We had a great time in Clanwilliam. The Bass were very accommodating, and Sean’s bruised fishing ego was restored. It really is a beautiful part of the Cape. The dam is very large and nestles amidst very spectacular mountain scenery. Nights are cool, but the days can get quite warm. One day our caravan thermometer registered 47 deg C. – quite warm!
Misafi did her bit and we cruised and paddled up and down. One evening we had a spot of embarrassment. We were the only people in the area at the time, other than the caretaker who looked after the surrounding houses. We took an evening cruise with Misafi and stayed out after sunset. Next thing we knew, there was a light on the water – the caretaker had come out to search for us. There followed a lecture on being out at night without the correct lights, and a demonstration of the required lighting. “The red light goes on the left and the green on the right.” Thoroughly chastened, Sean kept quiet and said nothing. Actually we did have a small rechargeable torch that Mike Brown gave us, but it seemed inappropriate to produce it at the time.
After Clanwilliam we retraced our steps South to Langebaan and spent a few days at Club Mykonos in the lap of luxury. (also very kindly arranged by our friend Larry). It was a nice surprise to find the Orams there (it was also a statutory lesson that one must take care what one does, because however far you are from home, someone will see you doing it.) Imagine if Sean had rocked up for an educational weekend with a glorious blonde! – —Jean comments that that would take a lot of imagination!!
There is a very special restaurant at Langebaan called the Strandloper. It’s situated on the beach and consists of crude wooden benches and tables situated under equally crude shelters. You take your own booze and are fed royally with a varied selection of fish and shellfish cooked over an open fire. Even the bread is cooked in a sort of Dutch oven on the beach. The meal takes from 3 to 4 hours and becomes very convivial. We went there with the Orams and Liz’s sister and brother-in-law. Very pleasant and made all the nicer when swigging the local plonk and at under R 6 per litre.
Lunch at the Strandloper
We decided to remain in Langebaan for a while, and after Club Mykonos, moved to a Leentjiesklip caravan park just down the road. Our site was just on the beach with a view right over Saldanha Bay. Langebaan itself is at the head of Langebaan Lagoon which itself is in Saldanha Bay. It is therefore quite sheltered, and the sea temperature is a lot higher than the open sea. Misafi was launched, without the motor, and proved totally seaworthy in getting out through the moderate surf. The problem lay in getting back in again. Jean had the habit of falling out just as we got onto the crest of a wave with the inevitable result – boat, bodies, and paddles — all A over T. When the Sivrights came to visit us for the day we thought that Revel might be an improvement, but he was even worse.
Revel and Sean take on the Atlantic
And the Atlantic wins
The Sivrights had driven down to the Cape so that Revel could take part in The Cape Argus cycle race, an annual event covering about 110 kms over a mountainous route. Revel took about 9 hours – 3 hrs and 23 mins on his bike, the remaining time in the beer tent recovering from a serious case of dehydration. The next day they came up to Langebaan to spend the day with us.
Some time ago we had heard of Tietiesbaai (Bosom Bay) from Mike B., and Sean had marked it down as a spot with some interesting possibilities. So, after a week at Langebaan, we headed in that direction.
Sunset at Tietiesbaai
Tieties is a few kms out from the fishing village of Paternoster, and, apart from Sean’s disappointment in finding that it was named after some poor unfortunate named Titus who was drowned there, is a magnificent spot. The camping facilities are sparse, fresh water, a couple of loos and wash basins, and that’s it, no showers, no hot water. You find yourself a spot on the beach or amongst the rocks and set up camp. Really beautiful. That was on the Thursday when we arrived, what we hadn’t taken into consideration was that the following Monday was a public holiday and that we were on the eve of a long weekend. The next afternoon the whole population of the Western Cape descended upon Tietiesbaai en masse. We’ve never seen so many tents in our lives. People, if you visit this area a stay at this spot is a must, but avoid it like the plague over a holiday period.
In order to escape the hordes (actually they weren’t that bad) we did some exploring of the surrounding area. Earlier last year we spent some time with the Smiths exploring the coast east of Cape Town, and although there were some lovely spots, we were disappointed to find that, in many instances, the traditional fishing villages had become upmarket retirement and holiday homes. The West Coast is different, although there are indeed many very fancy homes here, the villages like Paternoster, St. Helena Bay, and Lamberts Bay (where we are now) are still have working fishing communities and have a life and vibrancy of their own. Fresh fish is plentiful and cheap and we have discovered Bokkems. To be accurate, only one of us has discovered Bokkems, Jean is still rather wary of them. A Bokkem is a small fish, usually Haarder, about the size of a Pilchard, which is salted and wind dried. A bunch of 10 costs R 5 and they are
excellent with cold beer. Fresh Snoek is R8.75 a kg, and as we told you earlier, the local plonk is between R5 and 6 a litre. Mussels abound, and there’s plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. It’s a tough life. We have now moved on from Tieties and are at Lamberts Bay, which is not only a fishing harbour but is also the base for some diamond dredgers. We keep our eyes open, they might drop one.
Lamberts Bay – Diamond boat
This whole area is subject to fog which adds to the charm. The photos below are one of Lamberts Bay Harbour in the fog and one of a bird we met on the beach (The only one that Jean reckons Sean will get to go to Club Mykonos with him).
Lamberts Bay in fog
Gannet