Thursday, August 15, 2013

Hermanus (Hermanuspietersfontein) Whale Spoting and Beaches

Hermanus (originally called Hermanuspietersfontein, but shortened as the name was too long for the postal service), is a town with 80,400 inhabitants (2011 census) on the southern coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is famous for southern right whale watching during the southern winter and spring and is a popular retirement town. 

The whales can be seen from the cliffs in the town centre as early as June and usually depart in early December. They were once hunted in the nearby town of Betty's Bay, but are now protected to ensure the survival of the species. The Old Harbour Museum contains several exhibitions that explain the whaling industry, and the De Wetshuis Photo Museum houses an exhibition of photos by T D Ravenscroft that depicts the history of Hermanus. The Whale Museum houses a skeleton of a whale and an shows an audio-visual presentation of whales and dolphins twice daily.

Hermanus lies along Walker Bay on the south coast of the Western Cape. It is located about 115 km southeast of Cape Town and is connected to the Mother City by the R43 highway (or coastal R44 scenic route) and N2 motorway. The R43 continues to Cape Agulhas, the most southerly point of Africa. Hermanus is 40 km from Gansbaai, a famous spot where one can dive amongst the Great White Sharks. It is also notable that Hermanus still boasts a historic railway station building without a railway line. The founders of the town decided not to lay any tracks as this would have made Hermanus more commercial and felt that Hermanus needed to stay a small Fisherman's Village. To this day the locals still refer to it as "the village."

Facilities

The Space Science Directorate of the South African Space Agency, previously the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory (HMO), is a research facility of the National Research Foundation, and forms part of the worldwide network which monitors variations of the earth's magnetic field.
Hermanus Yacht Club is a popular yacht club in the Western Cape amongst the yachting community. It hosted the Laser (dinghy) 4.7 worlds in 2007
The Hermanus Golf Club in Eastcliff is one of the most beautiful golf courses in the country.
Hermanus is also famous to locals for its historic Windsor Hotel, Marine Hotel, various fishermen's cottages and old harbour.

Beaches

Grotto Beach is the largest beach in Hermanus and has also been proclaimed a "Blue Flag" beach which ensures its preservation as a world heritage site. Other beaches include Voëlklip, Onrus, Kammabaai and Langbaai.

Whales and whale-spotting

Hermanus has since August 1992 the world’s only Whale Crier (the first being Pieter Classen 1992-1998, then Wilson Salukazana 1998-2006, Zolile Baleni since April 2006 ) who sounds his kelp horn to announce where whales have been sighted. Zakes Mda wrote 2005 the novel The Whale Caller in which the Whale Crier of Hermanus is the main character, a man who gets enthralled by a Southern Right whale he names Sharisha.

Whale festival

Hermanus hosts an annual whale festival at the end of September, to celebrate the returning of the southern right whales to this bay during the calving and mating season. Prior to this main whale festival a "Kalfiefees" (or "Calf Festival") is held, to welcome the first whales (usually in August). Both festivals are characterised by food and craft stalls, environmental presentations and South African drama productions..

Around the town

The hinterland beyond the town is largely wild and mountainous and there are many remote areas of hills and wild ravines covered in pristine Cape 'Fynbos'. The rising thermals rising around the rugged heights of the Fernkloof Nature Reserve attract para gliders from all over the world.

Craft Markets

Various art/food/craft markets are held in and around Hermanus every weekend. In the centre of town is the Lemm's Corner Market where you can buy anything from clothes, art and food. The Food & Wine Market is at Hermanuspietersfontein in the Hamel-en-Aarde Village. The Hermanus Country Market is located at the cricket fields.

Disaster Alert as weather continues to lash Cape Town

Cape Town - Disaster officials are on high alert as winter weather continues to lash the Western Cape.

The SA Weather Service issued a warning for very rough seas between Table Bay and Port Alfred with waves of between 6m and 9m while gale force winds have also been forecast between Cape Point and Plettenberg Bay.

The cold front has brought with it heavy rain and strong winds.

“Heavy rain is expected in places over the Cape Metropole, Overberg, western and south-western parts of the Cape Winelands and the southern parts of the West Coast districts,” the SA Weather Service said.

Eyewitness News quoted Cape Town disaster risk management as saying almost 10 000 people affected by the weather have been helped.

Nearly 2 000 households, mainly situated in informal settlements, have already been flooded. Solomons-Johannes said more than R1.4m had been spent on providing aid to affected households.

The persistent rain is only expected to clear by Friday.


Cape Town - Emergency officials in Cape Town are on high alert on Tuesday following a warning by weather forecasters.
A series of cold fronts are expected to hit the Western Cape on Tuesday and Wednesday, resulting in a warning by the SA Weather Service of wet and windy conditions.
Heavy rain and gale-force winds were experienced in Cape Town on Tuesday morning.
The SABC reported that Cape Town disaster management officials are focusing on low-lying areas, and have been dispatched to areas where reports of flooding have been received.
The Cape Times reported on Tuesday that alerts for flooding and high seas had been issued and routine inspections would be undertaken.
Minimum temperatures in Cape Town are expected to range between 9 and 15°C on Tuesday. Rain is expected in Cape Town until Saturday.
The weather system is expected to spread eastwards over the rest of the country later in the week.

Anyone in need of assistance can phone the disaster risk management call centre on 0860 10 30 89.

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Die Plaaskombuis at Hemel en Aarde Valley Close to Hermanus

On a cold August winter morning driving through the "Hemel en Aarde Valley" just outside Hermanus it was a pleasant surprise to discover this new little treasure called Die Plaaskombuis. Coming from our farm in Tesselaarsdal, cold, hungry and urgently in need of good hot coffee we decided to pop in and have a look at the menu. The "stoep" with a mixture of old and new decor and fresh flowers from the farm was the first that caught my eye as we got out of the car.

We were greeted warmly at the door and when I say warmly I mean figural and literal. The fireplace and aroma of the kitchen blended well and I knew the minute that we stepped inside that we this will become a special place in my hart.







Our waitress "Samantha" served us with our coffee in no time and while we waited for our food we had a quick walk around and was very much dazzled by the stylish modern and somewhat nostalgic atmosphere of Die Plaaskombuis.

I was indeed impressed to hear that the owner Nita Lötter only opened the Plaaskombuis in May this year. (I also learned that she had no previous experience whatsoever in the restaurant trade.) 
As a good hostess should, she did her rounds at the tables and we had a brief conversation about the farm and her idea to start Die Plaaskombuis. One can only admire the positiveness and the energy that was put into this cozy little restaurant. 
                                                                                                                                             
 


"Die Soetkoekie" is a designated area where you can get the most mouthwatering cakes, muffins and pies.       





Die Plaaskombuis is very child friendly and there is a play area outside for children to enjoy.
You can buy some lovely herbs and plants from their garden or just sit on the "stoep" and enjoy the breathtaking views.
Die Plaaskombuis trade only during daytime.
Bookings are essential for Saturdays and Sundays.
You can contact Nita 073 230 0788