Oudtshoorn to Plettenberg Bay

The Melbourne Cup knows no boundaries so we held the ubiquitous sweep and tuned into the race via the tune-in radio app. I still find it amazing that you can do that in a limestone valley on the outskirts of Cango, a town characterised by a motel and a few houses. The trip to the Cango Caves was very short because of the location of the motel. Our 10am cave tour was led by a personable guide who provided the right amount of technical information without overload. What really impressed with these caves was the magnitude of the first 2 grottos. Up to 1994 they held classical concerts in the first and it was possible to seat 2000 people with performance space and tiered choir benches. Our guide happened to have a great voice and performed a solo for us to test the acoustics. The cave formations were spectacular in places but there is little growth because of the now semi-arid location in the Karoo.

Our second stop was the Cango Wildlife Park, a refuge for animals needing rehabilitation and a place to regenerate some endangered species. I guess there is also the chance we won't see lions or leopards in Kruger so a visit to this site is a bit of insurance for the travel company. It is well done with walkways and enclosures but it is essentially a zoo.

It rained on and off for most of the day today but didn't inconvenience us at all. The most intense rain was saved until we crossed the mountains adjacent to the coastal plain but the driver coped well and by the time we were on the coastal plain the sun was shining intermittently. The journey north to Plettenberg Bay was along what is known as the garden route and runs through some leafy coastal forests interspersed with a series of coastal lagoons that ad to the character of the area. We arrived in Plettenberg Bay around 5.45pm and found the motel to be spacious and comfortable.  4/11/2014

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