Indice dei contenuti per June 2023 in Getaway

In March 2021, the brakes on my husband Alex's bike failed as he was riding down Chapman's Peak towards Noordhoek, causing it to momentarily leave the ground and then crash-land on its right side, dragging him violently across the tarmac and smashing him into the wall on the opposite side of the road. A fellow cyclist phoned me, and I rushed to the scene, where an ambulance crew had arrived. Alex was conscious, even joking – must've been the morphine – paramedics had wrapped a bandage around his head, ketchup-red blood was splattered on his helmet, and the front wheel of his bike was a crumpled mess of misshapen spokes. Though his injuries were severe, a smashed shoulder and a starfish-shaped tear on his forehead requiring surgery among them, the…

DESPATCHES Food THE ORANGERIE, LE LUDE, FRANSCHHOEK Le Lude will always be a favourite wine farm among Cap Classique lovers, and it's in their chic restaurant where you'll feel exquisitely French. The Orangerie specialises in fine French cuisine, and chef Nicolene Barrow uses traditional recipes with a modern twist to elevate locally sourced sustainable ingredients. The a la minute baked Gruyere souffle with crisp celery and apple salad is deliciously indulgent and delightfully fresh. The souffle, one of the lightest I've had in South Africa, has a sharper flavour than I anticipated – a welcome surprise. And coupled with crunchy apple and celery – with just the right amount of sweet and bitter – it's a revelation in soft, hard, creamy, sweet and savoury. A must-have. And no one should…

Travel and Destination Have you been to some distant shores with a camera in hand? Have you travelled to Mongolia in winter, Ireland in summer or Paternoster in spring? If you haven't travelled afar, don't be deterred, we're more interested in the image than the location. Drone and Landscape Photography With drone photography on the rise and the quality of landscape photography in South Africa particularly impressive, this is the place to see what bangers local talent is capturing. Wildlife Anything from feathers to fangs, our Getaway readers have been producing world-class wildlife images for more than 30 years. People and Culture Documentary photography is a challenging prospect but it is vital in telling important stories. What story do you want to tell and can you tell it in a…

TRAVEL Mountain Biking When it comes to mountain biking the trails less travelled often deliver the sweetest rides. Think of them as the B-sides to bucket list routes other riders post on Instagram but have never had the pleasure (or guts) to experience. Let's get a few things straight before you saddle up, though. These trails you're about to mind ride may be off the grid and less than perfectly groomed, and, chances are, you'll have to cope with snakes, thorns and the occasional wild beastie. But then, you're not a scaredy-cat, are you? That's a good thing because I'm going to dump you right at the deep end, starting with a delirious arid adventure in the Richtersveld mountain desert. Delirious because it's night-time, with a low-hanging full moon casting…

MIDDELWATER FARM HOTEL On their farm outside Bloemfontein, on the road to Brandfort, an enterprising couple has established Be Human, a project incorporating this handsome three-room hotel, a restaurant, bar, wedding venue, and range of family-friendly activities, including a Saturday market and deli, quad-bike rides, and a waterslide and jumping castle for kids. There's also a slick little backpackers’, with one en-suite room, eight two-sleeper containers with access to shared bathrooms and a communal kitchen, and a dorm with eight beds. It's a tranquil and satisfying alternative to the city, with a gracious countryside atmosphere, great food, and farm animals. From R725 pps pn in the hotel, including breakfast; R198 pps pn in an en-suite room in the backpackers’ 082 262 3463, be-human.co.za DE STIJL GARIEP HOTEL While the hetel…

A flash flood, a lost hat and a railway line; humble beginnings has Hoedspruit. Now on every safari-goer's radar, Hoedspruit was once an obscure little Lowveld town with not much in the way of entertainment, besides the old Fort Coepieba pub where a local or two were known to shoot the clock at closing time. But its proximity to the Kruger National Park, the Blyde River Canyon, and the rest of the Greater Kruger and Lowveld make it the perfect place to spend the weekend, en route to the Kruger or not. Hoedspruit was named by Dawid Johannes Joubert in 1844, the owner of the farm where the town is now. He decided this after a massive cloudburst over the catchment area near Mariepskop, what is now called the Zandspruit…

1 Don't overpack. When you are taking different modes of transport every day, no one cares if you wear the same shirt two days in a row. 2 Carry US dollars, and change into local currency as you go along. And don't trust the informal currency traders at the borders! 3 Avoid eating meat. Rather have fish, especially in a place like Malawi where you can watch the fishermen catch it. 4 Drink bottled water, and carry it with you. 5 Talk to the person next to you. Locals know the best places to go, what to do, where to eat and where to sleep!…

PHOTOGRAPHY Portfolio Daisy Gilardini IUCN status: Vulnerable Wapusk National Park, Manitoba, Canada Marsel van Oosten IUCN status: Endangered Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia Sujuaan Gasim IUCN status: Endangered Nagarahole Tiger Reserve, India Lucas Bustamante IUCN status: Critically endangered Santa Barbara Park, Ecuador Graeme Green IUCN status: Vulnerable Ruaha National Park, Tanzania Magnus Lundgren IUCN status: Endangered The Azores, Portugal Marcus Westberg IUCN status: Vulnerable Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa FOLLOW US NEED MORE INFO? For interviews, articles, podcasts, photo galleries and a free educational Fun Pack for children, see Newbig5.com ®newbig5project Graeme Green IUCN Status: Endangered Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Kevin Morgans IUCN status: Vulnerable Hermaness National Nature Reserve, Unst, Shetland…

REGIONAL De Hoop Nature Reserve Skittish Cape zebra gave way as I drove slowly along the gravel road to my home for the next few nights, while scatterings of bontebok grazed unperturbed on a large patch of grass nearby. I was staying in one of De Hoop Collection's plush Cloete Suites, in the historical homestead section on the reserve. I was briefly tempted to flop onto the four-poster bed to read after unpacking my things, but the outdoors beckoned. The reserve – a World Heritage Site, positioned at the southernmost tip of Africa, along the Agulhas Bank – isn't only known for its birdlife and coastal fynbos, but for the protected ocean playground that draws southern right whales to mate and calve each year. I strolled to reception to enquire…

UB40 FEATURING ALI CAMPBELL 1-2 June DURBAN ICC The band that introduced reggae music to Europe and brought it into your home with hits like Red, Red Wine and (I Can't Help) Falling in love With You is coming to South Africa. And while many South Africans bemoan the fact that all the big stars only visit Cape Town and Johannesburg, UB40 are coming to you, Durban! Ali Campbell, legendary lead singer of UB40, is back with the band and ready to rock us with iconic reggae pop music everyone can enjoy. Catch them live at the Durban ICC on Thursday 1 June and Friday 2 June. ‘We'll always play the classics but we like to change the beginning and end of the show,’ said Campbell. ‘We'll play Lean On…

PHOTOGRAPHY Gallery AFRICA'S PREMIER PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION FINALIST Category: Street Lazy Sundays We were driving from Porto-Novo to Abomey in Benin when we came across an Egungun masquerade ceremony by the road. The Egungun masks represent the ancestors who can praise or punish their living relatives depending on whether they have been honoured. Lucy Gemmill, Johannesburg Nikon D850; Nikon 50mm; f/5.6; ISO 400; 1/1 320s FINALIST Category: Landscape Gydo Pass Travelling through the Koue Bokkeveld, we landed on top of the Gydo Pass and witnessed these majestic snowcovered mountains. The scale of these is made evident by the lone car travelling down the winding road. Retha Wepener, Cape Town Nikon Z5; 24-70; f11; ISO 100; l/100s FINALIST Category; Wildlife The Chase On an afternoon game drive along the Klaserie River, you…

FIELD NOTES | Tiger Sharks I first encountered tiger sharks on Aliwal Shoal in Durban. On a warm day, above 20°C, save for a slight breeze, typical of this part of the world, where winter isn't true to the word, I sat in a boat with photographers and shark experts, drifting on a gentle current — waiting. One black-tipped fin, then two, three and four appeared, and like a pack of terriers, a shiver of blacktip sharks dashed at sardines thrown into the water, their bright silver sides playing with the light. They seemed oblivious to their beauty, intent on not missing a snack. I pulled on my fins, positioned my mask and dropped softly into the water. At once, their black tips parted, allowing me to pass. To them,…

TRAVEL Cross-country by Ford Ranger On road trips, anything can happen. Often weird and pretty out-there things, too. Like when you find yourself at one of those generic-looking petrol stations somewhere between Joburg and Bloemfontein sipping a tepid Wimpy Americano while your co-driver, who happens to be a Cape Town coffee evangelist who has trained world-champion baristas and carries his own brand of ground beans in his luggage, watches in disgust, despairing eyebrow raised. I was surrounded by a bunch of motoring hacks and a fleet of fresh-off-the-production-line nextgeneration Ford Rangers. Almost everyone in our convoy was swigging similarly lacklustre lattes and frightful flat whites – never mind the oily chips and burgers and soggy toasted sarmies being wolfed down. We were on a mission, though, coffee quality a lesser…

BACK PAGES World Wide Weird Caught in the Web Bison bounce back Deb Haaland, the first Native American to serve as a US cabinet secretary, has ordered the return of bison to tribal lands and the restoration of the grasslands they depend on to reconnect the powerful sacred animal to its natural habitat, returning stewardship to the original caretakers. American bison, also known as buffalo, were almost driven to extinction in the 1800s due to commercial hunting. As many as 60 million bison once roamed North America and were central to the culture and survival of numerous Native American groups. Today, while the bison population has bounced back, the animals remain absent from most of the grasslands they once occupied, and many tribes have struggled to restore their deep historical…