Dec 3, 2011 - Quaint Hermanus and Wineries Too

The rental car has been hired for the weekend with Al as our driver once again in order for the four of us to visit nearby attractions such as Hermanus and the wine areas of Stellenbosch and Franschoek. Hermanus is only about an hour drive but we stop to enjoy many scenic outlooks along Chapman's Peak. It is a toll road built along the coast through mountainous terrain with many stunning scenic points to the ocean beaches and small towns.  Once in Hermanus,  we park  close to a walking trail where we hope to see whales. The end of whale...

Oct 23, 2011 - Hermanus

Kyle, die ons naar de BP brengt is een toffe gast. Als we aankomen worden we hartelijk verwelkomt door Emma en Mike. Het is een tof huis met grote, verlichte kamers en een tuin met zwembad en bar. Ik belde Maurice, Bub zijn broer, die een restaurant in Hermanus heeft. Ik beloofde om te gaan eten die avond. Dus Petra en ik kleden ons vlug om en gaan eten. Het restaurant is een kleine cottage met lekker seafood en ! vers gesneden frieten en Belgische mayonnaise. Ja, hier is de mayo juist zoete pap. Dus dit is super lekker, al het eten...

Oct 4, 2011 - Whales, Seals & Great White Sharks - Hermanus, South Africa

Hermanus, South Africa offers the best shore-based whale watching in the world. Nature lovers from all over the world visit Hermanus to view the magnificent Southern Right Whale from the the cliffs. Hermanus lies along the shores of Walker Bay near the Southern most tip of Africa. The Whale Crier keeps visitors informed as to the whereabouts of the whales. He blows a kind of a Morse code on his long kelp horn to tell you exactly where the whales are (he wears a sandwich board that explains the code). Hermanus is the only town in the world...

Mar 8, 2011 - 1,500 Kms of riding later............

Mar 7 Woke to the sounds of a baboon crashing around with the lid on Andre's metal container (in which he keeps....?) Chased him off then saw a couple more. Very bold. Walked over to a lake and saw dozens of birds mating, building nests and getting ready to raise young. Arrived Cape Aguchas at noon where the Indian Ocean and Atlantic meet. This is the most southerly point in Africa. Charles riding to Gangball. Huge tail wind and hills not bad. 3 1/2 hours for 87 kms. We had large lunch so out to dinner up hill from camp grounds. Sardine...

Nov 20, 2010 - 'Bazzing' Around the Western Cape

BAD LUCK, then GOOD LUCK, then BAD LUCK, then GOOD LUCK Well, for the first time ever, we were late getting to the airport for a flight. Tracy usually makes us be extra early 'just in case' but we listened to the Guest House Staff and Driver instead of insisting we leave at the time we thought would be adequate. We hit traffic and next thing we know, we are four minutes late at the airport and the check-in time is closed. AHHHHHHHHH - BAD LUCK! We were sent to the ticket booth and were worried that we would have to pay for another ticket...

Sep 7, 2010 - Hermanus (inoffizielle Walbeobachtungswelthaupstadt)

eben, die selbsternannte Walbeobachtungswelthauptstadt...bloss ohne Wale. Kurz vor unsrer Abfahrt in die Winelands sahen wir dann doch welche an den Klippen, jedoch bis Hermanus (von der suedafrikan./mosambikan. Grenze an, bis Mosselbay und weiter) hatten wir jeweils mehr Wal-Glueck. Hermanus war 1 idealer Ausgangsort fuer Sehenswuerdigkeiten in der Umgebung, hatte 1 netten Boardwalk, viele gute Restaurants... und aufdringliche Moewen beim gewohnt kalten, aber lohnenden, landschaftlich schoenen Fruehstueckspicknik an den Klippen.

Aug 4, 2010 - Winelands, Hermanus &Garden Route

We left Cape Town for the Wine Lands. We arrived firstly at Stellenbosch and then onto Franschock. The drive to these places was spectacular (the whole time we thought we were in France). Franschock was a lovely quaint town we stayed there for one night in a log cabin set within the vineyards. Plenty of wine estates I think over one hundred in Stellenbosh alone. After the Wine lands we drove to Hermanus and stayed for two nights. Our self catering apartment overlooked the bay. Within the bay are Southern Right Whales, approx 40ft long (huge...

Dec 31, 2008 - No Whales For New Years

New Years Eve. We left early that morning, before breakfast, and drove two hours to the southern town of Hermanus. Hermanus is about halfway between the Garden Route and Cape Town, and is known as the whale watching capital of South Africa. In fact, it is reputed to be one of the best places in the world for whale watching. During the whale season, which ends in December, Hermanus residents can even spot the whales from their front porches. We knew we were a little late in the season, but hoped that we might catch some stragglers out...

Sep 1, 2008 - In search of whales!

Well, this is usually the busiest day of school for me – first day back. Not this year!!!! I thoroughly enjoyed thinking of everyone at school while I was enjoying my leisurely breakfast!! After checking our e-mails catching up with the news at a local internet cafe we were off south to the coast in search of whales along the Garden Route! We ended up in Hermanus, a lovely seaside town. Upon arrival we hunted out the tourist info centre and found a lovely B&B again. We headed out in the wind (rain had stopped by this stage!) and went in...

Apr 29, 2008 - Hermanus and Spier

In stark contrast to Saturday night, Sunday and Monday were spent enjoying the beauty of South Africa once again. On Sunday we went to an open air market in Cape Town and then drove to the southern most point in Africa, Cape L'Agules. Apart from a stone marker and seeing two oceans at once it was rather unremarkable. There wasn't even a wall running from Africa to Antarctica separating the two. How are you supposed to tell which is which? We then drove to Hermanus, a small fishing village on the Atlantic coast, and spent a relaxing evening...

Apr 8, 2008 - Getting ID and Hermanus

Hello friends and family, I am feeling a lot better; I've recovered from my heavy cold, and the repeat of the bleeding, I had in my sinuses two and a half years ago. I think the antibiotic prescription my doctor friend gave me for the cold was timely. I managed to deliver a note to a close friend who had some inacurate impressions of me pertaining to things that happened many years ago. Correcting that view has made me feel much better, and chased away the depression, enabling me to paint brighter pictures again. And now I'm becomming more...

Dec 3, 2007 - Garden Route - Cape -Hermanus

Our rental car actually arrived at our hostel one hour early! What’s with that? We were getting used to everything being at least a little later than planned. Going down to check the car we discover that they have supplied us with a car that does not have enough room to fit both our backpacks in the trunk. There is lots of room on the back seat but we've been warned not to leave anything visible in the car so . . . we sent the car back. The next car arrived at 11am so I guess we were late starting after all. I enter the car with knots in my...