helter skelter

Kirstenbosch Gardens

On a quick day trip to Cape Town, Barbs and I went hiking up Table Mountain. We started in the lovely Kirstenbosch Gardens and up Skeleton Gorge to one of the Reservoirs up there.
Steep, steep, steep through the beautiful forest and up the ladders to finally see the view over False Bay.

wild at kirstenbosch

It was a stunning day in August, and after dropping off Pete at the airport I stopped at Kirstenbosch Gardens on the way to Hout Bay. The light was amazing and the views of the fresh snow on the peaks were incredible.

a roadtrip: episode 2

behind us the high speed gully which Elite riders race through with 70km/h

So we arrived in Pietermaritzburg for the Masters World Championships downhill race. Being held in South Africa made it a once in a lifetime opportunity. After watching a few Downhill World Cup races on TV over the years, we never thought that we would actually be at a race. And definitely not to participate! But thanks to Paul and his constant nagging , we eventually did sign up and here we were feeling a bit out of our depths.

a roadtrip: episode 1

yes please

How did this all begin?
It all began months ago, with the idea of a race, which seemed meaningless. But as time passed, everything seemed to make more sense: a roadtrip across the country to PMB, followed by a holiday in Durban sounded like a great idea.

the race machine

ESP Photography

"30 seconds to go..."
…the last words that I hear.

Winter in the Hoek

Winter, believe it or not!

cape peninsula extravaganza

Autumn has long passed and it is mid winter now. Waiting for the storms and the cold to still come I am enjoying hiking a lot these days in the beautiful Cape.
Some impressions of two hikes I did around Kalk Bay a few months ago.

just beautiful

day trippin in wine country

Paul boosting, despite cheese grating his arm in the rock garden earlier in the day.

Autumn has settled in in the Cape, bringing with it some of the best riding conditions of the year. Tacky dirt and powder blue skies. What started off as a chilled Saturday morning ride turned into 4hrs of burning down trails, sending it and then hiking back up for some more. The weather was perfect and everyone was throwing it down, as the craziness unfolded.

the first stepdown at the top of the track gets everything going. after that instinct kicks in.

ooster booster

what can be better than to wake up to a beautiful sunrise in front of a surf spot?

our home for tonight... 

We found ourselves in Stilbaai, a funny place with a beautiful beach and luckily a restaurant that is open after dark. Pretty much dead out of season, which suited us just fine: we had decided to camp in the small reserve at the point. Everyone had left after their sundowners and braais, we were completely alone to enjoy the peace and quiet and millions of starts. The local fishermen arrived with the sunrise to announce the first surf of the day.

watching the sunrise from our "tent"

between here and there

On a stormy morning before easter, a few hungry souls gathered on a beach at dawn. Over steaming coffee they discussed the tide and swell direction and the day before, until inevitably a wave detonated over the slab-like sandbank. The sea had beckoned and it was time.

"Come out and play," beckoned the sea.

Paranoid?

 "It's only paranoia if they aren't really there..."

Or at least that is how the saying goes.

Every time I pull into the car park at Paranoia, that saying resurfaces and I remember exactly what it is that I love and hate about the spot. Because Paranoia is a place of contradictions.

Clean lines rolling on home

the earlyworm

Pringle Bay

The thing with the early worm is sometimes you are gonna get skunked. And when you do, it's much worse than any other.
Who in their right mind wants to drag themselves out of bed at 4.30am to drive out into the middle of nowhere to throw themselves into the sea before work.

And sure enough, when your alarm does go off, those are exactly the kind of questions that you are asking yourself. But then you remember the worm... it's always been about the worm...

Flower power

so many treasures hidden in this valley

Two weeks ago I joined Jane and the Mountain Club on a hike up to Victoria Peak. I knew it was going to be a big one, but really, this one was tough. 10 hours in the blazing sun, up to 1589m, forgot to pack enough food as I was a bit hungover and sleepy from the braai on Saturday, but the beauty of this place made me forget all of that. It was definitely worth it!

Cabernet or Pinotage???

It's been two months since we arrived in South Africa and have now settled in Stellenbosch.

Found a great place, got cool neighbours and there are loads of beautiful places just on our doorstep.
Loving it!

the view from our house

stellies sunnies