on the ocean. On the other hand, it might be uncomfortable to see the richness of the marina next to a poorer township.

After that, we spent the night in Knysna, a small town where most of the lights go out after 8 PM.

One of the highlight in Knysna, other than The Heads, those cliffs forming one of the narrowest entry port according to some, is the visit of a township. Those are to South Africa what favelas are to Brazil. To go there, we chose the tour our hostel, Island Vibe, was offering. It is advised to never walk alone in a township.

The guide first brought us to The Heads before driving us to the township. The kids there, living in small poor houses, were so happy to see us. For some of them, strangers mean they'll get candies. So they reach out for them.

We also stopped in the rastafarian community, where we visited a nursery. We ended up in a bar, on top of a hill... at noon.

The visit of a township should and must be on your to-do list in South Africa!

In the afternoon, we left for Wilderness, not without aknowledging there was no tickets left for the ferry to Robben Island, on the day we would be back in Cape Town. Bad karma! Even when trying to book ahead, luck wasn't on our side.

Elephants! Finally!

It may be nice to have time to sleep, but it's not every day you get to visit South Africa.

We had to throw ourselves from our beds to finally wake up and start our first complete day in Addo Elephant National Park. We had booked a game drive in the morning too, to make sure we would see as many different types of animals as possible. Departure time : 6. AM! For me, that's almost in the middle of the night.

Nyway! This time, there were 24 of us in a huge truck. At our first stop, after encountering zebras on the way, we could see five or six hyenas, which had just caught their breakfast : a fresh turtle. Seeing that many hyenas, apparently, is rare. Bucket list : check!

For the rest of it, it was just an endless trip around the park, where we didn't see that many animals. Some buffalos again, some kudus... and some more kudus.

Back at camp, we ate our own breakfast before stopping at the convenient-grocery store to buy some food. It is the only store in the park. By chance, you can find everything there. We bought noodles, frozen vegetables, frozen meat, some spices and something to calm thirst. And what we needed for lunch too. The frozen things are a good idea. Because when it's 40 degrees Celsius outside, for tourists having nothing to keep food fresh, meat gets bad fast.

So we started exploring the park with the Ferrari. As recommended, we drove from waterhole to waterhole. Until... Around noon, when the sun is at its peak, elphants, warthog, zebras and jackals all go to drink. So we spent long minutes watching a whole groupe of elephants taking care of their babies. They took turns to drink and get water to cool down. Amazing!

After, we stopped at the picnic area, protected with barb wires (there are nine lions going around the park), to eat our lunch. Here, strange birds are everywhere and small monkees, obviously used to humans, were watching, waiting to steal our food. Me not trusting monkeys. Me ate fast.

In the afternoon, we saw nature more than anything, animal hidding in the bushes.

At the end of the day, we reached our final destination, Spekboom camp, where we had booked a simple tent with two beds, a lamp, a barbecue and a shared kitchen with a fridge. Camp is situated in the middle of the park, with walls and barb wires around. From one side, there is a view on a waterhole.

Other than the relative calmness and the darkness, it's the starry sky, without too much light pollution, that stole the show. Worth! Every! Penny!

Somewhere in the trees

The sign is pretty clear

Have I said I liked that Dijembe Backpackers hostel? Other than the mattress, which was a little soft, everything was perfect. From the terrace, the view on the starry sky was magnificent. In the morning, breakfast, which was included in the price, was unbeatable : freshly baked muffins, homemade bread... Do I need to say more?

While they were trying to convince us to go "tubing", which we can also call canyoning, we decided to go for ziplining.

The Tsitsikamma Canopy Tour is not really scary, even if we had to sign a form stating we accepted the risks of the activity. For about two hours, we flew from tree to tree without any stress. With a little luck, you can even see baboons. For the collectors, all the participants receive a certificate to prove the "accomplishment". Woot!

We then left Storms River, hoping my "driving a stick" skills wouldn't kill us. And we arrived in Addo Elephant National Park at the end of the afternoon. That is where we were gonna spend the next two nights.

We didn't get a warm welcome at the front desk, but from what we were told, the employees easily work 12 hours a day. We can understand they might get tired of tourists at some point.

That said, we had dinner at the only restaurant in the park, where we ate kudu.

And in the evening, we went on a night game drive for about two hours. For that, you need to book by
calling.

So we got in the park on a Jeep. The driver had a big follow spot to point at animals. One needs to be patient and lucky to appreciate the experience. Because there are no guarantees. If we were told we had the best chances of seeing a lion or a rhino when it's dark, we saw none of them. But the silence and the calmness of the park, once the night is there, was worth it. At least, we saw one hyena, some zebras, buffalos, african owls, hares, caracals and jackals.

And even if we were in Africa, we needed more than just a windblocker to stay warm on that tour.