At
this time of year (beginning of winter), when you awake to a cloudless sky, one
HAS to take full advantage of the promise of a beautiful day ahead and what
better way to do that than on two wheels?
We left home at 730am, a little later than usual as even the sun
lies in a little longer in the mornings now. It
was quite misty as we headed off towards Stellenbosch via Baden Powell and by
the time we got to fill up at Zettlers (Strawberry) Garage in Stellenbosch, I
thought my fingers were going to fall off from frostbite (okay, well it
FELT like frostbite). I warmed my frozen
hands on my toasty exhaust
(short periods at a time) and within a few minutes the blood started flowing
again (well mostly) and I was ready to brave the next leg of our ride.
Our route took us over Helshoogte where we were stopped by two
friendly traffic cops (ladies) who were checking licenses. Word got out
that some guys were doing
some low flying up the pass doing over 200km/hour.
Clearly the fuzz doesn't know that the KLRs top speed is 150km …….downhill. Although an inconvenience, it's nice
knowing that they are out there doing their jobs and keeping the roads
safe!
Next stop was breakfast at Kalfi's restaurant in Franshhoek where
we were surrounded by some really big boys on their equally big tough bikes. The
KLRs looked kinda outnumbered parked between
these mean machines but we were happy knowing that sooner than you can
say “eat my dust”, we would be crunching over gravel roads while these guys had no choice
but to stick to the tar.
Craving the
feel of gravel beneath our tyres, we headed off via Franschhoek Pass, Villiersdorp, Grabouw
and at the Peregrine turned off towards the Highlands road. We usually enter
this road from the Kleinmond side, so it was quite interesting riding the
opposite direction for a change. A change of perspective made everything seem different and made for interesting photographs, although I
couldn't resist stopping at my usual spot for my all-time favourite pic (see below).
Somehow this photograph speaks to my soul! This time, I got the Nav
as part of the story, which makes this photograph all the more special to me.
We stopped at Kleinmond Harbour for a well deserved coffee. The thermometer had climbed quite a bit by
this time and we were stripping off long sleeve shirts and buffs to make for a
cooler ride as we headed off via Clarence Drive towards the Strand to meet up
with Roger and Bonita to see their new holiday pad.
 |
| Spier (Stellenbosch) |
 |
| KLRs surrounded by all the BIG guns |
 |
| Dejavu - took this exact pic a year ago... the plants are bigger now though! |
 |
| Need I say more? |
 |
| Franschhoek main road is motorcycle central on any given Sunday morning |
 |
| Breakfast at Kalfi's in Franschhoek |
 |
Huguenot Monument in Franschhoek
The Huguenot Monument in Franschhoek, South Africa, is dedicated to the cultural influences that Huguenots have brought to the Cape Colony (and ultimately the whole of South Africa) after their immigration during the 17th and 18th centuries. The monument was designed by J.C. Jongens, completed in 1945 and inaugurated by Dr. A.J van der Merwe on 17 April 1948.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huguenot_Monument |
 |
| Took a right towards Grabouw |
 |
| Start of the Highlands Road |
 |
| Still on Highlands road - a different view |
 |
| one of my favourite views on the Highlands road! |
 |
| StoepCafe @ Kleinmond Harbour |
 |
| Kleinmond Harbour |
 |
| The Nav on Clarence Drive |
 |
| My version of a "pretty picture" - Cape Point in the distance |
 |
| The Nav enjoying the amazing views from Clarence Drive |
 |
| and THAT''s where Rog and Bonita enjoys their weekends |
 |
| Saying our goodbyes to Roger and Bonita |
Till next time.....
Safe travels everyone
- Angela -
email: adventureridersct@gmail.com
"4 wheels move the body, 2 wheels move the soul"
