The Garden Route is a scenic coastal drive in South Africa that stretches for approximately 175 miles along the southern coast between Mossel Bay and Storms River. The route is named for its lush vegetation, indigenous forests, and picturesque towns and villages along the way. It is known for its natural beauty, wildlife, and outdoor activities such as hiking, birdwatching, and more. It is a great road trip to see the countryside of Africa without having to leave the Western Cape. Alex and I booked our trip through Remote Year, who worked with Reveler Tours to arrange an action-packed adventure.

DAY 1

On Thursday, we began our departed a rainy Cape Town to Peregrine's farm stall for a quick breakfast stop. Established in the sixties, this farm stall has been serving generations of travelers seeking honest homemade fare and warm country hospitality. I grabbed a pastry and some other road trip snacks, as we had another few hours until we reached one of the Cape’s best safari experiences, The Botlierskop Game Reserve. Though Alex and I had a Kruger safari planned for the following weekend (which ended up being canceled due to inclement weather), I was jittery with excitement to finally experience a safari in Africa. We rode in an open-air Safari Truck with our expert guide who helped us sight lion, zebra, elephant, white rhino, many antelope-type animals, giraffes, and a family of cheetahs. I also had the chance to nerd out with our guide about the various bird species we sighted, some of whom spend their entire lives living on other animals (i.e. a giraffe and a rhino). It was incredible!

We wrapped up the day by checking in to our accommodation in the quaint seaside town of Wilderness. Our day was still quite chilly and rainy, but we enjoyed the epic view from the balcony of our accommodations. Our hosts prepared a traditional South African Braai (BBQ) coupled with tasty side dishes. The Braai is a celebration of local cuisine cooked on an open fire with a focus on ethically sourced meats from the region. They even sourced a locally-made vegetarian bean burger for me!

DAY 2

We had two choices to begin our day with an adventure: paragliding or bungee jumping... or both! The weather looked iffy for paragliding, and after breakfast, we got the news that paragliding would not be happening. I knew going into the weekend that I had absolutely no interest in bungee jumping, but this was the experience that most of the group wanted to do. I was perfectly fine doing the "skywalk", which I'll get too later.

The bungee jumping adventure took place at Bloukrans Bridge. The 216-meter jump is the highest bridge bungee in the world and takes place from the top of the bridge's arch. To get out to the jump point, jumpers set out on a zipline from the bank to the arch. From there, everyone did their jump accompanied by the best South African house music to get everyone amped up! The final part of the experience is a short but exhilarating return on the skywalk situated on the underside of the bridge.

Since I did not want to jump, I went to the jump zone via the skywalk and got to "hang out" in the Hang Out Zone. I was able to watch all the bungee action (including Alex's jump). I got into a full-body harness, connected to safety lines, and stood on the edge of the bridge and got to see the awe-inspiring view of the Bloukrans River Gorge below. I was also reassured that I did not want to jump.

After an exhilarating morning - even for me - we went to pick up lunch at a local grocery store before heading to our next experience. We spent the afternoon visiting the awesome Half-Collared Kingfisher Waterfall Trail. The experience starts off with an easy canoe trip up the Touws River. As the river starts to narrow, we left our canoes on the river bank and join the hiking boardwalk trail through the lush indigenous forest. We reached the waterfall which was gushing due to the constant rain we had in the afternoon. It was so relaxing and I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to calm down on the river and in the forest.

That evening, we made our way into the town of Wilderness for a nice dinner, where we enjoyed live DJ music and the company of our group before an early night's sleep.

DAY 3

We began our day heading inland over the Outeniqua Mountains. The landscape underwent a dramatic transition into a desert as we headed up the pass toward the Karoo region. We visited the area's oldest attraction, The Cango Caves, which is one of the 7 wonders of Southern Africa and has frequently been described as one of the great Natural Wonders of The World. We enjoyed an expert-led tour into the extraordinary chambers of the dripstone caves. We got to see some of the most fascinating stalactites and stalactite formations, which are known to be over 20 million years old.

We stopped for lunch at another game reserve, where we got to see hippos during our lunch!

We went to our hotel for an early check-in, and I walked around the property to enjoy the views, and even identified a few new birds! Our setting for an early dinner took place at a restored 150-year-old Cape Dutch Barn that houses a unique wagyu specialty restaurant. I was able to pre-order some risotto, which was surprisingly yummy. The farm also boasts its very own boutique wines derived from the vineyards we enjoyed during sunset. As if it wasn't already a vibe, load-shedding turned off the electricity after dinner while we were enjoying the last of our wine. The owners brought out oil lamps and we enjoyed the stars from our table before heading back to our hotel. There, we enjoyed yet another bottle of wine and had some big talks under the stars.

DAY 4

Our final day began with a warm and hearty breakfast before we made the 3-hour journey to Barrydale. On the way, we stopped at an ATV experience, where we had the chance to do an ATV track. It was really difficult, and not what I expected, but I am glad I tried it out. We also made a stop at an infamous roadside attraction, Ronnie's Sex Shop, which got its name in a pretty funny way. Ronnie was fixing up to be a farm stand. During construction, Ronnie’s friends played a prank on him by painting the word "sex" on his sign. Instead of a farm stand, he left the sign as it was and opened this pub. Once in Barrydale, we stopped for Diesel and Creme provided the perfect diner experience. I got a burger and a milkshake (which was naturally the size of my head). Full and exhausted, we made our way back to Cape Town.