The Karoo tasting menu at Stirlings at The Ibis in Nieu Bethesda was one of the very best food experiences we have ever had the privilege of enjoying. We stumbled upon Stirlings quite by accident when looking for a place to have coffee in the quiet streets of Nieu Bethesda and so had zero expectations of what we were in for.
According to Stirlings Chef Barbara Weits, her food is inspired by the Karoo and the bountiful ingredients this arid region offers. She says, “The six courses take you on a Karoo foraging journey, letting you experience the exciting and unique flavours of the region. We don’t want you to just enjoy a meal but rather feel like you are part of an adventure through time, tradition and the discovery of new flavours and taste combinations.”
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I found myself on top of a mountain in the heart of the Karoo. I stood hugging a trig beacon with the wind howling though my hair and turned slowly all the way around, drinking in a full 360 degrees of complete wildness as far as I could see – sweeping plains edged by mountains in every direction, illuminated in fiery orange hues as the winter sun slowly bade its daily goodbye. I stood in complete silence pierced only by the sound of the wind and an occasional bleat of a sheep and marvelled at the sheer wonder of the planet we call home.
This little mountain near Nieu Bethesda in the Karoo Heartland is as close to heaven as I have ever been. It is located on Ganora Guest Farm, which was our destination for a weekend of art and exploration in the charming hamlet made famous by the Owl House.
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I don’t like unfinished stories. Tales that leave me hanging in anticipation, desperate to know what happens next. The kind of ending that happens in each episode of a great TV series – the hook that keeps me binge-watching to satisfy my craving for completion.
When we visited Trennerys hotel on the Wild Coast of South Africa a few years back, I created my own unfinished ending. We embarked on a day hike to the Jacaranda shipwreck and got so side-tracked by all that we experienced along the way, that we turned back too early, satisfied by a full day of fun, but leaving before the end goal of the day was completed and ticked off.
So when deciding where to venture for a winter beach-hiking weekend, the Jacaranda shipwreck raised its rusty hand and lured us back to Trennerys with its promise of satiating completion.
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The “Great Outdoors” has grown even greater in appeal thanks to the Coronavirus pandemic. Where many families used to opt for shopping malls on their days off, the combination of being locked for months together within four way-too-small walls combined with an apocalyptic fear of bringing Covid-19 into our homes has seen a tidal wave of people head into nature for relief.
And we are so very lucky that nature surrounds us in bucket-loads in Nelson Mandela Bay. Every way you turn there is a park or forest or beach to explore. But they’re not all open and they’re not all safe, so we have put together this list of our four favourite day-hiking destinations to inspire you to get out there with your families – to breathe in some fresh air, to get some healthy exercise and to fill your blood with happy endorphins to counterbalance the doom and gloom that surrounds all of us in these strange and uncertain times.
What makes a hike Covid-friendly?
Please remember – always hike in groups and if you are a small group, its best to visit when there are others around, like on weekends.
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We South Africans live with an enormous amount of stress and anxiety, which seems to pile on heavier as time passes. Economic difficulty, drought, load shedding, crime and political uncertainty take their toll on our spirits and 2019 was positively brutal. That is why we love travelling – it gives us the chance to forget about our everyday worries, to open our hearts and minds and to rekindle the childlike spirit of adventure hiding beneath the weight of everyday responsibility within us.
A few years back we paid a brief visit to the Kologha State Forest in Stutterheim and were completely blown away by its enchanting beauty. We vowed at the time to return and explore it more thoroughly and decided that this mossy, lush paradise tucked away deep in the heart of the Eastern Cape was the perfect place for our family to start the new decade, to gain some perspective and realign our souls with the magic secreted in the untouched nooks of our beautiful country.
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