Gqeberha

November 29, 2025

A big storm had been predicted for yesterday with frequent lightning possible from early afternoon. The clouds had been gathering by the time we had arrived but the storm only broke late in the afternoon. The rain chucked down withh lots of thunder and lightening. Thank goodness we weren't camping.

The storm did bring a change in the wind direction and today we had a fresh westerly wind to help us on our way. Farmers in the area weren't as lucky with isolated heavy hail destroying crops, some farmers losing their entire season's harvest.

Once again the N2 was far busier than we had anticipated (from where does all this traffic come ???) exacerbated by the shoulder narrowing down to a meter wide at times due to the passing lanes and it was unpleasant cycling until we had crossed the Gamtoos River and climbed up to Thornhill. Here the shoulder returned to a full three meters and we had a stress free ride until we reached The Windfarm.

This is a large roadside services area that is a popular destination for cyclists from Gqeberha and for good reason with easy access, bike racks and even a mini cycle track with free bicycles. The farmer on the opposite side of the N2 has built styles to enable cyclists to cross his fields and access the facility without having to ride on the N2. We often ride out here using various backroads that range from good sealed surfaces to some rather rough tracks. So it was impossible not to stop here for a second breakfast before riding the last twenty five kilometers home on a familiar route.

The cyclist's breakfast special is a large bacon and fried egg bun served with a cup of coffee. Since Leigh doesn't drink coffee I get a double serving while she has to settle for a Coke.

There are hundreds of wind turbines in the Jeffery's Bay area but The Windfarm is to the west of the main area where they are located.

The last twenty five kilometers passed quickly and we arrived home to find a garden with knee high weeds but full of vegetables waiting to be harvested. Our next door neighbour who keeps an eye on our house while we are away has watered the garden regularly and has been harvesting whatever was ready to make sure nothing goes to waste.

Now it's time for us to put our feet up for a few days and then start thinking about where to next.

Today's ride: 72 km (45 miles)
Total: 1,941 km (1,205 miles)

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Mike AylingAnother interesting journal J-M
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1 month ago

Suzanne GibsonThanks, I enjoyed following along.
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1 month ago

Rich FrasierWelcome home! I really enjoyed seeing parts of SA that I’ll probably never be able to visit. Thanks, as always, for your photos and journal.
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1 month ago

Kathleen JonesAnother great tour. Thanks, you two.
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1 month ago

Scott AndersonLooking forward to seeing where you'll go next. I especially enjoyed this one, because my first wife and I nearly took a placement in the Peace Corps in Botswana half a century ago. Thanks for giving us a look.
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1 month ago