Hi all and welcome back to Cape Town
It’s been another busy few days for the guys out here on the Ticket to Ride South Africa and Mozambique trip.
On Sunday we made the most of a break in the onshore conditions and put in a full day of surf lessons at Muizenberg. Most of the guys have been looking to buy some new boards for themselves, so it was a case of trying out different sizes and models to see which board suited their style and surfing ability the most.
After the lessons Tim met up with us again with his gang of bounding kids from the township. Tim runs a surf clinic, as part of a program aimed at teaching the kids life lessons and keeping them off the streets. Our guys were able to help out by pushing the kids onto waves, helping them back out through the surf, and just being there with a high-five to help the kids feel stoked on surfing.
On Monday the conditions deteriorated again and so we focused a lot on surfing fitness drills. If you watch any new surfing video, it’s easy to fall into the illusion that surfing is only about riding waves. What the filmmakers don’t let you see is the long paddle-outs, the time spent positioning yourself in the water and the hours of practice on land that goes into the few seconds of wave riding. Unfortunately this is the reality, and as the adage goes, if you can’t paddle, you can’t surf, so there were plenty of paddling drill and beach runs to get the guys into surfing shape. Hard work never goes without reward though, so Byron took the guys into town for a night out in the city.
Yesterday we made our way back into Cape Town via Chapman’s Peak, possibly the most beautiful mountain pass drive in the country!! With stunning view over Hout Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, it’s no wonder then why so many people take this route into town. We stopped a few times just to get out of the van and soak in the surroundings. Truly amazing. We couldn’t sight-see for too long though as we had a mission! Today we were to climb Table Mountain. This towering amphitheatre looks over almost all of Cape Town and its surrounding areas. It’s known as the icon of the city and is up for nomination in the choosing of the new Natural Wonders of World. It deserves all the hype! It’s a challenge to climb, but the rewards far exceed the effort.
After the climb we took a short detour onto Signal Hill, another of Cape Town’s landmarks, before making our way back to Muizenberg to rest.
Today we’re heading back to the Atlantic coast for a day of sun, surf and sea so hopefully all our weather dancing will pay off and we’re blessed with some fun, offshore conditions.
Till next time
Take care,
Bevan and Byron.
