{"id":932,"date":"2013-10-04T10:38:57","date_gmt":"2013-10-04T10:38:57","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-10-17T19:10:26","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T19:10:26","slug":"cape-town-and-onwards-up-the-garden-route","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tickettoridegroup.com\/blog\/cape-town-and-onwards-up-the-garden-route\/","title":{"rendered":"Cape Town and onwards up the Garden Route"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Nicola,<\/div>\n
\"Chris<\/div>\n
\"aquarium.jpg\"<\/div>\n
\"Beach<\/div>\n
\"Bye<\/div>\n
\"Camara<\/div>\n
\"Chris<\/div>\n
\"Chris<\/div>\n
\"Dayne<\/div>\n
\"Josh<\/div>\n
\"Josh,<\/div>\n
\"Kalk<\/div>\n
\"klee<\/div>\n
\"Klee<\/div>\n
\"Manuela<\/div>\n
\"Nicola<\/div>\n
\"Nicola<\/div>\n
\"Nikita<\/div>\n
\"NIkita<\/div>\n
\"Our<\/div>\n
\"photo<\/div>\n
\"photo<\/div>\n
\"photo<\/div>\n
\"photo<\/div>\n
\"photo<\/div>\n
\"Sam<\/div>\n
\"Sam,<\/div>\n
\"Sarah<\/div>\n
\"Sarah<\/div>\n
\"stoked<\/div>\n
\"Tobias,<\/div>\n
\"Top<\/div>\n
\"ttride.jpg\"<\/div>\n
\"witsands.jpg\"<\/div>\n
\n
\n

\n\tHi everyone, we have had an awesome weekend in beautiful Cape Town<\/a>. Saturday morning we had clean 2-3 ft waves. It was really good so we decided to surf most of the day. In the morning we did a lesson with the group, just explaining about dropping in (that's when two people take off on the same wave and knowing whose right of way it is) and what to do in different situations. The crew all surfed for a couple hours and made the most of the perfect conditions. We had lunch and then had an afternoon surf which was fun. The crew all got to take their new surfboards home and sticker them up after the surf, the lodge is about 5 mins walk from the beach so the guys get to surf as long as they like. Tobias is a qualified chef and was having cravings to cook a dish, so he cooked us gnocchi, vegetables with chicken fillet wrapped in bacon. It was delicious and everyone was extremely impressed.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tSunday we woke up to beautiful blue skies and light offshore wind once again. We went for a early surf to beat the weekend crowed. There were such great conditions, which helped the group to work on key goals with their surfing. Manuela was at the back line, pushing herself and caught her first open face wave, whilst Sarah caught an awesome left. The sun was out and we were loving it. On a Sunday in Gugulethu there is a braai venue called Mzolis where u pay for your meat and they braai it for you. It's so much food for what you pay and had become a local hit in Cape Town. It was super busy with people from all over the world all there to enjoy the music and each other's company. When our food arrived we were in for a feast. After chilling, meeting people and dancing we got a taxi home. It was a different experience and was a little hard to get into at first but once we got to relax and see the vibe, everyone got in the groove and enjoyed Mzolis. It was a great way to end the weekend.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tOn Monday we woke up to another warm day. It was a beautiful day to climb Table Mountain (one of the seven natural wonders of the world). We had a big breakfast and got some water and our walking shoes ready. It's not a really challenging walk (depending on your fitness) but a great work out, fun and with magnificent views. It took roughly around 1 and a half hours to do the walk to the top. It's a stunning walk and at the top there is the most exquisite view of the whole of Cape Town. It is also the only place in the world that you can take a photo of a world heritage site (Robben Island) from a world heritage site (Table Mountain). Fortunately the cable car down is included in the price of the trip so we all had the easy route down. For the afternoon we went to the waterfront for lunch and then went to the aquarium to check out the sea creatures which is amazing unto its own. Another great day in Africa!<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tTuesday we woke up to clear skies and fun 2 ft waves. It was a  stunning hot day. We had a lesson in the morning and everyone was out the back and catching great waves. Manuela got two really good lefts and the whole crew were rooting her on. Sarah got some good waves too. For lunch we went to Ours restaurant, it's a quaint restaurant up one of the pebble side streets in Kalk Bay. The waves were still super fun in the afternoon, so the crew hit the water again. It was national braai day and is celebrated all over South Africa, so we had a braai that evening and everyone sat around the fire and chatted.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tThe waves were 1 ft but clean on Wednesday morning; so for a little fun the group all took longboards out and tried to get some hang ten time. It is good for your surfing to try different boards and to work on different aspects of your surfing. Muizenberg has literally been cooking since the group arrived so we have surfed it non-stop, but needed to explore a little further so we took the group to Witsands which is on the Atlantic side of Cape Town. It was clean 2 ft, a bit colder than Muizenberg but was fun and the water was crystal clear. The group have been surfing loads the past two weeks and are all finding muscles they never knew they had.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tThursday was our last day in Cape Town. It was a warm sunny day, the waves were small but clean,, afew of he guys and girls had a long board session the group just relaxed. Since our arrival in Cape Town there have been Southern right whales around Muizenberg and False bay; they come into the bay to give birth. There's something very special about being in the water and watching a whale breach only a few hundred metres away. That evening the group packed their bags and their boards. We had our last dinner in Cape Town and spoke about our great time.<\/p>\n

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\n\tSo Friday was the day we had to say bye to Cape Town but hello to a new adventure. We packed the trailer with our bags and boards and headed up the coast to Plettenberg Bay<\/a>. You drive through a few small towns which all have their own beauty. In Knysna they have an annual oyster festival which hosts many people from all over the world. That stretch of coastline is called the Garden Route and is an easy, relaxed drive. We arrived in Plettenberg Bay that afternoon; where we checked in at Albergo Backpackers and showed the group the town. We had a braai that night and relaxed around the fire place.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tIn Plettenberg Bay we plan to do a lot of swimming training to make sure that the group's swim times are up to scratch for the lifeguard course. On Saturday morning after a quick surf check seeing the waves were quite big and crunching, we headed off for a swimming training session where the guys worked on their stroke and kicking. The swell was still up in the afternoon and not ideal for the group to surf, but a few of them were itching to get in the water so they bodysurfed and watched Nikita and I take on the wedge. The water is generally warmer in Plett than Cape Town and it was crystal blue. That afternoon the guys had a walk around town and checked some shops out.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tSunday morning we woke up to clean glassy 3-4ft waves. We surfed lookout which is down the road from our back packers. It is a very different wave to Muizenberg and has a lot more power. It was testing for the group but after a few waves and a bit of time checking the wave out they were enjoying it. Dayne got a long right, Chris had a couple of big drops and was loving the power in the wave. After a couple of hours in the water we went and had lunch. We headed down to lookout beach that afternoon for some beach training. We did shuttles with some exercises after every shuttle push-ups, sit ups, squats and burpees (I'll explain these in a future blog). The sun was out, swell had dropped a little, but Nicola, Chris, Sam and Dayne were amped to get in the water once more. They surfed lookout again and traded off waves surfing until the sun set and we headed home for dinner which was a stew.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tWe woke up to a beautiful sunny day on Monday morning. While in Plettenberg Bay the group do lessons with John and Donna who own ISS (international surf school). It's really good because they know the beaches so well and have a lot of knowledge when dealing with beginner to intermediate surfers. We had our first lesson with them that morning down at solar beach which is a sand bottom wave with lefts and rights. It was testing conditions, but John and Donna gave the crew the help they needed. In Plettenberg Bay sky diving is a big attraction, it is one of the cheapest places to do it and is something everyone has to do once in their lives. Sarah, Manuela, Nicola, Chris, Sam and Ryan all did the skydive on Monday. They were all super stoked and wanted to do it again. The feeling of falling through the sky is second to none. If I close my eyes I can picture the exact image of the free fall every time. That afternoon we had a braai and relaxed around the fire place.<\/p>\n

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\n\tNext stop and blog will be from every surfers dream place, Jeffrey's Bay.<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tKlee Strachan<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
Title<\/div>\n
Surfing and exploring South Africa <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Keywords<\/div>\n
surf, travel, explore, surfing, skydive, adventure, <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Description<\/div>\n
Join us as we move on from the joys of Cape Town up the Garden Route surfing, skydiving, and having fun along the way to Plettenberg Bay<\/div>\n<\/div>\n