In search of Father Jack.

You did well to get those photos, as you say, always looking the wrong way
 
kewl

thinking this might have been about county clare and or frank kellys birthplace :aidan

excellent

not places id think of visiting

carry on

turas maith a bheith agat
 
Thanks for the comments and good wishes guys. You won't be surprised that I stayed 2 more days in Hermanus, the apartment I had was great, 5 mins walk from the cliffs and was hoping to see more whales. In fact everytime I went down to the cliffs and looked out, I saw at least one whale, yes Southern Right. The whale hunters called them that, as they were the right ones to catch. There is extra satisfaction, for me anyway, in seeing whales from the shore, instead of having to get in a boat. That's why this place is special, the whales clearly like it in this bay and are happy to come close to shore and having the height of the cliffs gives you a better view than from a beach. The mothers with young swim very smoothly and hardly break water and are hard to photograph, whereas the single whales can be more energetic and seem to breach just for fun. I went around the other side of the bay and down the coast to Pearley Beach today but didn't see any whales from the various spots I stopped.

So these are what I saw at Hermanus in the last couple of days. The first 2 photos are of the view, left and right, from my whale watching spot. One photo includes the rocks near the shore, indicating how close the whale is to shore.
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Yesterday morning I took a break from whale watching and went up to the local Saturday market. It was a good market with food, crafts, "train" rides for the kids(South African style) and I bought a few more souvenirs, very small ones. I was delighted to come across a storyteller who was holding a group of kids spellbound, as she illustrated her story with items on her table. She also sang with a wonderful melodious voice to add emphasis, a real treat, and for the kids. There was also a guy playing guitar inside the market singing middle of the road songs and not too well. He had a box in front with a sign "music suggestions". I amused myself with the idea of writing "stop" on a piece of paper and popping it in. To the side of the market of course was a cricket match and I was transported back to Hampshire in the UK, as I live next to a cricket club.
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There was also a guy playing guitar inside the market singing middle of the road songs and not too well. He had a box in front with a sign "music suggestions". I amused myself with the idea of writing "stop" on a piece of paper and popping it in

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hammer time? :D
 
As the regular readers will know I try and take an interest in wildlife in general, so here's a recent selection. I think I got the names for the birds, but welcome suggestions for the flowers, caterpillar and bee.

Oh, and for those of you who scoffed at my fear of the scary tortoise a few days ago, I found this sign warning motorists about tortoises. See the locals know how dangerous tortoises can be!

First bird is the Kelp gull, seen before but this was a great pose.

Then I believe the Hartlaub's gull.

Two for one in the next with the Curlew Sandpiper and the African Oystercatcher.

Lastly the White-breasted Cormorant, swallowing a fish.

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Before leaving Hermanus I went down to have a last look at the bay for any whales. Of course they were there, 3 of them, but there's been enough whale photos. I spent a half hour watching them, at least one was a mother and baby group. Finally I had to tear myself away and ride east but have included a photo of my whale watching perch, with fleece cushion.
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Along the road I stopped in Napier an old village, founded in 1838, and had coffee. This monument was erected on the centenary of the founding. The cafe was a bit quirky with old bicycles hanging up and this ladder with wellingtons boots.
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Further along, I turned south, directly south and began to get excited. My destination was L'Agulhas, the most southerly tip of Africa. Strange to think that this bike has carried me from the Congo to here, covering over 10,000km in the process. I rode out to the point when I arrived but later after finding accomodation, I walked out again to the point and absorbed the feeling of the place. It has an atmosphere all its own this is combined with my emotions of getting all this way. I was lucky as the weather was great but I also had a sense that there may be times, when just standing up would be an effort. The wind was blowing then and once the crowds had cleared I could start to take it all in. This is where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. I dipped my toe in the water but wasn't sure which ocean made my shoe wet. The waves rolling in seemed massive and best captured in the photo of the two White Fronted Cormorants on a rock, with the waves behind. I couldnt write anything yesterday evening as I hadn't processed the feeling of being there at that most southerly point.
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Today began with a ride out to the L'Agulhas lighthouse, the 2nd oldest in South Africa, and climbing up the steep ladder to the observation deck. The attendant warned my about the wind and to be careful with my glasses. I'm glad she did because it was pretty strong up there but I got a couple of photos.

The lighthouse is a special building and includes some Egyptian architectural features. The name L'Agulhas is Portuguese, meaning needles, because they noticed that the compass needle pointed due North at the cape, without the normal magnetic deviation.


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Moving on from Aguhlas I again progressed east. Before leaving the flat land near the cape I noticed these round shapes on sticks in a river. Stopping to investigate I saw they looked like weavers nests, and sure enough a weaver bird perched on the bush nearby. Now I was told weaver birds nest in trees near houses, to keep predators away. Well, having a nest surrounded by water will certainly deter many preditors, clever birds. Also in the river were some Red-billed Teal.The landscape I passed through after that was farmland, either cereal crops or livestock, including a couple of ostrich farms. I was struck with the cotton wool clouds today, quite beautiful. My destination was Mossl Bay parts of the town are industrialised but it has a beautiful point. I came across the campsite at the point and might have been tempted, if I'd found it before I got a room, but we'll never know. Dinner was not fish and chips from the London bus, but a £4 steak and a local craft beer overlooking the point.
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Glad you (and the trusty 125!) made it to the last point South.

Where to, now?


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I woke to dark clouds today and while having breakfast my host mentioned there may be some drizzle. The drizzle started and I decided I'd wait a bit, watch the rugby and hope the drizzle cleared. No luck with the drizzle clearing, so I put on waterproofs and left. To get out if town you climb quite a lot and when I did the drizzle turned to rain and strong wind. This rain continued for the next couple of hours. It was rain that wouldn't feel out of place in western Ireland or Cornwall in the UK. There were rivulets of water running across the road. I'd not ridden in rain with my new rear tyre and wasn't sure what the wet grip would be like, so slowed down. Later I noticed the wet road in front or me was multicoloured, meaning oil had spilled on the road, so I slowed again. A few hundred meters up the road a truck had broken down and I wondered if this was the culpret for the oil deposit. This was a day to just get to my destination in one piece, so it was with great relief I pulled into the B&B in Knysna.

It rained all afternoon and I stayed inside but when the rain cleared I went out on the bike to get something to eat. As I returned to the bike after my meal, the heavy rain started again, oh joy!

You get these days on trips but this one wasn't great. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

The photos are of the grey clouds in Mossl bay as I had breakfast and the second is from the waterfront in Knysna as I arrived at the resturant.

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Fabulous pics and a lovely style of narration. I’m always eager to read the next instalment, thanks for taking the trouble as it’s such a beautiful part of the world.

If you are heading anywhere near De Rust, then I can recommend a wonderful guest house run by a biker mad guy, Jan Wentner.

https://www.housemartin.co.za/index.html

He’s made keen on rugby too having been a coach for -21 national teams
 
Thanks for the positive comments, Tuftywhite and oldrat, great to get feedback and suggestions.

Just passed De Rust and heading east, trying to get to Lesotho before parking the bike and heading home. Maybe another time. Was hoping Ireland would play the Bocks while i was here, but now seems unlikely.

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