go! YOUR JOURNEY STARTS HERE

The surfers who flock to Elands Bay are generally not the amateurs you’ll find floating in the swells at Muizenberg. These guys and girls are seriously talented. It’s hypnotic to sit on the beach and watch them doing things that Kelly Slater would be proud of. If your camera has a decent zoom, the surfers also make great subjects for practising your action photography.
Of course, if you’re a surfer yourself and you’re not afraid of the limb-numbing temperature of the water, you’ll be in your element.  According to surfing website www.wavescape.co.za, the break works best in light east to south-east winds after a long period of westerly swell.

Elands Bay Cave, on the mountain slope near Baboon Point, is one of the most fascinating archaeo­logical sites in South Africa. Excavations have revealed plant remains, animal bones, seashell pendants and fossilised pollen, all of which tell the story of how the West Coast changed from a cool, forested place, where vast herds of now-extinct giant buffalo roamed, to the hot, dry landscape we know today.
Some artwork has remained on the walls of the cave, including hundreds of handprints made by the hunter-gatherers who used the cave as a home base, picking shellfish from the rocks, eating tortoises and fishing in the vlei.
The site seems a bit neglected, but it’s still worth a visit. Follow the dirt road around the point. After about 500 m you’ll see a few derelict buildings. The cave is a short climb up a well-marked path.

Cost: Free.
Find out more: Living Landscape Project
www.cllp.uct.ac.za

The Elands Bay beach is flat and empty, perfect for a long walk. The breeze off the sea is crisp and salty, the sand is smooth under your feet and the seagulls are often your only companions. Evening is the best time for a stroll. Go north, away from Baboon Point. Turn around at sunset and walk home in that magical pink twilight that you get only on the West Coast.
If you’re looking for more of a hike, there’s a four-day, guided slack-packing route called the Crayfish Trail, which starts in Elands Bay and ends in the missionary village of Ebenhaeser, with a vehicle transfer between Lambert’s Bay and Doring Bay. The trail, managed by the local community, mostly follows the coastline and is a mixture of beach walking and cliff paths, with plenty of down time to explore the towns and villages along the way.

Cost: R3 400 per person sharing, including all meals, accommodation and non-alcoholic drinks.
Contact: 027 432 2875; www.south-north.co.za/cray_rt_trail.htm

Verlorenvlei is a channel valley bottom system, which means that even though three small rivers feed the wet­land, it’s main­ly sustained by ground­water seeping up. The water is very slow-moving, which makes it even more vulnerable to proposed mining activity in the area.
The vlei is a haven for birds, and more than 250 species have been recorded. Take your bird book, binoculars and a flask of coffee down to the brand

Elands Bay is a seafood lover’s delight. At Talm Langer, next to the police station, the catch of the day (R65) is tastier than anything you’ll get at Ocean Basket in the city. Or pay a visit to Tin Kitchen at Venster­klip, 4 km from Elands Bay on the Piketberg/Redeling­huys road. Eat in a restored 300-year-old barn or out­side in the courtyard. The crayfish and calamari combo (R85) is something to be savoured.
The popular open-air Muisbosskerm restaurant is 14 km up the coast on the road to Lambert’s Bay. A slow Sunday lunch (R175 per person; extra if you want crayfish too) is the perfect way to end the weekend. There are at least 15 different dishes to try, including smoked snoek, angel fish, seafood paella, water­blommetjie­bredie, roast lamb and the obligatory hunks of home-baked bread and hanepoot jam.

Contact:
• Talm Langer 082 450 1987
• Tin Kitchen 022 972 1340; www.vensterklip.co.za
• Muisbosskerm 027 432 1017

The iron-ore trains that come past here are some­thing to behold. Trains more than 3 km long regularly make the 861 km journey from the mines at Sishen in the Northern Cape to the harbour at Saldanha, where most of their cargo of iron ore is loaded onto ships and exported. Up to 12 trains a day rumble past Elands Bay and through the tunnel at Baboon Point.
In 1989, the Sishen-Saldanha line set a record for the longest and heaviest train ever assembled. It was 7,3 km long, weighed 69 393 tons and took 16 locomotives to haul. BHP Billiton subsequently broke the record in 2001 with a 7,35 km-long iron ore train in Western Australia. Spoilsports!

The best view of Elands Bay is from the top of the flat mountain behind town that tapers off into Baboon Point (in profile it looks like a baboon’s face). You don’t need to break a sweat – there’s a road that goes all the way to the cellphone tower at the top.
Drive south around the point and follow the dirt road next to the railway line. After 5 km, look out for a farm gate on your left. Follow this road for 5 km, through two more gates. You’re on private land, so drive considerately and close the gates behind you. The view from the top is amazing: On a clear day you can see all the way to the Cederberg.

Where to stay
Vensterklip. Stay in one of four self-catering cottages or pitch your tent in the luxury campsite, with a view over Verlorenvlei. Each stand is screened off and it has its own bathroom and outdoor kitchen. Vensterklip also hosts a farmer’s market on the first Saturday of every month.
Cost: Camping costs R100 per adult and R50 per child under  12. Self-catering starts at R300 per person.
Contact: 022 972 1340; www.vensterklip.co.za

Straw Revolution. If you have eco-friendly friends, stay in this funky self-catering house with walls made from straw bales. The house sleeps six in three double bedrooms, all leading off a central courtyard.
Cost: From R1 000 to R1 500 a day, depending on the season (details on the website).
Contact: 021 789 0278; stay@strawrevolution.co.za;
www.strawrevolution.co.za

Elands Bay Hotel. The hotel dates from the late 1970s, with sparse furniture and cavernous interior spaces for the hordes that never seem to arrive. But the sea-facing rooms are clean and comfortable, with the best view
in town.
Cost: From R420 for two out of season to R560 in high season, breakfast included.
Contact: 022 972 1640 
 
(Note: All prices accurate in February 2010)