South Africa's Garden Route a Natural Paradise
A Delightful Highway takes Travellers Across the Southern Cape
Nov 24, 2008
Along this route from Cape Town, the first stop is usually Riviersonderend (River without End). Traditionally a sleepy little agricultural town, tourism has added restaurants, coffee shops and other outlets aimed at passing traffic. Grain and sheep farming is the district’s major activity and, in season, the fields of green and yellow, with a backdrop of purple mountains, is wonderful.
Historical Swellendam
Swellendam nestles at the foot of the Langeberg Mountains, often capped with snow in winter, providing a backdrop to this charming historical town. It is the third oldest in South Africa after Cape Town and Stellenbosch, and the stately Drostdy (magistrates office and residence) built as the seat of the Landdrost (magistrate) in 1747 is an excellent example of Cape Dutch architecture.
Dias Museum of Mossel Bay
Travellers pass the inland towns of Heidelberg, Riversdale and Albertinia before emerging at the coast at Mossel Bay, a seaside holiday town with historical interest. Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Dias sailed into the bay in 1488 after rounding both the Cape of Good Hope (Cape Town) and Cape Agulhas, the southernmost point of Africa, without realising he had done so because of a violent storm. A replica of his caravel is the centerpiece of the Dias Museum complex in the town.
The city of George is the commercial centre of the Southern Cape, but it is its satellite coastal resorts of Wilderness and Sedgefield that are popular with visitors and holidaymakers. In between them is a series of lakes, culminating in the large Swartvlei estuary which empties into the sea at the mouth in Sedgefield. The estuary is popular for boating and fishing.
Knysna and Plettenberg Bay
The town of Knysna is known as the Pearl of the Garden Route and is listed as one of the Top 100 Destinations in the World and one of the Top 25 in Africa by the Trip Advisor 2008 Travellers’ Choice Destinations Awards, according to Knysna Tourism. Set between the lush Knysna Forest, in which elephants still roam, and Knysna estuary, it offers outdoor activities of virtually all types, but is best known for the picturesque Knysna Lagoon and its water-sports, fishing, lagoon cruises and other activities. Knysna is also well known for its wild and cultivated oysters, and the annual Knysna Oyster Festival is a celebration not only of the oysters but of a host of culinary, cultural and sporting events and entertainment. The mouth of the estuary, with its unmistakable natural gateway, is known as The Heads.
Plettenberg Bay is a seaside town set in the centre of an 18km-long bay originally named Bahia Formosa (Beautiful Bay) by Portuguese sailors. Like Knysna’s Heads, Plettenberg Bay is identified by the Robberg Peninsula which points up the beautiful coastline in an easterly direction. Robberg is a nature reserve and a favourite of hikers, fishermen and nature-lovers. The town is modern, with every amenity, and many holiday homes are owned by wealthy non-residents who, with many other holidaymakers, flood into the town in summer. In the centre of the giant sweep of the bay, at Central Beach, is the well-known Beacon Isle and its resort hotel, another icon of the town. The five kilometre-long Robberg Beach is a pristine stretch of sand between Beacon Isle and the peninsula, and a major attraction for those who love the sun and the sea. Ski-boat fishing and sea kayaking are also popular in the bay.
Storms River National Park
Just south of the highway to the city of Port Elizabeth is a rugged stretch of mountains and coastline called Tsitsikamma, best known for the Storms River National Park, a marine reserve of great beauty. Beyond it lies the world-renowned surfing town of Jeffreys Bay or J-Bay.
