Cape Point is a rather large national park and it’s best to spend at least a few hours exploring it, if not a day or two. We recently spent a Monday morning walking up to the lighthouse, eating at the Two Oceans Restaurant and driving along the road to Oliphantsbos. My favourite part of the day had to have been the latter and I’ll tell you why.
To get to Oliphantsbos you need to take the first turn off to your right when you’ve entered the park. It’s quite a ways from the entrance but the road is well-marked so you won’t miss it. We had already been to the lighthouse and eaten at the restaurant so were driving back to the exit when we decided to take a little drive.
The drive is beautiful. It’s a single tar road which reaches into the horizon. The plain that surrounds you as you enter further and further into the bush is reminiscent of an untainted Africa. The fynbos and other natural vegetation grow unchallenged creating a completely natural effect. The small mountains in the distance give off the feeling that the scene goes on for miles past our line of vision. It’s a place where you can truly believe that the city doesn’t exist.
Although to our eyes the terrain looks harsh and almost dead we drive past Ostriches and Bontebok feasting on the nourishment that their respective species needs. These animals are wild; it’s clear in the way they cautiously move away from our car when we stop to take a few photos. We hope to spot a Zebra or two, but the recognisable black and white stripes elude us.
The road is long and we don’t pass any cars along the way. Once we reach our destination we park the car and then go for a walk along the beach. There are Ostriches here too, ambling along the sand, eating something hidden amongst the grains. I have never seen an Ostrich on the beach and they oddly seem to fit in perfectly.
The sand gives way to rocks which give way to sand again. This is not Clifton or Fish Hoek beach, it is a stretch of sand that is unmarred by the misuse of hundred of beach-goers. There are seabirds calling ahead and swooping down low to the water’s surface as they scoop up tiny morsels to eat.
This is a marvellous place to feel free and close to what is truly African. The elements are left to their own devices, the ocean laps against the sand, the sand gives way to rocks which become toughened grass which finally becomes indigenous vegetation. There are no buildings here to block the clear blue sky, not coffee shops or movie theatres. This place is a haven away from it all.
Jade Scully is a copywriter excited about writing copy and stories, blogging about the world and editing. She currently and regularly publishes her stories on a number of blogs. Jade loves animals and hopes to begin writing copy for the animal rescue charity TEARS as her contribution to the cause.
