After an exciting few days in Hermanus we drove 75 miles to Struisbaai, where our next hostel awaited. The drive was easy, with hardly any traffic and only undulating hills to cross. We arrived at Cape Aghulas Backpackers at around 11am, to be checked in by Erin, the hostel owner. As it was mid week, the hostel wasn’t fully booked so Erin offered to upgrade our room for free! The hostel was really colourful, vibrant and had a great relaxed vibe to it and our private en suite room with small patio area was no different. Named after a boat in the harbour called Tyger Berg, this little room was our home for 2 nights.
There was no temperature difference between the Atlantic and Indian oceans.
With the sun in the sky and the wind strong, we headed out to explore this little pocket of South Africa. Our first stop was a nice restaurant called Seagulls for lunch. Then we climbed tiny ladders up the lighthouse for beautiful panoramic views and walked out to the landmark site of the southern most tip of Africa. When looking out to sea here, the Atlantic ocean is on the right hand side and the Indian ocean is on the left hand side. Rich went for a paddle in both and concluded that there was no temperature difference between the Atlantic and Indian oceans despite being assured the Indian ocean offered much warmer waters!
In the evening we drove out along the coast road to a shipwreck to watch the sun go down but were thwarted by blanket clouds, so there was only one thing to do, head back to the hostel for dinner and a few drinks at the bar.
Arniston is a small town 35 miles from Struisbaai, an old fishing village with sand dunes, beaches and caves to explore. One cave in particular is stunning and only accessible at low tide. With low tide being at 7.50am, we had an early start the next day to drive to Arniston, walk across the dunes and traverse our way round the rocks into the cave. It was certainly worth the effort though. The photos don’t to it justice really, a small opening out to the ocean on one side allowed the waves to roll in and light flooded into the cavernous space. The roof of the cave looked almost sculpted, with stepped layers making it look like an upside down amphitheater.
On our way back across the sand dunes we added our own rocks to the cairn on top and enjoyed a romantic stroll across the beach, where I took my first steps into the Indian ocean (it was very cold), before driving through the old fishing village and back to Struisbaai.
After a spot of lunch at the hostel we headed out for a leisurely walk around the coastal boardwalk and enjoyed an ice cream at the harbour before taking an afternoon nap at the hostel (oh the joys of not being at work). Finally we stocked up on supplies at the local supermarket and enjoyed a feast before getting competitive at the pool table.
Lambs on the loose 