Cape Town - Autumn is a favoured season for me, an entirely different kettle of fish to the heat and gales of summer. Frequently there are weeks of stable weather, the wind a mere zephyr, the days warm but not overpoweringly so and the evenings just chill enough to require a jersey but not unpleasant.
The leaves of the deciduous trees and the grape vines change colour to provide a spectacular backdrop of golden hues, the tourist clamour abates and dawn occurs at a much more civilised hour. I do love to be out and about on a lovely still autumn day and so it was that I awoke at five and enjoyed a leisurely cup of coffee before heading out to Cape Point for a stroll. It was still quite dark as I drove through empty streets, aiming to reach the reserve just as the gates opened, the “off-season” opening time of seven o’clock an hour later than in summer. As the sun pushed over the horizon to the north, the low-angled light set Elsies Peak and the hills of Simon’s Town on fire, beautifully soft colours turning the rocks and fynbos aglow. There was barely a breath of wind and only a slight swell disturbed the waters of False Bay, the waves rumbling quietly against the rocks and sending small sprays of white foam up into the air to catch the early morning sunshine.
One of the advantages of a dawn start is that one has a better chance of seeing game within the reserve, and sure enough before I had pulled into the parking at Gifkommetjie I had already spotted a couple of reclusive bontebok wandering quite close to the road. The plan was to hike a circular route, along the coast to Platboom and then inland along the tar roads back to the starting point. It is perhaps a pity, though, that the reserve boasts relatively few circular walks; I do dislike hikes which only take one “out and back” it always seems something of a waste to retrace one’s steps unnecessarily.
As I parked the car there was one other vehicle only in place, two anglers leaning over the boot, rigging up fishing gear before heading out to catch the tides in search of galjoen. It seems anglers, like hikers, are people who prefer an early start.
I headed south, down an intricate walkway of wooden steps before hitting the beach proper and a path of flagstones that cut through the restios just inland of the high tide mark. From there onto the sand and rocks, and surrounded by the most spectacular seascapes. Along the trail were fresh spoor and droppings from what I suspect were more bontebok, but the animals remained elusive, there were also scats of ground shell which more than likely came from otters; there are undoubtedly some Cape clawless otters in the reserve, although I have never been fortunate enough to see one.
The coast hosts a remarkable number of animals and birds and on the rocks, exposed by the low spring tides, were gulls, ibis, plovers, cormorants and herons, even a rather incongruous pair of Egyptian geese and equally out of place just inland a small group of ostrich.
Further along as the sun began to break through the early morning low cloud and the day warmed slightly, there were surfers enjoying one of the many “secret spots” tucked away in the reserve. I suppose like anglers and hikers, surfers tend to be a rather early morning crew as well.
It has taken me a long while to get to appreciate Cape Point, one tends to only think of the “Waters Meet” end of the peninsula, with the summer congestion of tour buses, the funicular railway, the café and lighthouse, but in the off-season and away from the madding crowd, the place offers unrivalled solitude and glorious views.
On reaching Platboom, I turned inland and was from there on relegated to walking on tar roads, not my favoured pastime but it did mean that I got a little more exercise as the route took me back over the middle of the reserve and necessitated a long if not overly taxing gain in elevation.
Along the way I passed familiar markers of other great hikes: the information centre, which is the starting point for walks to Venus Pools and Kanonkop to the north or the spectacular cliffs of Rooikrans to the south. I passed the Diaz Cross and its sister monument, the Da Gama Cross, lower down the hill, which provide an indication to seafarers of the location of the dangerous Wittle Rock out in the Bay, but really the walk along the road was uninspiring. Traffic was picking up as the less somnambulant rose and decided to make the most of a beautiful day. It seems that few take note of the speed limit and hiking on the tar was potentially dangerous as well as monotonous, but by now I had, I thought, already enjoyed the best of the day.
Cape Point offers a number of pleasant and not overly strenuous walks; there are some circular routes, particularly around Sirkelsvlei, Olifantsbos and to the north of Gifkommetjie, and the information centre has adequate maps of various routes that you can enjoy. With the weather still pleasant and crowds diminished, now is a great time to head out and enjoy “the fairest cape in all the world” up close and personal. - Sunday Argus