"The end of a chapter" a Mossel Bay Travel Page by Vaughanie

The Garden Route was the last stage of our Africa Trip and probably the easiest as we hired a car for it. For the first time in Africa we could do what we wanted, when we wanted and it felt good. It was a real luxury after the truck tour and hitching waiting for some poor sod to be nice enough to give us a lift.
The route itself is wedged between the Indian Ocean and the Tsitsikamma Range and is extremely picturesque. It is littered with woodland and bordered by lagoons. Beaches are sandy and the sea good for surfers. Thus it is pretty heavily used by tourists, but we were happy enough to share it with a few others.
It’s a pretty easy drive through and we were soon away stopping when we fancied and staying over night in a few beautiful spots. The forest around Wilderness was a real highlight of the trip as we managed quite a long walk along the river and through the forest. We also stayed on an island near Plettenberg Bay and went swinging through the tree tops attached to a wire and a harness, which was great fun of course.
And thus ended our 9 week trip of Africa. We were amazed at how quickly the time passed. How diverse this continent was. We saw rainforests and desert. White sandy beaches and tropical islands. Dry vast plains and lush rolling hills. And of course the animals in their natural habitat, which makes it all the more special. I will never go to a zoo again. The people of Africa are inspiring. Their land is harsh and they are forced to survive in remarkable circumstances. It makes you grateful for where you were born – the opportunities I was given purely from the country I was born in are immense and Africa sure makes you realise this. I can’t wait for my next trip