Day 6. Kommetjie
We were greeted with early morning rain and strong winds. After breakfast we drove to the V&A wharf but upon entering the Robben Island complex we heard over the speakers that all trips have been canceled due to strong winds and bad weather.
I really couldn't understand what all the commotion was about -
I've sailed in Force 9 conditions but Cape Town was experiencing
barely 15knot winds. True it was raining, but we couldn't
understand why a small drizzle would cancel the excursion.
We were both disappointed about not being able to go to the
island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. We spent the next
hour looking around the small exhibit in the Robben Island complex
(where the ferry departs from), watched a short movie and read some
more posters plastered around the building. All in all it was
a poor substitute for Robben Island. With our down turned
smiles we tried to figure out what to do next.
After a cup of coffee we decided to return our car to the
airport, our lease expired today and we would try to pick up a 4x4
so that we can tackle the Namibian deserts. On the way back
through Cape Town we were told about a 4x4 hire company operating
at the airport. We drove to the airport to negotiate with the
company. After 20 minutes we managed to secure a 4x4 which we
can drive one-way across the border from South Africa to
Namibia. The 4x4 is fitted with a rooftop tent, stove,
fridge, sleeping bags, cutlery, gas bottle, 160L petrol tank, 55L
water tank and pretty much everything else you need to survive in
the wilderness.
So what now? We have our car, we've wasted half the day
with the whole cancellation of Robben Island and we still felt as
though there was more to see around Cape Town. Glancing at
the map we both came to the conclusion that we should drive south
towards the Cape of Good Hope, stay there overnight and then start
our drive north towards Namibia.
We drove towards the small town called Kommetjie, just north of
Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. By the time we got there it
was dusk but we managed to find a little Caravan Park where we
would try out our new roof mounted tent. It was so windy in
fact that we considered booking into a hotel for the night, but in
the end the caravan park had quite a lot of large trees which
shielded us from the fierce wind. After reserving our camping
spot we drove to the nearest shopping centre to load up the fridge
for the next few days of driving.
By the time we finished the shopping night was upon us and there
was no need to rush any longer. It can't get darker than
dark. Famished, we asked our trusty GPS to show us any
restaurants in the area. After a couple of dead ends, we
found one which proved to be really quite nice. We had a delicious
and romantic candlelit dinner. It was good to get some food
in the belly and warm up next to the fireplace; we both knew that
our first night in the tent would be a cold one.
With our bellies full of food we attempted to put up the tent in
the dark, it was really quite simple. Unbolt the side
catches, put together the ladder and push open the
contraption. Load in the sleeping bags and pillows and that's
it. As windy as it was, we slept soundly that night.