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| At the start point |
Woke up early to get ready for my ride down the Swartberg pass. Miriam and Jurgen decided to rest instead and I had a quick breakfast before meeting Gavin to collect my safety gear as well as map for the journey. According to the plan, I would be driven all the way to the top of the pass and then make my way back to the backpacker's by cycling back. There was a french couple joining me as well and we watched Gavin prepare the bicycles on the trailer. It was going to be a hot day eventually and I brought along my Camelbak. Gavin advised me to stop midway for lunch at this restaurant along the way and with that we set off.
The views on the way to the drop off point was amazing by itself and we drove up a narrow winding trail for some time before reaching the start point. It was exceedingly windy at the start point and we took a few pictures before starting the ride down. The arrangement was that Gavin would escort us all the way down till we reached the intersection leading down to the Cango caves and he did a good job, waiting patiently as we stopped almost ever 200 metres to take pictures of the ever beautiful landscape. We also had to watch our speed as there were no barricades for most of the way and at some points, too fast and we would just fly off the edge.
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| Where the track meets road |
The cycling path was mostly sand and loose rocks and thankfully mostly downhill except for occasional sections where there was some upslope. After a few kilometres of dirt track, the path moved onto a road and it was way smoother here and the slopes more pronounced. I lost track of the french couple after a few slopes and my natural instinct to cover miles took control. Before long I was at the intersection leading to the Cango caves and heading towards the town. The weather began to take its toll on me then as well as all the dust whenever a vehicle drove by. Slowly but surely I made my way to the lunch point, just by the Cango Ostrich farm which we had visited the day earlier.
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| Lunchpoint ! |
Lunch was a sandwich together with a strawberry milkshake which just made the day seem so much better almost instantly. The lady at the lodge was nice enough to ask me to relax in the pool for awhile before carrying on but I preferred to make my way back instead.
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| The kitchen rules |
Leaving the coffee place, I carried on past the Cango caves and made my way back to the backpackers. Interestingly the way back was rather straightforward and it was difficult to get lost. The only problem I would say would be that there are hardly any toilets along the way, especially between the ostrich farm and the backpackers. Seeing the familiar backpacker's signboard I was very relived as the heat was really beginning to get to me and it was a short while more before I was inside paradise backpackers.
Once I returned, the staff collected my bicycle and safety kit and returned me back my deposit. One of the things I really liked about Paradise is that almost all the staff knew the guests by name and a few of them did just that throughout my stay making me wonder if I had spoken to them before and forgotten. We were supposed to leave the day next and I just checked to make sure that Miriam had informed them regarding the shuttle in the morning.
I was incredibly tired and chilled a few hours in the pool before having dinner with Miriam and Jurgen at the backpacker's itself before crashing.
54 km completed.
Woke up early to get ready for my ride down the Swartberg pass. Miriam and Jurgen decided to rest instead and I had a quick breakfast before meeting Gavin to collect my safety gear as well as map for the journey. According to the plan, I would be driven all the way to the top of the pass and then make my way back to the backpacker's by cycling back. There was a french couple joining me as well and we watched Gavin prepare the bicycles on the trailer. It was going to be a hot day eventually and I brought along my Camelbak. Gavin advised me to stop midway for lunch at this restaurant along the way and with that we set off.
The views on the way to the drop off point was amazing by itself and we drove up a narrow winding trail for some time before reaching the start point. It was exceedingly windy at the start point and we took a few pictures before starting the ride down. The arrangement was that Gavin would escort us all the way down till we reached the intersection leading down to the Cango caves and he did a good job, waiting patiently as we stopped almost ever 200 metres to take pictures of the ever beautiful landscape. We also had to watch our speed as there were no barricades for most of the way and at some points, too fast and we would just fly off the edge.
The cycling path was mostly sand and loose rocks and thankfully mostly downhill except for occasional sections where there was some upslope. After a few kilometres of dirt track, the path moved onto a road and it was way smoother here and the slopes more pronounced. I lost track of the french couple after a few slopes and my natural instinct to cover miles took control. Before long I was at the intersection leading to the Cango caves and heading towards the town. The weather began to take its toll on me then as well as all the dust whenever a vehicle drove by. Slowly but surely I made my way to the lunch point, just by the Cango Ostrich farm which we had visited the day earlier.
Lunch was a sandwich together with a strawberry milkshake which just made the day seem so much better almost instantly. The lady at the lodge was nice enough to ask me to relax in the pool for awhile before carrying on but I preferred to make my way back instead.
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