Franshhoek- Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve

A walk was required today after all the indulgence of yesterday.

After fending off Nandy’s pitiful cries to share our breakfast , (Nandy is the resident Jack Russell who is as wide as she is long; we have strict instructions not to feed her) we got ourselves organised for a walk in the local nature reserve.

The reserve is 10 minutes drive out of town, just off the Franshhoek Pass. We’ve been quite surprised by just how hilly it is here. I imagined Franshhoek would be flat and full of vines but it is surrounded by mountains, which obviously must be explored.

The visitors’s centre is a work in progress but the ranger there was very helpful. We had already decided on a walk on the Utikyk trail which takes you to views over a dam and the surrounding mountains. From there (depending on how we felt) we would join the manganese trail, see the views and return to the visitor’s centre.

Before we left we read the information boards about various animals that live in the park and yet again our attention was drawn to the pesky baboons. The males are the most horrible creatures. Not only do they want to eat all of your food, but male interlopers to the baboon pack kill the baby baboons so they can mate with the females earlier. So much for the warm and fuzzy natural world.

Baboons aside, the walk to Utikyk viewpoint was lovely – so many flowers in bloom. The viewpoint itself is jaw-dropping.

Next we made our way to Dutoitskop, the viewpoint over Franshhoek. After that was a rather tedious traverse along the hillside until we were back at the centre. In total, around 6.5 miles and 700metres of ascent in 4 and a bit hours.

Cue a couple of hours at the pool when we got back, including a decent snooze for yours truly.

This evening we ate at Le Petite Manoir which had mixed reviews on Tripadvisor but turned out to be a gem. Half restaurant, half deli, the food was eclectic but delicious. It had a good atmosphere and all I could hear were compliments about the food.

Tomorrow we move on to Hermanus, a seaside town where we are hoping to encounter whales , fingers crossed.