West Coast Cycle Tour Day 1 – All Sunshine & Smiles

Sep 25, 2020 Aylin

We had checked the weather and prepared ourselves for the hot spring day. Panniers packed, lists double-checked and with our “ready” attitude, we departed at 08H30 on a misty morning in Paarl. Three Kilometres in, one of the bikes had an abnormal squeak in the rear end and we had to provide it with some TLC before were on our way again. We hoped this would be the first and last breakdown for the day. Within 20 minutes we were out of the misty weather and welcomed into a clear, hot day! This was going to be a GOOD day!

Ambitious as we are, we decided at the last moment that we would take the scenic route around Paarl. What does an extra 13 kilometres matter on our first day? The new route went through Suid-Agter Paarl; past the vinelands, surrounding mountains, and distant views of Cape Town’s iconic Table Mountain. As we hit our first big uphill for the day, we were greeted by curious local kids. Fascinated by the sight of the three of us cycling to the sea with backpacks and luminous green bags hanging from the side of our bikes, it kept the group of kids interested for a good kilometre or so going uphill, chit-chatting and trying to explain to them why it was a good idea to reach the ocean by bicycle. We told them that if they were fast enough and fetched their bikes, they could join us. They weren’t fast enough.

Once we reached the R44, we took a moment to take a few pictures and appreciate the moment before REALLY tackling the adventure. At that exact moment, three cars nearly collided with each other. One of the cars swerved out of the way to prevent an accident, nearly hitting us in the process, and the other two vehicles coming to a stop, screeching tyres, as they all tried to avoid hitting anyone or anything.

So, one mini breakdown and one near-miss accident even though we’re only on the road for 30 minutes? A cycle tour was a good idea, right? The three of us re-assured each other that we’ll be ok and put our heads down for the next part of our journey. We were doing this!

We cycled as hard as possible to get off the busy R44 before turning onto the R45. The R45 heading to Malmesbury is a lovely road to cycle on, with wide yellow lanes and beautiful scenery. The rows of farmland can be seen for a great distance. The herding animals in the distance, crisp smell of the morning and flowers growing on the side of the road are savoured and appreciated so much more on a bicycle.

We had our lunch break 60km into the route at the Peaberry Cafe, a bright yellow building just as one enters Malmesbury. We enjoyed some ice-cold Coca-Cola, a Cream Soda float and some pizza (carbo-loading), before heading out again. Little did we know were going to need the carbo-loading; the next three gruesome kilometres heading out of Malmesbury was nothing but a loooooong stretched uphill.

Unexpectedly after putting all that effort into the uphill we realised too late that it leads to the N7 highway. No way did we cycle all the way up to go back down again! With the remaining pizza-induced energy we were going have to pace the next three kilometres illegally to reach the exit for the quiet R45 again.

With the tripod packed, we had to ensure we had photos with all three of us in. We stopped at the next big tree and enjoyed some shade. As we’re unpacking, we started getting unexpectedly attacked by annoying flying monsters. It didn’t matter how much you tried to whisk them away, there were just too many of them. While trying to do everything we can to prevent the heavy-laden bikes from wheeling and trying to make a break from the insect-infested area, we got tackled by gadflies (I had to Google this, so for our Afrikaans readers, it’s a steekvlieg). The tripod was set up and we had 10 seconds to make magic happen, as there was no way we were going to do any form of re-take in this situation.

Trying to take a photo while being attacked by insects

Needless to say, as we were packing up, we each had a moment of rage while trying to break away from the insects, and safely get back on the bikes. We laughed about each person’s way of reacting once we grouped together again. One of us stomped and whacked all over to free themselves, the other one screamed “leave-me-alone” at the top of their lungs for any living creature to hear, while the last was throwing bike and swear words at unsuspecting flying critters.

The road was getting long, the occasional hooting of friendly vehicles motivated us to continue. The 13-kilometre sign to Hopefield was in sight. I personally shed a few tears (still not sure if it was because of the 13 extra kilometres, because I was tired, or because I was proud we were about to finish). But it was a tough last few kilometres.

We finally turned left from R45 into Hopefield, greeted with a downhill all the way until our accommodation for the night; The Commercial Hotel and welcomed by our very kind host, Jacques. We enjoyed dinner at the restaurant G’s, and reflected on our first day’s accomplishment.