Day Safari, Cape Town, South Africa
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Tourism in Cape Town reaches its peak during the summer months and especially during the months February to April.
From then on in, more or less after the Easter weekend tourism starts to drop off and all tour guides take a deep breath and have time to relax for a week or two.
Over the season there have been periods when they have worked for two to three weeks without a break while they take visitors to our country on tours to destinations in and around Cape Town.
These are dedicated people who love their jobs and are even more passionate about their country.
The Karoo in summer
Cape Town as a tourist destination compares with the best in the world and tour guides when out and about with their clients are amazed at some of the comments they get as to the beauty and what the Cape has to offer.
Of course each tour guide you encounter has his or her own story to tell and over a period of days you can get a good picture of the Cape through the eyes of the tour guides as you experience the different tours on offer.
One of the tours that is very popular is the Safari which takes visitors out of Cape Town to game reserves either in or on the edge of the little Karoo.
A Safari means a very early morning pickup, normally around 6.00 am and then a two and a half hour drive through some spectacular countryside which includes the winelands, Bainskloof and the Breede River valley.
Of interest in the first hour is the changing scenery along the route.
Firstly its the city and the harbour, then the northern residential areas of Cape Town before driving through the winelands of the Paarl region.
The second hour takes us through the deciduous fruit areas of the Cape and to the historical town of Wellington before the climb up the steep winding mountain pass known as Bain's Kloof begins.
It is here we see the brilliance of Thomas Bain who way back in 1849 managed to plan and build a spectacular mountain pass without modern day equipment.
At the time all he had at his disposal were 200 convicts and twenty five tons of explosives which he used to split rocks and boulders in the path of the road.
These very same rocks were dressed and packed on top of one another by the prisoners to form the retaining walls that hold up the road way to this day.
Now more than a 150 years later the road designed to be used by ox wagons and horses carries modern day traffic which sometimes includes larger trucks which illegally enter the pass and come to grief under the low overhanging rocks along the roadway.
The British who were instrumental in the building of the pass also made some decisions along the way which still effect us today.
When they arrived in the Cape in 1806 they inherited a sand and wood problem from the Dutch.
They solved both problems with one solution, which was, to introduce quick growing trees which came from Australia to the Cape.
Unfortunately these trees have spread like wildfire and have taken root on the mountains where they have destroyed the local indigenous fynbos.
After driving through the spectacular pass with its winding road and sheer drops to the Witte river far below we enter the Breede river valley.
Winelands of the Breede River valley
Here the scenery changes again as we enter the wine growing region along the banks of the Breede River and eastern slopes of the Hottentots Holland mountain ranges.
In summer with the vines in full leaf the valley is a wonderland of green which changes colour to yellow and red as autumn approaches.
The tour then follows the course of the Breede River northwards until we arrive in Ceres the centre of one of the deciduous fruit growing areas of the Western Cape.
The fertile valley in which the village lies is known as Warm Bokkeveld and is surrounded by mountains from which a number of small streams flow.
These streams combine at the edge of the Ceres valley to form the Breede river which flows through the countryside to the sea near Witsands on the southern coastline of the Western Cape.
From Ceres we drive up into the folded mountains that form the western boundary of the little Karoo through an ever changing countryside where the lush vegetation of the Breede river valley changes to the small and sparse bush that the Karoo is known for.
In the summer months this tour is undertaken by hundreds of people who experience the changing of the tar roads encountered in Cape Town to the very dusty gravel roads of the Karoo in an airconditioned vehicle.
On arrival in the nature reserve things change quickly.
The relative comfort of a tour coach is exchanged for a 16 seater four wheel drive vehicle for an excursion out into the veld to spot game
Here you learn to contend with flies, eat dust, experience the extreme heat of summer and in between spot the animals you have come all this way to see.
Changing seasons however add to the adventure of this safari.
The Karoo in winter
During the winter months when it rains the dusty gravel roads become muddy tracks while the veld is turned into a lake.
River beds that are normally dry suddenly become raging torrents blocking access to those with normal vehicles.
Under these conditions a safari takes on a whole new meaning.
Coaches driving along the muddy tracks slip and slide their way through the mud adding to the experience.
Here and there rivers cross the road and vehicles have to do river crossings to arrive at their destination.
In the Karoo which often experiences drought a wet winter bring lots of water and also some extreme cold.
Temperatures which can soar into the 40 's centigrade in the summer plummet to freezing point during the winter nights and rise to about 15 degrees during the day.
These extremes add so many more challenges for the visitor in winter than those visiting in summer.
Wrapped up in jackets and blankets you venture out into the veld to see the wildlife.
The vehicle encounters mud and slips and slides its way along tracks that look like rivers, covering everything including passengers with dirt and mud.
Don't worry its all part of the fun because once you find that elusive rhino all you worry about is that photo you are going to show your loved ones at home.
Trust me, as a guide taking people on the safari tours I have seen both sides of the coin.
A summer safari is great especially when you know that there is a lovely swimming pool waiting for you when you get back from your game drive.
Winter is even better because there is a lovely log fire waiting for you on your return from the veld.
Don't miss out.
See you all here soon.
Geoff Fairman.
Interested in tours in and around Cape Town and the Garden Route?
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