Things to do and places to go #5:- Paternoster

Paternoster is a quaint little fishing village with loads of character on the West Coast. Google Maps informs me it is 31 minutes (39.4km) from Velddrif, but in my personal experience I would allow more like about 40 - 45 minutes. But maybe I just drive more slowly than most other people!

I believe Paternoster is one of the oldest fishing villages in South Africa. It is certainly filled with charm, with posh new houses cheek by jowl with old dilapidated fisherman's cottages. The community is still deeply entwined in fishing, the wide sandy beach is a riot of colour when all the fishing boats are in. 

(More text and photos to be added in future)

Things to do and places to go #4: Local is Lekker - Bokkom Laan

Sometimes it is great to just relax and take in some of the sights and sounds on the doorstep. Bokkom Laan is one of these places. It is only a few kilometers from the apartment and can be a great place to unwind and watch the pelicans and other birdlife.

To get to Bokkom Laan you will need to simply follow Port Owen Drive to the T-junction, then turn right onto Voortrekker Road. Follow Voortrekker Road past the municipality and post office. Past the Riviera Hotel on your right. Past the Bird Hide on your right. Just after the road narrows to one lane look out for the first turning to the right and follow this down to the river where the road turns left and becomes a gravel road. 
 







Bokkoms is dried and salted Mullet (Harder) which is a West Coast delicacy. There are numerous little Bokkom industries on Bokkom Laan as well as an art gallery, a couple of restaurants / coffee shops, etc. and some boat tours. 


 

You will sometimes be able to get up close and personal with Pelicans who have learned that there are frequently handouts of fresh fish for them from the fishermen who bring their catches in here.

 

Things to do and places to go #3: Strandloper Restaurant

A very different experience. This is not a cheap meal out. And it is certainly not a quick bite to eat. It is not a posh restaurant with comfortable chairs and linen table cloths. It is an experience. And in peak season it is an experience one has to book for, sometimes months in advance, because it is so popular. 






 
You will be on the beach near Langebaan, protected from the elements by a rough, shadecloth boma. 

You will sit on rough wooden benches and sawn off logs. You will take a picnic basket with your own wine and beers. You will arrive at midday, and expect to be there for the entire afternoon. 

You will find yourself eating hot, fresh, home made breads baked in clay ovens over a fire, with home made butter and home made konfyts. 

You will fill up on a variety of fish dishes, and lamb bredie, and crayfish, eating with your fingers, and eating from paper plates.

You will be serenaded by a local musician who would never make a living on a more formal stage, but you will love every minute of his strumming and singing.

Finally you will drink Moer Koffie from chipped enamel mugs, and actually enjoy it.

 

Things to see and places to go #2: Saldanha MTB Trail SAS Saldanha Nature Reserve

The SAS Nature Reserve in the Military grounds at Saldanha offers an MTB trail suitable for walkers and runners as well as cyclists. Although it is part of the Military area, entry is open to the public providing there is no red flag flying to indicate shooting practice. Entrance is free. The road through the veld follows the coastline so there are awesome views across the Bay, and there are some paths down to the rocky coast. It is a nature reserve, and there will be snakes so I wouldn't go bundu bashing or walking along paths where I can't see the ground in front of my feet.  When I was there in summer time I did find some ticks afterwards, so it would be a good idea to check your bodies carefully after walking through these trails. As a person who enjoys nature, and views, and surf pounding on the rocks, I found the SAS Saldanha Nature Reserve to be well worth a visit.

 

Things to see near AtlanticSunsets, Port Owen #1.... Saldanha Look Out Point at Hoetjiesbaai

Following a request from a guest arriving in December about ideas for what there is to see and do, I thought perhaps it would be a good for me to start preparing a few posts about what there is to see nearby. So let's go to Saldanha first. 

Saldanha is less than 40km away along a good tar road via Vredenburg, so it is less than an hour in travel time to get there. For those fit enough to walk up stairs there is a very easy climb up to the lookout point from which one has 360 degree views of Saldannah Bay, the ore terminal, and the military base. Some of the old fisherman homes still stand there at the base of the hill, as well as a small museum and a statue in honour of those lost at sea. There is also an interesting old graveyard just below the fisherman cottages.

Sunday Afternoon

Just loved these gorgeous clouds while I was out walking the dogs this afternoon ...

 ... and then came across these footprints in the wet sand along the edge of the river. There's nothing special about a stranger's footprints, plus those of my own little Yorkies, but I just kind of liked them

 

October

It's hard to believe October is almost over and nearly a month has gone by since my last post. Somehow I have to get into the habit of writing more often and keeping up with my local "journal".

So spring time has been and now we are into summer. The days are getting longer and longer rapidly now. And as the days lengthen, so too does the heat, although night times are pretty cool still and I usually have a jersey on by the time sun goes down.

We are entering our windy season, and it sure looks like we're in for a windy, windy season. So not often I find reflections out there at the moment, but hey, there is beauty everywhere if you're only prepared to look for it.

Down at the local fishing harbuor just after sunset last night. Note how choppy the water is - that chilly wind was sure blowing

Flower Season 2015

In my last post I wrote about the beginning of winter and hoping for good winter rains for a good flower season to follow. Well, unfortunately we didn't get much rain this winter. Just a whole lot of dully grey days with no rain to show for it, so the ground water table is very low and a source of concern to the local farmers. But yet somehow we had a fantastic wild-flower season. In Port Owen itself we seem to get mostly white daisies called rain flowers. In places the flowers are so densely packed it looks like snow on the ground until one gets close.

But if one ventures out just a little way there are a multitude of colours to be found

Back again. Same name. Different location

I've been lazy about keeping up my blog. It's time I learned how to discipline myself to learn to write again .... even if my writing is not good enough for anybody to want to read, the only way to improve is to just DO IT.

We left Cape Town and moved to the little West Coast fishing village of Port Owen some years ago. Subsequently purchased another investment flat here that I could let out as holiday letting exactly like I did in Cape Town. And as I had the domain AtlanticSunsets.com it made sense to just keep our new holiday let with the same old name. So here I am again

Winter has started in ernest here with a definite chill to the air especially early morning and at night, although most days are warm out in the bright sunshine. We've had a week of drizzle and mist. Hope we do get enough rain to get a good flower season this year.