Wildflower wonderland around Strandfontein

22 – 24 AUGUST 2020

Right, so we got the all-clear to start travelling, but what now?

Now we needed a caravan! We wanted a small, well-kept caravan at a very reasonable price! That was easier said than done. We searched on Facebook Buy and Sell groups, on Gumtree, on OLX. We went to look at dozens of caravans, but the right caravan remained elusive.

And then our kids kicked us out! Our son had his birthday coming up on 22 August and insisted that we could still have breakfast with him that morning, but then we had to leave so that he could entertain a few friends. Our daughter started making clucking sounds when we came near her – well, challenge accepted: I am no one’s chicken! But we also could not settle for just any caravan.

Luckily, my dad came to the rescue. He invited us for a weekend away in Strandfontein to view the beautiful wildflowers of the West Coast. So, our first trip ended up being a sponsored one in a quaint little cottage right on the beach.

We travelled to Strandfontein along the N7, until you get to the Algeria turn-off into the Cederberg. Andre is a keen bass fisherman, so we made a bit of a detour along the gravel road curving around the eastern banks of Clanwilliam Dam. The bass were too shy, but at least he could wet his lines, whilst I enjoyed the scenery and a preview of the wildflowers to come. “Just one more cast; just one more…”

And in the end, we had to travel the last bit from Lutzville to Strandfontein in the dark, missing the Strandfontein turn-off completely and ending up in Doringbaai. But a delicious dinner of real, fresh-off-the-boat fried snoek at the Kommetjie Restaurant, quickly made up for that.

The wildflowers did not disappoint. By all accounts, it has been one of the best flowering seasons Namaqualand and the West Coast has seen in about a decade. What amazed me the most, was the variety of flowers that we saw: vygies and daisies in yellows, oranges, whites, purples, and reds. As a bonus, we crossed a bridge just as the never-ending Sishen-Saldanha train travelled through underneath.

My biggest surprise was a visit to the small settlement of Papendorp which overlooks the Olifants River flood plains and salt pans. We walked across the boardwalk through a marshy area until we got to the bird hide from where we could watch the elegant flamingos.

We then drove around the salt pans and walked the last bit along the banks of the Olifants River until we reached the beach and the forceful mouth where the river crashes into the ocean. Breathtakingly beautiful!

It was wonderful to spend some quality time with my parents as well and we left Strandfontein with a heavy heart that Monday morning.

NOTE TO SELF: We are coming back to the Perdeskoen (Horseshoe) Caravan Park in Strandfontein. The caravan sites are set on terraces in the shape of a horseshoe with private ablution facilities for each campsite. It looks amazing!