Underway

Week 1 on the bike and it's been a time of readjustment. Getting used to the bike again, and more crucially traveling on my own.  Departure from Cape Town was not without drama: within 30 kilometres I had a puncture,  fortunately conveniently outside a local bike shop so I didn't need to do the repairs myself.

From Cape Town it was initially a couple of very lazy days in Stellenbosch (scene of the puncture) South Africa's second oldest town. It really was quite charming full of beautiful old colonial era buildings and it would have been easy to stay longer but aware I was very aware I was still only 30 kilometres from Cape Town with a long way to go so I thought I I'd better move on.

Next halt was on many ways the true start of the journey-  Cape Agulhas - the southernmost tip of the continent and where Indian and Atlantic oceans (theoretically) join.  The aim of this journey is to eventually to finish in Nordkapp,  Norway to have done the full south,  north of the African Europe landmass.

Onwards from there was over the Swartberg Pass, a dirt road rising and then dropping a thousand metres over 20 hairpin filled  kilometres;  challenging and extremely beautiful riding.

After there I locked upon an old village called Niue Bethesda,  it had had its heyday around 1910,and seem to be almost preserved in aspic since then,all dirt streets, quirky advertising signs and we'll maintained buildings. It is of course a bit of an illusion being in fact a major tourist destination, primarily for the Owl House the quirky, and very kitsch, residence of an eccentric (and note deceased)artist.

The plan from there was to head north west into Lesotho and I got two thirds of the way there reaching the town of Burgersdorp in the Free State, a strongly Africaan area full of old buildings and Boer war relics. Intriguing place to walk around.

A change of plan happened at this point, because when I woke up on the Thursday morning my tablet announced that the annual South African meeting of the international motor cycle group I belong to was happening 600km further north, so using the flexibility inherent to single travelers I decide to head there instead.

One of my better decisions. Meeting was fantastic. Held on a private resort come game lodge owned by the organiser we were all treated royally well, with an incredibly interesting mix of both local and international travelers there, several that quickly became good friends.

Also turned out there was a second reason that going to the meeting was a good choice, my rear shock choose there to suddenly fail.  The advantage of being at the meeting was lots of local knowledge as to who to contact and the closeness to Johannesburg, where, fingers crossed, the solution lies. Tomorrow (Monday)is going to see me have a very bouncy ride there to find out if that is the case.  The plan from there was to head north west into Lesotho and I got two thirds of the way there reaching the town of Burgersdorp in the Free State, a strongly Africaan area full of old buildings and Boer war relics. Intriguing place to walk around.

A change of plan happened at this point, because when I woke up on the Thursday morning my tablet announced that the annual South African meeting of the international motor cycle group I belong to was happening 600km further north, so using the flexibility inherent to single travelers I decide to head there instead.

One of my better decisions. Meeting was fantastic. Held on a private resort come game lodge owned by the organiser we were all treated royally well, with an incredibly interesting mix of both local and international travelers there, several that quickly became good friends.

Also turned out there was a second reason that going to the meeting was a good choice, my rear shock choose there to suddenly fail.  The advantage of being at the meeting was lots of local knowledge as to who to contact and the closeness to Johannesburg, where, fingers crossed, the solution lies. Tomorrow (Monday)is going to see me have a very bouncy ride there to find out if that is the case.