Beautiful Tsitsikamma

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Wrote this part at 6am in Wilderness:
I talked to the girls at midnight on the deck, and finally the clouds had completely blown away. There was a full blanket of stars! After so many cloudy nights, it was wonderful to see them. So many stars that I could not recognize any constellations due to the noise of the "extra" stars. The girls are doing fine although Kimberly does obviously miss me very much.

It's now almost 6am - I woke up at 5 and couldn't get back to sleep so I came out here, back out on the deck. The sunrise is beautiful, there is a lone kayaker on the lagoon, and many different bird calls. The clouds are just plentiful enough to make a nice colorful sunrise, and the wisps of clouds look quite a bit like giant ostrich feathers.

Today we have breakfast at 7, then we leave with Brian at 8. We drive to Tsitsikamma National Park then Knysna then to the airport in George for a 5pm flight to Johannesburg.

And wrote this in the evening, 1200 kilometers away in Johannesburg:
I had a fabulous yoga practice on the deck of our room. I was so happy to sweat! Finally the weather I expected from South Africa, and the view of the lagoon and the sound of the birds made for a great practice.

Breakfast with Elsie and Kevin was delicious and we felt very much at home. Brian also stayed at Interlakken and ate breakfast with us. Inkerlaken was such a beautiful B&B and Elsie and Kevin were so very welcoming; it was very hard for us to have to leave so quickly.

We drove through more beautiful countryside -- lakes, then ocean views and beautiful Plettenberg Bay. We also passed more townships - more shacks, these clustered on steep hills on the outskirts of Knysna. No public transportation here; people were walking and hitchhiking.

We entered the gates of Tsitsikamma National Park soon after the scenery changed again -- this time to forests. First there were pine forests, so many slim tall pines so close together. It has a beauty to it, but it is an alien forest -- all non-indigenous. Amazing to see an entire forest of a single invasive species. (Gives a sense of what the English Ivy will do if we allow it.) Next we passed an area that has been clearcut to bring back the native growth. Finally the indigenous terrain began; completely different kinds of trees: yellowwood, stinkwood, iron wood, and more. After 10 minutes more we arrived at the parking lot for the trailhead. The park has timed entry to control the number of visitors: we had two hours to hike the trail, and an hour to spend either at lunch or on the small beach.

The trail was short - just one kilometer each way. But it really did take two hours. It was almost all stairs, with several side paths (still more steps). It was one of the most beautiful hikes I have ever taken. One of the side paths was down to a small beach that was littered with a colorful assortment of marine remains: shells, sea fans, sea anemones, sponges, etc. Another side trail led us through some dense woods to an outcropping into the bay that is called "Driftwood Beach" -- because the shale has been weathered by the water to look exactly like driftwood. A flock of cormorant was perched on the end of the "driftwood".

The trail culminated in breathtaking pedestrian suspension bridges spanning the mouth of the Storms River. Think Indiana Jones in the (awful) 2nd movie . . . but without the knife-weilding attackers. The view was outstanding from the bridges, the colors and sounds were breathtaking. Some of the beaches had perfectly rounded stones in pretty shades of blue and grey. When the waves retreated the sound was beautiful and so different. After listening a few times we realized it is the soothing sound of the stones clicking against each other as they settle back down as the wave leaves. Right near the smooth round rocks were some that looked as if they'd been chopped into cubes.

The suspension bridges were fun but would be hard for anyone with a fear of heights or bridges! They was definitely some sway to them . . . and Carrie wanted to swing on the cable handrails like a kid. I played the mom role and said NO! We would have loved to have taken part in the canopy tours on the zip lines. Maybe next time . . . when we come back for the adventure spelunking.

On the way back we found a family of Dassies, a cute rabit/groundhog type creature (also known as a rock hyrax). We watched them for a while: a family of 8 or so, they were shy but only retreated a little bit into the bushes, watching us as they ate.

After a quick lunch, Carrie and I took of our shoes and socks to wade in the ocean at the small sand beach. I decided that I really wanted to get wet and went in -- in my clothes -- up to my waist. After all, when was the next chance I'd get to swim in the Indian Ocean? And of course, I had a full suitcase of clothes in the van.

After I changed we left the park, retracing our steps as far as Knysna. First stop was an amazing view of the water coming in from the ocean into the lagoon. Then we went to the waterfront very briefly, then off to George airport.

We bid a very sad good-bye to Brian, who had in very short order morphed from an anonymous guide at Cape Town airport holding a sign that read "Leslie Crair Co." . . . to a wise friend, amused by our silliness and providing valuable insights into his country.

We took off on time (after all of us but Linda paid the "greedy American tax" also known as overweight luggage surcharge.) Oh, and of course, there was also the obligatory half hour of Leslie and Tammie furiously facebooking in the airport. I was exhausted by this point, having climbed seemingly thousands of stairs after sleeping only five hours.

We landed in Johannesburg then transferred by shuttle to the Birchwood Hotel. We were here only for sleeping . . . a quick dinner and some suitcase rearranging, some journal writing, and a full 8 hours of sleep. Tommorrow we fly to Hoodspruit Airport, gateway to Kruger Park.

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Photos

Prettiest beach "litter" ever!
Tsitsikamma is known for marine life; here's what the marine life leaves behind.

Comments

[Sarah G]

WOW
Hi Tammie - These pictures are spectacular!