Cape Town to the Cape of Good Hope

We set off at 8.30am today in beautiful sunny weather although it was fairly windy most of the day. Some days you so out sightseeing with expectations that are well and truly surpassed by the actual experience and today was one of those. There are some breathtaking scenes as you wind south from Cape Town and in places the road hugs the mountainside quite precariously. Most of the vegetation on the Capes peninsula is known locally as Fynbos or small leaf and is comprised of 3 main species, being Protea, Erica and Rescios. The pincushion protea was the main species in flower today but there were also substantial stands of wild daisies and pelargoniums (geraniums). We didn't see any baboons but there are numerous signs warning you not to offer them food or they will be likely to attack you for it. We did see wild ostriches however inside the Table Mountain National Park.

It is difficult to calculate the wind speed but as a conservative estimate there were gusts over 60km per hour so it was interesting viewing in some places, especially Cape Point where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean. For a geographer, it was great to be at such a point on the Earth's surface as it was to be at the Cape of Good Hope. The old seafarers were a tough lot and with wind like today you can understand why there are over 200 known shipwrecks along the western coast.

There are numerous people begging wherever we go and the huge influx of refugees from the north is exacerbating the situation. Many homes on the peninsula had electrified fences surrounding them with signs warning of armed response if they were breached. However, you can walk around Cape Town with as much confidence as you would in Sydney. Our last major stop was the penguin colony at the boulders in Simon's Town and there were substantial numbers sunning themselves on the rocks and beaches. It is the moulting season so they are generally inactive.

Granite tors are common throughout the peninsula and it is obvious that this geological activity was responsible for lifting the sedimentary rocks to form the well-layered mountains.

A great day all round and time to relax before going back to the waterfront for dinner.  31/10/2014

Thursday 30th

There was misty rain as we left the hotel for the bus trip around Cape Town, starting with the well designed Adderley Avenue and surrounding parklands. By the time we reached our first stop however, the rain had stopped and Table Mountain became slowly visible with its "tablecloth" of orographic cloud slowly lifting. The old castle was interesting with its restored moat but what was very obvious was the reclamation of the original shoreline as this fort had been a defensive seaside structure but now stood in city suburbia. A walk through the botanic gardens with its abundance of squirrels was also a highlight of the day as was the beautiful weather that accompanied it.

We opted for lunch at the markets and there were enough unique culinary flavours to make it a pleasant experience. This led on to Green Square, more markets but some great genuine local craft. The waterfront and port of Victoria and Alfred (yes Alfred) seemed to be totally under reconstruction and will be impressive when finished. Less impressive was the wait for the ferry to Robben Island which was delayed due to the big South Atlantic swell. We finally arrived there 2 hours later at 5 pm but the wait was worth it although it is hard to comprehend the inhumanity that occurred there. The ultimate goal is to see the conditions Mandela survived during his incarceration but the island has history dating back to the 17th century. It would also be fair to describe this limestone outcrop as windswept and having little environmental appeal but the view back to Cape Town was stunning, along with the magnificent colony of penguins who posed for a photo opportunity. We returned to port around 7.30 through even bigger swell and opted to eat at the marina because it was getting so late. An enjoyable day in mostly beautiful clear weather.

Southern Ocean

Cape Town

We had as good a flight as you get in economy, especially considering that we were in a row of  4 seats and there was only the 2 of us. The plane had 100 spare seats compared to the previous day when we were told it was packed. The route took us down the coast to Flinders Island and then on a big parabolic arc towards the Antarctic. Seems you miss the head on effect of the trade Jet Stream by doing that and overall it was 13.5 hours of flying. Our flight to Cape Town was only 2 hours but that was after a 3 hour wait. 

This morning (30th) is overcast and chilly but it is forecast to clear. I am sitting writing this looking out at Table Mountain. Adventure awaits!