This is it—one last big leap across the South Atlantic from Cape Town to the Caribbean and our circumnavigation will be complete. We are prepping to leave this coming week and will sail it in three stages: Cape Town to St. Helena (1,700 miles); St. Helena to Fernando de Noronha, Brazil (1,750 miles); Brazil to Grenada (2,000 miles). Corroboree is in good shape, and Eric and I are getting older and creakier by the day, so we need to get a move on. But before departing, we heeded the advice of virtually everyone we’ve met: Don’t leave South Africa without visiting the wine country! Well, okay, if you insist.
Thus, we rented a car and headed first down the long, bony peninsula that juts south from Cape Town to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. We sailed past this peninsula in the dark on New Year’s Eve, but even had it been daylight, we would have missed much of the spectacular scenery we now stopped and viewed on stable ground instead of from a wind-tossed, pitching boat. On the way, we stopped to say hello to the colony of African penguins at Boulders Beach. Once called “jackass penguins” for their loud braying at night, these endangered animals can live up to 27 years in the wild and mate for life.
Then on down the peninsula to Cape Point, site of the old lighthouse, and the Cape of Good Hope, often misidentified as the southernmost point of the African continent—that honor actually belongs to Cape Agulhas, 37 miles to the east. We could not have picked better weather. The sea glimmered, the sky radiated blue, the wind kept to a friendly breeze, and the bright sun brought out unexpected reds and golds in the fynbos, a type of vegetation found only on the southern tip of the African continent. The smallest of the world’s six floral kingdoms, it holds over 9,000 species of plants.
From Cape Point, Eric indulged me by driving the car to the Cape of Good Hope while I walked the 1.8-mile trail that connects the two. As long as you mind your step along the path/boardwalk/cliff edge, it isn’t difficult, and the experience was heart-soaring. This is no exaggeration. It’s how I feel when I am out in nature, a physical and mental rapture that lifts me out of myself and clears my head like nothing else can do. I am a pagan and this is my form of worship, to breathe in the beauty and recenter myself in the universe. Descending the peak at the Cape of Good Hope to the parking lot where Eric waited was more strenuous, due to gaps between the log steps and scrabbly rocks along the route. My hips ached all the next day–ouch!
From the cape, we drove back north to Stellenbosch, the heart of South Africa’s wine country, and after checking into our B&B, we headed to our first winery, Boschendal, where a lively Friday Night Market was underway. We picked up a bottle of Shiraz, veggie dinners from one of the vendors, and listened to the band as the stars came out. The next morning we took in the town of Stellenbosch. Founded by the Dutch in 1679, it blends Cape Dutch architecture with trendy shops, eateries and outdoor art. The Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden makes a lovely rest stop.
Then back to the wine, which there are numerous ways to enjoy. You can do tastings, or light lunches with a glass or bottle of your choice, or 6-course dinners with wine pairings for every course. If you plan to drink a lot, you can ride a hop-on/hop-off wine tram from one vineyard to the next. Since tastings would be lost on uncultured sailors like us, Eric and I opted for a leisurely lunch at Tokara, a yummy dinner at Le Pommier restaurant, and lunch the next day at Babylonstoren. All the wines and food were delicious—seasonal farm-to-table menus featuring the freshest produce—and so inexpensive we’ll be spoiled forevermore. The highest priced bottle we bought was about US$10.00. We drank one glass apiece with our meals and brought the remaining half bottles back to Corroboree, prolonging the pleasure.
But wine isn’t the only attraction in Stellenbosch. The surrounds are simply stunning. At Tokara the pathways take you along picture-perfect vineyards running up to a mountain backdrop. At Babylonstoren, we spent over an hour wandering the magnificent 8-acre garden, inspired by classical French garden designs. In addition to grapes, the region’s wineries also cultivate olives, vegetables and fruits, host art exhibits and musical events, and sell a variety of gifts and African craftwork. It has taken centuries to develop the South African wine industry to its present acclaim, and there are many small, upcoming wineries nestled between the larger ones we visited. We’ll look for African wines wherever we travel from now on.
Now we’re back on Corroboree, watching the weather, provisioning, checking off the last items on our to-do list. Since entering South Africa at Richards Bay last November, we’ve rejoiced at its wonders, despaired at its troubles, and on leaving, hope for the best. Our thanks to the many South Africans who have welcomed and enlightened us and to the cruising community for their camaraderie and advice. We’ll be out of touch for a while, but you can track Corroboree across the Atlantic at
PredictWind: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/SV_CORROBOREE/
Garmin: https://share.garmin.com/CORROBOREE
Below are some final scenes from the Cape Town waterfront, our home for the past two months. See you on the other side!
