Each year, when Andrew, the main radio controller for Ski-boat Mobile, takes a break from his job as a carer in the UK, he stays with us to handle radio control for the Marlin Tournament in Struisbaai. His vehicle, sponsored by Robertson Toyota, required its annual service, so Andrew suggested we spend the day in Robertson while the car was in the shop, and we had the use of a courtesy car.

The weather in our area has been mostly sunny and hot, but on this particular day, it started off overcast with some wind and occasional showers. Despite this, the four of us—The Earl, Nanna, Ands, and I—set off at 06h00 and enjoyed some bird watching along the way. Well, to be more accurate, The Earl and I enjoyed the bird watching, while Ands and Nanna feigned excitement at each of our exclamations of spotting a jackal buzzard, blue crane, black-winged kite, common buzzard, and more.

Nanna, being new to the Cape, was delighted by the unfamiliar scenery and found the sight of the mountains, which are a rarity in Gauteng, incredibly impressive.

After dropping off the bakkie at Robertson Toyota and picking up the Toyota Vitz, we headed to Four Cousins Restaurant for breakfast. We discovered that it was a delightful eatery, and we were intrigued to learn that the four Retief cousins, aside from being winemakers, also brew beer and make whiskey.

We recently sold our Gecko caravan, and around this time, we would typically join a Gecko rally at Ebb ‘n Flow. What a surprise to run into Colin and Diane, who were on their way there today. Four Cousins is their favourite stop whenever they pass through this area. We enjoyed a lovely chat with them before bidding them farewell and felt somewhat bereft that we would not join them this year.

The plan was to meet up with friends of Ands for lunch later in the day. In the meantime we took the opportunity to show Nanna a bit of the area so we headed to Montague, a picturesque little town which is part of Route 62.

Cogman’s Kloof, located between Ashton and Montague along the R62, traverses the Langeberg mountains. Named after a Khoi chiefdom, this pass was engineered by the renowned road engineer Thomas Bain from 1873 to 1877. Unfortunately, twelve lives were lost due to floods during the construction. The pass traces the path of the Kingna River

Andrew’s friends suggested we meet at a new restaurant, Rock ‘n Roll on the River Gold farm. For a place in the middle of nowhere this was quite an experience. The restaurant is a diner with a difference. It has a rock ‘n roll theme but the food is quite exquisite.

After a wonderful couple of hours of good food and conversation, we headed to Springfield to buy our favourite wines and to once again meet up with our new lunch date friends. We sat under the trees next to the beautiful dam and enjoyed the ambiance of a fantastic wine farm as we enjoyed some wine, olives, and crackers.

We are fortunate to live in such a beautiful part of South Africa, and exploring hidden gems within easy reach of our home is always a delight. We plan to make similar excursions more frequently.