SWIM HERE
Each town has its own main beach, but there are also several lesserknown beaches. To the south-east of Pringle Bay is a small peninsula where the Hangklip Lighthouse is situated - follow Hangklip Road through town (it becomes High Level Road). On the western side of the peninsula is a quiet bay called Grootbaai. The bay to the east is Moonshine Bay - the turquoise water will remind you of Mauritius. (Just colder! - Ed.)
To get to Moonshine Bay, carry on along High Level Road past the Hangklip Lighthouse to the gate of Sea Farm Private Nature Reserve. Before you reach the gate, turn right onto the dirt road and follow it along the reserve border until it reaches a dead end.
Betty's Bay has numerous wetlands: Rondevlei is marshy but Malkopsvlei, better known as Bass Lake, is easy to access. Have a swim here if the southeaster is raging on the beach.
Barn swallows flutter against the blue sky like flecks of soot. Stilts and lapwings protest as I approach the water’s edge. Ruffs and common greenshanks take flight. The terns, herons and cormorants on islands deeper in the water pay me no mind. And as if that scene wasn’t striking enough, wild horses graze in the fynbos!
Where else can you visit a wetland ringed by mountains, full of birds and wild horses, in the afternoon after work?
I’m in Rooisand Nature Reserve outside Kleinmond, which is part of the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve. This whole mountainous coastline must be one of the wildest places in South Africa: There are craggy peaks, booming waves, rock pools, waterfalls and wildflowers.
The Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve (see map on page 50 - 51) is a wedge of land roughly between Gordon’s Bay, Grabouw and Kleinmond. It was recognised by UNESCO 25 years ago and it’s also a World Heritage Site. There are six floral kingdoms in the world and the Cape Floristic Region, from Clanwilliam to Gqeberha, is the smallest of the lot. Yet it’s one of the most biodiverse places on the planet. There are as many
