Cape Town to Hermanus

Cape Town to Hermanus

First stop was a short walk to collect the car rental and then a long wait for the teenager to get ready and we set off in the direction of Hermanus, making numerous stops along the way for photographs, snacks and toilet stops. Hoping to see Penguins and Whales.

 Bettys Bay didn't disappoint us with the penguins on the rocks, there is a small R10 charge per person and wooden walkways to allow you to view the birds in their natural habitat. We got drenched in the rain and sleet. It was too windy for umbrellas.

 Ok Guys, I'll count, you hide.

OK don't panic, we did, this isn't an oil spill or contamination, it's river water. The staining occurs naturally due to humid acids and tannins found in the fynbos soils.

There was way too much to see at Hermanus to stop and focus cameras and stare through a lens out to see, there were Whales, sky hopping and breaching, bodies high out the water. one over here, another over there, tails waving, it was a  very busy and the bay was full. I did manage to take a couple of pics, but you need a good eye with the first one to spot the tail.

I'm thankful that the teenager is into photography, he spent the 1st 36 hours in the hotel. As he keeps reminding me, he had a 12 hour flight to reach South Africa then another 28 hours by train to get to Cape Town and he is supposed to be on his UK summer holidays.

 Rock Dassie

We finished off our last night in Cape Town with burgers on the waterfront.

Today we are driving to Table Mountain. The cable car is closed for annual maintenance, but there are still some fab views of the City to be seen, next will be over Chapman's Peak, before heading to the airport for a 2 hour flight home at 7pm.

We will beck in Pretoria till Sunday am, when we head north in the car for an 8 hour drive to St Lucia, on the coast, just below Mozambique, for a weeks stay. This trip hubby and Bob the dog will be joining us.

Whale Watching in Hermanus

We chose to stay in Hermanus to Whale Watch, naively we assumed it would be like ‘oh look there’s a whale’ but sadly not.

Although Whales can be seen here September till December it does require a little more effort than a room with a sea view.

So without any Whale pictures to post I thought I’d share some of the things I found out about The Southern Right Whale and Hermanus.

 

• Hermanus is generally regarded as the best land based whale watching centre in the world. Acknowledged by the World Wildlife Fund for nature WWF.
• Hermanus has the worlds only whale crier, Eric Davalala who patrols the streets blowing his kelp horn alerting tourists to the position of the whales.

·         Calves are born tail first

·         Calves measure 5-6 meters at birth

·         The mother takes the calf to the surface for their first breath

·         Within 30 minutes of birth a calf has learnt to swim

·         Gestation period is 12 months

·         A fully grown male is around 15.2 meters long and a female 16.5 metres

·         The life span of a Southern right whale is between 90-100 years